Clay Art for All Seasons: A Guide to Soft Clay Art

I recently came across a woman who makes the most amazing clay art flowers in Hawaii - DK Designs. While searching for other clay artists making eternal wedding bouquets I found Yukiko Miyai, who runs the Deco Clay Art Academy. Here work is outstanding and I think speaks for itself - so here are a few images form her website:





Her book has received rave reviews - check it out!

Flowers for the Table

I rarely rave about flower books but I am so impressed with this one I felt compelled to include it in the reading room. If you are thinking of doing your own flowers or are looking for seasonal inspiration pick up a copy of Flowers for the Table: Arrangements and Bouquets for All Seasons.

Ariella Chezar is a master arranger, and incorporats fruit, vines and many unexpected items into her magnificent floral arrangements. If you want sustainable wedding flowers with an organic feel this is the book for you.

Here are a few pictures courtesy of Amazon:

To buy her book click the link below:

Paper Flower Books

After seeing the entry on How to Make Flowers with Dennison Crepe Paper, one reader suggested a few other paper flower books which I am happy to share:

Fanciful Paper Flowers: Creative Techniques for Crafting an Enchanted Garden

From amazon:
Eleven different paper flower-making techniques, three projects for each, all developed by a proven author with an enchanting, whimsical, flea-market-meets-fantasy sensibility: that’s what makes this volume so irresistible. Sandra Evertson follows up her Fanciful Paper Projects with a fabulously feminine collection of paper flower jewelry, garlands, barrettes, hatpins, ornaments, and decorative objects ... Each chapter features a page from her very own sketchbook, plus she’s provided several pages of vintage ephemera, templates, and her original papers for readers to copy and use... this collection truly offers a garden of artistic possibilities!



Paper Bouquet: Using Paper Punches to Create Beautiful Flowers

From Amazon:
Cherry blossoms, forsythia, marigolds, and petunias: Who would have imagined you could recreate such gorgeous blooms with just paper and craft punches? ... Using her own original, unique techniques, Susan Tierney Cockburn offers 40 beloved flowers to make for decorating gifts and home décor. She teaches the simple basics, including paper manipulation, gluing, and coloring, and presents her flowers as colorfully as they’re found in nature. From A (Amaryllis) to Z (Zinnia), there’s a bountiful bouquet of blooms to choose from! Photographs document every step, and a visual template of the punches accompanies each flower. A dozen sample projects range from picture frames to wreaths.



I also recently came across Origami Flowers: Popular Blossoms and Creative Bouquets which looks fantastic!



You can do these projects with leftover and recycled paper from your house or use colorful origami paper made from rice (link available on the DIY page of the look book).

Happy crafting!

How to Make Flowers with Dennison Crepe Paper - Manufacturing Dennison Manufacturing Co.

This is the book the remarkable artist Jude Miller (see image on right) claims to have taught herself with. As far as I am concerned there is no higher recommendation for aspiring paper flower artists. You can use recycled paper to create beautiful designs you and your guests will enjoy long after your wedding! (For another example of Jude's work and other faux flower embellishments see the Accessories page of the Interactive Look Book)

Forcing, Etc.: The Indoor Gardener's Guide to Bringing Bulbs, Branches & Houseplants into Bloom - Katherine Whiteside

If you are planning a late fall or winter wedding forcing is a clever way to create colorful blooms with minimal environmental impact.

"It's not difficult, but it does take some planning and foresight. If you want to force bulbs to flower in February, for instance, you have to order them in late summer so that you can pot them up in the fall. Twigs, on the other hand, are much easier to force: just cut them after six weeks of cold weather, put them in some water, and watch the virtual spring of your warm rooms transform them into leggy, flowering spirea, corylopsis, forsythia, or catkins, for instance. Author Katherine Whiteside explores associated topics such as choosing the best container and presentation within the home, as well as topics only an expert could love ("the narcissus question")." - Amazon.com

Forcing, Etc.: The Indoor Gardener's Guide to Bringing Bulbs, Branches & Houseplants into Bloom is a good book for anyone interested in giving forcing a go.