White flowers are among my favorite winter flowers with which to decorate. White poinsettias, white paperwhites, and white amaryllis are all beautiful as part of Christmas decorations anywhere, but especially in the living room before the white stone fireplace.
One thing I look at when choosing poinsettias is the center of the colored leaves where the actual flowers are located. The brightly colored leaves are modified leaves, and the tiny buds in the center are the real flowers. I choose plants in which the tiny center flowers are tightly closed in order for poinsettias to last longer.
Just so you know, I refer to the modified colored leaves as blooms like most people.
Poinsettias last longer than paperwhites. I can buy them the week of Thanksgiving and have them last into January or even February. Water when the soil feels dry, but do not overwater.
Poinsettias look beautiful by themselves, but a group of two or three make stunning large arrangements for coffee tables, buffets, and dining tables. They need no arranging like cut flowers. Simply place the potted plants in a large container like the rustic blue box for an instant centerpiece.
Fill the empty spaces between the potted plants and box sides with fresh evergreen branches. These Frasier fir branches are not in water. It is easy to replace them with fresh branches as needed. I keep cut evergreens in buckets of water on the deck until I bring them inside to use.
Florist wet foam blocks could be used to keep the evergreens fresher for a longer period of time. Line the bottom and sides of the box with plastic. Place soaked foam blocks around the edges of the potted poinsettias, and insert the evergreen branches into the foam blocks.
Sunlight streams into the living room from French doors and windows above the doors creating a radiant glow to the white blooms.
One of the reasons I choose white flowers is how well they go with the blue and white sofa.
A white Christmas pillow found at Hobby Lobby last year also goes well with the blue and white checked sofa and blue throw pillow.
Each year I watch for traditional Christmas designs such as Santas, angels, stars, snowflakes, trees, etc... in neutral colors or colors that go with neutrals like the pale greenish background of the white-robed Santa in the large Santa print propped against the wall.
A large five-gallon pale blue glass water bottle blends well with the blue sofa and walls.
The water bottle is from the time period when we had drinking water delivered to our house every week. When we first built our house in the country, a well supplied the water to our house. The well water was so mineral-laden, we did not like the taste, and we had drinking water delivered. Eventually, we were able to connect to the community water system.
Why does the gold-colored crown make me think of Christmas? Whatever the reason, I like the old bottle and crown, and white flowers go well with them.
Poinsettias are known as The Christmas Flower, and for me, they symbolize the holiday season. I love decorating with them. You can find poinsettias in my living room almost every Christmas.
Do you have a favorite poinsettia color? Red, pink, white, or one of the new multi-colors?
See the following previous posts for Christmas in my living room.
