FLOWER OF THE WEEK

FLOWER OF THE WEEK:  Cymbidium Orchid

This flower is truly a winter wonder.  Available during autumn, winter and spring, it comes in large, medium and miniature varieties, in ALL colours, except blue!  The perfect flower for jazzing up a tired room, all you need are some exotic leaves and a few stems of cymbidium and you have a long lasting, vibrant addition to your home.  Perfect in bouquets, and gorgeous as single flowers floating in crystal clear water amid a sea of table settings...the diverse cymbidium is a lover of entertainment!!

In the Raw

The first of many arrangements is up in TJs Coffee House (Penshurst).  Come in if you get a chance!  I have opted for sunflowers, yellow vandas and paper daisies. The vase looks spectacular, and the whole thing gives the shop a sort of 'rustic'/french provincial look.  I'm loving it!!  What's more, Trent likes it too, so I'm hoping to keep the arrangements coming - a different, more interesting one each time.  According to Trent, there have been some great comments from customers, which is great to hear!

If you get a chance, drop in for an exceptional brew from Trent, and sit quietly so that you can enjoy the ambience, and inhale the aromas of coffee and floral art together!

The creation of a vase using raw materials and a hot glue gun!

I was wandering along a footpath (as you do), and came across some very abandoned palm trees that were begging for a trim...
I'm sure any florist (or remotely creative eccentric) would find the same excitement I did-the possibility of creating a raw, textural floral piece that echoed the sounds of nature.  The fabric these husks displayed represented a fine opportunity to enhance a glass vase (one of many) I had hanging around at home, and has given me some inspiration for the creation of a piece that is to take pride of place in a coffee shop around the corner...TJs Coffee House in Penshurst (do drop by if you get a chance!)
After a quick evaluation, and some hot glue, I have found a masterpiece in the making.  This design piece offers so many opportunities for raw, colourful floral material, that I cannot wait to skip to the markets this Thursday morning for a look-see.  It's been too long since I've had the opportunity to 'play'.
More photos to come of the evolution of "In the Raw" - a florist's journey to the creation of beautiful, soulful floral design.

Lipstick pink

For those of you after an art deco wedding...go the lipstick pink anenome...how can you replicate this colour?  The black centre, the ragged petals...it's so sublime, all in one package...a flower that delivers it all.  Enjoy!

A bowral wedding

Bowral is the antique, country hub of the Southern Highlands, and if you're looking for old, well tended gardens, vintage chic shop fronts and great coffee, then it's the place to go on a Saturday or Sunday...at your leisure!  Just an hour south of Sydney, it's easily accessible, and buzzing with energy and industry.
It's also the perfect place for a wedding, or two or three...it's hard to keep up with the number of cars headed down the main street.  However if you want privacy and elegance, and space...then take a look at the private houses available for lease for just such an occasion.
Saturday's wedding started with a long driveway framed in birch (whose stained glass window leaves are hard to ignore), maples, oaks and camelias.  Lamp posts with a single cream ribbon showed the way towards the house...the old lawn visible through the branches of the old sycamore (boy was that a treat) gave way to a tennis court, pool house and gabled path covered in wisteria.
Then there was the house...sandstone and brick, plate glass windows and a red tiled roof.  The whole scene was set for a romantic day, even before I set foot in the house and beheld the bride's dress, and the busy family members keeping children entertained, while the bridal party prepared speeches, eyelashes and bottles of vodka.

The flowers were delivered, the bride was enthralled, the venue was set and the petals were scattered.  Time to get out the camera.  For more great photos, visit my photostream at Flickr! GLR xx

The doors go up...

That's it, the Myer/David Jones mid year sales are now no longer a threat to my sensitive shopping persona...5am at the markets, the roller doors go up, and EVERYONE is either running for the David Austins (which are at the end of their season) or the mini phals, and I'm STRUGGLING to get through the mass of bodies elbowing their way to the rare and unusual batwing orchids and imported cymbidiums...
It's one of the reasons I go to the markets in the morning (whether I've had 2 hours or 6 hours sleep the night before) with a heart full of butterflies and a pocket full of 'play money' nearly every week.  When the poppies are in season, I grab bunches of them and stick them all over the house...cheap, and soo colourful.  If I'm feeling lonely, or blue, it's the Oriental Lily that takes my fancy, as they last forever, and the star shaped flowers always bring a smile to my face...even if I'm hungover or in a wretched mood!
Tomorrow it's my beloved David Austins taking me to the markets, and a wedding in Bowral on Saturday that is sure to be simply sublime, and full of 'rose petal aisle' romance...and possible rain...but I'm trying not to think about that...

Glorious Gloriosa or Flame Lily

These beauties are a treat to work with.  Their shape, colour and texture offer up a plethora of opportunity for use in floral design, and give a rare uniqueness to any arrangement that will always have the viewer looking closer!  These daring flowers originated in Africa and Asia, where their flower may well have been a warning to those intending to eat the corm that nourishes the plant!  It was used as a method of suicide...(nice).
The flowers range from greenish yellow to bright red (my favourite).
Keep your eyes open for these, they are a treat to have in your garden, but even better to have in any floral design.

Ref: "Cut Flowers of the World", p. 201, Maree, J & Van Wyk B-E.  Timberpress, 2010.