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Seasonal Bloom
with the coming of spring comes the sweet scent of wisteria. white and lavender blooms signify that it has woken up after winter sleep and is ready to begin climbing once again.
photographs and words by kristin karch
photographs by rinne allen
photographs by rinne allen
photograph and words by rinne allen
photographs and words by rinne allen
spring is coming on strong around here, but still, in the garden, the main thing blooming are our hellebores...here are some from an arrangement for a special dinner, with a tint of gold...
arrangement and photographs by rinne allen
photographs by rinne allen
visiting this orchid farm was a twist of fate and made up one of my favorite days in thailand. some friends and i rented motor bikes and hit off for the country side in search of orchids, waterfalls, and rice fields. the fast paced and hectic traffic ended up seperating me from the others, so i rode for about 30 kilometers before i stopped at this orchid farm to figure out if i was on the right track. with the help of wifi, i was reunited with my friends and was able to explore this beautiful orchid farm. i was surprised to see that all the orchids were grown by aeration because of the naturally humid and warm climate.
words and photographs by kristin karch
mandy grew the most beautiful amaryllis this year...everyone i gave them to has written me saying they were the prettiest they had ever seen...mine only just now bloomed and, wow, it is beautiful!
words & photographs by rinne allen
the hellebores are peeking out now, and the branches are in bud.
words and photographs by rinne allen
mandy and i played with flowers yesterday and these tulips and japanese magnolias came home with me. they are right at home with one of rebecca's woodfire vases.
arrangement and photograph by rinne allen
continuing with our week of favorites...today we are sharing books about flowers & gardening...enjoy!!
rinne:
simple ikebana inspiration here...rebecca & i love ikebana so much...(and, i am awaiting on the translation of this book title from rebecca's son zack (who knows japanese)...!
rinne:
i am a big gardener and this book was one of the first ones that i purchased for my library...eventhough the setting for derek jarman's garden is completely different than my own, i look at this book alot because i love his beautiful space and how he made the landscape his own.
rinne:
i have written about my love for this book before. i just love it.
rinne:
this book was in my family's library when i was little....it was written by a schoolteacher in nyc and encourages the reader to explore nature anywhere you can find it, be it a crack in the sidewalk or in a small city park. i have shared this book with many others, and its simple principle has encouraged all of us to explore nature with our children, even in the most urban of settings. it is always good to be reminded that there is so much to learn from right beneath our feet.
rinne:
like the above book, this book encourages us to find inspiration in unlikely places. in this instance, in the bolted, overgrown plants in our yard. i love the textures and forms in these wild plants.
rinne:
i am not normally drawn to cactus, but they pair perfectly here with the textures of adam silverman's amazing pottery.
rinne:
another ikebana book, this one from the 50's...'japanese flower arrangement'.
rinne:
another inspiring book that embraces the beauty of flowers.
rinne:
this is hands down one of the most important books in my collection, because seeing the 2004 exhibition that went along with it inspired me to start making light drawings again.
rebecca:
i love to study japanese flower arranging, the history and the styles. 'arranging flowers' is a wonderful guide to the history and styles of arranging. there are spectacular color pictures of huge arrangements as only the japanese can do. highly recommended.
rebecca:
this book was written at the end of the 1800's by the first westerner to really study ikebana. so much wonderful info concerning appropriate flowers for different occasions, as well as appropriate arrangements for all the different parties they had, like moon viewing parties,incense parties,flower arranging parties, and poetry parties. i love the picture of the couple entering the tea room to observe the ikebana!
each winter, i look around my studio and i can see the remnants of summer around me...through the dried specimens in my studio. i keep them around me as long as i can, both because they remind me of when they were are their peak, but also because i love their forms & textures once they are past their prime, too.
words & photographs by rinne allen
a clean slate...white camellias from the garden...
photographs by rinne allen
One of the perks of writing for a local magazine is collaborating with creative friends in town. For this piece — a holiday DIY article for Athens Magazine — Rebecca Wood and I spent an overcast morning on her front porch making living wreaths. It was a perfect day for a photoshoot, a little drizzly, her cat stretched out next to our props. I especially loved these succulents for their soft, washed colors…so reminiscent of R. Wood ceramics. We started with a vine wreath and moss then overlaid them with plants, securing mostly with florist wire, letting Rebecca’s instinct guide the way. We made a second wreath that became a table centerpiece; this one for hanging. Mist the succulents with a spray bottle every few days and it will last well beyond the season.
photographs and words by allyn rippin
i love leaf shapes! this fall i collected some and pressed them between newspapers to dry. then i tried a few kinds of gold paints and waxes. love the shapes golden!
words and photographs by rebecca wood
the last hurrah of fall's warm colors...
words and photographs by rinne allen
i have been writing some pieces recently for food 52's website…recently, i asked our friend mandy to create some holiday decorating ideas for their website. we got together a few weeks ago to make and photograph them. this is an outtake from the day, a simple wreath made from dried greenery. you may use any vine or tendril that you have handy…this one is made with 'love-in-a-puff' and we love that is still has a little bit of green, but there is some brown creeping in too…
just lay your plant material out flat, end-on-end, with some pieces overlapping…then, grab each end and twist into a circle. secure with wire, ribbon or a strip of thin leather. then, hang and enjoy!
words & photographs by rinne allen . wreath by mandy o'shea of moonflower design
ginkgo trees are some of the most beautiful colors of autumn. their leaves turn a wonderful bright yellow, then drop to the ground to take another form of beauty in whatever pattern they may land.
photos and words by kristin karch
i can barely stand to know that soon the dahlias will be gone. due to warm weather, we still have a few. i get some every saturday at the farmer's market from 3 porch farm. even after their glory, dahlias hold their beauty, transmuting into subtle colors andshapes of movement, frozen in time.
i'll enjoy these to the very end!
