Week 29 // Slow Flowers Challenge
July 25th, 2015
Dahlias, zinnias, scabiosa, stock, baby’s breath and oakleaf hydrangea foliage
Sweetest color; finest texture — pink baby’s breath
It’s so hard to believe we have arrived at Week 29, but the flowers tell us it is so.
Much is blooming early here in the Pacific Northwest. The flower farmers report that their crops are exploding weeks ahead of past seasons. It’s good news for the floral designers who yearn for local dahlias to take center stage in their creations — now through the first frost.
I love the tawny palette that started with this pinky-coral dahlia grown by my friends Diane Szukovathy and Dennis Westphall of Jello Mold Farm in Mt. Vernon., the source of some of the most prolific offerings at the Seattle Wholesale Growers Market.
That pink baby’s breath, which they also grow, literally took away my breath! I had to play with it and I love its blush-pink color echo of the dahlias.
The view from my new urban balcony – a ceramic stool is the ideal pedestal for my summer bouquet
Love how all these berry colors and pastels play together beautifully!
Jello Mold also grows this terrific pale yellow zinnia, part of the Zinderella series of zinnias that produces a dense mound of double petals on top, available in many cool colors.
The rest of this arrangement is equally alluring, given the high-quality, seasonal blooms.
I love having the confidence that each stem was grown by a Salmon Safe-certified flower farmer using sustainable practices!
The remaining ingredients include:
Apricot cactus zinnias (Zinnia elegans ‘Pinca’), grown by Vivian Larson of Everyday Flowers
Pincushion flower (Scabiosa atropurpurea ‘Black Knight’), grown byGonzalo Ojeda of Ojeda Farms
Stock in an ombre range of peach hues, grown by Sarah and Steve Pabody of Triple Wren Farms
Oakleaf hydrangea foliage, clipped from a neighbor’s shrub.
Together these soft colors are feminine and romantic.
If you love this pin-striped vase as much as I do, please check out the work of Seattle ceramic artist Kristin Nelson of Kri Kri Studios.
This vase is part of her Vit Ceramics collection and I love that it’s as local and hand-crafted as the flowers it contains! This “Eve” vase is the perfect height and proportions for floral arranging. Click here to read Kristin’s description of how she created this lovely vessel.
Kate’s dahlias — from her garden to my vase
As I mentioned, Dahlias are peaking here in Seattle. I had to share this delicious bouquet of just-picked dahlias, given to me by my friend (and bookkeeper) Kate Sackett.
After our recent meeting, she invited me to see her dahlias. What a treat to bring some of them home. Aren’t the colors and forms divine?!!!