Tag Archives: floristry schools

The Cotton Plant

What an amazing plant is the cotton plant?!⁣ ⁣

Planted in summer to bloom around early autumn, it is not actually the flower of this plant that we most covet, but the fluffy white fibres that burst out of what is called the cotton boll.⁣ ⁣

The flower initially grows on top of the boll and only lasts about 3-4 days before withering and dropping off. The boll then begins to ripen in the sun and the fibres inside begin to expand, bursting out of the boll to create a most fascinating and beautiful natural resource.⁣ ⁣

Cotton stems seem to come in and out of fashion but are particularly popular arranged alone in a beautiful vase. I am going to try and find some arrangements using this stunning flora to inspire us all!⁣

DESIGNER SPOTLIGHT: Tomas De Bruyne

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Tomas De Bruyne is a Belgian floral designer who has worked all over the world.

He has made his career as a freelance floral designer, creating at times very large, installation pieces in public spaces & designing for events & weddings.

He also teaches workshops in #techniquesforfloralbeauty & has published 17 books!

And to top it off, he has a flower named after him! GLORIOSA ROTHSCHILDIANA ‘TOMAS DE BRUYNE’.

Check out his Facebook page @ Tomas De Bruyne Floral Design or his instagram @tomasdebruyne

Image may contain: table, plant, outdoor and indoor

Image may contain: 2 people, people smiling, flower

International Women’s Day 2019

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Happy International Women’s Day!⁣

This year’s campaign theme is #BalanceForBetter which promotes a gender balanced world. “From grass roots activism to world wide action”, we can all play a part in creating gender equality for our children’s future and our present right now!⁣

It is so wonderful and rewarding to be part of an industry that supports and promotes women in business, and an entrepreneurial industry that is about spreading happiness to everyone.⁣ Make sure to arrange or buy a bunch of flowers today for your closest lady friends, and celebrate how fabulous it is to be female!⁣

Bloom of the Month – Pansies!

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Pansies are an eternal favourite for cool weather blooms!

They like lots of water in well drained soil. They like sun but cooler weather. They are perfect for pots or flower beds & ground cover, as they are surprisingly robust little plants!

Pansy blooms come in a huge variety of colours, from black to white, red to orange to yellow, as well as purple & blue.

This flower derives its name from the French word for thought, pansee. As a result, the pansy is a symbol of thought and thoughtfulness.

Pansies are not commercially grow cut flowers but are widely used in food decoration, as pansies are one of several edible garden flowers! They have a mild minty flavour.

As they have shorter stems, when picked, they are perfect for small ornate vases. Taking up less room, they are beautiful blooms for your nightstand or bathroom sink! They may not last as long as some blooms, but their little faces bring just as much joy!

Tropical Blooms Workshop

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Take advantage of the current rattan furniture trend and learn how to create a stunning tropical arrangement at our Tropical Blooms workshop!⁣

Utilise the last of the summer blooms and make summer last all year round by creating contemporary interpretations of this staid classic.⁣

Think St Tropez, think Barbados, think drinking Barcardi cocktails in Cuba!! Book through the link!⁣

This stunning design & is from the style makers @onekingslane NY

Perfect work benches for floristry!

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Flashback to a few weeks ago when our classroom was buzzing with activity with all our Flower Basics students!⁣

We absolutely love our work benches which are what is called an “Ikea Hack”! The table tops are from Ikea, then the legs have been custom fitted to make the height correct for standing and arranging as well as having wheels added to the bottom for movability. Then a nice thick coat of gloss added to the wood to make it more robust and resistant to scratches and water damage!

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Thanks to our lovely teacher Natalie’s husband Cos for sorting those out for us!! X⁣

Dahlias

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Dahlias really are a magnificent flower. Adding colour, and body with their many layers of petals. Their exquisite beauty comes from the daisy family.⁣ ⁣

Originally from Mexico and parts of south America, the symbolism of the Dahlia can vary depending on the colour.

Some common meanings of the Dahlia flower include:⁣

Staying graceful under pressure, especially in challenging situations⁣
Traveling and making a major life change in a positive way⁣
Standing out from the crowd and following your own unique path⁣
Staying kind despite being tested by certain life events⁣
Commitment to another person or a certain ideal⁣ ⁣

The Victorians used the Dahlia to signify a lasting bond and commitment between two people, so Dahlia’s are absolutely perfect for wedding bouquets, or perhaps an anniversary gift!⁣

Karl Lagerfeld

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R.I.P. Karl Lagerfeld. Love him or hate (his politics), it is undeniable the mark Karl Lagerfeld has left on the fashion design community and arguably, the complete design zeitgeist of the 20th & 21st century.⁣

Always cutting edge but never forgetting the founding principles of Coco Chanel herself, Lagerfeld became Creative Director of Chanel in 1983 up until his death yesterday. ⁣

Lagerfeld’s body of work starting from just age 21 in 1954 is prolific. Here we see Lagerfeld using the beauty of flowers as inspiration for his Chanel SS15 collection. ⁣

Take a moment today to have a look back at some of Lagerfeld’s work and gain inspiration from a designer who was inspired by so much!⁣

Banksia

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There are 173 Banksia species, and all but one occur naturally only in Australia. The flower heads are made up of hundreds (sometimes thousands) of tiny individual flowers grouped together in pairs.

The colour of the flower heads usually ranges from yellow to red, browns and orange. Many species flower over autumn and winter so they should be becoming available soon!⁣
Banksia’s are a very rich source of nectar, and indigenous Australians would use them as a sweet boost! Either sucking the nectar straight from the flower or soaking it in water for an energy drink!⁣

Don’t forget about these beauties when creating an arrangement, they add unique colours and textures both with the flower and the leaves!⁣

Bloom Online

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We had a question recently about completing the Career Change Course online.

The Career Change Course is a fully immersive, hands on, classroom focussed course. So it is not currently available as an online option. However, we do have many specially curated online courses for those who can not make it into the classroom, or live outside of Melbourne.⁣

The Art Of Floristry contains the most comprehensive and comparatively similar video instructed arrangements to the Career Change Course. You will learn all the basics such as vase arrangements, table designs & bouquets as well as more advanced wedding floristry asymmetric and organic designs. We encourage students completing courses online, who are looking to work as a florist to also check out our online business courses. Our Getting Started course is an excellent introduction to this learning style and is a bargain at only $22! It will give you a taste of what you can then go onto learn as part of our 3 Week MINI Course.⁣

We also have smaller online floristry courses such as Bloom Basics & Flower Fundamentals to give you a taste of online learning!!⁣

If you have any questions about any of these courses, don’t hesitate to contact us via email at enquiries@bloomcollege.com.au 💚