Floral Design
Understanding the Design
Elements
Interest Approach
Take a look at the examples of floral
designs on your desk. Compare and
contrast these arrangements with your
neighbor. Look at the shape, color,
texture and size. Try to visualize the
same arrangements in a different color
or size. Would the arrangements have
the same visual effect? Why or why
not?
Student Objectives
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1. List and describe the major forms (or
shapes) used in floral design.
2. Explain how space and depth
enhance floral design.
3. Describe the importance of texture in
floral design.
4. Explain how color influences floral
work.
Vocabulary
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Advancing color
Analogous
Color wheel
Complimentary
Depth
Design elements
Filler flowers
Form
Form flowers
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Free form
Geometric
Line
Line materials
Mass flowers
Monochromatic
Naturalistic
Polychromatic
Primary colors
Vocabulary Cont.
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Receding colors
Secondary colors
Shape
Space
Tertiary colors
Texture
What Are the Major Forms or Shapes
Used in Floral Design?
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Floral arrangements are composed of
flowers, greenery and containers
The physical characteristics that the designer
uses to create the arrangements are called
design elements
Form and shape are the first two design
elements
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Form refers to the 3-dimensional outline of
the arrangement
Shape is the 2-dimensional term for form
The common forms used in floral design are:
geometric, naturalistic and free form
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Geometric shapes are most often circles or
triangles
 Can
be varied into ovals, fans, crescents, right triangles,
isosceles triangles and asymmetrical triangles
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Naturalistic designs mirror the natural plant
growth; Include groupings of plant material, using
branches to symbolize trees and shorter flowers
the undergrowth
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Free form arrangements are more contemporary;
Very creative and do not have any particular
design rules
All forms of arrangement are created through
the use of lines
Line is the visual movement between two
points in an arrangement
Placement creates shape and expresses emotions
 Can be created through the use of line material
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Line materials (like snapdragon, liatris and
scotch broom) are used to create definite
vertical, horizontal, diagonal or curvilinear
lines
Design
Forms
Courtesy of Delmar
Publishing
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The remainder of the arrangement is created
through the combination of form, mass and
filler flowers
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Form flowers are those with distinctive shapes
 Ex.
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Mass flowers are round, solid flowers
 Ex.
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Orchids, lilies
Mums, carnations, roses
Filler flowers are light, airy flowers that fill in the
space between other flowers
 Ex.
Baby’s breath, sea foam statice
How Do Space and Depth Enhance
Floral Design?
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The areas in the design that have no flowers
are just as important as the flowers
themselves
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Areas devoid of flowers are called space
It is important for designers to leave space in
their arrangements
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Space increases the apparent size of a design by
adding space and depth to the design
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Depth gives the arrangement more of a three
dimensional form than just a shape
 Achieved
by tucking flowers in further so they are
partially hidden; and dangling flowers upward or to the
side
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Space makes the arrangement appear to be larger
even though no more materials are used; Occurs
if the flowers are placed away from each other
 Helps
to save money by creating a larger, more
expensive-looking design
 Adds more interest in the design
How Is Texture Important in Floral
Design?
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Floral designers can create visually attractive
arrangements by combining plant material
with different textures
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Texture is the design element that refers to the
surface quality of the plant material
 Plant
material can be rough, smooth, leathery, velvety,
satiny or hairy
 It can also have visual texture - fine, airy, lacy, delicate,
bold or coarse
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By varying textures in a design, it will attract
attention and hold the viewer’s interest
Looking at the
pictures to the
right, describe the
textures of each of
the flowers
Courtesy of Delmar Publishing
How Does Color Influence Floral
Work?
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Color is probably the most obvious design
element
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An arrangement can lose its appeal if the colors
are not striking
Color contributes to people’s feelings
They have also influenced occasions or
events
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For example, red symbolizes love; Orange
symbolizes Halloween
Colors and Emotions/occasions
Color
Emotion/Occasion
Yellow
Happy, cheerful, friendship
Red
Love, exciting, joyful
Blue
Quiet, cool, restful, dignity & formality
Orange
Warmth, autumn color, Halloween
Green
Life, St. Patrick’s Day
Violet
Royalty and elegance
Black
Somberness, death
White
Purity, innocence, weddings
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The color wheel is made up of primary,
secondary and tertiary colors
Primary = red, blue, yellow
 Secondary = orange, green, violet
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 Two
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primary colors combined
Tertiary = one primary combined with one
secondary color
 Names
are always hyphenated
 For example blue-green, orange-red
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There are six color schemes that designers
can use to create beautiful arrangements
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Created by the combination of one or more colors
Color Schemes
Monochromatic
Analogous
Complimentary
Splitcomplimentary
Triadic
Polychromatic
One color plus its tints, tones or shades
(light and darker colors)
Three colors next to each other on the
color wheel
Two colors across from each other on the
color wheel
One color plus the colors on either side of
its compliment
Three colors that are equidistant from
each other on the color wheel
Two or more colors anywhere on the
wheel
Monochromatic
Analogous
Complimentary
ex. Blue & orange
Triadic
Courtesy of Delmar Publishing
Polychromatic
Split-Complimentary
Courtesy of Delmar Publishing
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No matter what color scheme is used,
remember they are viewed differently
depending on what colors they are combined
with
Advancing colors move towards the viewer
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For example yellow, red and orange
Receding colors disappear into the
background
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For example violet, blue and green
Summary
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List the twelve design forms.
How is a geometric form different from a
naturalistic one?
Describe the difference between form, mass
and filler flowers. Give an example of each.
How can depth and space enhance a design?
What is texture? Why should you vary the
texture in an arrangement?
Name the three primary and secondary
colors.
Summary Cont.
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How do you create a tertiary color?
Using the color wheel, give an example of
each of the color schemes.
What are advancing colors? Receding
colors?