Exploring Ambience November 12, 2009

My floral design class at the moment is all about exploring different design “ambiences”, or moods, really. The past two weeks have had very contrasting ambiences: exotic and natural. I much perfer the natural, but the exotic was fun to try.

 

Exotic Ambience

 

Natural Ambience (Floral Wall Tapestry)

 

On another note, the last of my own cut flowers ended this past week with our first hard frost on November 5th. I still had just a few bunches to sell at the farmers market that I managed to harvest just before the frost, but that was the last of them for this year. Time to start planning for next season and possibly growing cuts in a hoop house of my very own!

 

Two Beauties October 31, 2009

 

A Bit of This, A Touch of That October 21, 2009

I’m once again taking a floral design class, and I’m also finishing up my flower growing season.  As a result, I’m getting quite an odd collection of design samples to show you.  Rather than put up a bunch of snippets, I thought I’d put a collection of them together in one post.  Forgive me if this seems a tad unorganized. 

 

autumn mille de fleur

hydrangea & grapevine wreath

ASCFG National Conference October 13, 2009

 

Last week I attended the Association of Specialty Cut Flower Growers annual national conference on Long Island, New York.  What an amazing treat it turned out to be, and I really could go on forever about the passionate attendees, the knowledgable speakers, the spot-on demonstrations, the beautiful tours, the kindred connections that were made, and generally how generous and energetic this whole organization is.  I’ll refrain and keep it to this:  if you are someone who is interested in starting or already have a small cut flower production going (“farm” may be too elaborate for some of you and that’s okay) with the idea to make some money at it, you need to join ASCFG and you should make it a priority to attend next year’s conference and perhaps some of their regional meetings as well.   The exchange of ideas and information is invaluable, not to mention a heck of a lot of fun!

 

PASA Dinner @ Longwood October 12, 2009

 

This past Saturday I had the privilege once again of doing the floral work for the PASA (Pennsylvania Association for Sustainable Agriculture) fundraiser dinner at Longwood Gardens.  This event is quite special, featuring ingredients sourced from local farms and served by the outstanding catering staff at Longwood in the Main Conservatory just as the autumn sun is setting.  This year I not only arranged all the flowers and created custom name tags, but I also grew/picked all the flowers myself.  What fun to be a featured grower at this delightful dinner!

 

Snazzy Succulents October 2, 2009

 

So I’ve been playing around with planting succulents in some antique store finds to make them real focal points in the house now that winter is coming and my darlings can’t stay outside any longer.  I am also planning to give some of these as gifts for the holidays.  Wouldn’t these also make classy centerpieces when grouped on a table at a formal dinner or wedding recption?   

 

Autumn Wedding Flowers September 26, 2009

Sweet Love & Summer Sizzle September 9, 2009

 

 

Two additions to the floral design portfolio, though these are mostly meant to serve as a reminder of color combos rather than any real design.  The first is a sweet medley of buttery yellow zinnas, soft pink dahlias and the clean green and funky texture of the love in a puff vine twirled around the outside.   Quite the bohemian romantic, don’t you think?

 

 

The second is a festive sizzle of hot summer colors, nearly all zinnias with a few pink gomphrena and green euphorbia mixed in for texture.  What a great hand-tied bouquet this would make for a bold late summer bride!  I plunked it into an equally unconventional red glass vase and was amazed that the colors played off each other with surprising ease.  A definite eye-catcher!

~

Dahlia Deliverance August 30, 2009

 

My garden has been noticeably waning in the damp humid and hot weather of August.  The lack of sun is certainly taking its toll on the flowers.  The zinnias, my workhorses for color both in and out of the garden, have never taken off this year.  What blooms I’m getting from them are nice, and I like the new seed mix I selected (Cool Crayon Colors from Renee’s), but the plants are short and are producing new blooms very slowly compared to last year when it was hot, sunny and dry all August.    The same can be said for just about every other bloom in my garden, save for the dahlias.

 

Little Jewel August 17, 2009

 

 

This is a little jewel of an arrangement, perfect for restaurant tables, sitting beside the guest book at a wedding, or marching in a line down the mahogany bar.    The dimensions are petite – 6 inches tall and 4 inches wide – but the textures are bold.    Sedum ‘Autum Joy’ acts as a base for Scabiosa, Nigella, and Panicum ‘Frosted Explosion’, all of which are nestled in a minature version of a brass florist bucket.    The best part about this arrangement is that it has dried perfectly in the vase and will remain vivid for many weeks (even months) if kept out of bright light.