Florals in my livingroom, sofa table off the foyer. Click to enlarge all pics.
I’m glad you all enjoyed my yardsale finds for this week! It’s always fun to share them with you…and ya’ll really appreciate a good bargain, I can just tell! LOL
Over the years, I’ve been involved in many decorating boards & have seen many discussions on real vs. faux plants & there seems to be a lot of differing opinions on this subject, so I thought that would be a great thing for us to talk about. I have both real & fake plants in my house & have been completely content with that for many years, but recently have begun to wonder if I have “too” many fake ones. Maybe it’s time to rethink this. I made all of my arrangements & some of them are over 10 years old & while I still like them very much, perhaps it’s time to change some of them.
I really need to get my magazines out & pay closer attention to what they are doing in there now. I know lots of photo shoots have real flowers in them, but you wonder what the homeowners do all the time…every day. It would be nice to have real flowers everywhere, but that’s not practical either(or realistic $$ wise). But, this is the real world, so what do we do when we want some texture & life that plants inject in a room?
So, what do you do in your home? Real or fake…I’d love to know! Now ugly silk flowers, I just can’t stomach either, but I’m sure if some real designers walked in my house, many of them would probably poo-poo my fake plants…I’m sure of it.
This one I made many years ago too & it’s in my livingroom. I probably do have too many, now that I think about it, but what do you put in their place? I can’t imagine taking out all the greenery, it would feel so cold & sterile. My livingroom has a floral needlepoint rug, muted colors & these arrangements fit in there so well colorwise.
These 2 iron urns are on the coffeetable with fake plants too.
I made 2 of these sconces a few years ago & this is all dried material. I still like them too, with the artichokes & pomegranites & feathers. These colors work well with the painting here. I love Mary Carol Garrity’s style & notice that she uses lots of dried floral material. I’m trying to use more of that too & nothing garish or really fakey looking. I think I’ve succeeded at that,
at least I hope I have. This is an iron base with more pomegranites & artichokes & feathers. I still like it…and if this wasn’t here, what then? I’d love to hear from all of you…is there something else that gives life to a room other than greenery or flowers?
Ivy topiary I made several years ago too & it’s on a wall sconce seen from the foyer.
Tin container in the diningroom with more greenery & berries.
Large silk palm in the livingroom..this really adds some drama, so I’m sure I won’t change it out. I’d love to do a real one, but I’ve heard they are pretty temperamental to keep going indoors. That’s the main reason I do mostly fakes…real ones require quite a bit of care to keep them pretty.
Faux forsythia in a tin on my desk. These really look real, but of course, forsythia only blooms in the spring.
And here are some of my real plants. In the foyer, this iron basket is hanging on the wall.
And this floor planter is just inside the front door, also real. The ivy in this one is really taking off. This planter was a yardsale find for $5 last year.
Downstairs in the den is another peace lilly.
And I have several African violets in the laundryroom.
Nunnie's Attic says
Well since I kill potted live plants, I love the faux ones. The only plant I haven’t killed actually is the impatien. I have swags and dried flowers and ivy in every room (except the boys bedroom.) I don’t have a lot, just here and there. My wedding bouquet sits on display in dining room and that has roses and magnolias, ivy and glass grapes in it. Of course now I have fall leaves and mums sitting around.
Love,
Julie
Nunnie's Attic says
And BTW, I’m not poo-pooing at your displays. They’re beautiful.
Love,
Julie
PAT says
Hi Rhoda…I think it’s quite alright to use faux/silk flowers. I have a wonderful source for great silks at reasonable prices. So that makes me a happy camper.
I’m aware of fresh flowers and fruits and vegetable used for photoshoots and it always looks fabulous. I can understand why this is done. But I certainly could not afford to keep fresh flowers all the time. I do pick up grocery store bouquets quite often. They last a couple of weeks and don’t cost a bundle.
We have a few living plants indoors, as well. That’s J’s forte. I tend to stay away from them, because I would probably kill them with kindness or neglect or something!
You have some great arrangements. I make all my arrangements too, except for the great, red tag, deal I got last winter. From time to time, I take them apart and rework them. A sort of use what I have approach to florals, but with a change or two.
Pat
Michelle says
We as a retired military family, I rarely had living plants in the house since we couldn’t transport them easily. Now that we’re retired, I have a mixture of both. For many reasons (money, ease of care, variety) I prefer artificial but I like my tropical plants (Plumeria, Antherium and orchids) and I keep an herb garden indoors.
The floral arrangements in your home are beautiful!
Kari & Kijsa says
Love your plant arrangements (a little feathers make them FABULOUS!) Thanks for the fall inspiration!
blessings, kari and kijsa
ValleyGirl says
Well, coming from a complete BLACK-thumb (meaning I’ve managed to kill pretty much every plant I’ve ever tried to keep in the house — or outside, for that matter!) I’m a big fan of faux flowers and plants. Obviously, there’s varying degrees of quality, but your plants are all really great looking. After 10 years, I can see how you’d maybe be looking for a change, but seriously, if it ain’t broke, why fix it?!
Michelle says
Hey Rhoda,
I definitely think it comes down to personal taste, really. I LOVE all of your arrangements and I think they look very classy – not cheap looking like I have seen in different homes. You are very gifted in the art of floral arrangements – silks & dried!
Personally, I only have one live peace lily at my house and I can’t tell ya how many times I’ve forgotten to water it! (I’m thankful it always bounces back, though :)So, I know I’m not exactly a good candidate for REAL plants! LOL Everything else in my house is silk or dried…
Have a beautiful day!
Bonnie says
Hi Rhoda……..You know I had a garage sale when we built & started out fresh but I did keep some flowers (faux)like the DR table arrangement that a designer at interior’s store did for my other house. I just added some red roses to it & took out the peach colored flowers to change it. I am looking for some beautiful new ones like you right now but am having problems finding them. Looks like I may have to do my own & copy pictures. Pat was kind enough to post one of hers for me to copy. I think all of yours still look lovely and you might could just rework some new colors or textures to them to change them if you are tired of them the way they are. YOu have a beautiful home & a great decorating eye! Bonnie
Francie of The Scented Cottage says
Well, I am not surprised at the lovely arrangements you made…:)
if you really don’t want them anymore you can send them on to me LOL.
Myself, I have a mixture. I have some silk floral arrangements I LOVE and they make me happy when I look at them…and the big bonus is they don’t die. I say do what makes YOU happy, after all it’s your home.
Don’t let a supposed “expert” tell you how to live or what to do…do what pleases you…
Alice says
Your arrangements are gorgeous. I have a mix of live and fake flowers throughout my home. For my kitchen table and my desk I pick up cut flowers from the farmers’ market each week.
When I was a kid, plastic artificial flowers were all the fashion. My grandmother had a little bouquet of plastic violets that I absolutely adored back then. Thankfully the age of plastic flowers has passed.
Cre8Tiva says
yours are beautiful…i have real flowers in the great room and on my bedside table…i change each sunday…i have dried hydrangea on my dining table…then loads of real plants that live on the lanai about 10 months a year and inside the rest…i do have a few silk green plants in high places that make it impractical to water…blessings, rebecca
Sandi @the WhistleStop Cafe says
Rhoda~ I am doing the centerpiece of the month next month… this would make a fun entry (hint-hint)
Steph says
I have two cats that will eat most any green plant! So, to keep them alive, I have mostly all silk greenery! I always buy high quality and I think that makes a difference! In fact one day, years ago, someone was housesitting and tried to water some of the fakes!
If I want color, as in flowers, then I tend to go out and purchase fresh. I get them at Costco and they don’t cost an arm and a leg!
I love all of your arrangements!
Britt- Sparkled Vintage Charm says
I think your flowers look fabulous!!!
Rosemary says
Well Rhoda,
I love the real thing of course, but sometimes it doesn’t work. I have only 2 faux ivy topiaries on my mantle. It doesn’t get enough light for the real thing. The ivy looks real though. I like anything dried. I dry out my hydrangeas all the time. They look great. I have seen some really good fakes, where you have to touch them to be sure.
Yours look good in the pictures, I have to say.
I like them if they look real. You know what Oprah says,”there are no blue flowers in nature.” there kind of are, but not really. Maybe a purply blue.
Thanks for that post today,
Rosemary
Tonja says
I have both. I like a very natural looking arrangement when I have fresh flowers. I tend to put them in a Mason jar or a small watering can or such. I think faux flowers are fine as long as they are real looking. You have some beautiful arrangements. Have you noticed how many photo shoots are using fruits in large vases and even in water? In the summer, I like the look of sand and shells in a clear glass urn.
Wanda says
I’m with you. I don’t like the cheap ones, but sometimes, they all look cheap to me. I do like a few nice arrangements, but don’t have many – any. And I certainly don’t have your talent for arranging! The one stick bouquets work best for me. LOL I think a balance of fake and real is fine, but I have a friend who, like you said, doesn’t do fake at all. She really dislikes them, but then again, she’s not an inside floral person. I am. I need to see flowers, which usually translates into fabrics for me. I try to lean toward dried naturals. What to use instead of flowers? Why, stuff, of course! So that’s my take for the whole penny it’s worth.
Jill@Who Could Ask for Anything More says
I have no real plants in my house because my thumb is blacker than black. I can barely avoid killing poinsettias over the short holiday season. I’m not much into dried flowers/florals but I do have my share of fake greenery. As you said, fresh is nice, but not economical for the large majority of us. The only thing real I can see to deal with is hydrangias. Have you ever been to Boxwoods here in the Buckhead area? They get a large delivery each Wednesday and they are $10 or $15 each and are perfect for a table or sidebar. I take a planter with me and they plant it for free.
daisy cottage says
Any arrangement that you display in your home Rhoda is always beautiful. Tastefully and artfully done. The ones you are showing today are gorgeous. After I moved in to Daisy Cottage, I have slowly “weeded” out my “fakes”, although the center hall still has one that I still love. I get a gathered “bunch” of flowers once a week, if possible, from Publix and come home and divide them up and put them in the kitchen and my office. Sometimes I put a few in a little glass container in the guest bathroom. I use fruit in cloches and other tall glass containers and they last quite a while. Where I have “dead” spaces, I need to get live plants and haven’t done so yet. Great discussion! And may I add, that I am SO glad we can still “visit” even though you are working outside of the home now! Thank goodness!
xo,
Kim
DebraK from ~the Bunnies Bungalow~ says
I have both too but I do think that faux greens can be overdone. But faux is so much easier to care for…no mess. What can you use to soften a space like plants do?
All your arrangements are beautiful. I love how the ivy at your front door is trailing down.