Can you think of anything that brings a smile to your face like a colourful display of fresh flowers in your home, office or wherever you want to create a feeling of warmth and appeal?

Like tropical fish in an aquarium, our eye is immediately drawn to a bunch of fresh flowers artfully displayed in a lovely vase. And to back it up, researchers have proven that a colourful arrangement of flowers nearby gives us a natural high. So that has to be a good thing!

Most modern florists have moved away from the formalised, traditional flower bouquets and added a whole array of flower-based items to their range, including bucket-loads of fresh flowers where you can often pick and choose.

Generally, a bunch of fresh flowers is a cheaper alternative to an artistic floral bouquet, so grabbing an armful of flowers to put on display not only makes you feel good, it makes your wallet feel good at the same time.

What’s more, you don’t have to be a trained florist to come up with floral decorating ideas that add pizzazz to your living or working space.

To provide you with a little inspiration, here are 5 unique floral decorating ideas:

1. Brightly coloured fresh flowers like gerberas or daisies look enchanting if you cut off the stem about 2cm from the flower and float them in a shallow bowl of water.

Add floating tea candles between the flowers, or if the water is not too deep, ordinary tea candles. When the candles are lit, the display looks like a water wonderland.

2. Singapore or Easter lilies are like individual works or art. To create a magical theme for a dinner party, find a piece of mirrored glass or a mirrored tray that fits the dimensions of your dinner table.

Trim the stems to between 10cm and 15cm and then display the lilies on the mirrored glass. Spray the flowers lightly with water to which you’ve added a half teaspoon of sugar, which brings your floral display to life.

3. Buy one dozen small red roses from your florist store and once again, trim the stems to around 5cm. If your roses have leaves close to the bud, trim them so at least one leaf remains for added effect.

When you don’t have miniature bud vases, small shot glasses work equally effectively. Fill each glass to three-quarters full with water and add a few drops of red food colouring, then place each rose in the water.

Display in groups of three or four.

4. At Christmas time, one of the most beautiful floral arrangements to decorate your house is a display of red, white and silver with an added touch of greenery.

Where in the world you live and what flowers are in season will determine what variety of blooms you choose, but keep to the theme of red and white with accents of silver and green. It’s possible to find a range of foliage with silver leaves, or ask you local florist for ideas.

Make your red, white and silver Christmas floral decoration the highlight on your festive dining table for all your guests to enjoy.

5. A current fashion trend is hair decorations in a wide range of styles and shapes. For a unique floral decorating idea, make a hair comb using fresh flowers and satin or organza ribbon.

All you will need is 3 or 4 flowers of choice, satin or organza ribbon in a complementary shade and some florist wire.

Trim the stems to around 2cm and then push the florist wire through the centre of the stem so it emerges just below the bud. Loop the wire around the remaining stem for added support and attach the flower to the hair comb by winding the wire around the comb until it feels secure.

Once you have added all the flowers, take a length of ribbon about 10cm to 15cm and wind it around the comb loosely so it creates loops of ribbon between the flowers. Add a fine mist of hair spray to hold the flowers and ribbon in place.

Online florists have a wonderful range of fresh flowers you can use to create a floral masterpiece.

All it takes to create unique floral decorating ideas is a little creativity and ingenuity and lots of imagination to delight you and your family.