GREEN PLANT MATERIALS

 

Hello all,

For our recent, regular class I had set the theme 'Green Plant Materials' for the advanced students.

I made the arrangement, above, using haemanthus lily leaves, green goddess lilies, clivia berries and spear grass (xanthorrhoea).

And the one, below, is a wall arrangement made with a monstera deliciosa leaf cut in half, aeoniums and red hot poker leaves (kniphofia).

Mary used aspidistra leaves, some of which she folded, clivia berries, carnations and xanthorrheoa.

Vicky used a large piece of yacca, whose leaves she turned down. She added xanthorrhoea and agapanthus.

Lei used a delightful double suiban container and her materials were fishbone ferns (nephrolepis exaltata), elk horn fern, palm inflorescence and alstroemeria psittacina leaves.

Lucy made two arrangements, the first contemporary, using the heart of agave which she separated, giving her many pieces, green goddess lilies and an arum lily leaf.

The second, naturalistic. Her materials were aspidistra leaves, arum lily leaves and a succulent, kalanchoe blossfeldiana in an elevated, ceramic suiban.

Wendy's exercise was a freestyle arrangement. She placed her two containers in such a way as to work as one. She used arum lilies plus one leaf and wattle.

For this week's camellia arrangement I was inspired by the two, hanging stems with buds. I based the arrangement on the Variation no. 4, Hanging style. 

Bye for now,

Emily

LUCY'S DEMO

 

Hello all,

Our recent Sogetsu workshop was presented by our Lucy. She had selected one of the most challenging themes of our curriculum - 'Composition Expressing a Movement'. She did a very accomplished demonstration. I would be more effusive in my praise but, as her sister and her teacher, I feel I have to be more restrained.

The arrangement, above, representing 'Bouncing' was made by Lucy prior to the workshop. The materials are Siberian dogwood (cornus Siberica Alba), which she joined using 'V' shaped wires to create sharp points, dietes leaves and Queens's tears bromeliad (Billbergia nutans)

Lucy's next arrangement clearly represents 'Rolling'. She used wisteria to create the rings, which she sprayed black. She used a sprig of an unknown shrub and a stem of cymbidium orchid. This arrangement also fits the theme 'The shape of the container'.

Lucy's third arrangement was quite large and represented the movement 'Blowing in the Wind'. Lucy used a large branch from her weeping cherry tree and branches of Japanese flowering quince. She, also, added dietes leaves following the same direction as the branches simulating a wind swept look. 

For my arrangement, below, I wanted to express 'Twirling'. I wired jonquil leaves vertically, which allowed me to shape them. I added the anthurium and clivia berries to complete the arrangement.

Jenny's arrangement represented 'Flowing'. She used a bare branch, fishbone ferns (Nephrolepis cardifolia), NZ flax and alstroemeria. The container's shape added to the intended movement.

I've been doing some winter pruning. Some of the cuttings were too good to throw away. I made the arrangement, below, with hydrangea prunings.

At our last class Lucy, having finished early, started another arrangement, for which she did not have the right materials to finish. So, she left it in the studio. Photo, below.

Naturally, I had to finish it. I looked around the garden for materials and tried a couple different ones but was not quite happy with either. In the first I used matchstick bromeliad flowers (Aechmea gamosepala). In the second I used leucadendrons.

First attempt

Second attempt.

Finally, I settled on the one, below, using a camellia..... 

At least I thought I did until I found this other camellia. You may well ask why is the second camellia better than the first. Well, I'll tell you. The stem of the second follows the line of the cut in the leaf.

Bye for now,

Emily

CYMBIE'S DEMO

 

Hello all,

At our most recent Ikebana International workshop we had Phillip Rhodes as our guest speaker. Phillip is a milliner of great renown and vast experience, who provided us with a glimpse into his very creative world. 

We were asked to bring arrangements inspired by millinery. Our Cymbie Reeves was the demonstrator, who created three hat arrangements. The photograph, above, is of Cymbie, left and her model, Vicky, wearing one of the hats. Cymbie used wisteria sprayed white and wound red mizuhiki around it, intermittently, then added two anthuriums. All the materials were attached onto a head band, making the piece wearable.

All the photographs of the workshop were taken by our photographer, Lei Wang.

The 'hat', below, was made using a dried strelitzia nicolai leaf, which Cymbie painstakingly coloured blue on the outside and silver on the inside. The line was made with a bunch of mizuhiki. The Singapore orchid was chosen for its colour.

The 'hat', below, was made with three fan palms, which were trimmed back and gypsophila coming from behind the palms.

Cymbie made me proud. This was her first such demonstration on an unusually difficult theme. I look forward to seeing more from her.

Much fun was had by the members making ikebana hats and then modelling them.

Below, is me wearing my 'hat'. I made it using a small, fascinator cap, onto which I attached Siberian dogwood (cornus Siberica alba) creating the brim and red nandina domestica nana at the top. I added green nandina at the back, underneath the brim.

Lucy is modeling her hat in the photograph, below. She used an existing, straw hat, onto which she added aspidistra leaves, crucifix orchids and a white line.

Jenny is also modelling her hat. She used a beret-like hat, onto which she attached  a bare branch and an Oriental lily flower and bud.

And now for this week's camellia arrangement. I used a small magnolia branch and the two different coloured camellias,

Bye for now,

Emily