trade secrets: flower arranging
The old saying, “April showers bring May flowers,” always seems to ring true, especially to us Midwesterners who so enjoy the bursting of color.
One of the benefits of the season is to bring the outdoors inside and fill your home with fresh arrangements. After years of working with people on their homes, it occurred to me that most have a fear of creating a floral arrangement. They put far too much pressure on themselves. I certainly don’t want to take away from the floral professionals we depend on for special occasions, but I do think there are times when the mood or opportunity strikes us mere mortals and we can produce something pretty for the table on our own!
Here are a few simple tips to calm any floral fears:
✤ There is nothing wrong with purchasing a bunch of flowers at the grocer to create your arrangement. However, you can’t just take them out of the sleeve and drop them into a vase without giving them some attention! Separate and cut each stem individually before placing it into the vessel. You want to have some sense of form and proportion and not allow it to look like the leftovers from a flower show. Generally, I take the largest bloom, put that at the highest point and cascade down accordingly so that there is a lovely focal point.
✤ Use the flower food that usually accompanies store-bought flowers; it helps them last a bit longer.
✤ Use a ‘frog’ stem stabilizer if you have one. It is generally metal with a flat base and lots of spikes coming from the top. Simply put the frog in the base of your container, fill with water and while arranging your flowers, stick each stem onto a point. This will hold your flowers in place. When finished, add clear pebbles, marbles or stones around the base of the frog for yet another dimension.
✤ Don’t be afraid to cut flowering limbs from trees or flowers from your own garden to fill in your purchased blooms. Or use a single flower type, say a peony, and create a full arrangement with only the species in your garden.
✤ Have fun! If your friends judge you based on your ability to create something pretty for their benefit, then perhaps you should reconsider who you invite over. Beauty comes in all forms and no one has the market cornered on what is and isn’t pretty.
timeless: voyeuse
You say po-tay-to, I say po-tah-to. You say prie dieu, I say voyeuse. I know, crazy, right? I recently purchased at auction a Louis XVI-style painted voyeuse, which I mistakenly thought was a prie dieu, an easy mistake to make, don’t you agree? The difference in appearance is slight, but their intended use is not.
A prie dieu (pree-dee yeu) is what looks to most of us like a very low chair that would be difficult to sit in. With a rather tall back, which is often upholstered and crowned by an upholstered cap that extends past the rails of the back, this chair was designed to be used by gentlemen or ladies for kneeling during morning or evening prayer. This form of furniture was at its peak in the 17th and 18th centuries.
The voyeuse is very similar in scale and look, but often has a carved back topped with an upholstered rail. The seat is closer to a standard-height seat of the day, so its appearance is more chair-like, with the exception of the padded crossbar at the top. The use for this chair is not religious. The voyeuse is used for a spectator to kneel on while watching a card game at a table. Due to the diminutive scale, it is easy for the back to be faced toward the table at the corner so one can kneel on the seat and watch. I am sure that prayers may be offered up from this seat, but probably not of a spiritual sort!
come to terms with: escort cards & place cards
By now you can tell that I believe in ‘all things civilized.’ It’s important to u n d e r s t a n d the niceties of polite society. Admittedly I can be a bit on the Victorian side of things, but once we lose the basic s t a n d a r d s of civilized society, there will be no turning back. I couldn’t face a society so disposable that paper plates and plastic cups were proper dinner party fare. I always will believe that a proper place setting when entertaining is as natural as saying hello when we pass someone.
One element of proper entertaining is the escort and place card. The difference between the two is that the former is used when you check in at an event to direct you to your table, a custom that dates back to the 1800s. The place card is found at the table to indicate which seat is yours. Now, in today’s shortcut world, one card is often used for both (not correct, but better than no card at all).
Even when entertaining at home, a beautiful place card can make your guest feel even more special. And on the subject of table seating, spouses should never sit next to each other: a proper table is male, female, male, female. The idea of a dinner party is to enjoy the company of others, not those you already spend time with! And, of course, it is absolutely bad form to move the place cards your host has set. They are where the host wants them; it’s not the guest’s right to choose! This behavior offends the host, perhaps the biggest faux pas of all.
So with that primer, I shall leave you to select the place cards of your choice … cheers!
