Do you have a favorite flower? You know, the kind that you get excited about everytime you see them in a floral shop window, a gorgeous wedding bouquet or even a photograph on the web? My favorite happen to be peonies. I love their lush, fluffy appearance. To me they are soft, romantic, playful and feminine. You might recall that I listed them under my favorite things.
I remember exactly when I first fell in love with them. It was about 8 years ago and one of my best friends had picked some up at his friend's parents' farm property for me. I had two clippings- they were both a fuscia color and one was fluffy, in full bloom and the other was still tucked tight into a large ball, just waiting patiently to open up. Later that year, I would discover that the property I rented had a path leading to the backyard where peony bushes would produce some of the most amazing flowers. I especially loved the pale pink ones.
Several years later when I met my husband I had told him about my love for peonies. While we were engaged and soon to be married, I was tying up loose ends at the job that I would be leaving when I decided to move from Canada to the U.S. He sent me the most stunning bouquet of lilies, pale pink peonies and white hydrangea. I could have stared at that bouquet everyday for the rest of my life and never would have tired of it. I wish I had a picture of it.
It would seem fitting that one day (3.5 years ago) when I got married that they would be the chosen flower for my bridal bouquet. However that was not to be. We had a September wedding and they were no longer in season and the cost to have them shipped was outside of our budget. So, instead I had soft blush color roses. Now that I live in Florida, peonies are impossible to find since they cannot withstand extreme heat. I called a local floral shop to see if I could splurge a little and get a couple of stems. When I found out they were $10 per stem with a minimum of 10 stems, I knew it was out of the question. I do however have the most realistic looking silk peony arrangement in my office and I get to look at it every day. :)
This to me is a dream bouquet!
To share my love of peonies, I thought I'd include some of the images I've found online and saved in a folder for those that adore them as much as me. I have others I enjoy too such as white orchids, stargazer lilies and tulips but these are my absolute favorite.
Perfect sping bouquet, love the tulips. I'd love to have this on my kitchen table right now!
This is one of the largest bouquets I've seen, so full and fresh!
Another beautiful bouquet!
What is YOUR favorite type of flower? What makes it so special to you?
