Florets - Floral Quote - # 159 - by Hans Blomquist

'Florets - Floral Quote' is a series of blog posts where I feature quotes by authors - mostly well known - but you will also find some obscure ones.

All of them have written one or several books about flowers, green plants, gardening, interior styling or interior design. Many are experts in their field but what is the most important is that they are all passionate about flowers and plants.

I love books and in my ever growing library I look for quotes that I hope will be both inspiring and be useful while arranging flowers or green plants in your home.

"In my opinion, you can't go wrong when bringing any kind of branch, stick or dried grasses into your home as a natural decoration for any setting, and the fact that they will last almost forever is a bonus. In winter, I love to bring in bare branches, large or small, and in spring and summer it is either branches laden with blossoms or lush green leaves. One of my favourites are, of course, olive branches, which still look so beautiful when they have dried out. In autumn, there are many different kinds of berries that look striking and add a splash of colour." 

~ Hans Blomquist ~  

[Hans Blomquist: Swedish, Paris based art director, interior stylist, photographer and author of three books.]

[Quote from: In Detail 2014, published by Ryland Peters and Small.]

[Plant: Contorted willow.]

[Styling and Photography © Ingrid Henningsson/Of Spring and Summer.]

Florets - Floral Quote - # 138 - by Hans Blomquist

Florets - Floral Quote' is a series of blog posts where I feature quotes by authors - mostly well known but you will also find some obscure ones.

All of them have written one or several books about flowers, gardening, interior styling or interior design. Many are experts in their field but what is the most important is that they are all passionate about flowers.

I love books and in my ever growing library I look for quotes that I hope will be both helpful and useful for everybody who is arranging and styling flowers.  

"It is sometimes hard to know why we like certain things more than others, why some things make us feel happy or sad. Or why we prefer one colour to another. Blue is my colour, but if you were to ask me why, the only explanation I would be able to give is that my two favourite flowers are grape hyacinths (Muscari) and forget-me-nots, and I love their rich saturated blue tones. 

Although my favorite flowers, grape hyacinths appear in spring, together with wonderfully scented hyacinths, I always associate the colour blue with summer - for the hot, sunny days with blue sky overhead."

[Hans Blomquist: Swedish, Paris based art director, interior stylist, photographer and author of three books.]

[Quote from: In the Mood for Colour 2016.]

[Flowers: Blue Hyacinths.]
[Container: Lightblue vintage jug.]

[Styling and Photography © Ingrid Henningsson/Of Spring and Summer.]

*******

Enjoy your flower arranging and have a fabulous and floral Sunday!

Thank you for visiting 'Of Spring and Summer' - I will be back next week with more floral delights from Of Spring and Summer.

Ingrid 

~ xoxo ~

[Styling and photography © Ingrid Henningsson/Of Spring and Summer.]

P. S. Did you know that you can subscribe to receive a notification via email whenever I have a new blog post. Just fill in your email address at the top of my blog on the right.

*****

P. S. If you are looking for more floral inspiration you can go over and have a look at my Pinterest boards. I have almost 12 000 followers and I have just over 200 boards all relating to flowers, floral styling and flower arranging. There are boards on individual flowers and shows how to arrange them. Other boards show different ways of using vases and containers. Simply click on the link below and it will take you straight there.

Pinterest:   https://www.pinterest.com/ofspringsummer/

Florets - Floral Quote - # 129 - by Hans Blomquist

"The easiest way to bring green into your home is to add pot plants, foliage or large, leafy branches. I wish everyone could add flowers to their home every week, as floral arrangements are so eye-catching in any room, either as a centrepiece on the kitchen table or on a side table. You don't have to spend a lot of money, however, as there are lots of common shrubs,bushes or trees that you can cut a leafy branch off on a walkin the countryside - but please use secateurs for a clean, damage-free cut. If you want more colour, a floral arrangement will do the trick, and what is more beautiful than a bouquet of garden flowers? Nature is not only one of the key ingredients in any interior, but it is also one of the easiest ways to add colour to your space."

~ Hans Blomquist ~ 

[Hans Blomquist: Swedish, Paris-based interior stylist, art director and author of three books The Natural Home (2012), In Detail (2014) and In the Mood for Colour (2016).

[Quote from: In the Mood for Colour by Hans Blomquist.]

[Branches: White Snowberries.]

[Container: White vintage vase.]

[Styling and Photography © Ingrid Henningsson/Of Spring and Summer.]

Enjoy your flower arranging and have a fabulous and floral Sunday!

Thank you for visiting 'Of Spring and Summer' - I will be back tomorrow Monday with another 'Floral Media'. 

Ingrid 

~ xoxo ~

[Styling and photography © Ingrid Henningsson/Of Spring and Summer.]

P. S. Did you know that you can subscribe to receive a notification via email whenever I have a new blog post. Just fill in your email address at the top of my blog on the right.

For more floral inspiration you can follow me on:

Pinterest:   https://www.pinterest.com/ofspringsummer/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ofspringandsummer/ 

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ingrid.henningsson

Florets - Floral Quote - # 116 - by Hans Blomquist

"There are few things that add as much colour and happiness to a home as flowers - aside from family and friends, of course. I try to bring flowers into my home every week, as it makes such a difference to the way I feel and injects a sense of vitality that only flowers can achieve. Cut flowers can be expensive, but there are so many flowers growing in abundance in the garden and on common land that can make an even more beautiful bouquet than shop-bought flowers would do." "I am lucky enough to often be able to take flowers home from photoshoots that I have worked on where they have been used as props, but I also try to get out of Paris from time to time to pick some freely growing spring or summer flowers, as they are what I really prefer. The changing seasons mean that you can create different arrangements throughout the year."

 ~ Hans Blomquist ~

[Hans Blomquist: Swedish, Paris-based interior stylist, art director and author of two books The Natural Home (2012) and In Detail (2014).

[Quote from: In Detail by Hans Blomquist.]

[Flowers: Blue Hydrangea.]

[Container: French vintage grey and black enamelled water jug.]

[Styling and Photography © Ingrid Henningsson/Of Spring and Summer.]

Enjoy your flower arranging and have a fabulous and floral Sunday!

Thank you for visiting 'Of Spring and Summer' - I will be back next week with more floral delights. 

Ingrid 

~ xoxo ~

[Styling and photography © Ingrid Henningsson/Of Spring and Summer.]

P. S. Did you know that you can subscribe to receive a notification via email whenever I have a new blog post. Just fill in your email address at the top of my blog on the right.

For more floral inspiration you can follow me on:

Pinterest:   https://www.pinterest.com/ofspringsummer/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ofspringandsummer/ 

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ingrid.henningsson

FLOWERS by ingrid and titti - Moody Hues

Well, the theme for this weeks FLOWERS is 'Moody Hues' and when looking around in magazines and on the internet - dark and moody colours - are pretty much everywhere today.

You'll find the darker colours being used in flower arrangements - especially now during the late autumn and winter season. 

I have created a whole board on Pinterest that is called 'Moody Flowers' with over fifty different flower arrangement using flowers in darker colours. Here is the link.

Paint companies like Farrow and Ball have developed darker more dramatic tones in the last few years. Colours such as Railings, Mole's Breath and Down Pipe are some of their darker and moody colours.

Stylists like Hans Blomquist often works with darker colours and in his book In Detail he shows lots of different ways of using dark colours in interesting ways.

In the first arrangements I have simply used very, dark Dahlias in two different red colours and set them against lots of black props.

In the second arrangement I'm using deep dark almost black Dahlias and as a contrast I have used long Eucalyptus branches with grey-green foliage . 

In the last arrangement I picked a double tulip in an interesting colour combination called Tulipa 'Orange Princess'. The flowers looked even moodier  paired with more orange and brown colours.

Please, go over to Titti's blog and take a look at how she has interpreted the theme this week. Here is the link to her blog HWIT BLOGG

Enjoy your flower arranging and have a great floral day!

I will be back on Sunday with another Florets - floral quotes by flower lovers.

~ xoxo ~

Ingrid

[Styling and Photography: © Ingrid Henningsson/Of Spring and Summer.]

You can also find me on:

Instagram - https://instagram.com/ofspringandsummer/

Pinterest - https://www.pinterest.com/ofspringsummer/

Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/ingrid.henningsson

Florets - Floral Quote # 89 - by Hans Blomquist

" One of the best things about finding branches and boughs to display at home is that they are free, and I prefer them to anything I could buy from a florist because they can be used to create much more personal and interesting arrangements. Tall grasses, dried out and wiry in texture, or a dead branch from a bush, twisted and sculptural, will make a more striking natural addition to your home than a perfectly bound bouquet. Add some favourite complementary objects to your setting to create a still life."

 ~ Hans Blomquist ~ 

[Hans Blomquist: Swedish, Paris-based interior stylist, art director and author of two books The Natural Home (2012) and In Detail (2014).

[Quote from: In Detail by Hans Blomquist.]

[Flowers: Dried flowers, grasses and seed heads.]

[Container: Vintage rustic terracotta jars.]

[Styling and Photography © Ingrid Henningsson/Of Spring and Summer.]

Have a wonderful and floral Sunday!

I will be back tomorrow Monday with another 'Flowers and Ribbons' - using ribbons from Jane Means' collection.

~ xoxo ~

Ingrid

[Styling and Photography: © Ingrid Henningsson/Of Spring and Summer.]

You can also find me on:

Instagram - https://instagram.com/ofspringandsummer/

Pinterest - https://www.pinterest.com/ofspringsummer/

Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/ingrid.henningsson

The Monthly List - November 2015

FLOWER

Last month I started a new monthly series of blog posts called 'The Monthly List'. It's Johanna Bradford of Tant Johanna over in Sweden who started what she calls 'Månadens Lista'. Her and the others taking part create inspirational monthly lists and I'll be doing my version over here in London. Here is my list for November and just like last month the focus is on flowers .......!

Branches with or without berries are perfect to use in the autumn. Here are three: 
- rose hips, this one has lots and lots of small round hips - great on their own or mixed with flower and foliage.
- Cornus, has long, thin straight branches in a red colour you can't miss - use on it's own in a tall clear glass vase or mix with tulips for an interesting contrast.
- crab apples, has small round apples that comes in red or orange - fantastic for autumn and Christmas, makes a real statement and lasts for ages.

VASE

I have picked four contemporary vases to feature this month. A mini Savoy Alvar Aalto vase in white designed originally in 1936 by the Finnish architect Alvar Aalto and its still made by Iittala. My daughter bought it for me at an antique market.

The two white vases on the right are by the Swedish glassblower and artist Bertil Vallien made in the 1970's and 1980's. The big one is called 'Terra' from Rörstrand and the small one is a Kosta Boda. He still works for the very famous glassblowing company Kosta Boda in the south of Sweden. One was a present and the other I bought at Copenhagen airport.

The larger vase in the back is from the German company Rosenthal. It's from their 'Studio Line' called 'Vases of Phases'. I found this one in a charity shop here in London a few years back for just a few pounds.

I love them and use them all the time for all kinds of flower arrangements. They all have interesting shapes and textures but doesn't detract from the beauty and colour of the flowers. 

BOOK

This is Selina Lake's sixth book - it's called Winter Living and was published this autumn. It's full of inspiration and lovely photographs by Debi Treloar.

She says: "...you'll be furnished with a multitude of fresh ideas to transform your home into an inviting, warming and uplifting space during the colder months of the year." 

INSTAGRAMMER

I've been following and admired my fellow Swede Hans Blomquist from a distance - on his Instagram and reading his books. He does some inspiring styling for big and small companies all over the world such as Bloomingdales, Gant, IKEA and H&M - as well as having written two beautiful books - The Natural Home (2012) and In Detail (2014).

CUP

A vintage blue and white floral tea cup from the early part of 1900 - it's not a cup I use for my tea - instead I use it as a little vase for small flower arrangements. It has such a rich dark blue colour that works well with a lot of different coloured flowers.

QUOTE

This sweetly illustrated quote is created by Flora Waycott. She is an illustrator and surface pattern designer based in Wellington, New Zealand. A lovely combination of hand lettering, flowers and pretty pastels.

FOOD

Apples are available all year around but are at their peak in the autumn in the Northern hemisphere.

This is a classic English beauty called 'Royal Gala' - and it's described as "sweet and juicy with tones of vanilla and a thin skin" - what else do you need? The perfect food! 

 Have a Lovely Floral Day!

I'll be back later in the week with more floral delights from 

Of Spring and Summer.

[Styling and Photography: © Ingrid Henningsson/Of Spring and Summer.]
[Image no 4: ©Debi Treloar/Hans Blomquist.]
[Image no 6: © Flora Waycott.] 

You can also find me on:

Instagram - https://instagram.com/ofspringandsummer/

Pinterest - https://www.pinterest.com/ofspringsummer/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ingrid.henningsson

Florets - Floral Quote by Hans Blomquist

"For me, plants and foliage are an essential element of any home: they bring an interior to life. Even better, they absorb carbon dioxide and are very effective at purifying the air, removing pollutants and toxins such as formaldehyde. I leave my plants to grow freely - I don't like anything too manicured or too neat, preferring a random, jungly effect. Some of my favourites are scented geraniums for their wonderful perfume, Sparmannia africana for its large, light green leaves and Muechlenbeckia complexa, which grows with great vigour and has a dense tangle of dark stems. In the natural home, foliage or flowers should be as close to nature as possible: think of a long branch studded with blossom in the spring, an armful of flowering grasses in summer, and bare, leafless twigs in autumn."

~ Hans Blomquist ~ 

[Hans Blomquist: Swedish-born, Paris-based interiors stylist, art director and author of two books The Natural Home, published 2012 and In Detail, published October 2014.]

[Quote from: The Natural Home by Hans Blomquist.]

[Flowers: Sedum, ferns and ivy - all from my autumn garden in London.]

[Container: Large vintage preserving jar.]

[Styling and photography © Ingrid Henningsson for Of Spring and Summer.] 


PS. I'll be taking a break from Florets for now. I have some new and exiting plans for a new series of blog posts - and guess what - it will involve lots of flowers!!   

Have a Lovely Floral Sunday!

~ xoxo ~

Ingrid