{"id":1127,"date":"2026-08-17T04:20:12","date_gmt":"2026-08-17T03:20:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lifelikebloom.com\/?page_id=1127"},"modified":"2026-09-15T15:55:10","modified_gmt":"2026-09-15T14:55:10","slug":"good-quality-artificial-flowers","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/lifelikebloom.com\/en\/good-quality-artificial-flowers\/","title":{"rendered":"How to Tell a Good One"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<div class=\"wp-block-columns alignfull is-layout-flex wp-container-core-columns-is-layout-8e64cf30 wp-block-columns-is-layout-flex\" style=\"margin-top:0;margin-bottom:0;padding-top:0;padding-right:0;padding-bottom:0;padding-left:0\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\">\n<section class=\"lb-det\">\n\t<div class=\"lb-det-in\">\n\t\t<header class=\"lb-det-head\">\n\t\t\t<span class=\"lb-det-eyebrow\">The details<\/span>\n\t\t\t<h1 class=\"lb-det-h\">Close enough to check<\/h1>\n\t\t\t<p class=\"lb-det-sub\">Everything below is a stem you can buy here, photographed in ordinary light. Four things worth looking at, and two more you will only find once it is in your hands \u2014 the light through a petal edge, and a stem that bends where you want it to.<\/p>\n\t\t<\/header>\n\n\t\t<ul class=\"lb-det-list\">\n\t\t\t<li>\n\t\t\t\t<span class=\"lb-det-img\"><img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/lifelikebloom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/artificial-iceland-poppy-stem-red-and-wine-styled.webp\" alt=\"Close view of a red artificial Iceland poppy showing dark veining and a granular yellow stamen\" width=\"900\" height=\"900\" loading=\"eager\"><\/span>\n\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"lb-det-t\">Veining that stops in a different place every time<\/h2>\n\t\t\t\t<p>The dark veining on these petals runs from the centre outward and stops somewhere different on each one. The stamen is a mass of separate granules around a green stigma rather than a moulded yellow disc. That centre is where the eye goes first on a poppy, and it is the first thing a cheap one simplifies.<\/p>\n\t\t\t<\/li>\n\t\t\t<li>\n\t\t\t\t<span class=\"lb-det-img\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/lifelikebloom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/artificial-snake-plant-leaves-styled.webp\" alt=\"Water beading on the surface of an artificial snake plant leaf\" width=\"900\" height=\"900\" loading=\"lazy\"><\/span>\n\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"lb-det-t\">The mottling carries onto the underside<\/h2>\n\t\t\t\t<p>Look at where the pattern goes. It is irregular across the leaf and it continues round onto the back, and a pattern that stops at the edge is a pattern that was printed. The droplets are worth a second look too \u2014 they are sitting on the surface rather than soaking into it.<\/p>\n\t\t\t<\/li>\n\t\t\t<li>\n\t\t\t\t<span class=\"lb-det-img\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/lifelikebloom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/artificial-garden-rose-spray-pink-close-up.webp\" alt=\"Close view of a pink artificial garden rose showing asymmetric petals and colour deepening towards the centre\" width=\"900\" height=\"900\" loading=\"lazy\"><\/span>\n\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"lb-det-t\">No two heads on the same stem<\/h2>\n\t\t\t\t<p>Count the petals on the open bloom and then look at the buds behind it \u2014 different sizes, different degrees of open, and the colour deepening as it goes inward rather than sitting flat across the head. The outer petals curl back and none of them are the same shape. Held up to a lamp, the thinnest outer edge still passes a little light instead of going flat and grey.<\/p>\n\t\t\t<\/li>\n\t\t\t<li>\n\t\t\t\t<span class=\"lb-det-img\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/lifelikebloom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/dried-look-magnolia-stem-taupe-close-up.webp\" alt=\"Artificial magnolia stem in faded rust and mauve on a dark knotted branch\" width=\"900\" height=\"900\" loading=\"lazy\"><\/span>\n\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"lb-det-t\">Built to look past its best<\/h2>\n\t\t\t\t<p>This one is deliberately imperfect. The petals are foxed and unevenly faded, the branch is knotted and dark rather than smooth green plastic, and the buds are at different stages. Cheap artificial flowers are always in full bloom and always in perfect condition, because that is easier and it photographs better. Real ones are almost never either.<\/p>\n\t\t\t<\/li>\n\t\t<\/ul>\n\n\t\t<div class=\"lb-det-std\">\n\t\t\t<header class=\"lb-det-std-head\">\n\t\t\t\t<span class=\"lb-det-eyebrow\">What goes on the site<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"lb-det-std-h\">Four things I check<\/h2>\n\t\t\t\t<p>A design that cannot meet these does not go on the site, however good it looks in a photograph.<\/p>\n\t\t\t<\/header>\n\n\t\t\t<ul class=\"lb-det-grid\">\n\t\t\t\t<li>\n\t\t\t\t\t<h3>A stem that bends and stays bent<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t<p>Every stem holds the shape you give it, and cuts cleanly with floristry cutters.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t<\/li>\n\t\t\t\t<li>\n\t\t\t\t\t<h3>A calyx, not a collar<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t<p>Five sepals and a slight swell where the hip would be, rather than the bloom joined straight to a green plastic ring.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t<\/li>\n\t\t\t\t<li>\n\t\t\t\t\t<h3>Petals that stay put<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t<p>Nothing shed on the table by day three, and nothing left behind when a piece is carried from one room to another.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t<\/li>\n\t\t\t\t<li>\n\t\t\t\t\t<h3>Colour that is not flat<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t<p>Pigment deepening towards the throat and lightening at the edge. A single even colour across a whole head is where cheap stems give themselves away.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t<\/li>\n\t\t\t<\/ul>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t<div class=\"lb-det-std lb-det-std-alt\">\n\t\t\t<header class=\"lb-det-std-head\">\n\t\t\t\t<span class=\"lb-det-eyebrow\">How to check anybody&#8217;s<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"lb-det-std-h\">Four tests you can do in a shop<\/h2>\n\t\t\t\t<p>None of these need mine. Run them on anything, anywhere, including on mine.<\/p>\n\t\t\t<\/header>\n\n\t\t\t<ul class=\"lb-det-grid\">\n\t\t\t\t<li>\n\t\t\t\t\t<h3>Hold it up to a lamp<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t<p>A good petal glows slightly at the rim. A flat printed one goes grey.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t<\/li>\n\t\t\t\t<li>\n\t\t\t\t\t<h3>Run a thumb across a leaf back<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t<p>You should feel the veins before you see them. Drawn-on veining is smooth.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t<\/li>\n\t\t\t\t<li>\n\t\t\t\t\t<h3>Look at three blooms on one stem<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t<p>If they are the same size at the same angle, one mould made all of them.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t<\/li>\n\t\t\t\t<li>\n\t\t\t\t\t<h3>Bend the stem and let go<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t<p>It should hold the new shape. Springing back means no wire, and no use.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t<\/li>\n\t\t\t<\/ul>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t<div class=\"lb-det-exit\">\n\t\t\t<p>The rest of it \u2014 what to look for in each kind of flower, and which ones are still genuinely difficult to copy \u2014 is set out by flower type.<\/p>\n\t\t\t<ul class=\"lb-det-exit-list\">\n\t\t\t\t<li><a href=\"https:\/\/lifelikebloom.com\/flower\/\">By flower type<\/a><\/li>\n\t\t\t\t<li><a href=\"https:\/\/lifelikebloom.com\/about\/\">About<\/a><\/li>\n\t\t\t\t<li><a href=\"https:\/\/lifelikebloom.com\/shop\/\">Shop all<\/a><\/li>\n\t\t\t<\/ul>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n<\/section>\n\n<style>\n.lb-det{width:auto;margin:0;padding:clamp(56px,7vw,100px) clamp(16px,3vw,48px) clamp(72px,9vw,132px);font-family:\"Inter\",Arial,sans-serif;color:#2A2521}\n.lb-det *{box-sizing:border-box}\n.lb-det-in{max-width:1720px;margin:0 auto}\n.lb-det-head{max-width:700px;margin:0 0 clamp(48px,5vw,80px)}\n.lb-det-eyebrow{display:block;margin:0 0 14px;font-size:13px;letter-spacing:.14em;text-transform:uppercase;color:#B4674A}\n.lb-det-h{margin:0 0 20px;font-family:\"Cormorant Garamond\",Georgia,serif;font-size:clamp(36px,4.6vw,58px);font-weight:400;line-height:1.1;color:#1A1A1A}\n.lb-det-sub{margin:0;font-size:17px;line-height:1.65;color:#5A514B}\n.lb-det-list{display:grid;grid-template-columns:repeat(2,minmax(0,1fr));column-gap:clamp(40px,4.5vw,80px);row-gap:clamp(56px,6vw,88px);margin:0;padding:0;list-style:none}\n.lb-det-img{display:block;background:#F2ECE3}\n.lb-det-img img{display:block;width:100%;height:auto;aspect-ratio:1\/1;object-fit:cover}\n.lb-det-t{margin:26px 0 14px;font-family:\"Cormorant Garamond\",Georgia,serif;font-size:26px;font-weight:600;line-height:1.25;color:#1A1A1A}\n.lb-det-list p{max-width:640px;margin:0;font-size:16px;line-height:1.72;color:#5A514B}\n.lb-det-std{margin-top:clamp(64px,7vw,104px)}\n.lb-det-std-head{max-width:640px;margin:0 0 clamp(36px,4vw,56px)}\n.lb-det-std-h{margin:0 0 16px;font-family:\"Cormorant Garamond\",Georgia,serif;font-size:clamp(28px,3.2vw,42px);font-weight:400;line-height:1.15;color:#1A1A1A}\n.lb-det-std-head p{margin:0;font-size:17px;line-height:1.65;color:#5A514B}\n.lb-det-grid{display:grid;grid-template-columns:repeat(4,minmax(0,1fr));column-gap:clamp(28px,3.5vw,56px);row-gap:clamp(32px,3.5vw,48px);margin:0;padding:0;list-style:none}\n.lb-det-grid li{padding-top:22px;border-top:1px solid #D8CFC2}\n.lb-det-grid h3{margin:0 0 12px;font-family:\"Cormorant Garamond\",Georgia,serif;font-size:22px;font-weight:600;line-height:1.3;color:#1A1A1A}\n.lb-det-grid p{margin:0;font-size:15px;line-height:1.65;color:#5A514B}\n.lb-det-exit{margin-top:clamp(64px,7vw,104px);padding-top:clamp(36px,4vw,56px);border-top:1px solid #2A2521}\n.lb-det-exit p{max-width:620px;margin:0 0 32px;font-size:17px;line-height:1.65;color:#5A514B}\n.lb-det-exit-list{display:grid;grid-template-columns:repeat(3,minmax(0,1fr));column-gap:clamp(32px,4vw,64px);max-width:900px;margin:0;padding:0;list-style:none}\n.lb-det-exit-list li{padding-top:18px;border-top:1px solid #E6DFD4}\n.lb-det-exit-list a{font-family:\"Cormorant Garamond\",Georgia,serif;font-size:22px;font-weight:600;line-height:1.3;color:#1A1A1A;text-decoration:none;transition:color .15s}\n.lb-det-exit-list a:hover{color:#B4674A}\n.lb-det a:focus-visible{outline:2px solid #B4674A;outline-offset:3px}\n@media(max-width:1200px){.lb-det-grid{grid-template-columns:repeat(2,minmax(0,1fr))}}\n@media(max-width:900px){\n.lb-det-list{grid-template-columns:minmax(0,1fr);row-gap:44px}\n.lb-det-exit-list{column-gap:20px}\n.lb-det-exit-list a{font-size:19px}\n.lb-det-sub{font-size:16px}\n}\n@media(max-width:560px){\n.lb-det-exit-list{grid-template-columns:minmax(0,1fr)}\n.lb-det-grid{grid-template-columns:minmax(0,1fr);row-gap:26px}\n}\n<\/style>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The details Close enough to check Everything below is a stem you can buy here, photographed in ordinary light. Four 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details Close enough to check Everything below is a stem you can buy here, photographed in ordinary light. Four [&hellip;]","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lifelikebloom.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/1127","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lifelikebloom.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lifelikebloom.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lifelikebloom.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lifelikebloom.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1127"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/lifelikebloom.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/1127\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":7799,"href":"https:\/\/lifelikebloom.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/1127\/revisions\/7799"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lifelikebloom.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4135"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lifelikebloom.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1127"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}