sometimes flowers do not even need to go in a vase...they are just beautiful on their own...
arrangement & photographs by rinne allen
Seasonal Bloom
begonias & zinnias
photographs by rinne allen
seed saving
photographs by rinne allen
vegetal
i have a favorite spot i go to in maine, chase's daily. it is hands-down one of my favorite places, anywhere. part restaurant/part market, their food is delicious and their presentation is divine. i always get swept up in their produce...take for instance, these huge greens bundles, for only $4 (they literally take two arms to carry):
each year, i buy one, come home and take photographs, then do a flower arrangement or two, then eat the leftover greens. the funny thing is that when i was buying my bundle this year, an older woman leaned over to me and said, "you know i just take pictures of mine and make flower arrangements, and occasionally eat the greens". i laughed; we were kindred spirits...
of course, you may always add in something flowery, if you like:
arrangement, words, and photographs by rinne allen
eryngium, cimifuga, rue, and cosmos
i am still in maine and am loving exploring its flora…lots of things here that we can’t grow at home…
words and photographs by rinne allen
roses and wildflowers
i am in maine now and i always love walking around and seeing what is in bloom here…the raspberries are barely out, but all of the wild roses are in bloom and the air is fragrant! i also love that things like lady’s mantle thrive here, as the heat of our southern summers tends to overwhelm them. even in areas where garden beds are tended here, forest and fields always surround the edges, which makes foraging for flowers endless fun. a mix of groomed and wild comes together, in a vase.
words and photographs by rinne allen
tiger lillies
photographs by rinne allen
zinnia color!
the zinnias in the garden are electric right now! paired here with purple shisho, lemon balm flower & melon vine, their colors vibrate in this quiet setting.
arrangement and photographs by rinne allen
this time, last year
the good thing about having a blog for so long is that is acts like a time capsule...i often go back and look at last year to the year before to see where we were or what we were doing...i look back at the seasonal blooms too, to see what was blooming when in our yard. this time it was interesting to peek at last year's arrangements, because we are about two weeks ahead of last year now...things that normally bloom in early july are already open. here are some pics from last year that show what was blooming and what i was arranging with.
words & photographs by rinne allen
purple dragon flowers & lichen
photographs by rinne allen
simple gardenias
photographs by rinne allen
allium sweet pea blackberry
photographs by rinne allen
arrangements in woodfired vases
my front yard garden is set to do amazing things, so i cleaned and scrubbed the pollen off my front porch, bought shelves for all the vases starting to take over every surface in my house, and organized all my tools. now i have a proper flower arranging studio (except now the mosquitos have come out). this will be the summer of flower arrangements. i just woodfired about 85 new vases i made. they all have a dry look to the glaze that makes them perfect for japanese-y flower arranging. here's a few new vases at work.
photographs and words by rebecca wood
flower brigade: kat & susan's wedding
this past weekend, our good friends and owners of sweet olive farm, kat & susan, tied the knot. of course, the celebration wouldn't have been complete without bundles of flowers from mandy of 3 porch farm!
photographs and words by rinne allen
poppies
i still have some flowers left over from our spring beauty day…some of mandy’s beautiful poppies.
after arranging them in a simple kenzan, i left them in my studio to dry…i love the faded colors and shapes they made!
photographs and words by rinne allen
bouquets
photographs by rebecca wood, blooms from 3 porch farm
workshop recap: mandy's floral lesson
this week we will be sharing glimpses from our weekend workshop, spring beauty day...enjoy!
our friend mandy and her husband steve of moonflower design/3 porch farm grow or forage all of the flowers they sell at local farmer's markets and use in their flower arrangements for weddings and other events. they are at the forefront of the flower-farmer movement, along with a handful of others across the country. we are lucky to have them nearby!
mandy led the first activity of our workshop this past weekend: a foraging walk through the woods at sweet olive farm and flower arranging lesson in the barn. since mandy only uses seasonal ingredients, walking the woods with her was great because everyone got to see how and what she finds interesting...wild muscadine vine, pods, and winged elm came back in her basket and were later used in her arrangements. mandy also brought buckets and buckets of cut flowers from the farm.
when we returned to the barn from our walk, everyone just jumped right in and began making their compositions, while mandy gave guidance and tips...each person made something totally unique with their ingredients- some were low and wide, others were tall and narrow...all were beautiful!
photographs and words by rinne allen
honeysuckle and fringe tree
photographs by rinne allen
spring beauty day!
we are excited to announce that we are hosting a creative workshop, in celebration of spring and flowers and beauty...it will be saturday, april 30, 2016 at sweet olive farm, just outside athens...with our friends from mandy from moonflower design, photographer paige french, wild food, & our very own rebecca wood...it will be a refreshing and rejuvenating day!
read below for more info,
and please, join us!
click here to sign up!
saturday, april 30, 2016 . from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.
at sweet olive farm outside athens, georgia
spend the day with us, noticing and learning about the beauty around us on the grounds of sweet olive farm animal rescue in winterville, georgia, just outside of athens. we will walk the woods and the fields, gathering ingredients that we will use throughout the day as we learn new things from our friends: flower farmer & floral designer mandy o’shea of moonflower design, photographer paige french, the ladies from Wild Food, and artist rebecca wood of r.wood studio. no experience is necessary, just an open mind and a willingness to try something new and creative.
each participant will also receive a copy of our book, beauty everyday.
sweet olive farm is an animal rescue farm and event venue just outside of athens, georgia. in addition to their animals, they have a restored barn, victorian home and cottage, and woods and fields for roaming.
flow for the day:
9 a.m. to 10 a.m.: welcome coffee & nibbles
10 a.m.: foraging walk and flower arranging lesson with mandy o’shea of moonflower design
noon: color & composition: photographing flowers & arrangements with paige french
1 p.m.: a healthy, fresh lunch using some foraged ingredients and other local goodies with the ladies of beauty everyday and Wild Food
2 p.m.: drawing from nature with rebecca wood: looking at flowers and learning to sketch them, simply
3:30-4 p.m.: closing
please join us!
spring flowers
photographs by rebecca wood