Who knew that these purple clematis needed a pair of striped vases, as well as some euphorbia, sweet peas, chard leaves and drumstick primroses, to look their best? Actually, the vases are a creamer and sugar (a recent birthday gift, thanks Sandra...), but anything that holds water is a vessel, or vase to me...These beauties are made by Seattle ceramicst Larry Halvorsen, whose work can be found at Museo Gallery in Langley. But I couldn't resist using them as vases...the lid looks as good off as on, and the graphic black and white stripes contrast beautifully with the clematis's silky petals.
On one of those cold, rainy morning last week in Seattle, I felt desperate to be outdoors in the garden, and for the summer that was taking its own sweet time arriving. So I comforted myself with proof that summer was happening even though it didn't feel like it. I created this simple but intensely fragrant little bouquet to go on the desk and cheer me while I worked. Mock orange and sweet peas - can you think of any sweeter, more summery scents? Each is heady on its own, and their combined perfumes are the essence of summer....
Tonight is the opening party for Museo Gallery's Glass Invitational (5-7 p.m., on First Street in Langley - come join Ciscoe and me at the opening...) which is a major show, filled with iively, impressive pieces and an equally lively group of artists, locals, and tourists.
I love to do the flowers for the gallery's opening parties, but was stumped on how to come up with a garden bouquet that wouldn't get lost in amongst all that spectacular glass. A big mixed bouquet would just add to the cacophany. I wanted to play off the juxtaposition of smooth, slick, hard glass and the softeness and line of organic flower forms. I chose this irregular shaped, melon-colored glass piece by David Levi for a vase to show off the deepest blue delphinium, each perfect blossom centered with a black bee.
While it was painful to cut them, it was worth it to see the delphinium in the vase, blue,blue blossom set against orange glass, with a ruff of golden 'Sum and Substance' hosta leaves. Believe me, I had to comb through the hosta to find even a few leaves that weren't riddled with slug and snail holes....a few almost past honeysuckle are draped down the side of the vase for fragrance, line, and change of scale..
English delphinium grown by Log House Plants - the color is so intense, set off by the black bees..
Thank goodness for the lovely drape of a honeysuckle (the pale one is 'Graham Stuart Thomas' and is intensely fragrant) and the orange, not sure of the name, reflects the color of the glass piece-turned-vase.
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