I love thrifting for vintage dishes and repurposing them as planters or vases, instead of buying new things. It doesn’t only help to avoid things being thrown into landfills but also adds some whimsy and a romantic element to my flower arrangements. Using a flower frog is a great way to make a small and simple but beautiful creation with just a handful of blooms.

A flower frog is a reusable mechanical support that you can place in a shallow bowl or vase to use for simple designs with just a few stems. I used a spiky pin frog (or “Kenzan” in Japanese) which has a heavy metal base and sharp brass pins pointing facing upwards to hold up the flower’s stems. Pin frogs come in different sizes, and I love to use the smaller ones to arrange some beautiful flowers from my garden in some thrifted vintage dishes like teacups or bowls.

Using a Kenzan is part of the century old Japanese art of flower arranging called Ikebana, which translates to “making flowers alive”. It’s a minimalist approach of flower arranging that celebrates the natural beauty of stems and leaves, with an emphasis on negative space and linear shapes.

For these DIY summer flower frog arrangements, I used some garden roses, cosmos, dahlias, globe thistle, echinacea and paired it with parsley, blackberries and chive blossoms. Since I don’t have a big flower garden, using a flower frog is a great way to bring some garden beauty inside using only a couple of stems.

If you like this idea, please also check out my post BRING IN SPRING WITH HYACINTHS, where I show you how to plant some pretty spring flowers in repurposed vintage dishes and my HANGING ORCHID KOKEDAMA which describes another ancient Japanese technique to display your favourite house plants beautifully.

TIPS ON HOW TO MAKE A
FLOWER FROG ARRANGEMENT

Keep it simple. Using a flower frog is perfect for just a few stems. I like to aim for 7-9 stems for a small flower frog arrangement.

You can use any small bowls, shallow dishes, ramekins or teacups for your arrangement you have on hand but make sure they are clean and dry before using them.

When you add some flower putty on the bottom of your flower frog, really push it down (be careful not to hurt your hands on the spikes, use a towel or heavy object) and ensure it is anchored securely and doesn’t move around to avoid your arrangement from tipping over.

Always add the water after you secured your flower frog or it won’t hold.

Make sure your stems are nice and clean and you cut them straight.

If you don’t like the look of the flower frog you can cover it with moss, rocks or other materials.

Check and change the water every 1-2 days and keep it out of direct sunlight and heat to make it last for a couple of days.

MATERIALS YOU WILL NEED

small vintage dish like a teacup or shallow bowl
flower frog
flower putty
garden snips
flowers
water

INSTRUCTIONS STEP BY STEP

Gather all the materials you will need for this DIY project.

Add some flower putty to the bottom of your flower frog and secure it tightly by pushing it to the bottom of your small dish or vase. Be careful not to hurt your hands and use a towel or heavy object to push it down until it doesn’t move.

Add water until the flower frog is completely covered.

Clean the stems of your flowers, remove any extra leaves and cut them straight into the desired height.

Push the stems onto the flower frog pins and start creating your summer arrangement.

Aim for at least three different heights, colours and directions in your summer arrangement.

If you don’t want to see the flower frog, cover it with rocks, moss, herbs, or other materials.

Find the perfect spot for your new summer flower frog arrangement in a vintage dish and enjoy!