fool the eye spring flowers

We all love bringing beautiful blooms home from the nursery, don't we?!
Their happy colors bouncing on long stalks bring energy and life to our surroundings.

I had this pot of GORGEOUS yellow tulips - which you saw in the photo below in a recent post.

And then the Santa Ana winds blew. I think the yellow tulip petals all ended up in the Pacific Ocean.

And the potted tulip looked like THIS:

Well, as a stylist who has had to come up with instant solutions on a budget for client event decor, 

I have a fail-proof tip for making bulbs RE-bloom. In the SAME SEASON:

FAKE IT!

Yep.... use fake flowers.  

You just have to use them in a way that no one notices!

Here's what you do:

 * Grab some decent quality silk tulips in your favorite color.

* Strip the leaves from the stems, and bend the stems rather haphazardly to look natural.

* Insert the stems into the REAL FOLIAGE still in the plant pot.

[I stuck these down on the lowest tier of leaves, right up next to the real stem.

You can see the top of the real stem in the photo - I cut that down as low as I could after the shot.]

Five minutes later, you end up with a rather convincing blooming potted tulip:

I don't recommend this for table centerpieces, 

as they are too close to the viewers' eyes to pull off the fakery with class.

It's a GREAT solution for florals that will be located 

on a stage, at an entrance, or in a photo set backdrop.
Since the foliage is real, the flowers fool the eye into thinking THEY are real, too.

I used to tuck REALLY nice faux roses into the backs of large arrangements for events,

to help fill out the form and help the budget along (they can be re-used!).
I'm talking million-dollar events at wineries, photographed by media.

No one EVER noticed the fakes!

Last Spring, I shared another 'bloomin' flower secret'

and my tips on creating vintage-look faux flowers

shared online:

Cupcakes & Crinoline | Project Inspire{d}

Pink Holiday

So, if you're a Shabby girl and have a pale pastel color scheme in your home,

how do you escape the abundance of red and green in the store decor aisles?

Get inspired by the elegant pink, white and gold color palette of this display...

and then head to vintage stores to go shopping! 

This GORGEOUS setting was a photo booth,

 set up at the recent Vintage Marketplace Show in Southern California.

[Props provided by 'Touched by Time' Vintage Rentals

Styling by Deborah Watts of 'Blossoms Vintage Chic' & Monique Hemminger]

I don't think too many words are necessary here...

just sit back and enjoy the beauty of vintage, second-hand, found, and heirloom items

combined into a stunningly feminine and glamorous Holiday decor scheme!

 [inserting a word or two here: the photo above is my favorite image from this series!]

The photos below were snapped in show hostess Rita Reade's booth, 'Mammabellarte':

... from big props and large visual effects to tiny details, 

incorporating your favorite hues into your Holiday decor is as simple as

letting your existing decor lead the way!

shared online:

OPC & TBH | The Humble Brag