A friend scheduled an open house to show off her newly refurbished condo on Sunday. To celebrate its completion and her return from an extended work assignment in Phoenix, I brought her a fresh bouquet from my garden (and a bottle of champagne). I decided I didn't really need 3 color-coordinated gray-blue vases and, as their color meshed well with her new decor, I added one of those I'd recently purchased to my house-warming package.
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| Front view: The vase dictated the color scheme and I took pains to select flowers that have a good vase life |
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| Back view |
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| Top view: Sweet peas, Freesia, and lavender provided a touch of scent |
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| Clockwise from the upper left, the vase contained: noID lavender Alstroemeria, shown in the first photo with stems of noID Lathyrus odoratus; Coriandrum sativum; the last intact white Freesia; Ixia; Lavandula stoechas 'Silver Anouk'; Ozothamnus diosmifolius; Pelargonium cucullatum 'Flore Pleno'; and Polygala myrtifolia 'Mariposa' |
Of course, I had some leftover flowers so I plunked those into a small vase for my own front entryway.
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| Front view |
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| The vase contains: Helichrysum petiolare 'Silver Mist', Limonium perezii, and Osteospermum '3D Berry White' (or what I think is 'Berry White', another of the new-ish Osteospermums with flowers that remain open in low light) |
I also threw together a vase for my dining room table as last week's creation, with the exception of the
Leucadendron and
Alstroemeria stems, had fallen apart. The first version (not pictured here), which utilized foliage from my
Xylosma congestum hedge, was a complete mess so I replaced the
Xylosma with stems of
Agonis (aka peppermint willow). It was still a hot mess but I had a party to get to so it had to do!
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| Front view: The vibrant red blooms of parrot's beak (Lotus berthelotii) established the fiery color scheme |
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| Back view |
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| Top view, cooled down just a little by the variegated Abelia |
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| Clockwise from the left, the vase contains: Lotus berthelotii 'Amazon Sunset', Abelia 'Hopley's Variegated', Agonis flexuosa 'Nana', Grevillea 'Ned Kelly', Grevillea 'Superb', Lobelia laxiflora, and various orange and coral Papaver nudicaule |
For the record, I was wrong when I said earlier that the flowers of Lotus berthelotii wouldn't be as showy when used as a ground cover rather than trailing from a pot or a wall. At least in the case of 'Amazon Sunset', they've shown that they can definitely make a splash.
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| This photo taken in my back garden last week shows one swath of 'Amazon Sunset' dominating everything around it. The orange-tinged foliage above it is Agonis flexuosa 'Nana', which provides a nice, if more demure, color echo. |
The small vase and the sizzling hot one assumed their respective positions. The third was delivered to my friend's lovely condo.
Visit Cathy at Rambling in the Garden to see what she and other participants have put together this week. Better yet, join the fun and share a creation of your own by posting a link on Cathy's site!
All material © 2012-2017 by Kris Peterson for Late to the Garden Party
Your 'hot mess' plays beautifully with the table runner and your leftovers vase looks loved and sweet! Enjoyed seeing where the bright colors came from in your garden- thank you for sharing that! The gift for your friend's condo --- gorgeous! How lucky they are!!
ReplyDeleteI keep thinking it's time to replace that table runner so it can go into the wash but somehow it keeps getting a reprieve. Maybe that means I've got a few too many hot colors in my garden!
DeleteWow! I love your hot mess. So nice of you to give one of your vase creations to a friend.
ReplyDeleteMy friend's welcome home gift was overdue.
DeleteHi Kris, how nice of you to put a vase together to celebrate your friends newly refurbished condo! It doesn't get more personal than that.
ReplyDeleteYour bouquet is very lovely. I especially like how the Sweet Peas match the alstroemria. They are a perfect pair!
I have sown Sweet Peas in February, but I doubt that I will get any flowers from them before the heat kicks in. They don't look too good right now already :-(.
Have a great week!
Warm regards,
Christina
I was surprised at just how well those sweet pea flowers matched the Alstroemeria, Christina. I make a point of starting my sweet peas early as they do get taken out early in SoCal - those nasty Santa Ana winds are the most common culprit here.
DeleteLove them all, but my heart leaps at the flashy orange one. Maybe it is because I am so starved for color? ;)
ReplyDeleteThe flashy oranges are a stark contrast to your snowdrops, Eliza, but the latter are truly beautiful. Still, I expect you are in need of some color after your deluge of snow!
DeleteI like the hot mess! It's colourful and abundant and I'd be happy to have it in my house. I hope your lucky friend liked her vase and bouquet, such a good idea. I can never resist Osteospermum.
ReplyDeleteI hadn't tried that particular Osteospermum in a vase before, Alison, so I wasn't sure it could really handle the lower light levels in the house but the flowers have remained open and pretty all day long. It's a keeper!
DeleteGorgeous as always. I love how the pattern in the blue vase gets smaller from bottom to top. The red bouquet is amazing. I am always in awe of the flowers I can't grow. So much drama.
ReplyDeleteDrama indeed! Spring is like an opera performance, Linda.
DeleteWhat a wonderful housewarming treat you composed. Just lovely. And the orange poppy--wow! Wish I could grow them here.
ReplyDeleteI'm surprised to learn you can't grow the Iceland poppies there, Susie. I thought they could handle colder temperatures (but then I've never had a chance to test them).
DeleteHello Kris,
ReplyDeleteYour friend is lucky to have such a talented florist as her friend for your thoughtful vase looks beautifully coordinated in both materials and color. And, champagne to boot!
I wasn't the only one to bring champagne. She's well-stocked now I think!
DeleteYou are a wonderful friend! Love your "hot mess" which is such a cheerful blast of warm color.
ReplyDeleteThe "hot" color was a welcome boost today, Peter - our temperature inexplicably dipped back down into the 50s and the sky remained cloudy all day. What does Mother Nature think she's doing anyway?
DeleteAmazon Sunset is amazing; what a striking accent in your garden! Love, love the vases! The selection of flowers and vase for your friend is perfect.
ReplyDeleteI liked the gold form of Lotus berthelotii but I love 'Amazon Sunset', Deb. I'm not sure you can find a flashier flower.
DeleteA wonderful housewarming gift! I love the way everything is so well coordinated. And I'm impressed by that Osteospermum staying open! :) Love the "hot" vase too, - the poppies with the "Amazon Sunset" Lotus are so vibrant!
ReplyDeleteThe poppies and 'Amazon Sunset' Lotus make me think I need sunglasses every time I walk through the garden, Amy.
DeleteYour a nice friend! I hope she appreciated the lovely gift. I love the sizzling arrangement, it's a beauty...
ReplyDeleteA floral bouquet seemed to be the right gift coming from me, her flower/plant-addicted friend. The champagne was my back-up gift.
DeleteYou really are so very clever Kris! Loved all the vases. The delicacy of colours and foliage in the first was particularly pleasing. And I was astonished at how huge your Lotus flowers are - when I've grown it in the past they've been small and and rather jewel-like - not so striking as yours! When you use grevillea, it always makes me sigh. I love it so much. Thanks!
ReplyDeleteThe gold-colored Lotus do seem to have smaller flowers, Cathy. The 'Amazon Sunset' hybrid is bolder in more than just color.
DeleteAll vases are very nice, beautiful colours and flowers!
ReplyDeleteThanks Anca!
DeleteKris, love both vases and I could never grow the poppies when I lived in Atlanta! I think I can tell the rain has given everything a boost - the garden looks wonderful. Dry as a bone here.
ReplyDeleteWe appear to have moved into our dry period too, Amelia. That normally extends into fall, with the exception of an occasional tropical summer storm; however, there is a chance of light rain at the end of the week! I hope you get some rain too.
DeleteI must say your 'hot mess' is wonderful Kris! It is so vibrant and smiley! ;-) I bet your friend loved the vase you made for her - it must smell good with freesias and sweet peas in it. The Osteopspermum is gorgeous too. I think I will have to get one for a container this summer. :)
ReplyDeleteI can't even imagine my garden without Osteospermums anymore, Cathy, although here they're at their best in spring and fall - the flowers go into hiding when summer's heat arrives.
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