The 6 Elements of Floral Design: Why Foliage Matters

Hello Flower Friends! I'm Ellen. Sign up for my FREE weekly newsletter, FlowerNerd (https://ellenfrostflowers.substack.com/) for more flower fun! I write flower profiles, chronicle my flower adventures and share flower stories. If you’ve ever focused only on the flowers in your arrangements, you might be overlooking the secret ingredient that makes floral designs feel intentional, natural, and professional: foliage. In this video, I’m sharing how to use foliage in floral design to create shape, movement, texture, and even sustainable mechanics for your arrangements. You’ll learn how different foliages completely change the style and feeling of a design—from airy and wild arrangements to compact and formal centerpieces. I’ll also show you how I use foliage like baptisia, coral bells, euonymus, rosemary, and Japanese maple in my own floral work, plus the one foliage I’m absolutely obsessed with right now: variegated Solomon’s seal. Whether you’re a florist, flower farmer, flower grower, or just someone who loves arranging flowers at home, understanding foliage will instantly improve your floral designs. In this video: 🌿 Why foliage matters in floral design 🌿 How to use foliage to create shape and movement 🌿 Using greenery as a natural floral mechanic 🌿 Adding texture, fragrance, and color with foliage 🌿 My favorite foliages for cut flower arrangements 🌿 Why variegated Solomon’s seal is a must-grow plant If you enjoyed this video, make sure to subscribe for more floral design tutorials, flower arranging tips, seasonal flower inspiration, and behind-the-scenes insights into working with local flowers and garden-grown materials. I love working as a florist and running my business, Local Color Flowers, founded in 2008. I make videos about flowers (obvi). I also write a free weekly flower newsletter and host an online community of flower friends. // FlowerNerd - Free Weekly Flower Newsletter Join over 8,000 other flower people. Subscribe to my FREE weekly newsletter FlowerNerd (https://ellenfrostflowers.substack.com/) for more flower fun! I write weekly plant profiles, pro design tips, behind-the-scenes adventures and more! // FlowerMore - online community of flower friends FlowerMore is a supportive online community of flower growers who want to become better designers. We help each other level up our design skills through challenges, book club meetings, color exploration and sharing our work for constructive critique. Discount for YouTube viewers: https://tinyurl.com/FlowerMore //Take Your Floral Arrangements From Amateur To Pro By Designing With These 6 Elements    • Take Your Floral Arrangement From Amateur ...   //Get My List of Favorite Foliages https://www.ellenfrost.com/favoritefo... //When available, we use affiliate links and may earn a commission) My Favorite Clippers Saboten 1210 Thinning Shear https://amzn.to/4qfj0uB (Amazon) // Learn with me at The Gardeners Workshop Preparing To Sell To Florists: https://thegardenersworkshop.com/prod... Growing Your Business With Local Flower Sourcing: https://thegardenersworkshop.com/prod...