Father's Day Fun

Some humor, some art.

Need:

• Colorful blooms! Really, anything will do.

• "Vessels" of choice: wine bottles, whisky bottles, sentimental cylindrical objects, etc.

I used:

• Ball Dahlias

• Waterlily Dahlias

• Lisianthuses

• Carnations

• Mexican Roses & Ecuadorian Roses

• Goldenrod Solidago Greenery

• Tiny flowers that I do not know the same of (sorry!)

Process:

Use a long, skinny plate. They sell these at floral supply shops or online here. I purchased the 19" one and had my husband saw it in half.

Add your soaked foam.

Start shaping. For thin greenery, it looks best when placed in little bunches.

Large Waterlily Dahlias and buds

Ball Dahlias

Lisianthuses. Only $3 for about 24 blooms. Shop what's in season!

Carnations

Mexican Pink roses and White Ecuadorians. The White Ecuadorans are exquisite. (And pricey..)

Decorate with whimsy.

Little details make a huge difference right?

I don't know what they're called, but they're amazing! The blue and purple looks velvety and effortless in-person.

Place your arrangement atop your "vessel".

My brother-in-law (and soon-to-be Dad!) is named Josh, so I saved this wine bottle especially for his piece.

Assess where you need to add more flowers to cover the plate and fill holes now that it's at a different viewpoint.

Adhering the plate to vessel:

I've seen this done different ways. One florist had a plastic plate that seamlessly connected to a funnel-shaped piece to fit perfectly in the vessel. You can also "gorilla glue" your plate to a cork and try that. I used "dycem", a friction sheet that prevents items from sliding around.

My Dad LOVES tennis, so I had to do this. I left the balls in because it gives it personality! And, they match the arrangement!

I'm quite happy with how these turned out. I envisioned this design because I wanted something very contrasting and almost unbelievable in shape. Kind of like how Dads balance a BOAT-load of stuff on a teeny tiny bandwidth of mental/physical capacity. Or maybe that's just my dad.

He's got 5 kids - now 7 with the husbands, and he manages to anticipate and address all our earthly and spiritual needs! Just praying for that many people every day sounds exhausting!

He coached our sports, fixed our problems, drove us to school, packed our lunches, volunteered in Sunday School, worked full-time C-level at large corporations.. and managed to stay young! He'll be a grandpa soon and he can work every social media application and knows "tik tok" dances. It's honestly more than I can say for myself.

I hope you all enjoyed your weekends celebrating the fatherly figures in your life. xx

A Bright Floral Floor Installation!

What a mouthful right? I love challenging myself.

In this case, my 1st floor installation and I forced myself to go BRIGHT.

Like most of you, I browse Pinterest. And as a result always turn to pastels and lights for that perfectly trendy soft mood. I told myself to shake-it-up and do something different. It was so hard not to pick the softer versions of these colors when shopping!

Dim Sum Picnic because.... social distance birthdays! For people I love love love.

My husband made these tables out of plywood and added hinges to the underside for convenient storing! Don't they look amazing? For a guy that wears free t-shirts every day, he sure makes some classy-looking tables. Check-out that gold detailing.

Recipe:

• Italian Ruscus

• Orange and Hot Pink Snap Dragons

• Orange Spray Roses

• Yellow Safflower

• Hot Pink Roses

• Vines

Notes:

• Build and store in trays until placing for the event. That way, the foam stays hydrated and clean.

• For a floor installation, you need sturdy-stemmed flowers. They won't have any other support besides the foam and you want them to stand tall.

• Go for flowers with petals along the height, not just heads at the top (ie. Snap Dragons)

• For those flowers with heads, tuck them lower so you can appreciate the faces.

• Cover your base with vines or grass so it looks like the arrangement grew from the ground.

• Layer, layer, layer! Vary your heights so the arrangement looks full.

June 7, 2020

I listened to my dear sister Gayle speak in service today (virtual service).

She and her husband Marc are Black.

Gayle recounted how they were denied entry to multiple churches before finding ours (Seeds of Life)... wait What?! How can that be true?? How can people be so cruel?! I was shocked/enraged! She spoke about how people make decisions based on the 3 C's: Comfort, Convenience, or Christ. And that hit me hard.

It's true; I am guilty. I am comfortable with my friends that look similar to me. It is convenient to engage with people in my immediate area (mostly Asian). I don't let Christ lead my actions all the time. There is so much work to be done. I thought I was a pretty inclusive person with a diverse-group of friends. I am praying for a total renewing of my perspective, of my actions, and of my heart to better the lives of my brothers and sisters. Here I am God - show me what you want.

-Kelly

Design: A Suspended Arrangement!

First-time projects don't always turn out well, but when they do - it's magic!

Step 1: Create your base.

Typically, you'd use chicken wire. I didn't want to buy an entire $30 roll from Home Depot, so I challenged myself to find something around the house. I even dabbled in potentially using a pasta cauldron haha!

I used this wire basket that usually holds my fruit.

Find something that has lots of holes and can be easily covered.

If you're like me and prefer things to be multi-purposeful, here's a few options of wire baskets that can be used after your arrangement has served it's purpose:

Black Wire Fruit Bowl - $17.99 for 2

Copper Mesh Bowl - $19.99

Geometric Circles Bowl - $12.99 in silver

Step 2: Shape your base.

Soak a piece of foam and create your shape. Remember the entire thing needs to be covered, so don't leave it too big unless you have lots of flowers!

Step 3: Build your height & width.

I used green myrtle which is very sturdy.

Once you get to a comfortable point...

Step 4: Hang it up!

You'll want to hang it early in the process because this should be designed from the perspective most will be viewing. If you keep it on your counter and build, it'll look great from the top and sides, not from below.

Step 5: Add your flowers.

I used white wax flower for more filler, straw flowers (the ones with yellow centers), and English roses.

Don't forget to do the front AND the back! (have lots of flowers!)

Step 6: Weave remaining greenery into the bottom.

Cover all that wire! Additionally, it keeps the arrangement from dripping on your guests since the leaves will soak some of the water.

Optional Step 7: Add additional arrangements underneath to highlight the size and magnitude of your suspended piece.

Enjoy!!

From the back:

We've accepted social distance, and we run with it!

If you can't go out, make home the place to be! :)

-Kelly