A Summer Bouquet with Anthropologie

With summer gardens in full bloom, we've taken to creating countless bouquets from the best that the season has to offer. In search of fresh inspiration for artful arrangements, our friends at Anthropologie recently chatted with terrain's guru when it comes to plants and petals-- Installation Designer Matt M. Read on to learn his tips for budding floral designers and how he created the meadow-inspired arrangement above.

"In a perfect world," says Matt, "you should start with your vesssel, so that your arrangement can complement its shape or aesthetic." He suggests pairing wild, textural arrangements with simple urns, and choosing more elaborate vessels for bouquets containing a single type of bloom. It's also important to select a container that will hold enough water and support the stems of your flowers.

Next, Matt suggests choosing the star of your arrangement. In the bouquet above, it's a spray of dramatic, chartreuse eremurus. He says, "The most important thing to me is movement-- it immediately makes the arrangement come to life. The eremurus was an easy starting point, since I could play off its striking, curved lines with the other blooms." Matt filled out his bouquet with contrasting specimens, including fluttery oakleaf hydrangea (one of his favorite summer shrubs), blush-hued chocolate laceflower, giant allium, and a handful of shrub clippings that lend structure to the delicate, meadow textures.

When it comes to arranging, Matt suggests letting your components take the lead. He says,“I let the stems do a lot of the work for me, and allow them to fall into place where it feels natural. From there, I like to create elements of surprise by clustering things in unexpected ways. If you have an open mind and allow the arrangement to evolve naturally, it will ultimately look much more effortless.”

See more photos of Matt's bountiful bouquet at Anthropolgie.