You may have already guessed, I love flowers. I apprenticed with a Master Gardener on a number of staging and decorationg projects with whom I originally contacted for a large staging project when I was living in Halifax. I literally got my hands dirty working on decks, container gardening, holiday floral decorating and small landscape projects. He opened my eyes to many things I never new about flowers, colour, scale and taught me one of my favourite terms “thrillers, fillers, and spillers” which are the three elements you basically need to know to make a great container.
Well, it is now the dead of winter, and I can’t think of a better pick me up. I have posted photos here of an arrangement I did based on something I saw somewhere, I don’t remember. All I know is that it had to be yellow and green! The smaller vase I just did with the leftover bits. I always find it surprising what you can do with floral scraps.
I didn’t even know there was an official meterological definition of the “dead of winter” until a few days ago, but we are officially in it between January 21 - 30, when we experience, historically, the coldest days of the year.
I’m by no means a florist, but I do like to use florals or *gasp* artificial florals, sometimes called “real touch florals” (or some other nicely worded industry terms) in staging projects. My theory is that every room needs a bit of life. My Feng Shui book does warn me that dried flowers are bad energy because they have an element of death to them, and I must say I have often given clients advice of removing dried flowers from their home - usually they are dusty and well past their prime anyway.
Artificial flowers have come a long way since the peach shiny silky stuff of bygone times. I find that Pier One has a great slection of florals - especially the forsythia and of course my favourite - the very tall and chunky blossom stems they sell. A company in the U.S. - Save on Crafts is also an excellent source. If you are any type of a party planner you can get lost in this site dreaming up your next event with vases that light up, fun outdoor lights, and oodles of accessories and ideas. If you want the real mcCoy my favourite go-to florist is near Yonge and Lawrence called Bloom Plus. Super friendly and superbly talented floral designers. Also, for the DIY’ers, the strip of flower shops at Avenue Road and Davenport is always a good stop for lots of options any time of year.