Have you noticed that flowers are everywhere you look? You see them in art, on walls, at weddings, and more. They communicate messages we sometimes struggle to express in words. And, if you let them, flowers can transcend any age or gender. So when we scrapbook life, it's simply no wonder that floral embellishments add a fitting touch to so many of our favorite layouts and projects. 

Just like the real deal, faux flowers are available in variety of exciting colors, sizes, textures and shapes. I'm pretty sure I've bought them all. Even still, it's tempting to settle into a floral rut by embellishing their middles the same way from page to page, or not taking the time to embellish their middles at all. Well, I think it's time to rethink that familiar flower routine. Every blossom is an opportunity to exhibit flair, convey meaning and use up a little more of that supply stash. Besides, flowers are our friends -- and friends don't let friends go naked! (Or something like that, hee hee.) So consider the following fun ideas and don't let the middle of your next flower go unfilled.

alphabets

charms

glitter / glitter glue

micro-beads

Also try staples, stitches, wax seals, jump rings, glass marbles, page pebbles, or 3D liquid adhesive. Experiment with the size and scale of your supplies to achieve various looks. You can even fill the middle of a flower with a photo...

hee hee hee...

Okay, the image above is just a fun poke at City Planner Cheryl Tillman, whose lovely head tends to end up in strange places thanks to the magic of Photoshop. But the suggestion to use a photo is real... For example, how sweet would it be to embed tiny wedding photos in the middles of flower accents and let them cascade gently down the side of a page? Try using a larger flower and enlist the aid of a punch or circle cutter to trim your photos to an appropriate size.

Now, a word about glue... Tiny adhesive dots tend to be perfect for mini-sized jobs like these. And generally speaking, as your embellishments go up in size, so should the size of your adhesive dots. A few dabs of liquid glue tend to work well too. 

Bookmark this page and refer to it for inspiration the next time you have a flower that needs filling. Don't feel you have to limit these ideas to blossoms alone. Try something fancy with your next circle, spiral, pinwheel or snowflake too!