Innovative Floral Design
I love fresh cut flowers especially if they are a part of a floral bouquet in my house. I think this appreciation comes from growing up with a father that managed Country Clubs. No matter the club, they always had gorgeous floral arrangements that greeted the members and their guests as they passed through the main entrance of the club.
Because I love fresh bouquets of flowers, I make a point of always having a cutting garden, even a small one if space is limited. So, when I came upon an Instagram post @pointoflifesupplies that showed an interesting video on arranging flowers I was hooked!
What first caught my attention was the type of ceramic vessel they were using for the arrangement – my first thought was “I can make that!” And I did, I made two in fact. What I thought was so interesting was that the vases were low with maybe an inch and a half to two inches in height with a wide mouth, they were more like vessels rather than your traditional ‘vase’. With this video in mind, I set out to throw my version of the ‘vase’. Once completed, I used a Cone 10 black satin glaze and a black underglaze for the bottom.
While I was waiting for them to be fired, I stopped by the house (it was still unsold at this time) and pruned our apple tree, so I hand some branches to work with. On the video the floral designer (you only ever see their hands), cut a stick, the width of the vase opening. Then on one end they split the stick. I used my garden cutters to do the same. I should note here, they make it look really easy in the video… I found it a bit challenging as I had a hard time not clipping away a part of the stick. Eventually I got a good cut and then (just like in the video) wedged it into the vase. It needs to be snug as this is what holds the flower stems up. I did this step and all the ones that followed before putting water in the vessel, less mess that way!
Once the stick was securely in place, it was time to add the flowers and greenery. King Soopers grocery store didn’t have a very interesting flower selection that day, so I chose a Star Gazer Lilly which came with white Babies Breath. In the video the designer used a piece of driftwood as part of the arrangement, not having access to driftwood, I replaced it with an interesting piece of Smokey Quartz crystal. With my flowers and crystal purchased, it was time to arrange.
I started with a partially opened Lily and placed it in between the spliced stick. Next, I clipped another Lily in bud form arranged it behind the first and continued this process with three more flowers arranging them in a fan like shape, some with their leaves, others without. Once I had the Lilies in place, I always gravitate toward using an odd number, I trimmed the first Lily a little shorter and temporarily placed the crystal in to see what it looked like with the shorter Lily. Next, I added the Baby’s Breath and an extra leaf to offset the crystal and balance out the larger leaf above it. Once everything was in place, I added the water. What I really enjoy about this arrangement is its asymmetry, and the unusual shape of the vessel. Once we have a place in Palisade and I can again grow my own flowers I think I will have a lot of fun experimenting with floral arrangements using this method as well as many others that @pointoflifesupplies shares on Instagram! They also have videos on You Tube!
