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Bouquet of the Week: Furry Flowers!

As part of our recurring Bouquet of the Week series, Garden Collage continues to present a weekly inspirational bouquet that incorporates intriguing new elements into the traditional practice of flower arranging. This week, Garden Collage styles a textured bouquet that draws on elements of “furry” cockscomb flowers.

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I love when I get the opportunity to curate something for the Bouquet of the Week series because it gives me a chance to flex some creativity and experiment with flowers I would otherwise never buy.

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Cockscomb is a flower I’ve always seen around at farmers markets, boutiques, and at little farm stands I’ve encountered in my travels, but I’ve never purchased any. I wasn’t even really sure of its name until this week when I was at the Union Square Farmers Market and I saw a variety of bright pink blooms (can you even call them that?! They’re so soft…) and it felt like they were calling my name.

A sign posted above the flower stand said “the bees come free”, and I noticed at that moment that there were dozens of bees swarming around the table full of bright furry colors. It wasn’t a formidable swarm, though– there was just this feeling that these flowers were somehow good for the environment, without spray, and the bees wanted to be there. (Ecologists say we should all plant more colorful flowers because they support our fragile bee population with their pollen.)

I typically shy away from flamboyant colors when it comes to design, but I decided to go all out and buy a variety of autumnal tones that might just be crazy enough to work together. I realized immediately that these deep aubergines and magenta colors would match absolutely nothing in my apartment, but then I realized that if I paired down the brightness with an earthen, wooden basket that I had lying around in my living room, it might work. I took the flowers home and simply tossed them in the basket in this organic, messy way. The structure of the basket paired with the soft filigree of the flowers perfectly… I love when that happens.

Editor’s Note: How To Dry Cockscomb

Hang the bunch upside-down for at least two months in a well-ventilated area that is cool and dark (an attic or dark shed is ideal). After the entire mass dries, turn the bouquet upright and place it in a vase away from sunlight. You may occasionally want to dust the bundle as the furry fronds can sometimes collect lint– otherwise, these flowers will last you for 10 years!

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