Artificial Flowers for the Home

Silk Flowers

• Silk flowers may look realistic or fake from a mile away, depending on quality, color and flower type. For realistic-looking impostors, choose cream or white-colored blossoms with bold green stems. Removing foliage from the stems sometimes helps, and you can cut them short and bunch the flowers tightly together. Be careful when mixing colors, as they sometimes bring out the artificial color in the other flower.

Paper Flowers

• To prevent unrealistic artificial flowers from looking tacky, go all the way with the artificial theme and even call attention to it so that the flowers look crafty. Make crepe paper flowers, glue them onto a tree branch and place them in a Mason jar; or invest some time and create an elaborately folded origami bouquet. The clean lines will accent the flat color of the origami paper. Don't overcrowd the blossoms; single stems sometimes look the most elegant and chic.

Recycled Materials

• Flowers made from garbage bags may sound messy and tacky, but with the right twists and bunches, they make fun, bold-colored accents in the home. Cut strips of plastic bag -- preferably in a bright color. Cut a deep wave pattern into one side of the strip, or use crimping scissors. The curvy edge will be the top of your blossom. Wrap the strip tightly around a skewer, the wavy edge on top. Pull the blossom off the skewer, and stick a pin through the bottom center to secure it in place. Attach it to green floral wire and fluff out the blossoms, and you have a translucent faux flower.

Incorporate Faux Into Your Decor

• Use faux flowers to accent your decor. Create your own origami flowers with solid colors or patterned paper for a graphic look, or find a couple stems of cream foliage with iridescent opal-colored discs on the end instead of natural-looking flowers to add some glamor. Study the colors and shapes in the room. If your room uses straight lines and angles, look for flowers with a round, curvy or flowing shape for a counterbalance. If your room is decorated with blue and green, choose a bold yellow or orange for a bit of contrast. Experiment with various arrangements, number of flowers and display areas for the best look.