You don’t need to be a floral designer or have any knowledge of floral arranging to create pretty arrangements with fall leaves. Let’s walk through together How to Make Effortless Beautiful Arrangements with Fall Leaves.
We have a lot of beautiful trees on our property thanks to the former owners.
Select a vessel that suits the size and shape of the leaf. Have a squirt bottle filled with water on hand, clippers, and chlorox. Put a few drops of chlorox in your container before filling with water. This will keep the bacteria level down and make the leaves last longer. Squirt the leaves with water as you go to keep from wilting (especially if it is 105 like yesterday)
Gather your leaves. We have grapes planted in the kitchen garden area and the leaves are in abundance right now. For some reason, grape leaves last forever in the vase.
Our courtyard fountain area is the perfect place to arrange flowers or leaves. I can submerge the flowers in the water immediately. I love this old urn-shaped basket. A cylindrical floral vase fits perfectly inside it. Immediately trim off the lower leaves and trim stalks to size. There is really no particular art to doing this. Just vary the sizes and when you are happy with the result quit. Make sure you leave some “negative space” so you can appreciate the structure of the individual leaves. Otherwise, it will just look like a big mess. It is easy to do that.
I really enjoy these grape leaf arrangements on my coffee table. The room has really high ceilings and the height brings the ceiling down a bit.
The nandina (heavenly bamboo) behind our fence has begun to turn, so I gathered some of the leaves. We had trimmed them back right after we moved in because you couldn’t see the fence, so they are a nice “squatty” size. I chose this blue vase (a goodwill find) because these leaves are not very long and would look funny in a taller vase. I love how the autumnal color of the leaves compliment the color of the vase.
Here is the finished bouquet on my kitchen table. I love how the vase and leaves pick up the color of the pillows on the banquette.
There are several beautiful Japanese maples on the property. I love the ethereal quality of the leaves and how the vessel compliments and reflects the leaves. I have several sizes of these Hungarian pickling jars that I have purchased from Patine and Atelier de Champagne. I highly recommend purchasing a few different sizes. You have seen me use them in this post, Simple Ways to add Fall to Your Home, Seven Fall Tablescapes Your Guests will Love, and Simple Flower Arrangements you can Create from your Garden.
The finished arrangement on the buffet, behind our dining room table. These arrangements are a little trickier to do because of their structure, but just take your time and don’t get frustrated.
Lastly, don’t forget to use the leftover leaves that weren’t quite right for the original bouquets. You can tuck them into your napkin rings, or use them for place cards. The possibilities are endless. You can also create a simple bottle tablescape. All you need are various sizes of empty bottles, water, and your leaves.
The finished arrangement on the table. If you would like to create a bottle tablescape you might enjoy this post Easy to Create Spring Bottle Tablescape.
SHOP FAVORITE VASES & VESSELS
https://creator.shopltk.com/web/apps/shopthepost?v=1
If you are looking for pretty vases and vessels:
CRATE AND BARREL VESSELS
POTTERY BARN VESSELS
TARGET HAS SOME GREAT REASONABLY PRICED OPTIONS HERE
If you enjoy arranging and creating uncomplicated arrangements you might enjoy my post How to Arrange Flowers Simply and Beautifully. If you feel “floral arrangement” challenged, don’t be afraid to try these, anyone can create beautiful arrangements out of fall leaves. Shop flea markets and garage sales for great vessels and vases. Thank you for reading, How to Make Effortless Beautiful Arrangements with Fall Leaves. I will be back on Thursday with Jennifer from A Well Styled Life for our monthly Over 50 Fashion Edit. We will be talking about fall jackets and how to style them.
oh what a plethora of beautiful branches! I have palm leaves on our island right now. Not much Fall here yet.
Hi Mary Ann
Palm leaves are always good!
Cindy,
I love nature’s bounty. The clippings you feature are beautiful and definitely make me think of the upcoming season. I will have to walk around the neighborhood and search for some cuttings. 🙂
It shouldn’t be too much longer before we can expect some cooler temperatures. (Fingers crossed).
Karen B.
Hi Karen
Yes the nights are getting cooler. It always cools off at night here, that is what we love about the weather here.
Cindy thank you so much for the link to the small vases….and they are on sale! Love the leaves and fall is my favorite time of year. You always have the best ideas that really don’t cost a lot but have a major impact in a room.
Hi Sharon
Aren’t there some fabulous vases right now? I am always tempted, but slap my hands!!
Very nice Cindy! I love to get the creative juices flowing as the season turns! It’s so nice to use what you have too!
I love the simple grape leaves in the rustic container. Beautiful arrangements, great ideas! Thanks!
absolutely gorgeous, organic and perfect for your new home! Thank you for the inspiration!
Cindy! Wow, you are so talented. I love how organic this is and the colors mixed with wicker and even the soda bottles….I adore it all. I love the shot of you at work….looking gorgeous!
xoxo
annie
Annie
You are the one that made me do it!!
Isn’t it great that you can go into your own garden and create such simple but beautiful bouquets from foliage? You have a feel for arranging, just another gift that you are blessed with.
The courtyard fountain is outstanding and the urn shaped basket looks perfect on your coffee table.
Thank you for sharing your creations.
You are so talented! These look fabulous. I’m looking forward to our leaves turning so I can give this a try.
Thank you Jennier!
You sly fox!
On Sunday I am reminding you about displaying grape leaves and you know all about this.
What is the measurements on your picking jar?
Thanks for sharing with me.
Tell me the story of the dear little shoes/boots.
Keep the.post coming!!!
It’s easy peasey!
Love the patchwork apron! Can I ask where you got it? 🙂
Hi Deb
My daughter brought it back from Positano many years ago!
I love your organic way of decorating–great inspiration for me! Thank you.
Hi Barbara
I am so happy to hear that.
Cindy,
You have inspired me. We have many of the same leaves in our garden. I also put a little bleach in the water to keep them fresher. I was hoping you would show an arrangement with the square glass container. I have one and often have trouble using it. I will be taking cuttings today! Thank you
H Cristi
Bleach works great no need to buy the expensive floral solution. I will send you some options in the square floral containers. I will try and put one together on Instagram too.
Your arrangements are just gorgeous, Cindy. You certainly have a wonderful array of foliage to make them.
Hi Gail
The former owners planted some beautiful trees lucky for us!