Pumpkin Spice Floral

 

"Life starts all over again when it gets crisp in the fall."

- F. Scott Fitzgerald (The Great Gatsby)

The beauty of autumn is now upon us as we settle in to the season with pumpkins on the porch and magnificently colorful leaves falling from the trees.  Autumn has always been a favorite season of mine, and like Fitzgerald, I see it as a time of new beginnings.  I always look forward to sweater weather, a pot of hot soup on the stove, planting bulbs in the garden, and of course, the quintessential taste of the season- pumpkin spice!  

This fall bouquet of vivid orange zinnias, mixed with peachy-pink dahlias, blush lisianthus, and mustard yellow amaranth captures the mood of autumn with its spicy hues and rustic texture.  It was a pleasure to style and also to paint!

A simple metallic gold vase highlights the warm colors in the bouquet and provides an opulent finish to complement the varied texture of the flowers.

Dahlias in a pale warm pink soften the bouquet with their ombre color and elegant rolled petals.  

Bright orange zinnias add earthy texture and a pop of color.  These traditional autumn hues remind me of pumpkin spice!  Happy fall!

Leave a Comment Tagged: Autumn, Creative Process, Fresh Floral Styling

Share:

Autumn Berry and Burgundy Bouquet

Last week I received this beautiful bouquet of pink sunflowers, zinnias, and burgundy amaranth to style and paint.  The unique colors and striking patterns found in these flowers made them fascinating to photograph.

Styling the bouquet with hydrangeas and sprigs of green berries offset the pink tones in the flowers.  The rich palette was enhanced by a wine colored vase.

The bright green color in this Queen Red Lime zinnia complemented the greens in the hydrangeas and the berries.

Next I rearranged the flowers and added silvery dusty miller for contrast.  Then I began to paint!  

Leave a Comment Tagged: Autumn, Creative Process, Fresh Floral Styling

Share:

A Fall Floral Treat

Amazingly, autumn has already arrived with yesterday the official first day of fall!  The summer garden is now in its final phases and I am clearing out debris of a successful vegetable harvest.  However, with so many edibles planted this year, I miss the flowers that would usually fill our garden in the fall.  I've found that although vegetables feed the body, flowers nourish the soul.  So, you can imagine how happy I was to find Kelley Flower Farm offering a four-week floral subscription.  I promptly signed up for the program, and last Friday these stunning blooms were delivered to our door!

Since I will be painting these flowers for a new collection of artworks, I styled two different arrangements with them and took a myriad of photos for future art reference.  The first, in a rustic jug vase, is pictured below.  To create the design I mixed the bouquet with hydrangea and foliage clippings from the garden for added texture.

These beautiful burgundy dahlias add depth to the arrangement with their dark rich color.

The apricot zinnias stretch from their stems adding a sense of movement to the design.

Finally, the sunflowers are clearly the stars of the show, with their large blooms and soft unusual color.

In the second arrangement I changed to a more formal vase to complement our current table setting with pumpkin plates and soft amber glassware.

I also used this arrangement to paint, which is one of my favorite ways to record the beauty of flowers.



I look forward to sharing my progress on this new collection of paintings from the beautiful flowers that arrive over the next few weeks!  The paintings and prints of them will be available for purchase in my shop when the collection is complete.

Happy Fall!

Leave a Comment Tagged: Autumn, Creative Process, Fresh Floral Styling

Share:

Creating a Fall Garden Floral

Our fall garden is beginning to bloom at last as we welcome October with cool weather and raindrops.   It is a beautiful time of year to design arrangements from the garden, and creating a fall floral using homegrown flowers mixed with a market bouquet is an easy way to enjoy the garden indoors.  

Choosing a few key homegrown stems and combining them with a complementary mix of store-bought flowers can create a dazzling autumn arrangement.  I chose these peach roses for a focal point as they are large and spectacular this season and have a beautiful scent.

Orange garden dahlias and zinnias in a soft antique pink are also sourced from home.

To bring an autumn glow to the peachy-pink tones of the garden flowers, I selected a market bouquet with deep, rich fall colors and textured foliage.

Orange mums add warmth and texture and their color pops next to dusty green eucalyptus branches.



Variegated burgundy mums pick up the pink in the zinnias but add a deep fall hue, while cherry brandy roses mix in a vibrant berry and golden orange color.



To keep the arrangement from looking too formal, I usually place the largest blooms first, then add filler flowers and foliage in an asymmetrical pattern.  This results in an unstructured, flowing design that reflects the way flowers grow in nature.

As there are so many beautiful blooms to enjoy during the autumn months, I hope you will create a natural floral design of your own.  Happy Fall!

1 comment Tagged: Autumn, Fresh Floral Styling

Share:

Garden Flowers for Fall

As you can see, our first harvest of pomegranates is off of the tree- a sure sign that fall is here to stay!  Here in California, we have a late autumn so our trees are just beginning to change color from the cooler nights and beautiful temperate days.  As we often dine and entertain outside during the fall, I have prepared the area with new colors for all to enjoy.  To perk up the back patio, orange and blue flowers accented with plum and silver foliage plants add a touch of the season.

These golden orange mums form a centerpiece complemented with blue pansies.  

Pansies are excellent plants for longevity and last well into spring here.  They are beautiful in borders and when used in pots for a spot of color.

Although I'm drawn to a colorful garden palette this season, it is combined with silvery foliage for a modern mix.  Powdery grey dusty miller creates a rich and textural background for the pansies and will provide a wintery backdrop for all the white cyclamen in November.

.

Silver and plum heuchera plants are another garden accent.  The leaf shape is very decorative and the variegated colors are spectacular.  

These autumn mums bloom in a rich russet red then gradually fade to soft orange.  This year they are planted in the landscape and add a splash of color to the entry garden right before Halloween.  Hopefully, after I prune them back we'll have a few more blooms for Thanksgiving!

Finally, a few little pumpkins are strewn throughout the garden for accent to celebrate the beauty of fall.  Since there is so much color in the other plants I chose white baby pumpkins to place on the tables and near the entry.  

  

Leave a Comment Tagged: Autumn, Garden Inspiration

Share:

Maple Sugar Misto

One of the true pleasures of autumn is waking up to cool crisp morning air and spending time in the garden.  For me, morning starts with coffee, and lately I've been enjoying this simple recipe filled with robust fall flavors while planning the flower gardens.

A "Caffe Misto" is basically a latte that is made with coffee instead of espresso.  It is usually half steamed milk and half coffee, similar to the French cafe au lait.  These are delicious in their purest and plainest form, but I've found that adding a splash of real maple syrup and a sprinkle of cinnamon only makes them more delightful!  Of course, a dollop of whipped cream is also a welcome addition and can turn this morning misto into an elegant dessert coffee.

Real maple syrup is a must when making this drink and the decorative bottles it is sold in can be reused as autumn bud vases.  I collect them and fill them with flowers throughout the season!

Happy Fall!

Leave a Comment Tagged: Autumn, Cooking from the Garden, Fresh Floral Styling

Share:

Creating a Mix-and-Match Thanksgiving Table

The holidays are coming fast and designing a seasonal table for Thanksgiving is always one of my favorite traditions.  This year I created a harvest table to use throughout the fall as well as on Thanksgiving.  

Choosing mix-and-match dishes and linens is an easy way to entertain without having to restyle the table for every dinner.  In order to accomplish this, it is best to commit to a color scheme at the beginning of the season and design a worthy centerpiece that will last. 

The dried hydrangea wreath made from summer blooms and a small pumpkin surrounded by acorns and olive branches is displayed on a small cake plate covered with a glass cloche for the centerpiece.  To see how the wreath was made visit this post.

I was inspired by our recent journey to the wine country, where olive trees abound, and used olive branches with baby white pumpkins throughout the table.  A cozy throw blanket that usually lives on our reading chair became the tablecloth for the season.

These pewter bird salt and pepper shakers are nestled into the vines and always prove to be a conversation piece.

The amethyst dessert dishes I often use for fruit salads are the perfect size and shape to hold a miniature pumpkin at each place setting.  They are set on vineyard toile linen napkins, which are layered with an amber glass salad plate and a white embossed dinner plate.  For Thanksgiving, I'll replace the pedestal dishes with the festive turkey salad plates below instead of restyling the entire table.

Furniture polish works wonders on acorns to bring out their natural color and make them more decorative.  We found those used in the centerpiece while walking under oak trees. They also make beautiful autumn vase fillers and are strewn throughout the table for accent.

SaveSave

2 comments Tagged: An Artful Table, Autumn, Holidays

Share:

Styling an Autumn Garden Floral

The colors of fall infuse the garden with a sense of the moment.  Orange mums, burnt red dahlias and soft sage green hydrangeas reflect the hues of falling leaves and are simple to style and bring inside.

This easy arrangement was created using a small decorative pot and a few colorful fall flowers.  It is is less than a foot tall and the petite size is perfect to bring a bit of seasonal charm to an end table or nightstand.

Creating a petite arrangement like this one is very simple and requires just a few blooms.   After cutting and conditioning all the flowers, I first placed a large hydrangea blossom in the pot for a support.  Then the dahlias were added at different heights and angles.  Finally, orange mums were inserted as filler flowers in the empty spaces.  

A petite arrangement of seasonal flowers is a lovely way to bring the beauty of the autumn garden indoors.  I hope you will try creating your own! 

1 comment Tagged: Autumn, Fresh Floral Styling

Share:

The Colors of November

The glorious fall trees have colored my world in beautiful shades of red, orange and yellow just in time for Thanksgiving.  We have a late autumn here in California but when it finally arrives it is spectacular!

Our Japanese Maple trees have turned vibrant colors and I clipped branches to bring inside.  This bud vase filled with leaves and a yellow autumn rose will be a welcome addition to the studio.  I am so inspired by these gorgeous colors...

The trees are painted in the light of late afternoon as I take some time out of the day to photograph them.  Soon all these leaves will be at my feet...

The beauty of fall is all around us now.  Our mums are awash in shades of orange that fuse with the surrounding trees.

Wishing you all a happy Thanksgiving filled with many blessings...

Leave a Comment Tagged: Autumn, Garden and Flower Photography, Garden Inspiration

Share: