My Week in Flowers

My Week in Flowers

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Yesterday, I did some flowers for a wedding at the Port Arthur Historic Site, a world heritage listed historic site - and probably Australia's most famous.  If you've never been there, its definitely worth a visit.  Beautiful, fascinating, and thought provoking.  The locals call it "the Site".  Until the 1980's, it was just part of the local township.  Many of the buildings that are now part of the site were once peoples homes.  It has a fascinating history and its a place I love.  I think it would be a fabulous spot for a wedding. 

These little pots were table decorations for the dining tables.  Simple seasonal Pink Ice Protea with lots of lovely foliage, including some Grevillea, Risdon Peppermint and Thryptomene (not yet in flower but with lovely red flower buds dotted along the stems).  There is also some foliage from Brunia Albiflora - the bright green soft furry stems, and the first of my leuco's for the season.  Red Gem are often my first to be ready.  They are a spectacular colour at this time of the year - new, bright and fresh.  Every year I forget what fabulous colours they can produce and they really took my breath away this week as I picked them.  They glow.

I did some larger arrangements too, but ran out of time to photograph!  Its been a busy week with earthmoving machinery, doctors appointments, orders and a wedding.  

Earlier in the week, as often happens with the floral industry, there was an order to remember the death of a loved one.  Flowers really do say it all!  

Hope you all have a great week ahead.

What's in the Basket

What's in the Basket

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I did a spot of picking for a few small orders this week, accompanied by my cat Tabitha. Tabby has been with us since she was very young, found by a forestry worker in the bush and abandoned by her wild mother.  She has always come picking with me.  Until I had her, I didn't know that cats liked to go for walks with their significant humans!  She frolics around while I pick, and talks to me every now and then.  When I'm finished, I whistle and she comes running to go home.  Just like a dog really ...

In the basket, I have some Pink Ice Protea, a lovely Banksia Occidentalis in deep red, some (hidden) new season Red Gem Leucos which seem to be a bit late this year.  The deep pinky red at the top are a plant I've only added in the last 18 mths.  They are a lovely variegated form of Leuco called Jester - rich pinky red with a central green stripe. This is the first time I've picked them to use, and while there's not enough for a commercial crop yet, they are lovely to use in small bouquet orders.  There are also some fabulous stems of eucalyptus foliage.  I'm not sure of the variety but they are a type of peppermint I think - they certainly have a similar growth habit.  The leaves are covered with that lovely greyish blue bloom that some eucalypts have, and they smell fabulous. The insects haven't found them either so they are lovely and clean.  Fun to use in a bunch adding colour and texture.  You can also see some short stems of Brunia Albiflora I've picked in readiness for a wedding this week.  They are smaller flower heads and will be great in the table arrangements in short pots.  

tra la la

tra la la

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I haven't written anything here for awhile now. And No, I am not dead, I am still alive. Life has been good, a great combination of life awakening and what the f moments, with mostly the latter. You know the feeling of wanting to say something, but you can't ... just can't.

I just want to wake up at different place, with things erased from my head.

On the lighter note, I have finally graduated from law school. I must admit, these people I've seen daily are the most fucked up people I ever seen. Perhaps waking up as human would help, at least.

xoxo

Inspirational Flowers

Inspirational Flowers

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For a long while now, I've been trying to find time to do some lino prints of some of the flowers that I grow here at Swallows Nest.  Time gets away from me all too often.  But since the kids have all returned to school, there have been spare moments and I'm finally getting some printing done.  I'm starting with some cards, but hope to get some larger artworks done.    

I started with the most common and most numerous of the flowers we grow - the bread-and-butter blooms!  Nothing beats and red Leuco and a Pink Ice Protea.  I use oil-based printing ink and then handcolour with watercolours.  Its a challenge to get the colouring the way I like it, and then to keep it consistent as I start mass producing.  

These designs are available in my online store now at www.trees4thewood.etsy.com.  I think some different varieties of protea might be next ... 

Take a Closer Look

Take a Closer Look

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As you may have noticed I'm a bit of a fan of iphone photography, most likely because of convenience.   I always have my phone in my pocket, and the quality of the images you can make with it constantly surprises me.  I recently splurged on a bit of a toy - a special lense called an Olloclip that slips over the phones lense and gives you a fisheye, a wide angle and a macro lense capability.  The macro lense has been the one that has been the most fun so far.  I've been busy checking out the flowers from a completely different perspective.  The structure of the plants is quite amazing.

The first picture is a close up of the styles emerging from the base of a Banksia Baxterii.  

This picture is a closeup of the "pins" of a Pincushion flower - Leucospermum Cordifolium.  So shiny!

Banksia Occidentalis looks like a rib cage, and some tiny droplets of water have been caught.

The hairy tip of a Protea Pink Ice, just as it's ready to pick.  The white "ice" effect is created by tiny white hairs.

 

The base of the Banksia Occidentalis flower.

A closeup of the Brunia Albiflora - they look fierce!

Its been a fun exploration of the flowers as I haven't seen them before.  

What's in the Basket

What's in the Basket

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I picked the first Banksia Baxterii for the summer last week.  In the basket was a selection for some birthday bunches.  There are some late Leucaspermum Cordifolium, bright orange and cheery.  There are also some fresh Protea Pink Ice.  Over Christmas is the only time of year that its hard to get these pink beauties - there are about 3 weeks where they are few and far between.  But they are now returning to bloom.  There is some lovely Tasmanian Myrtle foliage there too - Nothofagus Cuninghamii.  You can also see some Brunia Albiflora in the basket - at its peak of production at the moment, and one of my personal favourites.