Carnations have a bad reputation, and I’ve done my part in contributing to this over the years (despite the fact that I once sent my first girlfriend a huge bouquet of two dozen of them, back when I was also giving heart-shaped crystal broaches to said girlfriend – oopsie!) Don’t fault me for my taste in high school, please. Over the years, I’ve mostly viewed carnations as filler flowers, and many of us have taken their ubiquity as a fault or reason for scorn, when such common and consistent use is proof of their durability and success as a cut flower.
Stock also is underutilized, in my opinion, particularly when it has such a fine perfume that is not nearly as oppressive as lilies. Taken together, two filler flowers may not feel like a proper bouquet, but I think it’s absolutely exquisite. A subtle tone-on-tone collection of flowers lends an elegant sophistication to a vase, one that forces a closer examination of the forms and textures, a leaning-in to the quiet perfume that both of these flowers provide.
I love a bouquet that doesn’t feel the need to shout.
