Memories of Jessica McClintock Gunne Sax dresses and a nosegay

I am a word nerd. I think many bloggers are (whether they know it or are willing to admit it).

Back many moons ago, in my junior high school at the end of every year the 8th grade students participated in "Eighth Grade Graduation". It was a big deal. The school band played "Pomp and Circumstance" while the entire 8th grade class walked in a procession decked out in the finest dress.

Back then Jessica McClintock's Gunne Sax dresses were all the rage so there was a sea of 8th grade girls wearing long calico dresses with lace-up bodices and fancy cuffs on long puffed sleeves. The graduation ceremony happened on the afternoon of the last day of school day, so all the 8th graders showed up wearing this formal attire at the beginning of the school day. The first half of the day everyone went to their regular classes. Those of us girls in 7th grade got to watch the 8th graders gliding across campus from morning class to morning class in their beautiful dresses while we dreamed of the next year when we could do the same.

The year I was one of those starry-eyed 7th graders, one particularly stylish and gregarious 8th grade girl we all loved and admired wore a beautiful Gunne Sax dress while carrying in her hand what appeared to be a miniature wedding bouquet. I was enthralled by flowers even back then, and I thought it was beyond sophisticated and charming that she got to carry around this darling bouquet of fresh flowers. I was transfixed. I heard her mention again and again that this "nosegay" was from her mother.

"Nosegay"... it sounded to enchanting and alluring.

It was a word I'd never heard before.

My flower-loving-word-nerd heart was hooked.

I never forgot that day... that moment... that space in time... when I was introduced to the concept of a "nosegay".

According to Merriam-Webster:

"Nosegay" is a homegrown word -- that is, it originated in English. Fifteenth-century Middle English speakers joined "nose" (which meant then what it does today) with "gay" (which at the time meant "ornament"). That makes "nosegay" an appropriate term for a bunch of flowers, which is indeed an ornament that appeals to the nose.

Is it just the 7th grader coming out in me, or doesn't that still sound so enchanting and alluring?

Hydrangeas in the palest shade of sky blue

Hydrangeas in the palest shade of sky blue

Leaves the richest of succulent greens

Wicker woven into the simplest of white baskets

Put together they are perfection

Almost like being there

My yen for Hawaii is an annual occurrence that happens every January. I don't bother to try to hide it. This year we have been socked in with January skies of fog and clouds that don't let the sun shine through. If I can't drive to another part of the Bay Area where the sun is shining (like I did last week), I usually have to be content with looking at the photos from our last trip to Hawaii.

But this year, it's been different thanks to a sweet bride that asked me to do her flowers for her Hawaiian tropical themed wedding this past weekend. Since last Thursday, I have been surrounded by exotic blooms of every kind in amazingly sunny gorgeous colors. I've been in my own little tropical paradise, and it's been wonderful!



There's nothing like being up to your chin in orchids, birds of paradise, Asiatic lilies, ti leaves, heliconia, ginger, and palm fronds. It definitely chased away the need to buy the next plane ticket to the islands. Well... at least for the time being...

Lighted Kissing Ball

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The above arrangement is another of the design projects I've been working on for Aqua-Gems using their products--Aqua Gems Liquid Marbles and BrightSPOT Submersible LED Accent Lights.

I've named this design "Lighted Kissing Ball". The above arrangement is made with fresh roses and lemon leaf leaves for greens, but I also made it up in a silk sample. Here are the steps on how to assemble one for yourself.

Materials list:

1 Gala Bouquet Holder by FloraCraft (from craft store)
1 Bright Spot light (used white)
Aqua Gems (any color--I used purple)
48 fresh roses (as shown) or 24 silk roses
Ribbon
Green leaves for filler (for silks use green leaves from stems)

Directions:

1. Carefully open bouquet holder at middle seam and remove floral foam (slide a dull knife around the middle if necessary)
2. Using a butter knife or flathead screwdriver, remove plastic plug separating globe from bouquet handle
3. Fill hollow handle with Aqua Gems
4. Turn on Bright Spot and push up into the bottom of the floral foam (cut out foam material if necessary)
5. Replace floral foam in holder with light shining down
6. Snap holder back together
7. Arrange flowers in floral foam so the edges touch and all foam is covered
   
8. String ribbon through hole in bottom of holder to hang

Click here to visit the Aqua Gems website for more information
or to buy Aqua Gems Liquid Marbles
and BrightSPOT Submersible LED Accent Lights for this project

Disclosure: I was paid to design the featured project. I AM NOT being paid to feature this project or product(s) on my blog and WILL NOT receive compensation for clicks through to the company website featuring the product(s)

Lighted Carnation Parfait Centerpiece

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The past two weeks I've been working on a confidential design job that I can finally write about. I've been designing projects for Aqua-Gems using their products--Aqua Gems Liquid Marbles and BrightSPOT Submersible LED Accent Lights. A number of the design projects I've created will be used in a large retail craft/fabric store account that Aqua-Gems has, but I've been given the green light to showcase them on my blog too!

The first is a lighted centerpiece I've named "Carnation Parfait". Here are the steps on how to assembly one for yourself.

Materials list:

1 parfait or sundae glass (I got mine at a restaurant supply store)
1 drinking straw
1 BrightSPOT light (I used pink)
1 package of Aqua Gems Liquid Marbles (I used pink)
6 standard carnations in a color matching the Aqua Gems you use
2 white standard carnations
1 artificial red cherry or cranberry on a pick wire (from craft store)

Directions:

1) Turn on the BrightSPOT and slide the drinking straw over the bulb of the light (see photos below)




2) Place a small amount of hydrated Aqua Gems Liquid Marbles in bottom of parfait glass and nest BrightSPOT in Aqua Gems (see photo below)



3) Fill the parfait glass full of Aqua Gems Liquid Marbles

4) Position straw just to the right or left of center

5) Cut the carnation stems to 3-4 inches in length

6) Arrange 6 colored carnations in a circle around entire rim of parfait glass (let edges of carnations hang over the edge of glass)

7) Place 2 white carnations in top center (re-position straw if needed)

8) Place cherry on top by sliding pick wire down into center

And you're ready to "serve"!

Click here to visit the Aqua Gems website for more information
or to buy Aqua Gems Liquid Marbles
and BrightSPOT Submersible LED Accent Lights for this project

Disclosure: I was paid to design the featured project. I AM NOT being paid to feature this project or product(s) on my blog and WILL NOT receive compensation for clicks through to the company website featuring the product(s)

The calming activity of corsage-making

I was anxious to get back to floral design class again this week since I missed both my classes last week due to illness*. I wasn't sure what everyone else would be doing, but I knew I had missed the class on fine-tuning our corsage-making skills, so I figured I'd just do that.

I came to class with one small $3.99 bouquet from Trader Joe's in hand that had 5 red roses and some white alstroemeria in it. I knew I didn't need a lot of flowers for a corsage. I took my chances that there would be some flowers left in the classroom fridge that I could use for filler. As it turned out, there were three pretty calla lilies and three sweet orchids left in the fridge that were "begging" to be made into a corsage. So I ended up building two during our 3 hour class.

Making a corsage is an interesting activity that I find quite soothing and relaxing. The pre-work is what is so time-consuming. It involves making a bunch of "floral picks" with bunches of filler around a central flower all taped to a tiny water source and wire with floral tape. We have blocks of stryofoam that we stick each pick into once it's done, then we move on to the next one until we have enough picks to gather together and tape to make a corsage. The act of taping each flower is repetitive and doesn't require a lot of heavy-duty thinking, so I find it relaxing as I sit and think or quietly chat with my classmates next to me as they work on their arrangements.

Corsage-making was just the calming activity I needed today as I'm finally feeling well again after fighting the nasty virus I had*. The corsages made me happy with their lovely colors as I twirled them in my fingers, twisting the floral tape around and around their stems. That is the epitome of soothing for me.

What calming and restful activity do you like to do?

*Illness Note: We suspect I had the H1N1 flu, but the doc didn't feel the need to swab me to verify it. He said a flu is a flu, that they're all A-type flu viruses, shrugged his shoulders and exclaimed that he didn't understand what the big hubbub was about. It's just a normal flu season, in his opinion. In my opinion, everyone needs to calm down, take care of themselves, and be responsible enough to quarantine yourself if you are sick--even if you think it's just a cold. This flu is much like a cold if you are not immune-compromised. So be thoughtful and don't put someone who IS immune-compromised at risk. Stay home.

The real reason I love floral design

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I have to admit that one of the reasons why I enjoy my floral design classes is because I love looking at flowers before they are arranged. Yes, it seems opposite of what a floral designer would say, but it's true. My whole life, I've been enamored with the big displays of bunches of flowers in florist shops, grocery stores, and sidewalk flower vendors. Seeing all the flowers grouped by type rolled up in cellophane sleeves waiting to be purchased just makes something inside me leap.


So you can imagine what I must be feeling every time I go in to floral design class and get a chance to open up the large refrigerators that are there to see them filled with flowers recently purchased at the flower mart. I'm in heaven!

Yesterday, all the floral design students had a particularly significant opportunity to go in on a non-class day and assist our instructor with a wedding job she had for this weekend. It wasn't mandatory that we be there--strictly voluntary. Many of us embraced the chance to fine tune our skills that we'd been learning in class by applying them in a real world setting of the mass assembly of corsages, boutonnieres, cake topper pieces, a flower girl basket, carry-pieces for the bride and her bridesmaids, table arrangements, and altar sprays. There's a lot of work that goes into producing so many wedding flower arrangements including the prep work in getting the flowers cleaned up and ready to be arranged. Our classroom was full of helpers as well as the wonderful aroma of flowers (the same aroma that hits you when you walk into a florist).


The classroom fridges had to be emptied of the buckets of flowers used for our classes so there was room for the wedding flowers after they were arranged. Then added to that were the bunches and masses of wedding flowers in buckets waiting to be assembled into the various wedding arrangements. I was loving life!

We all assisted with so many jobs from prepping, to arranging, to sweeping and clean-up. Fortunately, I had brought my camera with me and took a break in the middle of the afternoon to take some photographs of my finished work and also the flowers in their pre-arranged state. I have to say that my favorite photos are of the latter.

I stayed until the lights were being turned out in the evening. My eyes were bleary but my heart was singing because I had been surrounded by so much floral beauty all day long. Don't worry... I'll share my finished arrangements (I've already posted them to my Facebook album). But for now, I wanted to feature shots of the flowers before they were arranged--the sights that made me happy I'm taking these classes.

When it rains... it pours

When we were first married, we entertained the idea of living somewhere else other than the San Francisco Bay Area. We loved British Columbia (and felt like we could easily become Canadian). We loved the Pacific Northwest with its stunning green vistas and proximity to the Puget Sound. We loved the No. California and Oregon coast with the breathtaking land along the Pacific Ocean. All these places had one thing in common... gorgeous scenery, trees, and the color GREEN.

But having SAD (Seasonal Affective Disorder) limited our choices as far as latitude--we couldn't go too far north or the days would be too short in the winter for my emotional health. So I had to find joy in living where I was planted in the Bay Area.

After moving to Rosehaven Cottage and having my first real garden to tend that was mine, I got into sync with the rhythms of nature fairly quickly. I became more aware of seasonal shifts. Those shifts are far more subtle in our climate than in a climate where there is winter snow (something I had my fill of as a child in Colorado and am thankful I don't have now). But there are seasonal changes nonetheless.

One seasonal shift just happened again yesterday as it always does around this time of the year--the first rainstorm of the rain-season.

Our rain-season starts sometime in October and lasts until early May, with rarely any rain falling during the summer months of late May through September. Our rainstorms are fronts that usually come in off the Pacific Ocean and then move their way west to higher elevations over the Sierra Nevada mountains where it becomes snow. In late spring, the snow that has fallen in the mountains becomes run-off into mountain lakes and reservoirs that we rely on for water during the summer months.

When the first storm of the season comes, it is always big news. And this particular storm that we had come through yesterday was even bigger news. It dumped more rain than was anticipated. Some of the mountainous areas of the Bay Area received over 11 inches of rain in 24 hours. That's A LOT!

Fortunately, with all the micro-climates in the Bay Area we didn't receive that much, but we still got a few inches in that 24 hour period. It was wonderful to watch my rain barrels fill to overflowing. I found myself wishing I had rigged up a system to catch the overflow because the rainwater seemed so precious.

Yesterday afternoon during the height of the storm, I had to go to floral design class. I had to buy my flowers before class and then make multiple trips from the parking lot to the classroom to get everything inside. I didn't have enough hands to carry an umbrella so I simply let myself get wet (fortunately my hair was pulled back in a ponytail). My flowers loved the "drink" they got as the rain fell on them and me. I couldn't grumble about being wet. I was just grateful for the rain. So in my soggy state, I happily sat and arranged flowers as I listened to the rain pour outside the classroom. And I found joy in where I was planted.

Addendum:
I should clarify that the months of October to May are only the season in which we can expect rainstorms to move through our area and we don't get rain constantly throughout those months. In between the usually quick-moving fronts, we have wonderful sunshine mixed with some fog in December and January. That's why I can have roses blooming on Christmas Day. If we had rain constantly from October to May, my SAD would have me in a real mess.

Harvest Moon

Last week, my floral design classes started up again after a 2 month break for the summer. I was glad to get back into the swing of things. As my instructor and I reviewed what I had and didn't have in my beginner's certification portfolio (I had 24 arrangements and I need 30), it became obvious that two key arrangement types had been left out of our instructional packets--the "Crescent" and the "Hogarth Curve". And since vase and basket arrangements are the bulk of the demand at a florist, my instructor indicated I should do two more of each of those two.

So when I went to buy flowers for today's class, I had my mind set on doing a vase arrangement with a mixed bouquet of whatever looked good. But then when I got to the grocery store, they had these cool looking branches called "pumpkin tree" with little baby "pumpkins" dangling from them (I think they're a variety of pepper). That got my imagination churning and before I knew it I had come up with the idea of using a carved out pumpkin for the container instead of a vase.

Once I got to class, I asked my instructor what arrangement she would like to see me create to round out my portfolio. She suggested that I challenge myself and do a "Crescent" or "Hogarth Curve" with the pumpkin as the base. Well, I knew I had to do a crescent shape with all the autumnal flowers. It would look like a "harvest moon"! So that's what I did and I'm so glad I did--even though it did take me over 3 hours to complete it.

Weeks Nine and Ten of Floral Design

Because I missed my floral design class last Tuesday (funeral stuff), I had to make up a class period by attending both the afternoon and evening classes yesterday.


Week nine was the L-shaped arrangement that I made up in the evening. In my garden, I have been fortunate to have quite a few of my roses grow long straight stems this spring (probably because of our rainfall patterns). So I was able to bring a dozen long stemmed Tahitian Sunset roses from my own garden to make this arrangement! How cool is that?!?!



For week ten's arrangement, we learned how to make a topiary out of asiatic lilies and roses. The stems of the lilies are so long and straight that when we bound them together they made a great "trunk" for the topiary. The lilies are already starting to open up more as this arrangement sits on my mantle. I'm enjoying watching it evolve.

Yesterday was the last class of this term. So I get a two week break, and then I'll be in the shorter summer term doing double-duty every Tuesday with 6 hours of instruction in total every week. That means I'll get two arrangements done every Tuesday. By the end of the summer term, I'll be much closer to my first milestone--beginner's certification with 30 arrangements completed. Yay!

Flower therapy

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As things have finally settled down after an extra long weekend of family gatherings in honor of my father-in-law, I'm getting a chance to post once again. All of your words have meant so very much. You have no idea the profound sense of peace that your friendship and love has brought to us both. It is times like these that I am extremely grateful for the technology that shrinks the world and makes it possible for me to reap the reward of having so many kindred spirits across the miles reaching out to me so that I may benefit from those important connections.



I had the very choice experience of taking my newly acquired floral design skills and putting them to the test by creating floral arrangements for Dad's funeral and graveside services. We chose to rent a cargo van so that I could buy all the flowers here and then transport them and my supplies with us the 3 1/2 hour drive to where the memorial services were being held. Then we could also transport some flowers back to our area for the graveside service that would be local to us. With the help of large blocks of ice and a number of ice chests (including two 150 quart monsters), we successfully transported all the flowers and kept them fresh.



As soon as we drove up to my in-law's home, I set up shop out in their garage and started arranging flowers. I had specific arrangements I did first, but I figured I'd just keep going until I'd used up all the flowers I'd acquired. I finally used up the last daffodils in two small tied bouquets in round glass bowls on Sunday night. Those two bouquets brought the grand total of arrangements to 10 arrangements in two days! I told Hubby that if I ever had any doubt whether I like this kind of work, this would be the test. And I'm happy to report that after all that, I love doing floral design work more than I did before I started.



The whole process was an extremely therapeutic one. I sat out in the garage at my work table. Family members would come in and out as they joined me for quiet chats around the flowers. The wonderful conversations that happened around that work table were so precious. Each arrangement just happened in the midst of all of this love and warmth. Although the first two arrangements were something I had somewhat pre-planned, the rest were born as I sat at the table. It was a profoundly sweet and poignant experience that I will always cherish. And I felt like it was the best way I could honor such a special artistic man--quietly creating while surrounded by family and flowers.

Week Eight--Symmetrical Isosceles Triangle Arrangement

Today (week 8 in my floral design class) we learned how to construct a symmetrical arrangement based on an isosceles (equilateral) triangle. It was an interesting challenge because each of us had a different vase so each arrangement had to be proportioned to the vase that would contain it.

My container was a low plastic container so my arrangement ended up smaller and tighter than the other arrangements in the class. But I found the proportions easier when it came to achieving the triangle (which is kind of tricky when you're using round-ish flowers).

The other advantage to my arrangement being smaller was that I got done earlier. Since the triangle arrangement we were doing only contains a dozen main flowers (carnations in this case), I had leftovers of both my carnations and my wax flower. Since I had leftover time as well, I did up a quick symmetrical round arrangement for practice in a container I had in my tool kit--a goblet I found at the thrift store.


Once I got both arrangements home, I was happy to find that they fit perfectly on our fireplace mantle out of the reach of kitties that are dying to munch on the greens. The mantle ended up being a fine place to photograph both arrangements as well.

Week Seven--Corsages and Boutonnieres

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Today was week 7 in my floral design class, and we were introduced to the intricate world of corsage and boutonniere construction. I had no idea that something which is so small and seemingly simple has so much handwork involved in its creation. It was a fascinating day of instruction. I now understand why florists charge what they do for corsages and boutonnieres. I also have an all new appreciation for anyone doing the flowers for a large wedding.

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The other thing that I didn't know until today is that corsages and boutonnieres can be done 2-3 days before the event. They keep very well as long as they are in a fridge away from fruits and vegetables which give off ethylene gas that will wilt any flowers in proximity to the produce. It's a great bit of information to know, don't you think? And now you know why supermarket flowers always seem a bit sad if the floral department is right by the produce.

Easter Arrangement

I just completed week six's arrangement for my floral design class. I had chosen a pink and white color palette of lilies, ranunculus, tulips, snapdragons, and baby roses when I picked out my flowers yesterday at Trader Joe's. Once in class, our instructor pulled out the surplus of flowers she had in the fridges and said we could use whatever we liked. I chose the pink carnations and million star (often mistaken for baby's breath) as well as the basic leather leaf fern for filler.

Last week we were told that we would be doing an Easter arrangement in a basket of some sort that we were to provide. I had noticed others asking the instructor about less traditional baskets and thought my square basket would do nicely even though most people were going to use traditional low and oblong Easter basket (I didn't have one). With the oblong baskets half would be flowers and half would be filled a stuffed animal and other Easter decor. We have a packet of sample photographs for each week, and I saw that not all of them for this week had a stuffed animal in it, so I thought I'd be okay without one.

Once in class, when our instructor told us we were free to arrange things however we wanted for this one, I figured I'd be okay. One rule we needed to follow was that our arrangement was to be 1 1/2 times the height of our basket or the width of our basket, whichever was larger.


I got going purposefully making a one-sided arrangement so it would fit on our fireplace mantle once I got it home. Since we were being allowed to do whatever we wanted, I started playing with the idea of creating an "S" curve from top to bottom through the center of the arrangement with the lilies and snapdragons. Then I thought it would be interesting to use the pink carnations as filler instead of green leather leaf so the lilies would stand out on a background of pink instead of green.

I was feeling really good about the arrangement as it grew. The more flowers I got in it, the more I liked it. My classmates were giving me compliments too, so I figured I was doing good. My instructor stayed pretty quiet. I figured it was because she was helping others and also doing her own arrangement.

When I got done, she came over to look at mine. She commented that it was definitely an "en masse" arrangement. Right then, I knew that she didn't like it. She made a few more comments about how she was going to teach me to do arrangements other than "en masse" ones. Then I really knew she didn't like it.


I felt like a heel. Everyone else was being a good follower, using the right shaped basket with the stuffed animal, and I was sitting there with an arrangement that was clearly not what she had wanted us to do. I felt like it had been a secret test, and I had failed miserably. And being a classic "people pleaser" that needs assurance from authority figures makes the whole thing smart even more.

The sad part is, it's a beautiful arrangement. I'm certain that if it was for sale in a shop, there would be someone that would fall in love with it and buy it. I could probably sell more than one like this.

The other sad part is, I love en masse arrangements that have little or no greenery. I love bouquets without greenery. I love photographs of flowers en masse without greenery. I love the repetition of colors and forms. It pleases my aesthetic. But it seems that my aesthetic is in direct contrast to my instructor's aesthetic.

This is a repeated theme in my life. In many creative classroom settings in the past, I've ended up being the "black sheep" whether I intended to or not. I really wanted this time to be different. I really wanted to conform and be the "good student" for once. I'm really going to try, but somehow I think I've already been labeled as the "problem child".

Long and Low

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Today was week 5 in my floral design class at the adult education center in our town. And our arrangement was really exciting to construct. It's called a "long and low" arrangement. It is intended to be used as a centerpiece for a table or an arrangement for a buffet or sideboard. The candle adds a touch of elegance to it.

This week I bought my flowers myself and brought them to class. I had the option to have our instructor pick up flowers at the San Francisco Flower Mart, but I wanted the fun of picking out my own. Costco has a good assortment of fresh flowers, so I did my shopping there yesterday.

At Costco, I was able to find all the flowers I needed (and then some) but I couldn't find any filler. When I got home, I thought about what I might have growing in the garden that might be suitable. I decided to cut some branches of camellia greenery and also some fronds off a wonderful conically shaped fern I have beneath the camellia bushes. I was a bit nervous about bringing them to class, because I wasn't sure if our instructor would consider them appropriate. When I got to class, my instructor immediately recognized the camellia and then shared with us that it is a great filler to use for arrangements. I told her I was really happy I'd been brave enough to bring it. That taught me that I need to trust my gut instincts a bit more when it comes to this new venture of floral design.

One Dozen White Roses Bouquet

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Today was my fourth floral design class, and we learned how to arrangement a dozen roses in a vase with leather leaf and fern for fillers.

This arrangement uses the stems of the filler to create an interlaced grid to place the roses in so they stay put--sort of. This was a new technique for me because normally I put the flowers in the vase and then try to figure out how to put in filler around them. I think I like the technique of placing the greenery first better.

The flowers aren't in floral foam so things move around a lot while arranging this bouquet. That can be good and bad depending what you're trying to accomplish at any given moment.

My roses didn't have long enough stems to get the full airy effect that our instructor had in her arrangement. I had to wire my three tallest roses to give them height.

Still, I like the arrangement and the way the stems criss-cross in the vase.

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Today, I spent the afternoon in my third week of floral design class. Last week, I had asked our instructor to try and find me some green carnations for St. Patrick's Day. And she did!

We learned how to make a symmetrical arrangement today. Part of the arrangement was learning how to wire eucalyptus stems. Along with that lesson came the lesson that woring with eucalyptus makes your fingers very sticky (fortunately, I had gloves).

As simple as a symmetrical design looks, I have to tell you that it is a very difficult arrangement to achieve. Mine isn't truly symmetrical, but I can't be too hard on myself because it was my first attempt.

Happy St. Patrick's Day to everyone!

Pink Carnations & Chocolate

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In this week's floral design class (Week 2), we learned a lot of basics--cutting and placing the foam oasis, wiring stems, symmetrical placement of fronds and flowers. Each student ended up creating pretty round-ish arrangements with baby carnations and leather-leaf.

Last week, we were told to bring a vase or mug for the arrangement that had a mouth about 3" to 3 1/2" wide and was a medium height. After hunting at the thrift store and finding two vases for future arrangements, I went to T.J. Maxx and found a lovely hot cocoa mug that was pink and brown! Well, of course I had to get that. I was just hoping that my instructor was able to get the right color flowers for my mug. Imagine my delight when she brought out the flowers at the beginning of class (she procured them at the San Francisco Flower Mart yesterday), and one bunch was my favorite shade of pink. And it was the perfect pink for my mug!

Another fun find at T.J. Maxx was the cute pink and brown box with the retro graphic that is featured in my portfolio shot of the floral arrangement. I'm teaching myself how to make fabric and paper covered boxes. This will be a fun one to recreate. The mug also came in its own little matching box so I have another "template" to play with.

And in case you're wondering... the "Carnation Parfait" is still beautiful and looking fresh after a whole week! Amazing!

Carnation Parfait

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Today, I attended my first floral design class. We have a wonderful adult education center here in town that offers an array of classes ranging from GED completion to computer skills to creative skills. This beginning floral design class is the first of many that I will be attending in order to achieve my certificate in floral design.

To receive certification I will need to attend 60 classes (180 hours of instruction). I will leave each 3 hour class with a fresh flower arrangement in-hand. Part of the requirement for the certification is to photograph each floral arrangement we create and put the photographs in a binder that will be used for certification. And when that same binder is also a portfolio of our work to be used for getting florist jobs. That means there will be 60 pages of 60 arrangements in my portfolio. Pretty beefy portfolio to walk away with, isn't it?

At 3 hours of instruction a week, it will take a while to complete the certification process, but I am thrilled at the prospect of being able to acquire a valuable marketable skill while still doing all the other things that I do in my life. If for some reason I ever need to go back to working for someone else, the thought of going back to an office makes me queasy. Since I've been attracted to floral design since I was a young girl, this seems like a much better option to me. I told Hubby that this will be a good "fall back" skill in case I ever need it.

Another reason why I'm taking this class is to make it possible for me to broaden my photographic horizons and have more subject matter with which to create my photographic art. I can already tell after one class (and one adorable floral arrangement which I'm calling "Carnation Parfait") that I'm going to have a lot of fun with this.

And another bonus... every time I walk by the mantle, I get a whiff of the spicy aroma of carnations. Not a bad fringe benefit, I'd say.