New Semester = New challenges

Last week was the beginning of the spring semester and the final semester of floral design courses at College of San Mateo.  Lots will be happening in the coming months including a Bridal Fair put on by the students and a grand finale party.

For our first design, we took bear grass and weaved the grass into a ring.  Then we took tulips and created either a bouquet or put the piece in a small container.  I added some Oasis Diamond Wire for some sparkle and this is what I came up with:

A little note on tulips:  they are funny flowers that keep growing even after they are cut.  If you ask for tulips in an arrangement, be aware that they typically last 3-5 days and if they are in a warm area they are likely to die sooner.  If you want a long lasting bouquet to send to people, don't ask for tulips!  However, in the Language of Flowers, tulips are very romantic flowers.  Here's a list of tulip colors and what they mean:

Pink Tulips- Caring

Purple Tulips- Royalty

Red Tulips- A declaration of love

White Tulips- Forgiveness

Yellow Tulips- Hopelessly in love

Coming soon:  Tired of giving or receiving red roses for Valentines day?  I am doing research on flowers and their meanings so you can order flowers with a message for your loved one!  Keep checking back for that entry!

More talent at College of San Mateo

Last night was the final for the more advanced class.  Our task was to find some sort of inspirational piece like a poem, a piece of art, a song or an object and translate that into a floral design.

My piece was inspired by this design by Paula Pryke:

The container that I had wasn't tall enough when I tried it out the night before, so I did something a little different.  I also used glass balls instead of the glass test tubes in the design, and instead of lisianthus, I used mini cymbidium orchids.   I also used white anthuriums as a focal point.  I call it "Winter Wonderland"

There are tiny floral lights inside each of the balls covered in a fake snow that I got at a local florist shop.  To add a bit of sparkle, I put beaded oasis wire, and set the entire design on a mirrored container and then set that on a round mirror (the mirror broke in transit which is why it doesn't look round).

Here are the rest of the designs from the night.  I will try to remember what the inspiration was, but there were a lot.

The song Merry Christmas, Darling was the inspiration for the design below.  

The next few pieces were holiday inspired pieces

The design below was based on the branch that the designer found at a farmers market.  The branch cost her $3!!

This pave design was based on the techniques of Gregor Lersch

The designer of this piece was inspired by a poem about music

The story behind this one is the loss of the designers brother-in-law.  A very beautiful waterfall with tropical flowers since he loved Hawaii.

The design below was created by my friend Brenda.  She loves working with thick sticks and she wanted a centerpiece for her table.  She is a fantastic designer and I've learned a lot from her.

This design was based on a designers piece at the 2011 Symposium.  

The designer of this is from Ireland and having a candle in the window is a Christmas tradition that dates back to Henry VIII.  

This fun design is inspired by the creators horse.  He loves apples so she incorporated apples into the design and that is one of his old shoes.

This designers friend asked her to create a holiday piece for her cabin in Tahoe.  

This design is called "Over the Water and Through the Woods"  from the top view, you can tell, but there is red dogwood that is in an arch shape and it had clear stones under it for the river.  Very cute.

Another design that was inspired by 2011 Symposium.  The frame is made out of corner bead which is used by construction companies when they are doing stucco work.  This is another friend of mine who has helped me multiple times on events.  She is awesome!

The advanced class has some amazing talent as well as amazing teachers.  Its a shame that the College decided to cancel this amazing program so they could build a parking lot.  

Hope you enjoyed these designs! 

Harvey

My how time flies!  I've been so busy with preparing for the holidays and closing the production of Harvey that I had the honor to be in, I have barely had time to post anything!!


Speaking of Harvey, remember this picture:

Well here is the finished product:

He was a lot of fun to make, as well as quite the challenge!  He turned out to be so heavy, that a few pieces of him fell off during the travel to the gala event.  He was a big hit though!  His head is filled with plastic water tubes and his body had floral foam inside.  His hat and bow tie were bought at a local party shop and his whiskers were made of silver Oasis wire.  He is mostly made of carnations, but there are a few chrysanthemums and mums as well as some hydrangea to give more of a textured feel to him.  His eyes  and the flower in his hand are burnt orange dahlias which are mentioned in the play.

To any of my readers who made it out to the play!  Thank you so much!