Halloween is HUGE. It appeals to people in such a way that it brings out crazy, feverish, joyous creativity. Pumpkin-carving has reached such a level of artistry that it should probably have a museum, to preserve the art being made with squashes, gourds, and the simple orange jack o’ lantern. Halloween floral ideas are also extraordinary; it’s as if Halloween raises everyone’s creative game for no better reason than because we like it. And the costumes – Sigmund Freud could […]
Last week we had two couples over for a quiet dinner. It was a spontaneous invitation and there wasn’t much time to plan, so I used the simplest china, linen, silver, and glassware. For flowers, I found some pale green zinnias, seasonal and not expensive, and spread them down the table in a series of different-sized glass vases. The china and glassware were from Crate and Barrel, but the napkins were vintage linen with a big embroidered “B” on them. […]
As the season turns, late summer flowers give way to seeds, pods, and other floral features of variable textures – all of which I’m itching to work into more natural floral arrangements. There’s nothing like a few branches of ripening blackberries or a branch of crabapples tucked into a fall bouquet to make it pop. There are so many varieties of fruiting plants available now that can’t be found at other times of the year. The first arrangement features two […]
If I ever write a children’s book, I’m going to call it Vineyard Tales. I have so many happy memories from growing up on a grape farm, and now that we’ve come to grape-picking season, they rise in my mind like the syrupy fragrance of ripe Concord grapes. Every fall when the grapes were ripe, I would race out to the vineyards after school. The weather was still sunny, but you could feel autumn coming in the crisp breeze that […]
Here’s a quick how-to for arranging a bouquet of summer flowers. I’ve chosen roses, stock (matthiola incana), viburnum, and lavender because they’re available at most flower shops and the roses and stock come in a variety of colors. I’ve been doing a lot of relaxed, casual flowers this summer, and it seemed time to do something a little more a la White House. In the first photo, you’ll find what you need to get started: a vase, scissors, and floral […]
