Covent Garden Academy of Flowers

Last Wednesday evening I went along to a Wedding Flowers course at the Academy of Flowers in Covent Garden and had an inspirational evening! Situated in the newly redeveloped St. Martins Courtyard, the Academy of Flowers is surprisingly one of the only flower shops in the area. Since Covent Garden originally was a fruit, veg and flower market, it seems fitting that the Academy of Flowers has brought this old tradition back to life here.

The shop itself is delightful. Outside the old bicycle is a nod to bygone times and inside is a treasure trove of vases, cards, fragrance, stationery and candles and of course beautiful flowers and plants. The light and airy basement where the classes are held is spacious and modern and provides a well-designed, perfect setting for the flower school.

The evening started off with Gillian Wheeler, principal of the academy, demonstrating the skill of a hand tied bouquet. Working with roses, freesias, bouvardia and calla lilies we created very simple, elegant designs. The bouquets were relaxed in appearance, given the use of different shapes and varieties of flowers, and finished off with an ivory satin ribbon. 

Always hungry to learn something new, I was absolutely delighted when Gillian then began to show us a number of wiring techniques. We made a small corsage from some lisianthus, ivy leaves and wired hyacinths which smelled absolutely divine. Not sure my first attempts at wiring were very successful, but it was a valuable insight into how to get started and I've already had a few attempts at home since then.

The evening was very enjoyable and finished up with a glass of wine to compliment all our hard work. What more could you want?!

A Design For Life

Over the last month I have been working with a very talented designer to develop a logo for The Pale Room.  I put together a short creative brief to try and encapsulate all of things that are important to me and that I want to reflect in this business - creativity, nurturing relationships, having fun and perhaps an element of romance as well.

A huge thanks to Jessica at White Creative Ltd for helping to bring my ideas to life. She interpreted exactly what I wanted and I am really excited to now have a fab logo and the beginning of a unique identity for my business. Welcome to....

Just My Cup of Tea

I've always loved having flowers in the house and would buy bunches of lilies or gerbera or tulips from the supermarket regularly. But I think it was last year when I was actually planning my own wedding that my real interest in flowers was sparked. I loved pouring over beautiful images of bridal bouquets and centrepieces to find ideas for flowers for our Scottish highland wedding. The first thing I said to my other half as we sat back into the car after we visited our florists workshop to discuss our wedding was that I would love her job!

I think if I had been living closer to our wedding venue I would have had a go at creating my own bouquets, but as we were travelling up from London a couple of days before it just wasn't practical. I did want to have some input though, and so decided to decorate the drinks reception area myself, with the help of my trusted bridesmaids!

Anyone who knows me, will know that I absolutely love tea, along with that the whole notion of afternoon tea. This was the inspiration for decorating the receptions rooms which were actually cosy sitting rooms in the manor house we had our wedding in. I put my collection of teacups and saucers to use and put a single rose or two in each, and grouped them together in threes along the coffee tables, window ledges, and anywhere else there was space.

I've seen this idea used many times but the simplicity of it still brings a smile to my face.......

P.S. All credit goes to Suzanne Black for the gorgeous photographs!

Blissful Bank Holidays

There is nothing better than a bank holiday Monday, when you haven't gone away for the weekend. It feels like such a luxury to have an extra cheeky day off to indulge yourself in the kind of things that you wish you could do over a regular weekend but never find the time. Bank holidays are all about having a lie in, drinking copious amounts of tea, reading a book or magazine that you never get a chance to, or spending the time doing the things that make you content.

Myself and my other half are usually trekking over and back to Ireland or up and down to Edinburgh whenever we have a spare day off from the office, usually arriving home last thing in the evening before facing back into a week of work. Having a three day weekend in London means you get all your 'normal' tasks out of the way and still have 'me' time. 

I spent a lovely morning leafing through The Beginner's Guide to Floristry, a book I bought when I started my course to use as an additional source of information. It's a great book for basic techniques and has a wealth of background information on flower care and how to approach working with flowers. Inspired by my mornings reading I decided to head to the local supermarket to buy a few bunches and practise some of my skills that I picked up over the duration of my course. 

With plenty cups of tea, music on the stereo, the back doors thrown open and the sun and fresh air coming into the kitchen, I had a blissful afternoon preparing my flowers and planning how to use them. In the end I made a tall front facing vase arrangement for the willow, lisianthus and chrysanthemum blooms and then put together a small hand-tied bouquet of roses for my fish bowl vase, finishing it off with some ivy from the garden. 

If only all Mondays could be like this!

Long, Tall, Short or Small

Walking around London on a Monday morning the streets are lined with trucks delivering flower arrangements to offices, restaurants, bars and hotels up and down the city. Whether classic or contemporary, large or small, nothing is more welcoming than a beautiful, creative and interesting display of flowers when you walk in to a building or home.

I had my first lesson in tall vase arrangements a few weeks ago, using elegant long stems of willow, aspidistra, snapdragon, eucalyptus and anthirium. The arrangement is a front facing design, perfect for a console table or sideboard. The tricky bit was to ensure it remained balanced and would not fall forward with the weight of the flowers at the front of the display. 

We started with the tall stems of willow to give us our line about 2 times the height of the vase. The snapdragon's were next, followed by the eucalyptus leaves (including some at the back to provide balance). The aspidistra leaves were twisted and folded to form a base layer along the neck of the vase, and the anthirium provided the final focal point at the front of the display.  I love the contemporary shape of the anthirium and the willow together.

Unfortunately our flowers would have been too awkward to carry home on the tube so we re-used our flowers to make a long, low table arrangement. Starting with an oval shaped base, we created our outline using the aspidistra leaves and eucalyptus. Placing the snapdragon at either end aswell as dotting them through the centre is a great way to use colour to draw the eye along the length of the display and set the height. The smooth dome shape was determined by the addition of roses and we finished off by grouping the anthirium at opposite corners for impact. 

Once I got my flowers home I topped up the oasis with water. They lasted over two weeks and looked fab as the gorgeous roses opened up further filling out the space. Would I be able to do it again though, that's the question!

Location, Location, Location

Summer has seen a slew of celebrity weddings including that of Kate Moss, Zara Philips and of course, Prince William and Catherine Middleton. And while the focus is always on the brides dress, I have had a keen eye on the bridal bouquets. 

The three brides had very different bouquets but all were in keeping with the style and setting of their weddings. Catherine's wired shield bouquet of sweet william, lily of the valley, myrtle and hyacinth was perfect in that the tiny flowers echoed the delicate lace of her dress and drew the eye to her tiny waist as she held them in front of her. Given that the wedding was held in the grand Westminster Abbey, florist Shane Connolly made the right decision in keeping Catherine's bouquet understated and simple.

The style of Kate's English countryside wedding which took place in the Cotswolds was reflected in her dainty bouquet of roses, lisianthus and marguerites. The trend for flowers which look they have just bee picked from the garden continues!

As for Zara's bouquet, this was more generous in size that either Kate or Catherine's and contained thistle, cala lilies, singapore orchids and dusty miller. The pale greys and blues of the thistle and dusty miller matched Mike's morning suit and looked gorgeous against Zara's fair colouring and gave a nod to the location of their wedding Scottish Kirk. 

  

Not quite sure which one I would have chosen.....

Best In Show

I was absolutely awestruck at the sheer number of flowers under one roof at Hampton Court Palace Flower Show when I spent the day there a few weeks ago. The Flower Marquee was bigger than a football pitch and had beautiful displays from growers all around the UK.

Agapanthus seemed to be in full bloom everywhere. The Snow Pixie and Moonlight Star were poplar, but one of my favourites was definitely the unusual Black Magic for it's dark aubergine colour.

I never realised there were so many types of Chrysanthemum's - a far cry from what you usually see in the supermarket. The perfect spheres of bright yellow were like giant tennis balls, while other varieties on show included the gorgeous spindly Shamrock Spider, the spiky Delianne (a single bloom looks great simply floating in a fish bowl vase), and the aptly named Froggy.

The Gladioli looked like a fireworks display, with bursts of colour arching out against the pale backdrop of the marquee.

Blues and purples seemed to be the most dominant colours in the stands though, and I was loving the vivid cobalt and royal blue colours of the Delphinums and Larkspurs. Not to mention the spectrum of purples from all of the Lavender - I couldn't help but reach out to touch them and enjoy the scents as I was walking by.

 

 

They say there is a Dahlia for everyone, and I definitely found this to be true as tight round buds, cactus like spikes and romantic soft petals provided a pick and mix assortment for people to choose from.   

 

I could probably go on forever about all of the flowers I saw that day -  the beautiful Naranja Amaryllis (another favourite), the Ladybird Poppy and the Gloriosa all held their heads high above some of the others on display.

But there was one stand in particular that I was just memorised by. The NFU in collaboration with Waitrose put together the most spectacular and imaginative arrangement of British produce - fruit, veg and flowers, to walk away with three awards from the Flower Show. And well deserved too. A picture paints a thousand words, so I'll let the rest of the photos speak for themselves.

 

Practise Makes Perfect

Hungry for new information, I was a bit disappointed that my last floristry class was a repeat of the one day course that I did a number of weeks ago. But of course practise makes perfect and while I think the classic hand-tied bouquet I made this time was marginally improved from my first efforts, I decided there was no point admiring my handiwork and took it apart to use the flowers in putting together some smaller posies.

Classic Hand-Tied Bouquet

The first bouquet is made up of just oriental helvetica lilies. The lilies have such a lovely shape and form when fully opened that three stems can provide a dramatic look on their own, so I have just paired them with some aspidistra leaves to provide a border of foliage.

Lilies and Aspidistra

The second bouquet is made up of white avalanche roses, double lisianthus rosita and million stars. The roses and lisianthus are blousy and delicate, and the million stars just add a bit of variety and height as they are placed slightly taller than the other flowers. With a slightly haphazard look, it's almost like they could have been picked from the garden that morning and would be perfect for an English country garden summer wedding.

Roses, Lisianthus  and Million Stars

The smaller posy is a bunch of million star and lisianthus, perfect for a tiny flower girls hand.

Grouped together, these three bouquets could easily work as a table centre display or the bunches could be repeated and dotted along the length of a trestle table to provide visual variety.

Disappointment long forgotten, I love the fact that the course has prompted new ideas in me. A few weeks ago I wouldn't have even known where to start with creating a bouquet, but after leaning just a few tips and techniques, I've got a willingness to try new things and experiment. It doesn't need to be perfect, but it's all practise. 

What's in a name?

I'm not quite sure where the name for this blog originated from. After brainstorming various combinations of words to do with styling, interiors,  floristry, design and crafts it all seemed a bit too obvious and not really a reflection of what I wanted this blog to be about.

Part of making a transition is being able to take yourself out of the 'now' and transport your mind to where you want to be in the future. For me, The Pale Room symbolises the idea of a really serene, calm space where I can be creative, a place away from the clutter of everyday life. It's a blank canvas where anything is possible and the only limitations are my imagination.  

I have a very strong sense of the colours, the look and the feel of that space. Dusky whites and blues, weather washed woods and soft furnishings in natural, textured fabrics that create an earthy feel. Filled with sunlight and empty of noise, it is the perfect environment to let ideas take shape. 

The following images are all from The Linen Works and reflect the mood of The Pale Room. 

 

A friend also sent me these images, unfortunately I don't know where they originate to credit the photographer or stylist, but they capture the distressed white washed look that I envisage for The Pale Room. 

The soft chalky whites and the grey-blue palate of Farrow and Balls paints, and fabrics from The Linen Works are exactly the colours and textures that I would love to use to furnish in my creative space.

 

For now The Pale Room is a mental space, where I can visualise what my exciting new career could be. Someday it could potentially be a physical space, a studio, a workshop, or a garden shed! It's up to me decide, which is pretty exciting.....

As for The Butterfly.... who knows... I need to think about that one....