How to make an early Spring

Wire Wrapped Willow Garland

Make a continues length of flexible willow to weave or design with by wrapping the delicate stems with thin wire

Willow Spring

Set willow tips into a spiral to create a spring design

Wrap a twig with wire

A quick way to add a bit of colour to a natural looking design

Manipulating stems: Snapping at an angle, Bending, Spiraling, Curling and Straightening

Most stems, twigs and even sturdier branches can be bend into shapes. It takes practice and more than a bit of patience. The main idea is to slowly manipulate the branch without breaking it.

Spiral Wire Cages

The cage spirals to form a basket that wrap around the plump ripe berries (or you can slip in a flower) to hang as connections between the twigs.

Thanks Weaving Hat

This is the basic pattern used to weave a hat

Rolled Autumn leaf and Rose Hip Garland

Weaving Willow spheres

I build up the spheres by weaving willow wreaths and then use those to shape the ball

Drinking straw "test tubes"

When you need to keep a tiny stem hydrated this is just what you need.

A wreath bridge to hint at the transition between the wildness of late summer and the autumn haze to come

Arrange a selection of freshly cut cosmos flowers to hint at the autumn to come.

Coiled Spring and Wreath flower frog

Wind vines into an all natural armature to display your first of many... perfect... Spring flowers.

A secret and so pretty stay open support for a growing willow birdcage

Grow your own willow birdcage in a small pot to display Spring flowers in.

Keep your fresh plant material hydrated... and your dried plant material from falling into the water with a dried vine armature

Use dried floral details to keep fresh floral details suspended in water and fresh floral details to keep dried floral details from falling into the water… easy!

Turn some gladiolus leaves into a pumpkin vase collar

A collar for a vase that you can use throughout the season... simply replace the water and the flowers inside the vase.

Tendril Tangle Grid

Let tendrils do what they naturally do to help keep your flowers in place.

Submerged vine wreath armature to beat the summer heat

Water... lots of water- that is the answer to designing flower arrangements that survive the summer heat.

A radiating, gradient carnation design in a shallow container

A bit of Kenzan support for a floating shallow container design

Spring breeze tangled ribbon wreath

Using branches pruned from a fruit tree... with a few dried flowers and just a few orchids to make a fresh Spring design.

Pot-scrubber copper wire curls and autumn twig twirls bud vase toppers

A quick solution for a minimal horizontal autumn display -on top of bud vases.

Knot a Lavender chain link necklace or floral crown

This is without a doubt the quickest and easiest floral project on my entire site. And rather fun to do. I make these.. all... the... time!

Weave a burst of overgrown wildness wreath

This wreath is perfectly imperfect. Perfect for using those first few autumn (or preserved from last autumn) leaves.

Clematis Vine Swing

Weave a delicate nest for a small spring design.

Tendril vine Wreath Pumpkin

Reshape a vine wreath into smaller wreaths to combine as a pumpkin

Coil wire and grass to create a spring frog

Twirl and wrap wire and lily grass around a dowel stick to create a spring frog

Inspired by Nature

Flax leaves are ripped with a kenzan and wrapped with copper wire and small blue beads to create a rope to weave into a delicate spider web.

In an Oriental Manner

I wanted my parasol design to be thoroughly me, and thoroughly contemporary yet respectful of the guiding rules and methods shared by the different schools of Ikebana.

Nuts and Bolts of Floral Art Mechanics

My design entered for evaluation at the Floral Trends Design Group meeting in South Africa

Words Matter.

Braiding and plaiting and knotting hair is a huge trend in hairdressing at the moment. Intricate little plaits are draped over long flowing hair to add complexity and quirk. It’s a lovely design trend to add to floral art.

Center the more adventurous design ideas on your centerpieces

Designing adventurous Contemporary Floral centerpieces Article in the Canadian Florist Magazine.

Stringing in the rain

A veil of green wool, Spanish moss and dried hydrangeas hang over white lilies

Harnessing the Wind

Of trust… and belief… and stars…

Weave and wrap and twirl and knot a summer floral nest

Chain of Thought

Knot small stems into decorative chain garlands

Thanks-Weaving

Weaving a hat with an autumn leaf and rose hip garland

How To Catch A Dream

Take inspiration from a traditional Dream-catcher design to create a floral armature

Like a hazy serotinal sunset

Capture a hazy late-late summer moment in an abundant floral display.

springy, Spring, spring

Gorgeous Aquilegia vulgaris spring flower... with it's own springy thing!

A Stay Open

Grow a willow birdcage... with a bit of a Spring flower support to get it started.

So Into Fall

Keep you fresh plant material hydrated in water... and your dried plant material suspended to keep it from falling into the water.

this NEEDS to be at the top of my (our?) to-do list

Autumn bud vase collar made from gladiolus foliage.

Wonderful and Enough

That incredible moment when you realize that one good idea for your design really is enough...

Over Easy

A cooling design to celebrate the summer solstice.

It’s up there

Whether it’s a solid foot for floating flowers, the tips of new growth or the curve of a dried twig your design needs help to stay upright.

First we learn HOW to design… and then we learn how only WE design.

Whipped up to be light in the Spring breeze wreath design.

Because that is just how I roll

A tumbling fall leaf design making use of the autumn leaves that are already falling to the ground.

It’s a sugar rush!

A perfectly imperfect wild willow wreath to display the first Autumn treasures of the year.

Swing Vine

Weave a delicate vine swing to nestle a small vase with spring flowers in

As tendrils tend to do

Curl a wreath with tendrils to create a twig-pumpkin

Link

weave a few wreaths to link

Not yet Spring, Spring but a spring

Coil wire and grass to create a spring

Salix matsudana "Tortuosa"

I wove three willow spheres for my Floral Art design Three Drops of floral chocolate.