Beautiful arrangements

Fresh flowers beautifully arranged in boxes are popular gifts – elegant and easy to carry – they also present no trouble to recipients, who can display them just as they are. Flower boxes can be made at home, too.

According to the Nippon Flower Designers’ Association, flower boxes began catching on in Japan during the 1990s. Giving a rose or another single flower in a long, thin box used to be popular, but in the past several years, square or round boxes packed with fresh flowers have been popular. More and more flower shops are selling them, too.

“If you cover the box with the lid to hide the contents, you can surprise the recipient when they open it,” said Sumie Ishikawa, an instructor with the association and a florist. “It’s popular among men, too, who feel embarrassed carrying a bouquet.”

Intrigued, I asked Ishikawa to make a box of flowers based on an autumn theme.

Placing a small round box inside a large round one, she put green flowers in the large box. In the small one, she used the amber shades that are popular this autumn, arranging roses and dahlia in cream, orange and red.

She started off by lining the bottom of the boxes with water-absorbing foam, which serves as a base to hold the flowers. This foam makes arranging flowers easy because unlike vases, which require the water to be changed frequently, the foam needs to be refreshed occasionally.

You can arrange flowers yourself by buying materials and boxes at flower shops and other places. Cut the floral foam to fit your boxes with a cutter knife. Line the box with a sheet of cellophane and place the foam inside. Pour water until eight-tenths of the height of the foam is submerged in water. Stick flowers into the foam after cutting their stems to fit the depth of the box. 

Remember to leave the stems at least two centimetres long so they can draw water. This means the foam needs to be at least two centimetres thick from the bottom of the box. 

If you’d like to cover the box with a lid, cut the stems short and make all the flowers the same height. If you don’t need a lid, try cutting the stems in various lengths to give the arrangement a three-dimensional look.

Ishikawa has created many impressive works, including one in which she used a lunch box woven with thin bamboo strips to accentuate the height of the flowers. The flowers in the box swayed gently in the breeze, as if they were resting in an autumn field.

“You can also nestle a ring inside a box flower as a neat marriage proposal idea. So put your own spin on them and enjoy!” says Ishikawa.

 

Anyone can try

Flower boxes can be made using empty boxes sitting around at home. Ishikawa said she uses these boxes after pasting wrapping paper, pieces of cloth, stickers and masking tape on them.

If you’re after an autumn feel, try pasting tree bark and leaves on the boxes and decorate their lids with pine cones. Ishikawa often uses star anise to decorate boxes. 

“It looks cute, I like it.”