Florets - Floral Quote - # 161 - by Willow Crossley

'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 the authors 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.

"You often see amaryllis potted in containers or baskets or extravagant cut flowers in vases, but I prefer to grow them in old pickle jars, as shown here. I think that gives them a botanical chic, rather like turning them into a museum specimen for you to watch growing taller and taller until they flower.

Amaryllis always seem to fall over under their own weight, but these jars act as a support from every angle, which makes them practical as well as beautiful. Curiously amaryllis don't really need soil - just a tiny trickle of water every so often will do, to keep the roots wet."

~ Willow Crossley ~  

[Willow Crossley: British, Oxfordshire based florist, designer, journalist, founder of online business Willow Rose Boutique and author of two books. Inspire (2014) and Flourish (2016).]

[Quote from: Inspire by Willow Crossley. Published by Cico Books.]

[Flowers: Maidenhair fern.]

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

Florets - Floral Quote - # 143 - by Willow Crossley

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.  

"Anemones are ridiculously pretty, so wispy and fragile with their paint-box silk petals and frilly leaves. They come in all shades of pink, blue, crimson, purple, scarlet, and white.

They are also amenable in arrangements and deceptively strong - you just need to be careful not to bash them about because their petals can tear or become stained by specks of pollen. 

Anemones are quite an extravagance to buy, but one way to eke them out while still creating a dazzling display is to line them up in individual containers. Try using traditional milk bottles, mini jam jars, test tubes, or vintage shot glasses."

~ Willow Crossley ~ 

[Willow Crossley: British, Oxfordshire based florist, designer, journalist, founder of online business Willow Rose Boutique and author of two books. Inspire (2014) and Flourish (2016).]

[Quote from: Inspire by Willow Crossley.]

[Flowers: Moody dark Anemones. Flowers from my local flower stall in North West London]

[Containers: Clear glass vintage milk bottle.]

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

*****

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

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

I'm looking forward to seeing you back here then.

Ingrid 

~ xoxo ~

*****

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 now have just over 12 000 followers and around 200 boards all relating to flowers, flower styling and flower arranging. There are boards on individual flowers and boards showing how to arrange flowers. 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 - # 136 - by Willow Crossley

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.  

" Seek out the crazy, frilly, striped parrot varieties. The crazier the better. The white and raspberry streaked 'Rem's Favourite' brings so much joy to a kitchen table. For a slightly more subtle moment, there's a pale green and pink striped sensation called ' Green Wave' or consider the lily-flowered 'China Pink', or "tall 'White Triumphator' with their elegant relaxed petals that open out into flat star shapes. One of the joys of tulips is their long life in a vase - up to two weeks - alongside their habit of starting cup-shaped, then gradually unfurling and finally dropping their petals one by one. They have a very graceful way of dying."

~ Willow Crossley ~  

[Willow Crossley: British, West Oxfordshire based florist and author of two books.]

[Quote from: Flourish by Willow Crossley, 2016.]

[Flowers: Rich deep pink tulips.]
[Containers: Small, some vintage, red and deep pink vases and containers .]

[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 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 - # 126 - by Willow Crossley

" As far as I'm concerned, anything with a hole in the top can be used as a container for flowers. One of my biggest joys is hunting for them. Flea markets, charity shops, car boot sales, supermarkets, online... You can find them in the oddest places when you're least expecting to find anything. Those ones always seem to be the most treasured finds.
Building a good collection takes time. It's rare that you'll ever come across a complete set of something but little bits here and there are great. Don't not buy something because there's only one of it. I love that mishmash feeling you get from things collected over time. And with flowers, you don't always have to have huge bunches. A single stem picked from the garden or a mini posy in a tiny cut glass is so happy-making to wake up to first thing in the morning."

~ Willow Crossley ~ 

[Willow Crossley: British, floral stylist, blogger and author of three books.]

[Quote: From the just published Flourish by Willow Crossley (2016).]

[Flowers: Pink Dahlias.]

[Vases: Cream ware jars.] 

[ 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 Flowers of the Month - featuring all the flowers I have used during the month of October.

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 and an email will come right into your inbox.

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

A Bunch for the Weekend - # 88 - Autumn Coloured Chrysanthemums

Autumn is a season full of fabulous colours - a time when nature is very generous with what it has on offer. 

Why not use one flower - but plenty of stems - and make it look large and abundant. 

It's always a pleasure and lots of fun to buy a bunch of flowers for the weekend and this series of blog posts, called 'A Bunch for the Weekend, will show you how you can make quick and easy flower arrangements for your home. 

Buy the flowers where it's convenient and easy for you whether that is from a flower stall, farmers' market, the supermarket or a florist. 

Always try to buy seasonal flowers - they will be a lot cheaper.

Make sure you condition the flowers as soon as you get home. Remove any foliage that will end up below the waterline in the vase. Trim the ends of the stems at an angle and put in fresh water as soon as possible.

It's easy to be generous with Chrysanthemums as they are readily available at this time of year, cheap to buy - and they also last for ages!

I wanted to combine these burnt orange flowers with BLUE!

I scoured my house for blue props - and I picked a few of my husband's blue shirts, a Spanish plate with blue decorations and a small painting by my art school teacher Sargy Mann - a remarkable man and painter. 

I also found a French vintage fabric with wide blue stripes, some dark blue bowles from Sweden - and last but not least three just published books and they all had lots of blue on the covers.....

From the bottom of the pile: In Bloom by Ngoc Minh Ngo. In the middle: Flourish by Willow Crossley. On the top is In the mood for Colour by my fellow Swede Hans Blomquist.

All three are beautiful and very inspiring books and I will review them soon. 

As a contrast to all the blue and burnt orange - I also made up a little basket of gold, amber beads and coral tucked in with a piece of fabric in similar colours.

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

Thank you for visiting 'Of Spring and Summer' - I will be back on Sunday with another floral quote by someone passionate about flowers. 

Ingrid 

~ xoxo ~

[Styling, photography and text © 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

Arrange Your Flowers! - # 6 - 12 Favourite Flower Arranging Books

Here are 12 of my favourite flower arranging and floral styling books.

The first four are all a bit cutting edge when it comes to flower arranging - some are modern and contemporary in style others are more romantic and incorporating lots of vintage containers.


Vintage Flowers (2011) this is the London florist Vic Brotherson's first book - choosing, arranging and displaying lush arrangements in vintage containers. Vic's very funky flower shop Scarlet and Violet, based in north west London, is full of vintage vases and containers. 
Here is my book review of her book. 

Vintage Wedding Flowers (2014) also by Vic Brotherson - romantic and beautiful summer arrangements - but not just for weddings. Vic did the very romantic wedding flowers for the model Kate Moss's wedding in 2011. 

Decorate with Flowers (2014) by Holly Becker - who writes the blog Decor8 and Leslie Shewring - who writes the blog A Creative Mint - creative ideas for flowers and containers and how to place them around the home. 
Here is my book review of their book. 

Flower Power (2007) by Swedish florist Malin Hidesäter and photographer Anna Skoog - bouquets and simple arrangements. Malin now works with Blomsterfrämjandet, who promotes cut flowers and house plants in Sweden. Blomsterfrämjandet do yearly trend reports that are worth having a look at - it's in Swedish - so you will have to do a translation.

The next four are all about how to bring nature indoors and making very natural and seasonal arrangements.

A Year in Flowers (2012) by Shane Connolly - seasonal flowers arranged in very natural and unfussy ways. Shane was the Artistic Director for all the floral arrangements at the Royal Wedding in 2011 for the Duchess of Cambridge. 

Bringing Nature Home (2012) by Ngoc Minh Ngo - floral arrangements inspired by nature. Arrangements by Nicolette Camille of the Brooklyn based Little Flower School. 
Here is my book review of the book. 

The Flower Recipe Book (2013) by Alathea Harampolis and Jill Rizzo - 100 easy-to-create arrangements set out as recipes - like a cookbook. They are the founders of Studio Choo, a San Francisco based floral design studio. 
Here is my book review of their book. 

Inspire - The Art of Living with Nature (2014) by Willow Crossley - 50 projects to bring the outside in. Willow shows you how to decorate your home using flowers, foliage and foraged finds. This is Willow's second book, her first was called The Art of Handmade Living (2012). 

The last four books are more about traditional flower arranging - all written by well established florists in the UK and America. 

At Home with Flowers (2011) by Jane Packer - beautifully simple arrangements for every room in the house. Jane's last book and I think her best. 
Here is my book review of her book.

Flowers Chic and Cheap (2010) by New York florist Carlos Mota - arrangements with flowers picked from the market or backyard.

Flowers Every Day (2012) by Paula Pryke - creative ideas for simple, modern flowers for your home. Paula mixes bought flowers with flowers from her garden. 
Here is my book review of her book. 

Simple Flower Arranging (2014) by Mark Welford and Stephen Wicks - Step-by-Step Design and Techniques. Sixty stylish arrangements - bouquets, small vases and table centrepieces.Their shop Bloomsbury Flowers is in Covent Garden and they have now opened a second location in Ham Yard also in the middle of London.

Have a Lovely Floral Day!

I will be back with more 'Arrange Your Flowers!' in January - in the meantime I'll see you on Friday with another 'A Bunch for the Weekend'.

~ xoxo ~

Ingrid

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

Florets - Floral Quote - # 74 - by Willow Crossley

"I am neither a florist nor an interior designer. I am just flower mad with a serious passion for decorating. Garden

centres and flower shops are two of my favourite places in the world - I feel calm the moment I walk in. The scent of the flowers, the greenery, the wholesome wooden tools, the exotic orchids... Throw an antique store into the mix and I'm in decorating heaven."

~ Willow Crossley ~ 

[Willow Crossley: British designer, journalist, blogger, on-line shop owner and author of The Art of Handmade Living and Inspire, The Art of Living with Nature.]

[Quote from: Inspire,The Art of Living with Nature by Willow Crossley.]

[Flowers: Pink Dahlias and Alchemilla mollis flowers.]

[Vases: Vintage metal container and a new Danish black little vase called Lyngby vase by Hilfling Design.

[Vintage props: Vintage knitted kitchen towel.]

[Other props: Painters canvases.]

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

Have a Very Happy Floral Sunday!

~ xoxo ~

Ingrid