J gets up, takes his shower- baby monitor in toe, and quietly gets Finley ready for their weekly adevnture- The University Farmer's Market.
Most people know that we are truly blessed to live in a city with fabulous farmer's markets, but truthfully I think my husband has taken shopping them to an all new level. He's an honest to goodness artist when it comes to the market! He loves getting to know the vendors by first name, has a system to how he shops, and is determined to be there when the bell sounds to signal the opening of the market- of course to ensure that he gets the best goodies of the bunch. Afterwards, my boys swing by and pick up a special treat for me- my morning coffee.
I hear them tramp up the front steps, ring the doorbell, and I happily go to greet them. Finley typically is holding a big bunch of flowers for his mommy (isn't his daddy the best!) and J has my coffee. I feel like a queen!
Over the next few months, I plan on featuring a few of the arrangements I make on these Saturday mornings, sharing design tips with you along the way. I hope these entries will inspire you and that many of you will begin to share your own adventures and finds with me along the way.
This week I'm featuring an arrangement of liliac and fringed tulips. I always start by placing everything in the sink and thinking through the shape, size, and color of the blooms I have.
This time my husband brought me blush double peony tulips (Love them; you have to check them out at the market), orange and fuschia long stemmed fringe tulips, and deep purple liliac. The scale of the liliac and the fringe tulips seemed to work well together. I really liked the rich saturated colors together too so I decided to make these into one arrangement, using the elegant, large double blooms of the peony tulips for an arrangement all their own.
My next step was to choose and prepare my vase. For me this entails 1)choosing a vase that supports the height and size of the blooms I'm working with and 2)making sure the glassware is 100% clean and dry when I start. Once this is done, I then decide how I'm going to base the arrangement or if I'm going to do anything at all. In this case, I decided to use recycled glass in the bottom of the container. After adding the glass I filled the vase with cool fresh water and added a little flower food for the liliacs.
Note: Spring liliac needs a little help to survive in an arrangement. First, you'll want to bash the woody ends with a hammer giving the branches more surface area to absorb water. Then you'll want to remove all green leaves. Removing the leaves will help the plant support the blooms. Lastly, make sure to add a little floral food. This will help the blooms to remain fragrant and in full bloom much longer.
After I finished preparing my individual stems and branches I started arranging. For me this is both fun and relaxing. A lot of people perscribe to a particular symmetry when arranging but I myself like to take a more organic approach editting and moving things around as I go. Here is a picture of this week's finished product. I hope you enjoy!
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