Turn Cheap Into Charming: Supermarket Bouquets

From the last glance of my retirement savings, we are still in a financial crisis/depression/generally poor economy. The much touted economic recovery may be here for months before anyone actually starts spending again. We’re still cutting back, focusing on the necessities and less on luxuries. But there are certain life luxuries that you cannot do without. Thus, you go for discount brands and bargains in an attempt to gain that same euphoria at half the price.

As you no doubt have learned, I’m not much of a nature girl. The garden was a stretch and I am happy to report that nothing has died yet, though there was a close call my week away on vacation. In a similar vein, I’ve found a certain zen-like euphoria for fresh cut flowers in the house. I’m as good of a flower arranger as I am a gardener.  And the beautiful arrangements from the farmer’s market and Whole Foods leave too big of a dent in my porous recessionista budget.

So, along with some inspiration and tips from Ednita Tingle from Atlanta’s Roots and Blooms (pictured above), I am now taking a second look at supermarket bouquets.

Yes, upon first blush it can appear to be like buying off-brand supermarket catsup instead of Heinz. However, after further research (a 2 minute Internet search on Google), I stumbled on an article from Real Simple magazine on turning supermarket flowers into “beautiful bouquets.”

Your supermarket stocks fresh-cut flowers that cost a fraction of what the florist charges, but the bouquets lack grace and style. If you take apart those banal bunches of blooms, however, and remember a few quick lessons, you’ll be able to transform the most common supermarket flowers into charming centerpieces.

And the centerpieces look pretty good, especially to a novice like me.

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