Setsuko lead a workshop on the 49th Sogetsu Principle, Emphasising Lines

August 15, 2024 Ikebana Wellington

Setsuko showing the line in her arrangement

On Sunday August 11, our workshop was held in Khandallah Presbyterian Church hall, our new venue. It was lead by Setsuko Kennedy.

Setsuko demonstrated the four principles of ikebana: a fresh approach, movement, balance, and harmony; the three elements are line, colour and mass. In Sogetsu Ikebana, the line is particularly important among these three elements. So, after considering the four ikebana principles mentioned above, members were asked to choose one of the three lessons from:
Book 3-5: composition of straight lines,
Book 3-6: composition of curved lines,
Or Book 3-7: composition of straight and curved lines.

Setsuko is putting the final touches to her arrangement in a tall white vase, showing curve, colour and mass

Setsuko arranged tall leaves and flower buds with variegated foliage for colour in an interesting container

Setsuko is putting the final touches to her arrangement in a tall pottery container with grass seed heads for line, a large curved dried leaf and a single camellia for colour

Setsuko used a tall pottery container to arrange grass seed heads for line, a large curved dried leaf and a single camellia for colour

Nicole arranged a long frond in a tall glass vase with sprigs of daphne for colour

Nicole arranged irises to show line and a sunflower to reflect the centre of the glass container

Helen's arrangement in a red vase show's line and colour with red stems and variegated foliage

Penny arranged white camellia and tall stems with buds to show line in a low, black container

In an interesting ceramic vase, Kate arranged irises for colour, lemonwood seed heads, curved cabbage tree leaves and a tall flax seed branch for line

In a crazed, round container, Masako arranged vines for line and curve and a single camellia and pink flowers for colour

Alyson arranged curved climber stems with helibore flowers for colour in a shiny circular container

Sharon arranged bunched stems for line and tulips for colour in a round, low container

Elizabeth arranged curved branches and delicate pink flowers for colour in a low, lilac vase

Yoko arranged tall kawakawa stems for line and daffodils in an orange, elliptical container

In two matching containers, Alyson arranged helibore flowers and curved vine stems

Adriana lead a workshop using dried, bleached or coloured materials

July 14, 2024 Ikebana Wellington

Adriana arranged helibores with jasmine vine and driftwood in a tall black container

Our July 14 workshop was lead by Adriana who suggested the following information for members to follow:

Workshop taken from, Book 4 lesson 13 - Dried, Bleached, or Coloured Materials. For this lesson, you can use dried, bleached or coloured materials alone or combined with fresh plant material. The important thing to note is the dried, bleached, or coloured material must be plants. For example, you can use materials such as dried and painted leaves, bark, driftwood, seed pods, dried seaweed or mosses. However, the materials should not be heavily processed (e.g. painted bamboo skewers, cork, paper), which you would instead use in an unconventional material arrangement (refer lessons 4.11 and 5.7).

The plan for the workshop is for everyone to bring a selection of dried, bleached, or coloured materials that can be shared. You may recall the same approach for the unconventional materials workshop last year. While challenging, this encourages more spontaneous arrangements using materials you may not have tried before.

Adriana arranged jasmine vine with helibores and driftwood in a tall black vase

Adriana arranged dried seed heads, a large dried leaves with yellow buttons, muehlenbeckia and jasmine vine in a white vase

Adriana arranged lemons and dried seaweed in a double yellow vase

Sandi arranged a variety of materials in an interesting ceramic container

Helen made an arrangement using dried leaves and a variety of materials in a ceramic container

Elizabeth made an arrangement using dried flax leaves and seed heads orchids in a round, squat ceramic vase

Elizabeth made an arrangement using driftwood, rosehips, seedheads, grasses and painted muehlenbeckia in a glass vase

Lyn made an arrangement using dried leaves, seaweed and flower heads

Takako made an arrangement using dried leaves, seed heads and leucadendron in a ceramic container

Takako made an arrangement using dried hydrangea flower heads and jasmine vine in a beautiful ceramic jug

Setsuko arranged painted dark blue dry camellia branches, fresh white azalea flowers, and small green leaves in a vibrant dark blue ceramic vase

Glenys made an arrangement using a rosemary sprig, muehlenbeckia and dried material in an interesting latticed container

Nicole made an arrangement using dried leaves and helibores

Masako made an arrangement using dried seaweed, lily buds in a tall, black glass vase

Kate made an arrangement using pittosporum, flax, freesias and dried grass in a ceramic container

Yoko made an arrangement using dried seaweed, leaves and cymbidium orchids in a ceramic vase

Sharon made an arrangement using painted leaves and vines with alstremeria flowers in a beautiful tall green vase

Lyn made an arrangement using dried leaves and flax claddies with red flowers in a white ceramic vase

Kathy made an arrangement using a variety of dried materials with a bird of paradise flower in an open bowl-shaped vase

Masako led a workshop on how to arrange flowers and branches in a suiban without a kenzan

June 9, 2024 Ikebana Wellington

Masako with her three arrangements showing materials placed in suiban containers without using kenzan

Creating an arrangement without a kenzan is often one of our more daunting lessons. Whilst the text books suggest using wire or pins/nails to create a structure, Masako introduced us to the “rubber band” as a fixing method. She commented on the difficulty of creating balance in the structure, and suggested adding quite light flowers so as to not upset that initial balance. Masako’s first arrangement has several pieces of conifer held together with a rubber band at the top, sitting on a dinner plate. She then added 3 tulip buds and some purple Limonium. The second arrangement had six leucadendrons of different lengths, held together again with a rubber band near the top, sitting on a rimmed cake tin lid. To this she added one stem of alstroemeria. Masako commented that these two arrangements could be created when on holiday, for example, when access to usual vases or kenzan were not available. Masako’s last arrangement involved 3 large branches which she fastened together by winding a rubber band around one trimmed stem, and then winding it around another one. To this she added a bunch of Limonium and a bunch of leucadendrons. One of the important things we all learned was to put the water into the vase when the arrangement was finished as leaves and dirt will inevitably fall off the branches as the arrangement was made.

Masako held pieces of conifer together with a rubber band and added tulips and limonium on a dinner plate

Masako held six leucadendrons together with a rubber band and added one stem of alstromeria positioned on a cake tin lid

Masako held three large branches wound together with a rubber band and then added a bunch of limonium and leucadendrons placed on a low suiban

Masako with her three arrangements showing materials placed in suiban containers without using kenzan

Nicole arranged one piece of grapevine with a cymbidium orchid stem colour matched with pink hebe in a suiban vase

Sharon arranged twisted willow with flax and alstroemeria in a suiban container

Yoko arranged Japanese taro leaves pinned together with nasturtiums in a white suiban vase

Sandi arranged lichen covered branches nailed together with irises in a suiban vase

Adriana arranged Camellia branches, variegated coprosoma with winter roses in a white suiban vase

Lyn arranged reeds and roses in a black suiban vase

Helen arranged leucadendrons, foliage and a freesia held together with a rubber band placed in a suiban vase

Alyson arranged muehlenbeckia, with jasmine and gerberas in a low-sided suiban container

Setsuko arranged lichen covered branches, with dried protea and delicate flowers in a half-shaped suiban vase

Julie arranged three stems of strelizia pinned together with toitoi and dried strelizia flower heads in a rectangular suiban vase

Kate arranged tortured willow and tulips in a rectangular suiban vase

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