I haven’t been traveling into the city lately. Much to my sadness, since the urban jungle definitely energizes me. Things to do. People to see. You know, the pulse. The visual impact. The pace. The unusual. The swirl of life.
So, no city, no train, no Grand Central, no flower buying from Dahlia.
Woe is me.
But wait, no need to fret, if my schedule isn’t cooperating just check on others' availability. “Hello, hubby? What are your plans for today?”
Such was my fortune this past week, when JuanCarlos’ meetings took him into the city. Yeah, hurray for me! I didn’t give him any specifics. No flower type. No color preference. I just shouted out from the car as I dropped him off “Get me flowers!…” Please.
And so he obliged. He has good taste, so I knew his choices would be solid. He is a designer after all, so he had that in his favor. With no flower type in mind, he gazed at his options and as usual sunflowers first caught his eye. He adores their big yellow faces. Yet he knew I would want more than just sunflowers to work with. It was the soft color of the roses that lured him in. Soon after he grabbed some green by the way of Kale cabbage stalks and a pop of purply blue from Salvia.
Lucky me. When I saw his choices, I blushed with glee. They gave me a sense of calm and excitement simultaneously. I was lured in, too.
Kale Cabbage stems, Salvia, Roses, patiently waiting their purpose.
Now looking at these, even JC admitted, that the natural approach would be to leave their stems long and just nicely arrange them in a large, tall vase. But I saw something different. I saw a sense of order with a dash of whimsy. I realize that maybe I get more dreamy about things than most. They are just flowers, right?
To me they are so much more. They are nature. They are beauty. They are colors and shapes and fragrances that touch my senses. I love catching their grace as I walk by them. I get such joy when I see them stand proudly showing off their natural allure and arranged in ways that showcase their special attributes. So for me, it’s not just flowers. And that especially goes for roses. I dreamed of something a bit different for these pale whispers. We have all seen roses in one big bunch a million times. Of course, they look gorgeous like that. They’re roses. Duh, gorgeous.
I immediately went for my metal rectangular low vessel and knew it would be a good fit.
Using frogs, those spiky plates that help flowers stay exactly where you want them, I placed the cabbage stems in an orderly row that be the center point of the arrangement.
I have three different types, and used all three for this arrangement due to the long length of the vessel.
Like little baby cabbage heads.
The ‘stay where I put you’ stand.
Standing tall and sturdy.
Once I placed the cabbage stalks into the vessel, I found the right height for the roses so their tops hit just above the bottom of the cabbage leaves. Then using that as a guide, I cut all the rest of the roses to the same length. Next, I began lining up the roses around them like a moat around a castle. Thus, building on that theme of ‘order’ I had in mind.
Using my first rose to guide me for all the rest.
Different heights create more dimension.
Onto the whimsy. By placing the Salvia in and around the entire arrangement, peeking out they created a weeping, breezy feeling, softening the hard lines of all the ‘order’. Plus, added a contrasting color punch.
Little note; when I cut the Salvia to size, the bottom part of the stems still had greens. I used those to fill in the spaces and create volume.
Nothing wasted.
Everything gained.
I love this sweet arrangement. Ordered whimsy. I know I am showing a ton of different shots but I can’t seem to get enough of all the pretty angles.
Although I placed it on our dining room, I created the arrangement in the kitchen. All the while I kept getting glimpses of the giant golden LOVE sign my dear friend, Dominique, gave me.
See the faint lines of love in the background?
Clearly, love shows up often in my home.
I couldn’t help but think of her as I made this pretty in pink beauty and giving thanks to her friendship, her thoughtfulness and feeling blessed to have her in my life. She definitely represents order and whimsy. She gets stuff done and has fun doing it. Top that with a cosmic giggle as I rejoice on sharing this post precisely now, since tomorrow, September 15th, is her birthday. Here’s to blushing with joy on all the goodness you bring to the world, and to my life… with golden LOVE. Happy Birthday, Dominique!
