As my work has evolved and expanded over the last few years, I’ve discovered that both creating art pieces I love and designing unique floral arrangements for individual customers bring me joy, but in different ways.
Creating art is a very personal kind of creativity, and in my work, I’m inspired by the pleasant emotions I feel mingling with flowers and plants – soaking in their colors, fragrances, shapes, and structures, not to mention their symbolism and meaning. I love to explore how shifting shades of floral color can affect the feelings evoked by the final piece, or how selecting different flower varieties or species can change the mood of the arrangement.
The joy of custom design is a bit different in that I love to gain insights from my customers about both their reasons for giving someone a floral gift and what they would like their gift recipient to feel upon first seeing the flowers – or even after glancing at it repeatedly during the day or evening. Sometimes, my customer needs to communicate silently over a long distance, during a serious illness, or at a time of great joy and celebration. For these customers, I always want to know something about the preferences and personality of the recipient as understood by my customer, the gift giver. What kind or color of flowers may make the recipient laugh, or bring back a happy memory, or provide comfort in a time of sadness? For this customer, I must find a unique way my floral design can say, “I love you more than life itself,” or “My spirit is with yours in joy or in sorrow,” or “I’m incredibly proud of you!”
In many respects, the “product” my customer has asked me to design as a gift is not a flower arrangement. The “product” is the message received as a gift – a thought passed from soul to soul, a poem without words, or a melody conveyed in color or fragrance rather than tenor or bass. When I hear back from a customer, or sometimes from the recipient, that my personally designed floral creation delivered the intended gift of joy, love, comfort, or support, I know my design work was good, and my sense of satisfaction is well-earned.
So, I see creating art and designing floral gifts as related but not entirely the same. This year, I plan to partially combine the two through the medium of dried flower arrangements. Drying flowers preserves the delicate structure of the blossoms and often preserves the fragrance as well, but also extends the life of the arrangement far beyond what can be achieved with fresh flowers and greenery. These arrangements can be bold and exciting or subdued and calming. The possibilities for shape, structure, and durability are many, especially by including the use of dried seeds, nuts, branches, and grasses. As art, they are like floral sculptures and as gifts, they can be crafted to convey a range of emotions and messages. Dried flower arrangements can be crafted to appeal to many different styles of décor for recipients to display on a desk, bookshelf, or as a centerpiece.
I’m excited to see where my imagination will take me this year, and I invite you to follow my progress as I post new fresh and dried floral art pieces that speak beautifully to all of us.
Happy New Year everyone and keep on blooming!
