I know I’ve talked about my orchid orphanage in the past, and it’s still a problem I have that I just can’t quit. I take orchid plants in like little lost dogs or cats and add them to my collection, but very rarely do they rebloom because I forget to fertilize them. Well I’m happy to say that I have found a design-forward way to display these bloomless beauties that requires very little effort. Check out my DIY orchid arrangement:
I’ve had this idea in my head for a while now but was putting off the project because I thought it would be too difficult to put together. In reality the whole arrangement took me about 15 minutes. I’m kicking myself for not doing this sooner.
The Before
This “before” is not one of my typical paint-the-yellow-house-white before and afters (check out that before and after here). The arrangement was beautiful to start with. I received the flowers as a gift, and the blooms lasted for months.
It was heartbreaking when they started to wilt and fall off. Even after losing all of their flowers, the plants were still gorgeous. I wanted to find a way to keep them around longer.
The Process
I purchased this carved wood bowl at Kirkland’s last summer, and it’s been sitting empty on our console table behind the couch for a while now.
Even though the bowl was a little shallow, I was able to cut off the top of the container holding the orchid plant so it would fit in the bowl.
Before adding the orchids to the wooden bowl, I lined it with foil and cut a couple of wedges out of florist foam to hold the orchids.
I then filled the rest of the bowl with more florist foam.
The next step was adding the moss. I purchased a large bag of flat moss at Michael’s (similar here on Amazon). It took pretty much the entire bag to fill out my large wooden bowl.
Finally, I added in the decorative branches and dried flowers from the original arrangement to create an asymmetrical look.
The After
Even though my orchids are no longer blooming, I love how the new arrangement looks.
The contrast of the dark green leaves and moss looks fabulous with the natural wood bowl. I love too that the arrangement is low maintenance.
Beyond Home Decor
Although I’m displaying this orchid arrangement in my home, it would also make a great gift. It could even be scaled up or down for a DIY wedding centerpiece for a rustic or garden wedding theme (check out the other carved wooden bowl options I’ve linked below). The best part is that this arrangement can be made ahead of time and lasts for a long time.
Caring for the orchids
Once every two weeks, I remove the moss surrounding the orchids and alternate water and fertilizer.
Orchids really are incredibly easy to care for as long as you have a sunny spot for them. And luckily they are very forgiving. I have gone weeks (sometimes months) without watering mine, and they always bounce back.
With a little extra care, orchids will rebloom. I have had success by diligently alternating water and fertilizer every week and letting the liquid fully drain from the orchid container into the sink before returning the orchids to their spot by the window. You can premix this granular fertilizer in a gallon jug to always have liquid fertilizer on hand:
I don’t have the discipline to water and fertilize the plants on a schedule right now, but I am happy with my bloomless plants.
Sources
Carved wood bowl – I purchased my wood bowl from Kirklands. Amazon has some good options too (just click on the photo below to go to the Amazon link):
This one would be cute with a mini orchid display:
Moss – I purchased mine from Michaels, but Florist foam (Amazon link) – also available at craft stores
Dried flowers/stems – mine came with the original arrangement, but you can find a number of options at craft stores. Amazon sells dried lotus pod stems (link here).
Dried branches – I believe the branches I used are dried curly willow branches. I’ve found a faux version on Amazon (link here), but haven’t tested them out. All of the real curly willow branches on Amazon have bad reviews because they’re quite brittle and break during transport. Craft stores with a floral department may carry better branch options.
Orchid fertilizer (Amazon link) – also available at garden centers
Leave a Reply