Orchid Meditation

Welcome to the Flower School .com video library. I'm Leanne Kesler, Director of the Floral Design Institute. Today, I want to share with you a bit in the process of creating a design. People always ask me, "How do you get your inspiration?" And I always say, "It's a moment of looking at the flowers, the meditation on each material, that it tells me what to do." 

I started with a simple, water-tight vessel, added floral foam, pre-soaked with flower food, then I took my cue from Mother Nature. As I'm thinking about what materials to use, I look at the orchid, and I was first taught that you always match the throat, so I decided I needed that hot pink, but with an antique vibe with the carnations, paired beautifully. Then I thought about the color wheel. What would be the complement? 

The complement to pink is green, so then I started hunting for succulents. And isn't that beautiful? It has the complementary hues right on the same plant. Then I added a bit of reindeer moss, also in the green, to set it off, and a bit of vine to give a little softness. So Mother Nature and the color wheel combined. For the succulent, the easiest way to do that is just to go ahead and cut it from the plant, as close to the soil as you can get. Remove the lower leaves, and then using a two-inch wood-wired pick, just attach that to the side, and that's how I'll anchor it into the foam. 

Once I've chosen my materials, then I focus on the elements and the principles of design, and for me, placing my lines always gets me started, just giving it a cut, thinking about the natural curvature, placing it in, adding another, looking at the lines, determining which way they go, how their faces face. I think I'll put this one in next, bring it right alongside the first one, to make that line my most prominent, just weaving them together, then bringing in one more, and this time coming out the opposite side, looking back inward, creating movement around the design. 

You can see, I adjusted the lower one, turned it to face myself and lined it up better. Now, I'm ready to add in the emphasis, the focal area, and that's where I'll bring in the carnations and the succulents, tucking them down very, very, very low, so that they draw your eye in and help break the line of the container. Of course, if I bring it to the front, I also want to bring it to the back, and then connect them in the center, creating a path that guides your eye from front to back, then coming back in with the succulents, and grouping them to create the focal emphasis. 

As I finish, I want to think about drawing the eye all the way to the back. We started it with the carnations, but adding one more succulent, tucked low in the back, finishes it so that it's beautiful, and then also guides the eye, front to back, so that you have depth in the design. Then to cover the mechanics, add contrast and texture, a little bit of reindeer moss, just small chunks, and then using a greening pin, pinning it directly in, down into the foam, making sure that the pin doesn't show. Make sure that all your mechanics are concealed, and add that little bit of contrast color to finish the design. 

The finished arrangement is sweet. It is a meditation, but it's very precise, and to add interest, I want to add a little bit of movement and dynamic line, and that's where the vines come in, just a small bit of honeysuckle, giving it a cut, and letting it come out, adding dimension to the design, making it all a little bigger, maybe another bit, shortening it, letting it come around towards the back, and then just tucking it in low, drawing the color across, and then deciding, "Do I want to be even fuller, leggier? Where do I want it? Or do I want to stop?" 

The creative process is different for everyone. I've shared where I start, which is with the material, and then looking to the color wheel. Where do you start? Kind of an interesting question. Now it is your turn. If you need more creative inspiration, check out the website, FlowerSchool.com. If you have questions, you can reach us through there, and of course, I want to see what you create. Take a moment. Take a photograph of your work, post it on social media, tag Floral Design Institute, and then add in the comments, what was your inspiration? That way, we all can see, because it's your turn to have fun and do something you love.