Gardens are at their best in spring and summer, so it's no surprise that designers from Nicolas Ghesquiere of Balenciaga to Dries Van Noten are turning to blooms for inspiration.

Be it on short cocktail dresses or flowy gowns, the likes of roses, posies and hydrangeas are the print du jour. Large and loud, you know you'd never be a wallflower in these outfits.

Purple tunic dress, $1,685, and red walking shorts, $573, both from Etro, 01-30 Paragon; purple wedges, $840, from Tod's, 01-48 Paragon	Dress with kimono sleeves, $175, and headband, $20, both from Mango, 01-157 Suntec City; handbag, $1,099, and wedges, $839, both from Anteprima, 01-06 Paragon	Black floral jumpsuit, $185, from Guess?, B1-25 Ngee Ann City; scarf, $279, from alldressedup, 02-37 Paragon; wedges, $840, from Tod's

The look

» Head-to-toe prints might look good on the runway but not everyone's a supermodel. To recreate this season's flower-power look, stylist Lionnel Lim suggests teaming smaller floral prints with block colours. It's more practical and less overwhelming.

» Large floral prints usually scream granny. To avoid looking over the hill, go for more interesting silhouettes such as tunic dresses.

» Mix and match. You can flout the no-print-on-print rule if you play up the base colours. For example, the pink on a pair of pin-striped pants must feature on your floral print top too.

The make-up

» Go bold. The colourful, sunny prints allow you to be more adventurous with your colour palette so go for it, make-up artist Yuan Sng says.

» Don't wayang please. While you're encouraged to use vivid hues, overload and you'll risk looking like a 1980s drag queen.

» Mix blush with blooms. A face with minimal make-up will pale in comparison to the floral togs. To avoid this, make sure you sport at least rosy cheek and lip colours like crimson and pinks.

The hair

» Pretty flowers conjure up images of little girls at play. Go with the romantic idea and create a fun, flirty look. Here, hair stylist Evande Loh goes for loose curls.

» Avoid using too much conditioner when recreating this look or your hair will be too heavy and the curls will droop.

SPRING BLOOM: (left to right) Heels, $165, from Guess?; Cap, $65, from Guess?; Patchwork handbag, $179, from Antipodean, 27A Lorong Mambong; Scarf with ribbons, $1,112, from Etro

Photographer: DESMOND WEE; Stylist: LIONNEL LIM; Hair: EVANDE LOH, Shunji Matsuo, using L'Oreal Professional; Make-up: YUAN SNG (9695-0673), using L'Oreal Paris; Models: XU CHAO & MARCEL R, Mannequin; Location: Floret and Teddies

This article was first published in Urban, The Straits Times on May 1, 2008.