takapuna florist: pick me

Recently on a Saturday morning jaunt into Takapuna, a suburb in the North Shore City area of Auckland, Kyle and I ran across a great floral design shop - Pick Me. Fresh and modern, the tidy shop is owned by Gihan, a beautiful Australian woman who was gently tucking orchids into a vase as I snapped these shots...



Lush and bright, I love the way the flowers are displayed in vases in the front window clustered by color. Customers must have a great time smelling and gathering their flowers for a bouquet.


Another common practice in New Zealand is packaging spiral bouquets in a paper bag for delivery (stems wrapped in wet tissue, with no vase provided). This arrangement with tulips, orchids, stock, roses and leucodendron would be welcome on my doorstep any time.

zipper vase

Check it out! I might have liked it better with a white zipper. Still, cool. Check out the salt and pepper shakers at the d-Vision website (via Design Klub).

woke up feeling a little radish-y

I was flipping through the archives and ran across some bouquets I did for a photo shoot in Tribeza. They wanted vegetables included in the design, and I was only too happy to take on that challenge! I've always thought little bunches of radishes look like bouquets, especially when they're displayed well at stores like Whole Foods.

In the top shot I've let the roots shine by mixing the radishes with lamb's ear and white tulips. In the bottom shot deep purple kale circles peonies, celosia and radishes. You can see the full mag spreads here.



Have you seen any designers using veggies in a unique way? Send me a heads-up and I'll try to feature them.

happy father's day, dad

Now, my dad is not the kind of guy who would really appreciate a bunch of dahlias. But if he were, this is the bunch from California Organic Flowers that I would send him. He's more of a tractor-lovin', gun-totin', tomato-growin' kind of guy. So maybe I should be sending him heirloom tomato seeds?

Growing up, he was always trying to get me to go outside, and explore the world. Some of my best memories are the vacations our family took to the Pacific Northwest - camping in the forest, next to crystal-clear water, eating fresh-caught salmon, hiking to higher altitudes than humans really should. Thanks for raising a daughter that respects the planet - here's to you, Dad!

rebecca thuss, stylist extraordinaire!

Thanks to Lucy over at The Design Files, I discovered the identity of one of my favorite stylists. Rebecca Thuss has created some of the most beautiful layouts in MSWeddings and MSLiving - pages I've torn out and filed (according to color!) in a series of binders that I use for inspiration. I recently lost these binders, and so you can imagine how delighted I am to see so many of my favorite images on Rebecca's website. Stunning!

auckland flower shop: vida flores

There's a wonderful little flower shop called Vida Flores in Newmarket, a trendy neighborhood in Auckland (all images from their website). Davina, the owner, is super nice and has a great modern style. Right before Christmas, I collaborated with them on a wedding at Hopetoun Alpha. The bride, a friend of ours, wanted a classic, elegant 50's theme. I created this phalaenopsis bouquet with little rhinestones and silver ribbon in a simple teardrop shape.




To make a similar bouquet wire whole draping stems, individual blooms, and green buds of white phalaenopsis orchids with florist's wire and white waxed tape. Gather the longest stems together and add the shorter ones on top, tucking in individual blossoms and buds, making sure all the holes are filled (check the shape in a mirror as you hold the bouquet at waist level).

The petals tend to bruise very easily, so working slowly and gently is essential. Wire and add the rhinestones, and firmly wrap the handle with waxed tape. To hide the taped stems add a few loops of silver ribbon at the top of the handle. To wrap the handle start from the bottom, wrapping the ribbon over the end, then tightly encircling the loose end as you work up. Secure with a pearl-headed pin at the top.

Since the blooms won't be getting any more water, it's a good idea to do this type of bouquet the day of the wedding, storing it in a cool place until the ceremony.

*If you want to do a round bouquet instead of a teardrop shape, it's easy to start with a white hydrangea head and thread wired phalo's through it; this provides good support.

book review: living color by paula pryke

Paula Pryke is a color genius. In my mind, she is one of the world's great floral designers not only for this fact, but also because she seems to be a one-woman dynamo. She runs a bevy of shops, teaches classes, writes books, consistently comes up with floral designs that knock my socks off, and... oh, travels the world promoting her brand by giving lectures and workshops. Wow, what kind of vitamins does she take, and where do I get some?

I've used a couple of her books in my floral practice for years. I turn time and again to Living Color for inspiration, color combinations, and during wedding consultations to get an idea from brides about what they like. I think in terms of color, and this book is divided along those lines, providing detailed lists (with common and Latin names) of the flowers available. Since Pryke is based in the UK, there are some exotic species that don't make an appearance State-side, but hey, that makes it all the more interesting. The amount of information packed into each page is great, there's even a color chart at the back listing flowers in that shade.

I have other floral design books that sit on the shelf collecting dust after I flip through a few times, but I'd say Living Color has retained it's relevance, and even become the book I look to most for inspiration.