Having flowers in your home is such a lovely way to bring colour and freshness indoors, but I never seem to have a vase that's the right size or shape for the job. All too often I rely on a highly unstylish pint glass or a jar jam. Yes it does the job, but it doesn't look very pretty and fresh blooms deserve better. That's why putting your wedding gift list together is the perfect opportunity to start a vase collection. That way, the next time a glorious bunch of blooms is delivered you'll be prepared. There are so many different vessels in which to display your flowers, but luckily for us, The Wedding Shop's curated selection makes choosing a breeze. Or not, as you'll probably want them all...

{Which Vase Is Best?}

Start with matching the length of the stems to the height of the vase. If your vase is too short it will fall over. If it's too tall the flowers will sink down into the neck of the vase. Do account for the fact that you will cut a small amount of the stem off before the flowers go in AND during the time the flowers are alive for to freshen them up. You don't want your blooms to look squashed, so make sure they have enough room to slightly fall out to the sides of the vase, like the lovely rectangular vase below that we've filled with tulips.

{Keeping Your Flowers Fresh}

Cutting the stem at a slight angle, removing all the leaves that sit below the water level and changing the water every few days will help to keep your flowers fresher for longer. Buy flowers that are yet to open, as they will bloom when you get them home, rather than in the florists workshop. Use foliage and greenery from your garden to fill out a display. If you're luckily enough to have a bouquet that has been arranged by a florist, then you'll need to do minimal work, cut the stems and take off any string/tape, but try to place the bouquet into your vase in one movement, to maintain the shape they have created. The LSA green vase below is perfect for this. As flowers start to fade, move the ones that still have life in them into a smaller vessel such as a pretty tea cup or a cute bud vase. Foliage like eucalyptus and some flowers like hydrangea can be dried and then displayed for longer. Or get creative and display flowers with other trinkets in a glass cloche.

{Adding Vases To Your Wedding List}

The Wedding Shop offer a fabulous selection of vases for every style of home, if you're currently putting your gift list together then do include a few. It's also a good idea to add a multi-purpose jug that you really adore as an alternative to a classic vase. You'll be surprised at how often you need one during married life, people adore buying vases as they make lovely gifts AND it makes receiving flowers even more lovely, as you know you have something very special to put them in. You can find the full range of vases from The Wedding Shop here on their website.