There was some good-natured bartering done among ourselves at the end of the recent flea market/bloggers’ pop-up shop in December. I swapped Dustin one of Marty’s sailor knot creations for this glass floral frog. Floral frogs have an old-fashioned, tight-laced whiff about them — they are, after all, essentially a girdle for flower stems — and are not something I’ve ever worked with before, being more a proponent of the plop-it-in-a-vase school of flower arranging. But I was drawn to this glass frog as a beautiful object in its own right.
But it would be silly to ignore its intended function. I thought it might be useful in supporting stems in vessels not necessarily meant as vases, like all the pottery I’ve accumulated that is either too wide or too low to hold stems upright effectively. And in winter particularly, a low bowl shape is ideal for holding seasonal, short-stemmed cut flowers like Helleborus argutifolius and all the other interesting odds and ends that lack long stems and need a little help standing up straight.
Typically, the frog would be hidden deep in the container.
After playing around with different containers, I don’t see why it can’t also be completely exposed, sitting on the rim of smaller pots.
The shrub-like Corsican hellebore is the only one I grow, and it happens to be the longest lasting in vases. I’ve always been reluctant to rob the garden of flowers, but I really think it’s time I get over it. There’s really no better way to appreciate the intricacies of their structure. I followed conventional wisdom and dipped the freshly cut stems in boiling water for 20-30 seconds.
I’ve never used a floral frog but I like your approach in turning it upside down. The hellebores look charming in the small pots.
Nice frog hack! I have several old metal frogs, the weight helping in keeping heavy blooms from tipping over the vase. Perhaps its time I invest in a glass one or two…
Well done on those hellebore arrangements. You must have patience!
I have one of those glass frogs, inherited from Grandma. It’s older than I am, and I think in better shape.
Kris, it still kills me to cut these flwrs. They last so much longer on the plant!
Loree, I love those old metal frogs! I’m alway hoping to find some at the fleas.
Hoov, very little patience involved. Once the stems were in the frog, I just lifted it from one pot to the next, like a floral toupee.
Wonderful way to use the glass frogs! I bought some at an “antique” shop for a real cool price because I liked the design. Never thought of how to use them…..but now I can and Hubby won’t be able to say “you never use them.” 😛