How to Make Flower Perservative

Flower preservative is that little sachet of white powder that comes attached to many store brought bouquets, but what should you do if your flowers don't come with any preservative or your florist forgets to give you some? Try this simple recipe to keep your blooms lasting longer?

Homemade Flower Preservative
1 teaspoon of sugar
1 teaspoon of household bleach
2 teaspoons of lemon juice

Dissolve all the ingredients in one quart of warm water.  If your arrangement needs more water then double the ingredient quantities and the the amount of water.

How does this work?  Each ingredient has a specific job to keep the flowers lasting longer.  Sugar provides the nutrition the flowers would normally get from the soil via the roots, bleach ensures the water remains clean and the lemon juice keeps the solution acidic which helps with the uptake of water. 

Don't forget to change the water every few days and mist occasionally.

Let me know in the comments below if you have any other tips for extending the life of your cut flowers. 

Library of Flowers by Margot Elena

I love discovering new-to-me products and brands.  Library of Flowers makes my heart skip a beat.  Everything from the name, to the floral scent and the whimsical hand drawn packaging is perfect for the flower lover.

What is Matcha Tea?

What exactly is matcha tea? I have tried many teas but must admit I have never had matcha.  I found some interesting information about the antioxidant properties of this tea over at matchasource.com.

So why and how is matcha so much better for you than other teas?  

Firstly the whole leaf of the tea plant is used with matcha.  The entire leaf is ground to a bright green powder and the whole thing is ingested.  Matcha literally means 'powdered tea'.  And by the way, the brighter green the powder, the better the quality of tea.

Secondly, although matcha comes from the same plant as all other teas it is grown slightly differently.  The final few weeks before harvesting the plants are covered with opaque sheeting to prevent light getting to the leaves.  This encourages the plant to start pumping out huge amounts of chlorophyll and amino acids.  These are the chemical compounds that prevent aging and chronic diseases.

You would need to drink at least ten cups of regular green tea to consume the same amount of antioxidants as one cup of matcha as illustrated in the graphics below.

 I have now added matcha to my daily routine by adding it to my morning jasmine tea.  

Are you a matcha drinker?  How do you take yours?  Before you go, leave a comment below... 

The banner below contains my affiliate link and will take you to matchasource.com and provide you with more information regarding matcha tea.  If you buy from this site I may (or may not) get paid at no extra cost to you.  Thank you for your support! 

The Florette: A Mobile Flower Shop

I love this business idea!  This is The Florette a mobile flower shop using only American grown flowers.   

 
The Florette is  the creation of Jenna Martin in Phoenix Arizona that I discovered via Field to Vase run by Christina Stembel of FarmGirl Flowers.

Both sites are full of floral inspiration and information on domestically grown flowers.

Happy Browsing!

Which Color Will Win?

Back in September Pantone released their fashion color predictions for 2017.

One of the things that we saw this year, was a renewed sense of imagination in which color was appearing in context that was different than the traditional," said Leatrice Eiseman, Executive Director of the Pantone Color Institute. "Reminiscent of the hues that surround us in nature, our Spring 2017 Fashion Color Report evokes a spectrum of emotion and feeling. From the warmth of sunny days with PANTONE 13-0755 Primrose Yellow to the invigorating feeling of breathing fresh mountain air with PANTONE 18-0107 Kale and the desire to escape to pristine waters with PANTONE 14-4620 Island Paradise, designers applied color in playful, yet thoughtful and precise combinations to fully capture the promises, hope and transformation that we yearn for each Spring.

As we creep closer to December bloggers are all anticipating which one (if any) will be the color for 2017.  Vogue have their money on kale, but I have everything crossed that it's going to be primrose yellow and greenery.

What do you think of the Pantone color selection?  Do you have any favorites or strong dislikes?  Let me know in the comments below.

Botanic Art Inspiration

I love browsing Etsy for botanical inspiration.  There are so many talented artists out there.

Here is a small selection of the amazing artwork I found.  I hope some of these will be new artists to you, I know they are new to me.  I think these prints would add elegance to any room.

By the way, if you click on the image, my Etsy affiliate link will take you directly to the artist's Etsy store.

by Kate Knot

 

Blue Shed Studio

By Slav Art

Cone Flowers and Bumble Bee By Red Briar Studio

By Espero Art

My Giant Strawberry Art

Rose Bouquet Carry All Pouch at Society6

I love these new carry all pouches Society6 has added to the store.  I've updated my store - there are now lots of flowery carry all pouches available...