 Michelle began her career as a designer at City Flowers in Toronto while attending Seneca College’s Professional Floral Design Program. A designer for eight years, she has worked in a variety of retail shops and studios. She has previous training in illustration and media arts, and brings these sensibilities to her work. Recently she completed her examination and in 2006 received her CAFA membership. A proud member of the floral community, she enjoys experimenting with a variety of materials and finding new artful ways to provide distinct design and fresh ideas.
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Photography by David Goldsman.
Permanent botanicals donated by Don Robb Imports.
Hard goods and fresh product donated by Hofland. |
Rustico
Autumn is decay and beauty can be seen in the rust-coloured yards. Two aluminum duct pipes, a metal container and finials are used to convey this mood. Get a rust finish kit at a craft supplier or paint store. I had a few orchids with damaged petals, so removed those and used the pretty centres tucked into yarrow that echoed the amber and dusty orange colours. Some dried pods and horsetail grass provide a natural “wildness” mixed with artificial grasses and kangaroo paw situated into oasis.
Floral Products:
• fresh yarrow in yellow and orange
• orchid centres in waterpics
• dried pods (any variety)
• artificial grasses and leaves
• kangaroo paw
• horsetail grass
Hard Goods:
• 12" metal vase
• 2 metal decorative finials
• 2 – 3" adjustable duct pipes
• rust finish kit
• oasis
Leaving
Well into fall, conveying movement, dancing gold and bronze artificial oak leaves dance along kiwi vine. Little arms of silk amaranthus reach away from a whirlwind nest of willow, as branches and more vines are all held together with wire. This has been attached to a fine stand to give the feeling of floating. Artificial hydrangea is a vibrant pave tucked with grasses, leaves and berries. Rams horn-shaped dried pods are textured and solid, giving the impression of the occupants gone south.
Floral Products:
• curlywillow, miscellaneous branches
• artificial Bittersweet vine
• artificial leaves/grasses
• artificial amaranthus
• kiwi vine
• dried moss
• rams horns pods
• wire, wire, wire
• glue gun
Hard Goods:
• metal stand
• saucer shaped basket 5"
Sweet Bale
In this design, sage grass smudges are tied into bundles and burned like incense along with the wheat sheaf. Both are sculptural. Using one simple material, dried grass, I created this graceful shape. A basic 8" basket was weighted and surrounded by chicken wire and raffia for shape. The grass was spiraled like a hand-tied and then wrapped with twine and fishing line. The negative space is accented with rusty red calla lilies appearing like little flames and tucked around these are brown feathers, artificial lantern pods and artificial poplar leaves.
Floral Products:
• rust red calla lily
• feathers wrapped to picks
• artificial fall lantern pods
• artificial poplar leaves
• dried grasses
Hard Goods:
• 8" Basket
• raffia
• gravel
• chicken wire
• twine/fishing line
• wooden picks/water tubes
 Autumn Weaves
It’s a pizza pan with a rust finish, a perfect armature for any sort of flower. Add any paint finish and cut away areas that need to hold thicker stems like tropicals, or agapanthus. Inserting stick bundles into a container, prepped with insulation foam and oasis ring, and cut the sticks in an upward slope. Place the pan within the sticks to get a slight angle and secure with wire. I chose anthuriums because they come in any colour for any season and they convey direction and form so well. Insert the anthurium into the holes of the pan and weave through the sticks (add moss-covered water tubes). The three anthurium at the base are accented with rusty brown feathers.
Floral Products:
• rust red anthurium
• brown feathers on wood picks
• bundles of decorative sticks
Hard Goods:
• oasis
• 7" pizza pan with holes (cooking suppliers)
• copper wire
• 8" metal container
• rust finish kit (craft suppliers)
• water tubes/moss
 Mellow Marsh
Wetlands in fall are an arrangement in themselves. As a kid, family hikes around Elora and Forks of the Credit were exhilarating. I loved the dried stalks of marsh grass and how they snapped and formed interesting angles and patterns, plus the fact that not everything turns brown. Marshes and ponds become pale and reflectively bright. The bottlebrush eucalyptus provides a sage-like green with dried flower tops and this is repeated in the delicate Cotineaus grouped to the side. Permanent yarrow is paved around some straw décor balls and one nestles in the bent stalks woven throughout the background. Some graceful permanent grasses drift up from the larger stem husks.
Floral Products:
• sahara
• artificial straws
• artificial yarrow
• artificial grasses
• straw décor balls
• corn stalks
• Coteneaus
• bottlebrush eucalyptus
Hard Goods:
• aggregate stone bowl
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