Flower crowns

​A very lovely friend suggested to me a few months ago that I add a page to my website filled with images of some of the crowns I have made over the years.
 
So, I started to plan, recalling that my very first flower crown was made from garden hydrangeas in a multitude of colours for a wedding shoot (again, my first) at Kennaway House in Sidmouth.  Although terribly nervous, the ambience evoked by the models, photographer, make-up and hairstyle artist and the bubbly up and coming event planner who had arranged the shoot, together with the supportive presence of my 16 year old daughter soon put me in exactly the right creative mind to work on this colourful structure. 
 
This first crown and most of the subsequent ones, from necessity, had to be created on or near site because of their fragility and lack of longevity.  They are transient beauties, perfect for a photoshoot or wedding ceremony but will only last a few hours.  More versatile and long lived flower crowns are possible but these need to be made from long lived flowers and foliage – gypsophilia, eucalyptus, roses, etc.
 
Not long after I had started to compile the photos, a dim recollection had me digging out and rifling through a small mountain of ancient slide carousels.  In a former life, I was the wife of the son of a Puerto Rican singer and a Mallorcean artist.  Eddie was multi-talented – himself a budding artist and a wonderful guitar player – and at that time was trying to start his own photography business with me by his side. One day, disparaged by all the images of my very self-conscious self in various poses holding cards with f16, 5 seconds, etc written on them (whilst Eddie got to grips with lighting systems, new cameras, etc.) I pleaded with him to try and capture a flattering photo of me.  There ensued a memorable, fairly sozzled and rather giggly evening.  I gathered some of the gorgeous flowers from the tropical trees and shrubs around us and fashioned something resembling a flower crown.  I then knocked back a little dutch courage in the shape of a few Cuba Libres.  I think Eddie may have had one or two himself and, as a result, he got the exposure wrong but the resultant photos were fab!  I had no floristry knowledge at all when I was 24 but I wish I had those beautiful flowers to hand now to recreate a similar crown.  Technically, that was the first crown I had ever made – it was to be several decades before the Kennaway House Crown followed.
 
So, this blog is to introduce my new page and it seemed only fitting to include a photo of myself drunk, very young and wearing a skill free crown.  I will add to the gallery of photos as I create more crowns – I have no idea where it will end – flower crowns are a huge passion for me and each one a unique and very fantastic journey.