There are many wonderful courses available for learning floral arrangements. They cover conditioning, choosing designs, selecting flowers, sketching, and more. However, no one talks about how to arrange flowers when some wilt, when you need to change the water, or when a Moribana arrangement needs a refresh.

I find this "second pass" more challenging than the first. The flowers remain the same, but the design never does. Your brain has now been conditioned to the initial arrangement, and there is a boredom associated with looking at the same colors and flowers. This feels a lot like a second love (or a third, or a fourth!). Just as you have to see a new love with a fresh set of eyes, you have to approach the floral design with an entirely new perspective. You'll carry the lessons from the first pass, but you must avoid the mistakes that led to those lessons. You need to be gentler than ever. You need patience, creativity, and energy to do something different.

I've found that floral arrangements can change drastically on a second pass. Tall flowers have been shrunk by me into bud vases or miniature arrangements in cluster clay pots. I have lost my kenzan, as damp moss now does the trick of anchoring delicate stems. Flowers have been moved between vases, and some vases have frankly disappeared. And I generate a lot of compost.

You have to do this even if you buy high-quality arrangements from a famous florist. You certainly have to do this if you buy flowers from street-side vendors every three days. You have to soak the flowers in water, refresh them, make fresh floral food, cut the stems at an angle, and dip them in water in a sink. Only then can you rearrange them.

No fancy courses are needed for this effort. No sketch is required. You are simply working with water, used wet floral foam, and previously used vases. You are banking on your basics of knowing art and design, loving what you do, and being willing to take a chance again on flowers that will certainly die in the coming days.