New Years Arrangement

This is Textbook 2-20. I want to show you what Mizuhiki means in this New Years arrangement.


In the Ikebana world, the leading materials for New Years flower arrangement are pine, bamboo, Japanese plum, mum, camellia and lily. I have no problem finding pine and bamboo, they are right in my back yard. I also used leftover mums, carnations and some bittersweet. It is important to add Mizuhiki into your arrangement (gold or silver paper strings, symbolizing happiness or prosperity, etc...), so I put the silver ribbon on the right side in the bottom instead (you can click it to see the enlarged picture). 12/15/09

Composition of Surfaces by Using Leaves

My teacher's final magic touch is adding a New Zealand flax to give enough height.

There are no more leaves left outside in winter. So I focus on my house plants. I found three different kinds of leaves that I can use, that also show their own characteristics and interesting surfaces. There is one Philodendron Selloum, one Tiger tail, and three of the same kind of leaves that I don't know the English name for (their white flower blooms at midnight and lasts for only two hours, and has a very strong perfume), I rolled each one of them and put them side by side. Last I put one white Mum to brighten the green. The teacher said the flower in this arrangement cannot be a focal point. 12/15/09

Natural Wonder

Over our Thanksgiving holiday, my son in-law discovered this wasp's nest inside our Rhododendron bush in my backyard garden. Everybody was so excited and curious, especially my grandchildren. My daughter googled it and found out they chew old wood from fences or posts and mix it with their saliva. Then they spit and spread with their legs to form a paper after it dries. So interesting! I don't know when the wasps started to build their nests there, but they are all gone now. I feel very blessed and thankful that all my family members were able to come home (my nest) then!

Another side of view, it's so big!

Christmas Arrangement

Another arrangement for a festive occasion. The teacher wanted us to make a new look, not a traditional style of Christmas arrangement. I used red poinsettias, white mums, baby's breath, silver painted hostas and nandina berries( shining materials). Adding the evergreen holly branches created harmony.
After all, it's Ikebana! (12/2/09)

Sketching and Arrangement

First, I got the materials ready (mums, bittersweet and leaves) and the container (this particular one is a gift from my very good friend, hand made). Looking at them, I drew an idea of my arrangement on a piece of paper. After that I made the actual arrangement. The finished work looks pretty much the same as the sketch. But through this lesson I realized that even though the drawing was flat, my arrangement was not. My sketch does not reflect the three dimensional quality of the flowers and leaves and of my overall arrangement.
The Ikebana flower arrangement is truly living art. (12/2/09)

White Cattleyas

C. Skinneri Alba " Debbie" FCC/AOS

Close up view ( so sad, it last only two weeks. 11/19-12/3)
Third place in Cat. group (windowsill grower)
I have these two identical white cattleyas. I might have divided them last Summer, but I can't recall. This is a big vigorous orchid. I remember it had only two flowers on one stem last time, besides that, the flowers have a much better form this year. It is blooming just in time for B.C.O.S.'s show table ( last Thursday's meeting) and Thanksgiving holiday.

Showing Lines at the Base

This is my teacher's arrangement--so graceful!

This is mine, not too bad.

I read the textbook's explanation of this arrangement so many times. Finally I understood the importance and beauty of the base material and its relation to the container. It seems easy to do but it's not! I choose wild raspberry plants from my back yard and one sunflower. Both were placed at a higher position than they would normally be in an ordinary arrangement, showing their artistic form. (11/17/09)

Thanksgiving Arrangement

Composition in today's class (after my teacher's magic touch)

Tried at home yesterday (11/16/09)

Another version of a Thanksgiving centerpiece (11/16/09)

"Special material and arrangements for festive occasions" is today's subject. Thanksgiving is approaching. We have many things to be thankful for. All my children and grandchildren are coming home for a family gathering. They are longing for my roast turkey and my special turkey stuffing and tempura, always a big hit.
This is a happy occasion, so I would like to make a flower arrangement as colorful and as loud as possible. A friend of mine gave me a bunch of bittersweets, I combined these with fruits, small mums, pine and other materials (draft wood) to compose my Thanksgiving themed arrangement. I have two versions here, one is dinning table centerpiece which can be viewed from all angles. The other one is placed against the foyer wall. What do you think? (11/17/09)

November's blooming orchids

This is my sun room. I want to show the scarlet red color of the maple tree outside the window. Isn't it beautiful?

Oncidium (Dancing lady). Saint Dawn Gold.

C. Pot. Mysteve Natsumi.
I divided this one into two plants. The other one finished blooming a month ago, it lasted about 6 weeks.

Milt Xenia

I posted this orchid in last September's "Happiness is ...." It's blooming now.
Second place in Oncidium group (windowsill grower)

Large Arrangement Free Style

One day before class, at home, over 4 ft. tall

After teacher's suggestion and changes

After I finished my wood arrangement a couple of weeks ago, my teacher encouraged me to do a larger arrangement. I think I am ready this time and have some ideas in my mind so I went looking for usable wood in the small forest in my backyard. I cut them, trimmed them, and interlocked them to make them secure and stabilized, then I put the self made container in the middle (shaped round like birds nest). I gathered the Nandinas, Mums, pine and laced maple in the container. At the bottom, as you can see there are also Mums, berries and pine. I think it looks beautiful but not striking enough.

Slanting Style Nageire Variation #1

Crape myrtles (turned a fall color now) with white Mums are good combination.