Decor Diary: Transforming the Outdoor space from Christmas to Winter Neutrals
The festive season has passed and the decorations have come down. And my balcony has been in a state of "blah" - that awkward stage of being dressed up and fancy for the holidays and, now, waiting for the soft and joyful colors of Spring. It's Miami, so it's pretty much Spring/Summer weather for a large portion of the day, but there's some chilly hours here and there to remind me that it's, in fact, still Winter.
As such, it felt like I should do something related to the season before bringing out a bunch of color. It's that time of year when tress have no leaves at all or those that still have their leaves are covered in snow. Everything is a bit cold, dark, dry and bare and I wanted to reflect this period in my outdoor space, which means it's a given muted tones would take priority in the theme. This was a challenge because I despise dead and naked trees. Some find beauty in it, I see sadness and emptiness.
Also, naked trees isn't something I'm all that familiar with due to living in a city and climate where I'm surrounded by greenery and blooming flowers 365/24/7. The only time things get sad and bare around here is after a hurricane has torn through and stripped the green from trees or outright killed them. And for those few weeks, during clean-up and Mother Nature restoring herself, I don't recognized my surroundings. It's all so bleak and depressing and...blah!
So, for as much as I LOVE to see the changing of the leaves for their brilliant color, I have zero interest in witnessing the aftermath when trees are stark naked and a symbol of nature's death. Therefore, my goal was to find a happy medium in the theme of my outdoor area; to bring some of that starkness into the space, while still maintaining a sense of life and beauty. In other words, make the season of death look pretty.
And this is what I came up with...
I brought in a little color with preserved red frosted eucalyptus stems, which REALLY gave the space some life. Dark enough to allow the neutrals to shine, but vibrant just enough to keep things from looking overly dry and depressing.
Leopard print accent pillows in this color pattern add a touch of wild I didn't know I needed until I spot them in the store. That they were only $5, each, made them even more irresistible.
And then I used a few bunches of dried flowers to create these two arrangements, which were initially created without the red eucalyptus and, though pretty, didn't pop. Too bleak, too stark and too MEH! The eucalyptus stems really fill out the area behind the muted florals and dried items while adding an oh-so-subtle pop of color. The moment I placed them in the tin was extremely satisfying - an A-HA moment. It was the "pretty" I was looking for! What do you think?
Below are the items I purchased to create the space:
Items from Michaels: * There was a 40% off online orders sale when I purchased my items. Items listed below show current prices
Additional dried floral arrangements (in pic above) from Walmart; $9.99 and $4.99 (available in store only; not online)
2 taupe, grey and camel colored leopard print accent pillows from Walmart: $4.96 each (available in store only; not online)
Creating the dried floral arrangements:
Steps to creating a dried floral arrangement:
Floral tins from Ross: purchased last Spring for less than $15, each.
Foam blocks from Dollar Tree ($1 for large block or $1 for 4 small blocks)
You then proceed by adding in the stems in the style of your liking. Taller stems should go in the back, while shorter items should go in the front. If you have anything that's long and droopy, stick those on the sides to create a nice profile that angles and frames the look.
