8 Tips for Choosing Faux Florals + Stems to Create a Realistic Arrangement

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Are you tired of spending money on fresh flowers only to have to dump the sad, crispy or wilted remains a few days later? I hate wasting the money and the time, but I love the look of grande floral arrangements in our kitchen. So I’ve started turning to faux florals, thoughtfully curated, to create arrangements that last weeks, if not months – saving me lots of time and money. Find links at the bottom of this post!

White vase on white quartz kitchen countertop filled with mixture of real and faux florals and greenery. Black range hood and brown open floating shelves in background with vintage floral art. White kitchen cabinets. Capiz shell pendant light.

I love that faux florals and greenery have improved drastically since the fake silk tragedies our grandmothers loved so much. Hobby Lobby and Michaels have a great selection and frequently have sales making them very affordable. One arrangement might be a little pricier than fresh flowers, but it will last you a whole season instead of a week.

I’ve rounded up a few of my best tips for selecting faux stems that will give you the most realistic look while making it a fun way to flex your creativity in floral arranging.

TIP 1: Opt for Darker leaves over light

 For your faux greenery, the lighter leaves often show the plastic stem backing more so than the darker alternatives, and sometimes the lighter color looks unnatural. I like to go for the darker leaves for a more realistic appearance.

Tip 2: Waxy versus silk leaves

I tend to think the faux greenery that is more waxy feeling looks more natural than the silk or paper-like feeling leaves. The waxy types are a little heartier, and look more real.

Tip 3: Stay in the same color family

This also applies to faux greenery. I like to stick to a common color family, meaning muted greens with other muted greens, or brighter greens with other brighter greens. You can mix in dark and light tones of the color, but I find when I try to might muted with bright it calls attention to them not being real and they don’t typically blend well in an arrangement.

Tip 4: Realistic colors 

This is important with faux greenery, but is especially crucial with faux florals. I often stick to a more neutral palate with the florals, but it’s ok to add in some color as long as you stay away from heavily saturated or bright colors that you don’t typically see in nature. Yes, you can really find EVERY color in nature, but stay away from the neon colors okay?

Tip 5: Use Sprays instead of bushes

I’m going to do a post on styling your faux florals next, but one thing I like to do is. intertwine my pieces to achieve a more layered look. Choosing sprays instead of thicker bush picks will make it easier to mix your pieces.

TIP 6: DRIED OR PAPER FLORALS OVER SILK

Dried or paper florals look less fake than the silk ones.

Mixture of faux and real floral stems

TIP 7: CHOOSE FLORALS THAT ARE TIGHTLY BUNDLED

Choose florals that are tightly bundled so you don’t see the plastic middle detail. Again this lends to a more realistic looking flower.

TIP 8: MIX IN REAL FLOWERS OR BRANCHES 

This is my favorite tip for creating realistic floral arrangements with faux florals. I love to mix in real branches, or flowers that dry well and last forever like baby’s breath, or stems from things like pussy willow that don’t need water to maintain their appearance. Layer the real pieces and then fill out your arrangement with faux stems and no one will bat an eye at whether your arrangement is a fake!

Here are some sources for beautiful faux florals and greenery, on sale right now at Michaels!

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