Make no mistake, the flower industry is not trend-setting — it’s trend-reactive. Sorry to break that news but it’s true. When a trend boils itself down and stabilizes itself in the world of flowers, then we can start to bank on its success. As floral design experts, it’s important that we know what has stabilized in the trend and color world so we can successfully execute it for our customers.

Take the farm-to-table trend as an example. It includes elements like wildflowers, farm tables, lanterns, Mason jars, burlap and local resources. Mason jars may not be the hottest new trend but they are completely stable and heavily featured on Pinterest and that makes them mainstream and easy for us to translate into so many forms. A Mason jar is flower-friendly — it can be dressed up (painted, sanded, colorized) and the updates allow it to evolve or play well with other trends. Plus, it has huge DIY cache’ and it’s gaining speed toward becoming a “heritage,” which is the prolonged effect of a trend. Sunflowers are a heritage, chickens are a heritage, red and green for Christmas are a heritage, etc.

One of the current design trends is Heirloom. The elements are lace, hydrangea, delphinium, open roses and Queen Anne’s lace and colors involve peach, pink, coral, lavender, light blue and sepia.The better news is that this particular trend is evolving —it’s not going away, it’s starting to change and become broader. Soon it may evolve so much that it will change into another trend, but for the time being it’s OK to cash in on Mason jars.

I often get asked, “What is the new color? What’s the hot, new trend?” I’ve created a list of current trends and colors that you can count on to evolve and give you plenty of design opportunities in the next year to 18 months:

• Fairytale. Think “Into the Woods,” princesses, “Game of Thrones,” once upon a time and definitely “Frozen.” Elements include crowns (flower crowns), owls, crystals, opulent garden roses and dahlias. Colors involve burgundy, navy blue, black, chrome, and of course Elsa-aqua.

• Farm-to-Table. This trend is all about local flowers and organic and sustainable practices. Elements as mentioned earlier include wildflowers, farm tables, Mason jars, baskets and farm gear. Colors involve yellow, basil green, tangerine, terra cotta and wood tones.

• Heirloom. Think shabby chic (yes, it’s still trending), vintage anything and memories revisited. Elements include lace, hydrangea, delphinium, open roses and Queen Anne’s lace. Colors involve peach, pink, coral, lavender, light blue and sepia.

• Cumulus.Based on grey colors and focused on clouds, its evolution will be based on “Star Wars” and what that will mean remains to be seen and experienced. Be ready for Cumulus to have strong space, spaceship, robot and “Star Wars”-esque feelings intertwined. It’s going to be a fun evolution and grey will be center stage for this new, evolving trend.

In addition, here’s a watch list for things to keep our eyes on going forward, to see how they evolve. I’m waiting for these to stabilize but I’ve seen enough of them in the market to keep a watchful eye on them:

• Wild Horses. This is a continuation of cowboy chic or modern Wild West and it has roots in shabby chic but it takes on a more rustic and western feel. It includes barn wood, leather, classic vintage materials and interesting, weathered textures. Protea, Leucadendron, succulents and Cymbidium orchids play well with this trend. 

• Hammock.This is an evolution of one of the most prolific trends — it’s green-based and it’s been evolving for years. Eco-Green evolved to Meadow and then Meadow evolved into Fleur La Table. The strength of Hammock is that it’s foliage-based and it has strong ties to European style but it still includes Farm-to-Table, both flower and foliage farms and soil. 

• Animal Instinct.This trend seems to be focusing on our changing environment, the ecology crisis, endangered species and saving the world. There are strong environmental overtones in this trend, including recycling, saving Mother Earth, defending nature — it’s all-encompassing. It includes vintage, nostalgia, animal figurines, sepia tones and hand-made goodness.

• Distraction. This one has the potential to include the “Star Wars” influence also because it’s about shiny things, sparkly and glittered textures and hot colors -- anything that helps distract us from our normal, day-to-day, humdrum lives. This is a great flower influencer, especially when it comes to new colors, varieties and textures.

• Fragrant Flowers. Gardenias, garden roses, freesia, eucalyptus and herbs — I see a definite need for people to smell flowers again.

My best advice is to keep your eyes and ears open. Observe as the evolution of color and trend happens around you and migrate the new gently with past successes. It’s not an exact science, but you’ll be surprised how keen your senses are as you begin to take note and observe. As my friend Michelle Lamb from the Trend Curve says, “Dip your toe in a trend and see what your customers think.” That’s is both practical and wise advice.

J Schwanke is president at J Schwanke Productions and chief executive officer at uBloom.com. He can be contacted at [email protected].