Even though it was originally my idea/Christmas-present-to-Sherry to buy fresh flowers once a month, I’ve been pretty absent from these budget bloom posts since their inception – mostly because talkin’ flowers isn’t really at the center of my comfort zone. But this month’s florals are less about the blooms and more about bottles which (as an off-and-on soda fan) are right up my alley. So here’s August’s $2.47 arrangement adding some punch to our kitchen window sill:
This actually started with a blueberry Izze soda (technically it’s “sparkling juice”) that we purchased at Whole Foods a few weeks ago. Sherry and I have both been fond of the graphic flower on their bottles for a while, so the empty Izze bottle managed to save itself from the recycling bin day after day while we enjoyed its quirky beauty on the counter. Then we realized that paired with a few other colorful Izze bottles it could easily become a sweet repurposed vase. So on a recent trip near Starbucks, I dropped in and picked up two more Izze bottles (each with a different colored flower just for fun) and then we grabbed three spider mums from a local florist to the tune of $2.47. So I guess if you want to get technical, although the flowers were under $3, this arrangement was around $9 if you include the Izze. But we did get to enjoy a bunch of fizzy drinks for that price too.
We liked the all-white flowers paired with the trio of hues on the Izze labels. Plus we realized there’s something nice about the blooms blending in with the dominant crisp white color of our kitchen, making their containers stand out that much more.
We’ve always been fans of adapting cups, votive holders, and of course bottles into makeshift vases – this is just our first time using Izzes. They’d also look great in a monochromatic grouping (all clementime flavored bottles with orange or yellow gerbera daisies, for instance) or you can come up with your own mix-and-match color scheme (there are 8 flavors in total). Oh and some classic Coke bottles could add a cute retro feel while some worn green glass bottles at a thrift store or flea market would bring a nice cottage vibe to any arrangement.
So there you have our monthly blossoms. They’ve actually been lasting quite a while, thanks to the fact that they hail form a local florist (which really does seem to make a difference). We also change the water and re-cut their stems every 5 days or so- just to give them the best chance at long term survival (so far we’re over two weeks into things and they’re still going strong).
But enough about our mums, do you guys have any other bottle or vase stand-ins that you’ve particularly loved using instead of the more tried and true meant-for-flower vessels? Are there any other flowers that you’ve been enjoying lately? Oh yeah, and we’ve got more plans for those Izze bottles too (you know we love squeezing as many projects out of our cheap little purchases as we can) so don’t be shocked if you see ’em again soon. Stay tuned…
Wanna see our first grocery store bouquet from last January? Itching to check out February, March, April, May, June, July, August, and September too? How about this year’s January, February, March, April, May, June, and July bouquets? Just follow the links for some pretty sweet cheap-o (and even free) bouquets.
Jennifer says
I second the comment by Joanna… Orangina bottles are great… fun shape and the glass is textured. I might copy her idea and use them at my wedding too! Thanks!
Amanda says
Yum, Izze- created right here in my backyard, yay!
I believe I may have hit the flower deal of the year at my local grocery store yesterday. I couldn’t believe my eyes when I saw the small bundles were $1 each!
http://www.bitsandpieces-blog.com/2010/08/4-for-2.html
Lori says
Great idea! I love the shape and look of Patron tequila bottles and have a couple of minitures ones that I like to use.
Heather @ ourlifeinaclick says
I love how this looks with the three different colored flowers on the bottles grouped together on your window sill. My kids love the Izze drinks and they always look nice at parties (the kids and the drinks..lol!). I love using a mini San Pelligrino bottles for small hydrangeas and blue mason jars too.
http://ourlifeinaclick.blogspot.com/2010/06/hydrangeas.html
Cecilie says
This looks great. I have actually made something along the same lines just today. I saw this idea somewhere (re-nest, Martha, decor8 – somewhere online…) and decided to do my own version using a mix of dahlias, lavender, ment etc. Pictures can be seen right here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/ancema/4920912216/ and http://www.flickr.com/photos/ancema/4920915706/
Pamela says
For several years hubby was working one week of every month in Boston. Once in a while I could arrange to go with him. Fabulous city, but living in a hotel is kinda impersonal. Boston has many sidewalk flower markets, but I didn’t want to buy a vase and carry it home on the plane (then carry it back for the next visit). Solution: 1- or 2-liter plastic soda bottles (bonus for pretty colors), peel off the labels, use nail scissors to cut off the tapered tops and, voila, disposable cylindrical vases.
Kate at Dream To Life says
I love your budget blooms posts! I believe (and I’m pretty sure you’ve mentioned them before) the most BANG for your BUCK and LONGEST LASTING blooms have to be hands down Astromeria. And it comes in so many beautiful colors! The deep purples instantly transform my mantle, the yellows bring good luck to my kitchen island, and the whites add a simple elegance to my coffee table and hutch!
xo,
k
Jen says
Yeah! Great idea! I love Izze and I love flowers! Perfect combo, thanks for the great idea.
http://www.eatplaylaughoften.blogspot.com
Molly says
Love it! Once for a baby shower I spray-painted a bunch of old soda bottles to match the theme and used them as vases – a cheap and cute way to decorate!
Jen says
I love using mason jars, and here I found an interesting way to display fresh lemons…
http://1bellastager.wordpress.com/2010/08/23/loving-lemons-a-mantel-question/
Thanks for all the fun ideas!
Jen
Amanda says
We have been using leftover Dry Soda bottles as vases in my house. They have a similar variety of colored labels, which is fun.
Here is another cute cheap vase idea: take a used can – like, one that you get canned vegetables in. Remove the label completely, and tie a pretty ribbon around it. It’s kind of industrial and funky, kind of sweet and stylish. I don’t think it would necesarily go with the style of your house but I think it would make for cute vases for a garden party or something.
Tamara says
I save Cracker Barrel syrup bottles and Watkins vanilla bottles for small bud vases. They look really cute clustered together in groups, and they’re perfect for a homespun bouquet of fresh-clipped zinnias.
Gillian says
How random! My husband and I were just at Earth Fare last month and I purchases some IZZE bottles for that exact reason. This week they are in our bathroom window with fresh blooms from the garden – lovin’ the flower logo!
Andrea Melbert Thompson says
Okay-kind of NOT related…but if you are like me, and tried Izzy soda and liked it, Costco carries cases of it with 3 flavors inside….
: )
Andrea
Melissa says
I use the same Izze bottles as vases on my desk at work! I’ve got coworkers who love to bring flowers from their gardens for all the girls at work, so it helps to have a pretty “vase” hiding in my desk for those ocassions when I arrive to find a sunflower or a daisy on my desk!
Alison says
Love those bottles.
What happened to the hole in your counter?
YoungHouseLove says
Good question! I didn’t even know the answer so I had to ask John. Turns out he photoshopped it out since he moved the Mrs Meyers bottle for the photo. But in real life it’s still sitting right there over the hole. Hope it helps!
xo,
s
Krissy says
I’ve used small jam/jelly jars, fancy spaghetti sauce jars, maple syrup jars and any other odd looking jar that I can find at the grocery store. It’s also a great way to try out new foods.
Emily says
Here in Sydney, Australia, the Lindt Chocolate cafe has the sweetest pale blue glass bottles for their still and sparkling water. The bottles have a edelwiess motif and a label with Heidi in Swiss dress – very cute!
Julie says
Lovely! Flowers always brighten up a room and any sort of vessel that you can find to put them in will work. Even an old jelly or mayo jar will do the trick!
Stephanie says
OMG! I love this idea! LOVE, LOVE, LOVE! The white flowers really pop against the colored Izze logo. Nice work!
threadbndr says
I use pint mason jars to start cuttings in. There’s usually one or two on my sunny windowsill in the kitchen.
I think I’ll add some cut blooms to the greenery.
Did I miss something about the counter? Why do you have a hole in it?
YoungHouseLove says
Threadbndr,
When we swapped out our original kitchen faucet for our current one it left an empty hole in the counter where the sprayed had been (now the sprayer is part of the faucet itself). They do sell granite counter plugs but we usually just have ours covered by a bottle of Ms. Meyers cleaner.
-John
Dana @ House*Tweaking says
I’m a big fan of IBC cream soda which happens to come in glass bottles. I don’t drink them often but when I do I always save the bottles. And, IRONICALLY (or maybe because we both have good taste), I have a trio of them sitting on my kitchen windowsill, rooting some chartreuse sweet potato vine in water.
Rose M. says
SAKE! I recently celebrated my birthday at a sushi restaurant and ordered sake for my friends and I. As soon as the tiny corked sake-filled bottle arrived at my table I thought “WWJ&SD” (what would John & Sherry do)?? Of course I made sure I didn’t lose sight of my new “perfect for a couple of flowers on my window sill” vase. I brought her home, washed her up and removed the sticker which left me with a cute lightly blue tinted bottle that would be perfect for a couple of leftovers from my weekly bouqet of flowers.I love looking at my small creation while washing dishes or simply while sitting outside looking into my kitchen. It’s a wonderful memory from a great birthday :) thanks for instilling some creativity in my “everything costs money” brain! It was pretty much free since my dinner was paid for by loved ones :)
Karla @ {The Classy Woman} says
No way! I love Izze and have been using their bottles (too pretty to recycle) to house our blooms too! Great minds think alike. ;)
katie says
i have a collection of small glass vessels that i love using as vases. there are several glass soda bottles, including an old-fashioned coke bottle and some inca cola bottles i got when i lived in peru. i also have a short, stubby round bottle that originally held apple juice, and some orangina bottles, all of which i love for their very unique and distinct shapes.
jo says
My sister saves all kinds of jars, particularly pickle and olive jars. She puts them through the dishwasher after peeling off the labels so they don’t stink up the recycling. But in the summer most of them don’t hit the recycling bin because she is too busy filling them up with huge bouquets of garden flowers. Any glass jar looks great when it’s stuffed full of overblown pink garden roses. When her kids were very little, she used to do super-cute things with baby food jars, too.
I only aspire to be such a prolific gardener and re-user of bottles and jars.
Lutz Schwartz@silver jewelry says
this could be so inviting…the flower arrangement is just right and it has unique kind of setting….
Amy @ Journey Mum says
Those bottles are just gorgeous! Thanks for the tips on how to make flowers last longer. I never buy fresh flowers because I worry about the cost versus only having themn for a few days, and my garden is basically a wasteland. I guess florists will actually sell just a couple of individual flowers to you?
I repurposed some baby food/juice jars to hold some ‘weed’ flowers that were growing in my garden. http://journeymum.blogspot.com/2010/08/repurposed-baby-food-jars.html
YoungHouseLove says
Oh yeah, they sell them by the stem all the time! And they’re usually equivalent to what you’d pay in a grocery store but they last longer and they even wrap them in a ribbon and make them all cute to carry home!
xo,
s
Leigh-Ann says
So cute! I always thought Izze bottles were just too cute to throw away!
Heather says
I love those bottles!! We like to use mason jars for vases around this house, especially since we used them in our wedding so they remind us of such a beautiful day in our lives.
Corrianna {SouthernMother} says
http://southernmother.com/2010/07/a-shout-out-to-nestle/
Okay, so it’s a little ghetto…we usually use mason jars or IBC Cream Soda bottles for vases! No “real” vases in my house, haha!
Amanda says
Like quite a few other people have mentioned, I too use mason jars as vases. I think they make really charming, casual little vases for candles or flowers.
And I love the Izze bottle idea! I always think those bottles are so pretty but hadn’t thought about using them as vases. I can’t wait to try it.