FLOWERS by ingrid and titti - Faded Charm

The theme for this weeks FLOWERS is - 'Faded Charm'. I have mixed a bunch of pale flowers with a collection of faded and charming objects.

I bet you first thought it was roses I had in the vase! Well, its ornamental cabbage in a pale cream with a faded pink center. As foliage I have used Eucalyptus which has grey-green leaves. The ornamental cabbage take center stage and all I have done is surround the flowers with a collar of foliage. 

For the flower arrangement I'm using a vintage well used pressed glass vase. It used to belong to my Swedish grandmother, my mother then had it for many years and now I have it and I use it all the time.

I found the huge water jug at a flea market here in London a few years back - it is faded and stained; has crazing all over as well as a small hole in the side and a chip at the top! Well, I still love it and I just put another container inside to hold the water when I use it for flowers. 

All the books once belonged to my father - again the covers are all worn and faded but you know they are read and well loved; they all have my fathers name and date on the inside cover which makes them that little bit more precious. 

The little cushion is new but made from old linen fabrics and I love the faded floral panel stitched onto the plain background. Interesting how the green leaves matches the green leaves on the cover of the book with the title "Norwegian Poetry".

I hope you have enjoyed my little collection of faded but charming objects - to go with the rather unusual but very pretty autumn flowers and foliage.

Please, go over to Titti's blog and have 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'm back on Sunday with another Florets - floral quotes by flower lovers.

~ xoxo ~

Ingrid

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

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A Bunch for the Weekend - # 40 - Pale Pink Cloni Ranunculus

Today on 'A Bunch for the Weekend' - I'm featuring some very pretty pale pink Cloni Ranunculus from Italy - where they grow beautiful Ranunculus with very large flower heads.

 You'll need:

- 20 stems of Ranunculus in a pale pink colour

- a medium size clear glass vase

- 2 small containers for off-cut flower buds

- a few pompoms, a pile of books and a zinc watering can - all in grey tones

- a little white painted foot stool or similar and some gauze or other thin white translucent fabric 

For conditioning the flowers - you'll also need:

- a pair of florists scissors

- a florist bucket

Condition the flowers by removing any leaves that would end up below the water line in the vase. This is to reduce any growth of bacteria from deteriorating leaves. Also remove any broken or bruised leaves.

Cut the stems at an angle - this is to increase water absorption.  

Put in a clean container with fresh water and leave in a cool, dark place over night or at least for a few hours, to let the flowers absorb the maximum of water, before making the final arrangement.

You might have to re-cut the stems while making the final arrangement to suit the size of the vase or container and to get the right proportions.

Be gentle when you are handling the flowers as Ranunculus are quite fragile - the stems are soft and the delicate, papery petals tear and bruise easily.

Keep the water level in the vase low - if too much water the stems tend to rot.

The flowers should last for a week or sometimes longer.

If there are any small or big flower buds - keep them to make a few small arrangements on the side.

Start with some of the shorter stems and let the flower heads rest on the edge of the vase. Always measure the stems against the outside of the vase to make sure you get the right height. Continue filling the centre of the arrangement with slightly taller stems. 

Try to pack them as tightly as you can as you want to see as little as possible of the green stems. That way they also support each other in the vase preventing the stems from breaking. 

If you have saved any buds from when you conditioned the flowers - put them in a couple of small vases. They have a very different but interesting colour and texture then the flowers.

I have combined the delicate, pale pink flowers with some neutral grey colours - including pompoms in two different sizes, a zinc mini watering can and some vintage books - chosen purely for the colour of the cover! 

For the next few months enjoy the beauty of these wonderful flowers - they are usually available until the late spring.

Have a Happy Floral Saturday and Enjoy Your Weekend!

~ xoxo ~

Ingrid

[Styling and Photography © Ingrid Henningsson for Of Spring and Summer]

A Bunch for the Weekend - # 27 - Autumn Flowers and Grasses

This week on 'A Bunch for the Weekend - I'm featuring some autumn flowers from my garden and some Chrysanthemums from the farmers market.

I had a few Chrysanthemums left over from a previous project - they were still going strong, looking good and not at all ready to go on the compost heap.

So I decided to try to find something in my own garden to combine them with. I found some Sedum in a dark, rich maroon colour, a few pink little flowers from the ground-cover Heuchera and some fluffy seed heads from the lovely grass Miscanthus.

You'll need: 

- 3 stems of Sedum 

- 3-5 multi-stemmed light coloured Chrysanthemums

- 3 stems of Heuchera flowers

- 6 stems of Miscanthus grass 

- a medium sized vase or container with maybe a coloured detail that picks up some colour in the arrangement - in this case I have used a vintage milk jug with a brown stripe across the middle

- a small light coloured jar or container 

- a few vintage books

For conditioning the flowers - you'll also need:

- florists snippers or scissors

- a florist bucket

As always - condition the flowers by removing any leaves that would end up below the water line in the vase. Cut the stems at an angle - to increase water absorption. Put in a clean container with tepid water and leave in a cool place over night or at least a few hours before making the final arrangement.

Start off with the larger Sedum flowers - cut the stems so that the flowers are resting on the edge of the container. Cut some of the Chrysanthemums the same length - so they also rest on the edge and others a bit longer to go in the middle of the arrangement. Then feed the thin stems of the Heuchera flowers and the grasses evenly throughout the arrangement to give a bit of height and movement.

Make up a second small arrangement in the smaller vase using the offcuts from the multi-stemmed Chrysanthemums and give the small arrangement a more prominent raised position by putting it on a few books.

A quick, easy and seasonal arrangement for no extra cost at all. Brilliant!

Have a lovely Floral Friday and a Happy Weekend!

~ xoxo ~

Ingrid

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