Christine de Beer - effortless floral craftsman
Breezy lily grass ripple
- 20 July 2022
- click to send Christine a smile
Place a Kenzan in a small but shallow container...
Book readers turn to page 160-165 for loads of tips on how to design with a Kenzan. But to get you started I have also added a Tutorial below to show you how to fix your Kenzan to a container.
Fit the shallow container to sit snugly in a taller vase.
Fill the tall vase with water.
Fit the shallow container on the tall vase to make sure the water won't spill out.
Slip a blade of grass into the tall vase to dangle over the side.
Add in more grass to radiate out of the vase...
This is the easiest way to space out the grass. Simply add the grass into the vase all the way around with big gaps in between... and then...
Add in a blade of grass in the middle of each gap...
And another blade of grass in the gap that is left over...
Place the container with the Kenzan in the vase...
And space out the grass to neatly radiate out.
I wanted the blades of grass to be long and wavy so that they sway in the slightest breeze once placed. This week in our email I explain how I used the mechanics to do exactly that. The sign up is below the post if you would like to register to receive the email every Wednesday morning (Vancouver time)
Fill the container with water.
Drop in a few glass chips to conceal the Kenzan.
Slip in the orchid...
Place three blades of curled grass to dangle from the orchid out and over the edge of the vase.
I have added a Tutorial below on how to curl grass and Book readers you can also turn to page 288 where I show you an alternative method for curling grasses in the chapter where we discuss creating a floral illusion.
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Tutorials
Temporarily adhere a traditional Ikebana Kenzan or pincushion to a shallow container.
Most leaves and foliage can be slightly manipulated to curve or curl.
Build up a design in a shallow container by stacking it by threading the plant material into the teeth of a pin cushion in three levels.
The teeth of a Kenzan (or pin cushion) is rather sharp. Here is a pain free way of pushing down the plant material into the teeth to keep it securely in place.
Just look at that puddle! This design is all about the fresh eucalyptus... but in a cooling down for summer kind of way.
A cool and minimal floral design for summer.
Give your woven grass a water source by designing the basket in a vase rather than placing the vase in a basket
Keep flowers in place by placing a lemon on the narrow rim of the container.
Twist lily grass slightly to create a spiral for the orchids to nestle in
Hook the calla lilies over the edge of a vase to create a support for your taller floral details.
Favourite Flowers
Phalaenopsis, Moth orchid
Related Designs
I am launching something new this month. I am teaming up with Plant Something BC, our local government and the landscape and nursery societies here in British Columbia, Canada and...
A spring spiral design... with a hint of a root nest. Easy to do
A bit of a rethink as the season is getting ready to change. How can I give my design idea a fresh twist?
Take a handful of grass... but then add just enough design to make it interesting.
... a hint of a pumpkin late summer floral display to show off the elegant curve of a gladiolus flower stem.
Cut stems of Gladiolus to place in a radiating summer design.
Loop a grass veil over a lily stem to create a minimalist summer design.
Using a traditional Ikabana Kenzan to place flowers in a shallow container
A light and airy (no floral foam but still long lasting) floral design for those days that you are really, really looking for signs of Spring.
Weave a basket with dangling edges for a single orchid display
Hang the arum lilies from the edge of a container to support all the other floral details.
