In a Vase on Monday: Variations on a Theme

There's still no new vase-worthy floral material in my garden so once again I was challenged to try putting new spins on the flowers that have been in bloom for some time.  In the first case, I was aided by a vase I received as a Christmas gift.  I received 2 vases for Christmas but this week will feature just the one.  It's actually not new but rather a vase that's been in my family as long as I can remember.  After my mother passed away, I told my brother to dispose of everything as he saw fit, taking away just a single family memento, a tray my father brought home from his travels during his service in WWII as a gift for my mother.  Last July, while talking to my brother's girlfriend, I mentioned a vase that was stuck in my memory.  She mentioned it to my brother and it arrived in a wrapped package for Christmas.

The vase is very heavy leaded glass with a thick base but it bears no maker's mark.  The front face has the indented form of a daisy and leafy foliage.  The upper portion of the back face has more foliage inlays.

As you can see, the vase has a wide mouth but it isn't particularly deep.  I filled it with glass marbles to support the short-stemmed Rudbeckias still blooming in my cutting garden.

I used a woody stem of the Western Redbud (Cercis occidentalis) to provide additional support to the arrangement.  The stems are now bare of leaves but still covered in burgundy seedpods.

The Copper Canyon Daisies (Tagetes lemmonii) are a natural companion for the bright yellow and burgundy 'Denver Daisy' (Rudbeckia hirta)

Top view

Clockwise from the upper left: Rudbeckia hirta 'Denver Daisy', Agonis flexuosa 'Nana', Coprosma repens 'Plum Hussey', seedpods of Cercis occidentalis, and Tagetes lemmonii

Impressed by the pretty green Chrysanthemums Susie of pbmGarden and other IAVOM contributors have used in their vases, I picked up a bouquet of these flowers at my local supermarket last week with an eye to using the flowers to perk up some of my own arrangements.  I removed the pink elements in the smaller of last week's vases, cleaned up the remaining materials, and added a few of the Chrysanthemums, as well as some Campanula stems that had been beaten down by last week's rains.

The snapdragons (Antirrhinum majus), white daisies (Argyranthemum frutescens), and variegated coastal rosemary (Westringia fruticosa) used in last week's vase were still in good shape

Back view

Top view

Clockwise from the upper left: Antirrhinum majus, Argyranthemum frutescens 'Everest', Campanula poscharskyana, noID Chrysanthemums, and Westringia fruticosa 'Morning Light'

I also added some of the Chrysanthemums, as well as berry-laden stems pruned from an unruly Cotoneaster I cut back last week, to put another spin on the 'Zombie' Amaryllis (Hippeastrum) still producing new blooms in my shade house.

This version looked different from every side so I'm sharing photos from 3 angles

Top view

Clockwise from the upper left: Hippeastrum 'Zombie', noID Chrysanthemums, berries of noID Cotoneaster, Grevillea 'Peaches & Cream', and Leucadendron salignum 'Chief'

As I was preparing this post, I remembered that January December 29th marks the 7th anniversary of my blog.  On the one hand, that feels like a long time ago - I couldn't even remember the subject of my very first post - but, on the other hand, the passage of time seems lightning fast although in that time I've somehow managed to publish 1164 posts and accumulate over 900,000 views.  I appreciate all of you who've chosen to read those posts and those of you who've offered support, encouragement and suggestions both in response to life challenges big and small and my ongoing, never-ending effort to transform the garden acquired 9 years ago into something that's more clearly my own creation.  THANK YOU!

For more of the IAVOM posts that have managed to accomplish the difficult task of energizing Mondays, visit our creative and conscientious host, Cathy at Rambling in the Garden.

All material © 2012-2019 by Kris Peterson for Late to the Garden Party