Peacock Courtship: wedding bouquet on a budget

I thought it would be fun to show how cheaply I could make an extravagant wedding bouquet with just a  few unusual elements to give it a wow factor.   The total estimate for this bouquet is AUD$35/ USD$35/ GBP£21.

I found these lovely peacock feathers the other day and they really are magical.  I love their 'eyes', made up of azure blue, island sea turquoise and regal purple.  Male peacocks use these feathers to court female peacocks, so I think they are a perfect inclusion in a wedding procession.

Bento Box Blooms: a floral centrepiece

This is a variation on the Jane Packer Bento Box (Japanese lunch box) design I learnt at her flower school in London, using plants from the garden and the New Covent Garden Market.  It is such a cute idea - very visually appealing and sure to illicet "oohs" and "ahhs" from its recipients. 

Branching Out! floral vase arrangement

I thought the easiest and most effective project to start with would be a vase arrangement with lots of help from branches I picked up from around our back yard - after a really windy weekend!

Small branches and twigs help space out and hold the flower design.  You can fiddle and tweak as much as you like and they will stay in place without having to start over again if you're not quite satisfied with the look.

One way ticket to London

Bond Street, London: Frankelin D Roosevelt and Winston Churchill discuss war, peace and wedding anniversaries (Winston seems to approve of my first bouquet from floristry school). 

My darling husband came home from work one evening just over a year ago to find me fussing over my flowers yet again.  I hadn't done any housework, the floor was littered with leaves and I had that manic look in my eyes... even the flowers looked traumatised.  

"You're just a frustrated florist."

Little did he know that his throwaway comment would have me booking a one way ticket to London within the week.  Never one to do anything by halves, I jumped on the first available flight and applied to the internationally renowned Jane Packer Flower School.