Shh…don’t say the word but brown is very much the colour of the moment.
Only, of course one doesn’t mention brown or, heaven forbid, beige, instead we have toffee, cappuccino, nude, tan…
But however described, brown, in all its tones, tints and shades, is in reality a very versatile base colour for others to shine from; peach, pale pink, lemon and orange all zing when placed against brown.
Is this driven by the trend for dried flowers or the other way round? it’s difficult to tell, but there is a lot of it about, from home furnishings to catwalks. Perhaps it will even take over from the ubiquitous grey.
How to Get the Look.
Weddings
A quick Google search of ‘brown wedding bouquets’ shows how popular bridal designs in shades of brown in both fresh and dried materials have become. Large headed roses and dahlias are most definitely in, as is eucalyptus, cotton, feathery grasses and fluffy flowers such as gypsophila. The fact that you can use dried and preserved materials is useful if you are struggling to fulfil the tan/nude colour palette.
Naturally, flower growers have responded to the trend, so if you are looking for fresh flower material in shades of toffee and tan, here are some variety suggestions. Enjoy experimenting!
Roses
Tan coloured: 'Toffee', 'Shimmer', 'Roseanne du Brown', 'Quicksand', 'Cappuccino', 'Café Latte'
Tan/salmon: 'Menta'
With a dusky pink tone: 'Lovelace', 'Notre Dame'
Tan/red: 'Café del Mar'
Flowers for an English country garden look
Amaranthus 'Hot Biscuit'
Anthurium 'Choco', 'Di Amaro', 'Elixir' or 'Olivius' for an olive brown.
Cosmos 'Black Beauty', 'Love of my life', 'Karma choc'
Cymbidium orchid 'Cappuccino', 'Choco Bear', 'Espresso'
Daucus carota (Queen Anne’s Lace)
Dahlia 'Café au Lait', 'Brown Sugar', 'Sebastian', 'Sylvia'.
Eustoma 'Bohemian Choco', 'Bohemian Mocha', 'Rosanne Deep Brown'
Hypericum 'Excellent Flair'
Hydrangea 'Ruby Red Choco'.
Foliage in brown/tan shades
Corylus
Cordyline 'Chicken Tail'
Weigela
Miscanthus
Panicum
Setaria
Pennisetum.
