"Can" Do!

I enjoy collecting cans and tins. They have a multitude of functions, and are really fun and easy to dress up in different skins.

 I sauntered over to the San Francisco Farmer’s market this weekend, and paid $22 dollars for 3 bunches of Rununculus, and 2 bunches of Tulips. These flowers bring complete spring joy with all their color and texture.

 

Once I got home, I gathered my tins, cans, left over ribbon, and wrapping paper, and started to play dress up. This is the part that I love getting creative with. Mixing and matching papers and ribbons to my heart’s desire to come up with some fun designs.

 A word of caution; some tin cans are not sealed, so make sure you test them before you dress them up to avoid any leakage or spillage. If the tin cans are not sealed, you can create a simple lining with a  ziplock bag and a rubber band:

 Once the cans were dressed to my satisfaction, I started to play with the floral array that lay ahead of me.

 

The moral of the story is, with a little bit of mix and match, you too “can” create great arrangements for any occasion!

Norooz Pirooz

Spring is here with promises of longer days, an awakening of the earth from its winter slumber, and with it another “Norooz” (Persian New Year). Norooz is celebrated among people of Persian descent on the first day of Spring and is a tradition that dates back three thousand years.

On this day, Persian families gather around their ‘Haftseen’ (Table of Seven S’s), embrace the New Year together, while the children await the crisp money bills they will receive from the elders in the family. (I have to admit, I still await that last part just as impatiently as when I was 7!!!)

Each item that is placed on the Haftseen table has symbolic significance, and embodies all things good and pure.  This year I chose the following Seven S’s for my table;

1.       Sonbol – Hyacinth flower – Symbolizing the coming of spring

2.       Sabzeh – Wheat Grass – Symbolizing affluence

3.       Somaq – Sumac – Symbolizing sunrise

4.       Seer- Garlic – Symbolizing medicine and health

 

5.       Seeb- Apple – Symbolizing beauty 

 

6.       Sekke – Coins – Symbolizing prosperity

 7.       Serkeh – Vinegar – Symbolizing old age and patience

Other items that are placed on the table include:

·         Painted eggs – symbolizing fertility 

·         Lit Candles – symbolizing enlightenment and happiness

·         A mirror – symbolizing truth and the reflection of the real world

·         A book of poetry such as Rumi or Hafez, or a religious text such as the Qoran or Avesta 
·         A bowl of gold fish (no, not the crackers) – symbolizing life and the constellation of Pisces which the sun is leaving while making its way into the constellation of Aries.(I didn't have the goldfish on my table this year, since I'm not so great at taking care of pets ;) )

This year, I decided to create a mini Hyancinth and Wheat Grass garden as my Haftseen focal point.  I placed my flower pots and wheat grass pots inside a mirrored tray, and packed it in with Spanish moss to help cover the plastic pots. Afterwards, it was time to adorn the tray with some white pearl strands to give it a little extra umph. 

After the Hyacinth garden was placed on my mirrored coffee table, the rest of the Haftseen items found their place. With a little re-adjusting here and there, the table was set and ready to receive friends and family. 

I hope that this new year fills your homes with laughter, your bodies with health, and your hearts with love! Have a glorious new year! Norooz Pirooz!

“Stick ‘em in a Vase”

You’re probably wondering why I fell off the face of floral earth for the past few months, and the simple answer is that I've been doing some soul searching. I had to disconnect for a while in order to put puzzle pieces together. Did I figure it all out?  No. but I will. In time.

We’re heading towards spring in the northern hemisphere which allows us to look forward to some of the most luscious species the floral kingdom has to offer. Pussy Willows and Tulips are a classic harbinger of spring, and I managed to grab a bunch of each during my “essentials-stock” shopping trip at the local SF Costco for a total of $19.73. (Costco is definitely more expensive in flower prices than the local Farmer’s Market or the San Francisco Flower Mart. However, they carry local/sustainably grown flowers and offer a good size bunch.)  

 After lugging my weekly groceries up the stairs to my apartment (ok, didn’t lug them up the stairs...I used the elevator…just wanted to be dramatic) I started to think of ways to show case the gorgeous flora I had just purchased. After much thinking on how to design them, I decided that they didn’t need to be designed at all. They were so beautiful in color and texture that all I needed to do was ‘stick ‘em in a vase’ and let them show case their beauty without fussing with them. 

Spring in my living room

A perfect accent piece for my console

The Pussy Willow picks up on the Venetian Mirror details

A single Tulip accents the larger vase in a chic votive that was gifted to me by a lovely friend

After three months of intense soul searching, I had an "aha! moment" today while putting together flowers; There is no need to plan and design everything…gather your goals, let life ‘stick ‘em in a vase’ for you, and appreciate the splendor.