Journal archive
October 24, 2011
This week I am actually away on a vacation, trying to unwind and to also get re-energized. It’s also a bit of a challenge for this project since I am doing arrangements while I am away. So far, so good as there are interesting materials growing and they are seasonal too. These gorgeous hawthorne berries […]
Read story →October 23, 2011
My freestyle moribana for today, just trying to not think about it too much and just do it. Easy to do with such lovely materials. The pink dahlia is courtesy of my partner’s mother, Phyllis, and the white freesia and monstera are from the florist. I’m taking this week to decompress a bit and re-group […]
Read story →October 22, 2011
Autumn and flowers from the garden were the inspirations today. The Japanese toad lilies with their speckled blooms were my first choice, and I experimented with many other materials before settling on chrysanthemums, hydrangea, blackberry lily pods and a begonia leaf. The base of the desing is a piece of driftwood, and my thought was […]
Read story →October 21, 2011
My arrangement started out very flashy and, very honestly, overworked. I think I may at some point post selections of the ikebana pieces that got a thumbs down, just for fun. For today it was better to be simple and work in a small ikebana vase. The materials are black calla lilies, a begonia leaf […]
Read story →October 20, 2011
Today I tried to so a variation of a floating arrangement, and it is not working for me. I like the elements, chinese lanterns and palm fronds. It’s just not hitting the mark for me. Great color and a bit of movement, but you don’t see the water element and I used way too many […]
Read story →October 19, 2011
When I do my daily ikebana arrangements I often start with one idea and it progesses into something else, sometimes along the same thought/design process or something altogether different. So here is a glimpse into one of those ideas. I have these lovely gloriosa lilies and I wanted to use them in mass, an easy […]
Read story →October 18, 2011
It’s my first time trying to manipulate palm fronds, they’re simply leaves tied two together at a time. Semi successful, it just needs some more practice, but not bad for a starting point. Like anything it takes time and exploration and experimentation. The handing of the leaves is very zen, and just relaxes me regardless […]
Read story →October 17, 2011
This is the arrangement I did in my Sogetsu Ikebana class tonight. I was given three stems of “hairy balls” (Asclepias physocarpa) and told to do the lesson “Using only one type of flower”. It can be a difficult lesson or easy lesson depending on what type of floral material you get. I thought that […]
Read story →October 16, 2011
There are some materials that I am drawn to over and over again, two are in this arrangement. The trifoliate orange with it’s spiny thorns and shape, and the yellow craspedia so small and round. I love them both so much, and I am finding more and more ways to re-use and get more familiar […]
Read story →October 15, 2011
Disassembling and rearranging the materials, I changed the appearance of a stem of papyrus and a chinese lantern to make my own composite flower. It’s a great exercise to see what you can create by taking the materials apart and and seeing how you can alter their appearance. Creative and a great way to get […]
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