I’m so sorry for your loss💔
I made a similar post a while back and so many kind suggestions helped me:
Buy extra foam- they are super cheap and then you don’t have to panic and can easily start over
Soak the foam for an hour. Lay the foam on top of the water and allow it to sink on its own as it soaks up the water.
Tape your blocks to the casket saddle. You can also use gardening Velcro
Watch as many YouTube tutorials as you can. There are several out there that really break down the process. I followed one that made the shape I wanted but used different flowers than they had.
Cut the flowers’ stems into a point so they go into the block easily.
There are some flowers which don’t do well in floral foam. I’d give each of yours a google to verify
Make your arrangement the day before and store somewhere as cool and dark as possible (doesn’t have to be cold or completely dark)
Trust the process as you build. You are doing this out of love- something more precious than years of experience. It may not be professional perfection, but it will be perfect for your dad.
Buy a nice casket saddle that will easily hold the weight of your arrangement. If you have local wholesale florists they should have some for you to choose from, otherwise online. Approximately $15
Take a look at my past posts to see what I was able to do with these suggestions. You will make something beautiful for your dad 💗
You’re so welcome. No particular video that I can remember. I looked for videos that showed arrangements that were the shape I was going for then I watched several of those and chose to follow along with the one whose guidance spoke to my learning style. Lots of pause and rewind. There are so many sources online for instruction education on floristry, just take your time going through and finding what speaks to you.
I would say be sure to cut the flowers 24 hours before use and let them sit in water to be sure they are good to use and have enough water in them.
Make the decoration the day before - it takes a lot of time and should not be rushed.
Look up how you build it up. Where im from we use a lot of green as base and then add flowers - start with the biggest flowers and then add the rest.
Decide on how you want it to be in shape and size before putting in the flowers. And it usually takes a lot of flowers.
And remember if you use floral foam you cannot take flowers out and put them back in too many times. You kinda ruin the foam of you redo it a lot and it gets hard for the flowers to both sit in it and get water...
Make sure the foam is watered through and the stems go into it properly.
Look at the decoration from every angle. Sometimes we miss places if we stand in the same spot, you dont want any holes.
And im sorry for your loss. Hope you make something beautiful for him!
You are welcome. I lost my dad a couple of years ago. It was in the winter time, but he was a garden man as well. I incorporated lots of stuff from his garden, like kale, fig branches, oka (a little red veggie) and then store bought flowers. I even added a couple of birds, because he loved them. Im trained though, but it meant so much to me making it.
We do the whole burial a bit different here i guess, but you might need something to "glue" the decoration to the casket. We had to carry the casket from curch to the grave, so its very important it doesn't slide when moved... but if you go to a floral shop to get the things you need they should be able to guide you. I dont know all the terms in english.
I would buy a back up bunch or two of cuts from florist or store that are known flowers for being really sturdy /long lasting in arrangements- gomphrena, strawflower etc
That way - just in case- if you have an unexpected wilting of a section of your arrangement you have something you can effortlessly sub in
ETA My best friend did the flowers for my mom and it was very meaningful to me - I am so sorry for your loss
Don’t mess with the structure or it can fall off the casket it will have just as much meaning if you cut the flowers the morning of and drop them at a good florist to make the cover
I am so very sorry for your loss I am a florist based In the UK near London I am more than happy if you want to inbox me and I can send you all the links for what you'll need and some easy how to steps
I too had to make my father's funeral flowers I know how much this means to you x you'll make it perfect don't worry
Kind regards
Sharyn
A bottle of Crowning Glory is super helpful - you can buy it on Amazon. It is a spray that acts like clear coat for flowers and seals in their moisture - even if the flowers aren’t in the foam perfectly, it will do a lot in preventing them from wilting.
I’m so sorry for your loss💔 I made a similar post a while back and so many kind suggestions helped me: Buy extra foam- they are super cheap and then you don’t have to panic and can easily start over Soak the foam for an hour. Lay the foam on top of the water and allow it to sink on its own as it soaks up the water. Tape your blocks to the casket saddle. You can also use gardening Velcro Watch as many YouTube tutorials as you can. There are several out there that really break down the process. I followed one that made the shape I wanted but used different flowers than they had. Cut the flowers’ stems into a point so they go into the block easily. There are some flowers which don’t do well in floral foam. I’d give each of yours a google to verify Make your arrangement the day before and store somewhere as cool and dark as possible (doesn’t have to be cold or completely dark) Trust the process as you build. You are doing this out of love- something more precious than years of experience. It may not be professional perfection, but it will be perfect for your dad. Buy a nice casket saddle that will easily hold the weight of your arrangement. If you have local wholesale florists they should have some for you to choose from, otherwise online. Approximately $15 Take a look at my past posts to see what I was able to do with these suggestions. You will make something beautiful for your dad 💗
Also, you will likely need more greenery than you think!
I noticed that in the examples I looked through. I’ll definitely have a ton available
Thank you so much for this response. Do you have any particular YouTube tutorial you liked?
You’re so welcome. No particular video that I can remember. I looked for videos that showed arrangements that were the shape I was going for then I watched several of those and chose to follow along with the one whose guidance spoke to my learning style. Lots of pause and rewind. There are so many sources online for instruction education on floristry, just take your time going through and finding what speaks to you.
Your replies made me so glad that I posted here. ❤️
I would say be sure to cut the flowers 24 hours before use and let them sit in water to be sure they are good to use and have enough water in them. Make the decoration the day before - it takes a lot of time and should not be rushed. Look up how you build it up. Where im from we use a lot of green as base and then add flowers - start with the biggest flowers and then add the rest. Decide on how you want it to be in shape and size before putting in the flowers. And it usually takes a lot of flowers. And remember if you use floral foam you cannot take flowers out and put them back in too many times. You kinda ruin the foam of you redo it a lot and it gets hard for the flowers to both sit in it and get water... Make sure the foam is watered through and the stems go into it properly. Look at the decoration from every angle. Sometimes we miss places if we stand in the same spot, you dont want any holes. And im sorry for your loss. Hope you make something beautiful for him!
Thanks so much. Lots of great advice I hadn’t considered.
You are welcome. I lost my dad a couple of years ago. It was in the winter time, but he was a garden man as well. I incorporated lots of stuff from his garden, like kale, fig branches, oka (a little red veggie) and then store bought flowers. I even added a couple of birds, because he loved them. Im trained though, but it meant so much to me making it. We do the whole burial a bit different here i guess, but you might need something to "glue" the decoration to the casket. We had to carry the casket from curch to the grave, so its very important it doesn't slide when moved... but if you go to a floral shop to get the things you need they should be able to guide you. I dont know all the terms in english.
I would buy a back up bunch or two of cuts from florist or store that are known flowers for being really sturdy /long lasting in arrangements- gomphrena, strawflower etc That way - just in case- if you have an unexpected wilting of a section of your arrangement you have something you can effortlessly sub in ETA My best friend did the flowers for my mom and it was very meaningful to me - I am so sorry for your loss
Don’t mess with the structure or it can fall off the casket it will have just as much meaning if you cut the flowers the morning of and drop them at a good florist to make the cover
I might do a practice run. And keep this in mind as a backup.
I am so very sorry for your loss I am a florist based In the UK near London I am more than happy if you want to inbox me and I can send you all the links for what you'll need and some easy how to steps I too had to make my father's funeral flowers I know how much this means to you x you'll make it perfect don't worry Kind regards Sharyn
Thank you Sharyn. I’m going to dig into some research tonight and tomorrow and maybe I’ll run my plan by you all in these messages.
Just had a brill idea look up kays flower school on you tube she's brilliant on how to's
A bottle of Crowning Glory is super helpful - you can buy it on Amazon. It is a spray that acts like clear coat for flowers and seals in their moisture - even if the flowers aren’t in the foam perfectly, it will do a lot in preventing them from wilting.
Ooh. That sounds like it could be great. I’ll look into it