Show Them Off
Take a cue from the flowers, and keep your containers in the same color palette. Paint terra-cotta pots and saucers white; green leaves appear brighter, and blossoms sparkle against them. A quick coat of spray paint does the trick; be sure to cover the saucers completely with paint.
Make miniature vases for cut flowers by covering small jars with delicate rice paper. A piece of double-stick tape will hold it in place, and a silk cord tied around each one turns something simple into elegant. Small vases require few flowers, so an arrangement can be inexpensive as well as easy. Use one type of flower in each jar, then group the containers on a pretty tray.
For a more informal assembly, use rounds of white birch bark to cover pots of candytuft, Christmas rose, and crocus. Bulbs in pebbles and water have a dressed-down look, appropriate both indoors and out. If you use soil-grown bulbs and want the casual appearance of pebbles instead, shake the soil free, and rinse any remaining residue from the roots. Then tuck each bulb into an antique jelly jar or ice-cream dish with pebbles, and add water.
Winter is the season to enjoy a pause from the hurried past, and to catch a breath before spring. White flowers are a lovely promise of this simple season.
Cut Flowers
For variety, purchase cut stems from a flower shop. There are numerous choices to fit the season, so try a few of each.
- ranunculus
- star of Bethlehem
- amaryllis
- baby's breath
- dendrobium orchid
"Winter White" is from the January 2001 issue of Southern Living.
