Architecture Designs

I would really like to have a dog but I don't have time to take care of it so I got this really cool life-like stuffed dog and I put him in the corner and I named him Fido. It's great because I don't have to feed him or give him water. I don't have to take him for walks or play ball with him, or take him to the lake to go swimming. Wait a minute, I would like to do all those things with him. Isn't that what having a dog is about. Spending time with him and having him give you a slobbery kiss after you scratch his ears. Wow, I really sold out with this fake dog. He can't do anything, he just sits there collecting dust and reminding me how busy I think I am to have a dog.

Ok Ok, my little story might be a little "far-fetched", (pun intended) but I think the concept is the same as having fake flowers or plants in your house. You basically buy them because you want something to look pretty in that vase that your mother-in-law gave you but you don't want to take care of them. And in the end, you are the one that loses because you have sacrificed all the life and joy real flowers could bring to your home.

Flowers are beautiful living things and when added to a space bring life and scent and an overall feeling of joy. I actually feel better when there are fresh flowers in the room. Fake flowers might look like real flowers, but that is where their benefits end. They do not have the beautiful scents, or the amazingly intricate details of the real flower. Some fake flowers might feel somewhat real to the touch but I would challenge you to touch a real flower at the same time and then tell me if you think it feels real. The real flower has a delicateness about it that

cannot be imitated. There is just something about how fragile it is but how strong it looks that is simply fascinating. Also, fake flowers are stagnant, they do not move or change. Fresh flowers grow, they bloom and open up and then slowly fade back away and dry. Even dried, they are beautiful. So my challenge is, why would you settle for only one aspect of the flower, the visual, in a fake impostor when the benefits of having fresh flowers are far more numerous.

Some may argue that fake flowers are easier and allow you to have something pretty that is low maintenance. Wrong! Fake flowers collect dust, fade and can fall apart. Not only that, but they only look good for a period of time. You will have to replace fake flowers just like you would real flowers, just not as often.

Another argument is cost. Real flowers are so expensive, I can't afford to have them in my house. Ok, I understand this argument but there are other ways to fill your vases than with fake flowers. For example, at my house I have a very large arrangement of dried flowers and twigs from my wedding on the mantle. It is beautiful and it is real. You can also fill your vases with other items, like sea shells, twigs, moss or pretty stones. The options are endless. Then, you can have real flowers on special occasions, or maybe once a month.

If you want to save money on flowers, my advice would be to buy one type of flower, not a fancy arrangement. If you buy a dozen daisies you can actually split them up and put one or two in single bud vases and then put the rest in a bunch in one bigger vase. Pre-arranged flowers tend to be kind of a rip-off. You pay $40 dollars for a bouquet that only has three large flowers and the rest are just fillers like baby's breath or mums or God forbid, carnations! If you have some design eye, check out your local grocery stores. I like to buy a dozen roses there and then buy my own fillers and put them together myself. This is a much better deal and you get more bang for your buck.

Also, have a look around your yard. Using flowers from your garden or sticks from your trees will look great. Do you have ferns? Simply clip some fern stems and put them in a vase, they look great! Hydrangea's are great cut flowers. Dried hydrangeas will look almost as good as live ones. They keep there shape and some will even keep there color.

Now let's have a look at the difference between real and fake. You tell me which ones you think look better:

I would like to add that these fake arrangements are actually pretty pricey! You could probably buy a dozen fresh flowers 7 times for the price of one fake arrangement.

Now let's take a look at fresh flower alternatives:

Fern Stems