Valentine's Day Arrangement workshop lead by Helen Wareham

February 11, 2023 Ikebana Wellington

Helen demonstrating how to use a double shin of flax for romance in a heavy ceramic container from Japan

Our first workshop for 2023 was held in our usual meeting place, the Khandallah Town Hall from 2pm - 4pm. Helen lead us using ideas from Book 4, lesson 19, Specific Scenes, Occasions or Spaces and from Book 3, lesson 4, two or more containers.

Valentine's Day is a celebration of romance. Helen suggested we use our imagination depending our available materials. Some of the most popular flowers for Valentine's Day are roses, lilies, orchids and sunflowers. The textbook suggests white flowers for purity and red for love.

Helen demonstrating using dried and fresh material in champange box with a vase inside

A double shin of dried and fresh flax and pohutukawa branch

Helen used two containers with gerberas and palm leaves

Kate and Sandi showing two new ikebana books for our library

Yoko and Penny admiring Yoko's Valentine's Day arrangement

Yoko used roses and corokia branches in a double container for romance

Masako used sunflowers and parsley and a horizontal branch of pyracantha

Julie and Leonie enjoying their arranging

Julie tied a red and white obi round a white vase and in it arranged agapanthus and asparagus fern

Kate used a Valentine's Day coffee bag to arrange roses and Japanese hydrangea in

Sandi arranged white and apricot roses with lacebark flowers and foliage in two containers

Elizabeth chose two geometric shaped, ceramic vases to arrange dahlias, nandina and a horizontal dried vine

Elizabeth's arrangement without the nandina

Leonie arranged alstromeria, roses and sage flowers in an interesting white container

Amanda arranged aeonium succulent, greenery with a delicate red flower, daisies and hibiscus in two containers

Workshop with Kate using tall narrow containers

November 20, 2022 Ikebana Wellington

Kate demonstrating arrangement in a tall narrow container on the floor

Our November workshop was on arranging in tall narrow containers. This type of container offers some interesting challenges. Kate demonstrated.

Some things to be considered were:
Placement, often these containers will be on the floor so consider the angle from which the arrangement will be viewed. You may choose to place your arrangement off the floor or a table, to be viewed from below.
Proportions, whether it is height or width, finding some balance and space in your arrangement can be tricky with a narrow opening. Sometimes showing the rim of the container can help create space.
Fixing, how do you prevent everything falling into a tall container? Finding long branches that have some curves may help. Crossbar fixing can be one way to help with securing shorter stems and to get some forward movement.

Kate demonstrating arrangement in a tall narrow container

Kate used reeds, grass seed heads, manipulated flax, Chinese lanterns using crossbars

Kate's floor arrangement using a split drop stick supporting magnolia wood branch, tortured hazelnut, camellia leaves and alstroemeria

Kathy arranged dried flax head, rengarenga lilies and pincushion flowers

Masako arranged rose, geranium, lemonwood, dried branch and euphorbia

Julie arranged in 2 vases with 3 shades of garden statice

Helen arranged dried vines, hydrangea and dried palm

Lyn flax arranged a foxglove, flax, wild roses and a dried branch

Elizabeth arranged a rose with Solomon seal and twisted vine

Adriana arranged maple, roses (Sally Holmes) and muehlenbeckia

Nicol arranged geranium, maple and driftwood

Sandi arranged 2 vases with ixias, ranunculus, flax and vine

Kate demonstrates Arrangement with Plants on a Wall

October 11, 2022 Ikebana Wellington

Kate preparing fresh material to add to the vine hanging on the wall

At our October workshop Kate demonstrated how to make an arrangement to hang on the wall. The theme from Book 4 Lesson 17, is an exercise we do not tackle very often.

With Christmas on the horizon Kate suggested including Christmas decorations and to give the arrangement a NZ twist by using local materials. She included some fresh materials and used a plastic tube for watering these.

Kate standing back to get a perspective of her completed arrangement for the wall

Kate adding rhododendrons in front of the hanging piece of rimu and wisteria vines

Kate needed to carefully balance the materials on the hook

Masako working on her wall hanging of twisted willow, greenery and poppies

Lyn and Sandi using wisteria vine and ivy for the wall hanging

Satomi adjusting her wall arrangement of vine, dried fern frond, gerbera and mock orange flowers and foliage

Kathy used jasmine vines and eucalyptus flowers and foliage for her wall hanging

Adriana used a twisted vine, ivy and ixias for her plants on a wall

Yoko intertwining leaves into the vine and dried fern frond and orchid stem

Sandi E and Alyson selecting suitable dried material for plants on the wall

Sandi E adding greenery to her dried branch on the plants on the wall hanging

Alyson hung an ornamental wooden raft and added rhododendron and greenery for her plants on a wall arrangement

Nicole carefully balancing the vine, ivy and ixias for her plants on the wall

Julie used cones on macroparpa branches with babianas and Australian dendrobium orchids for her plants on the wall

Setsuko and Helen thinking carefully about the shape and materials for their plants on a wall arrangement

Setsuko used a variety of dried and fresh materials with hanaki for a Christmas twist in her plants on a wall arrangement

Helen used a japonica branch, primrose jasmine branches, leucadendron and aspidistra leaves for her plants on a wall arrangement

A delightful little watering can - an essential item for ikebana arranging

In the Khandallah Town Hall we were greeted with a lovely display of woollen flowers in remembrance of Queen Elizabeth II

Contact