Tuesday, November 7, 2017

Floral Crowns and Flowers for Hair


Wearing flowers in your hair is not a new idea - its probably been around as long as there have been flowers, and people to enjoy them!  But the "flower crown" has become a very popular addition to wedding flower orders over recent years, so I thought I'd do a little collection of some of them.  They can be tricky to make, but when they work, they're fabulous!  The crown above was made for a gorgeous bride who wanted red, white and blue, with the flowers heavier at the back.  The red was provided by some early autumn Silvan Red Leucadendrons, and some smaller Banksia Occidentalis.  Blue came from the blue of the Eucalyptus Cordata leaves, and some deconstructed blue hydrangea.  Flowering gum in white, and a sprinkling of Wax Flowers added touches of white.  

Photography by Inside the Frame
It worked!

Photography by Inside the Frame
The heavier flowers at the back weren't attached to the actual crown, but were pinned in so that they would sit at the right angle.


An asymmetrical crown is really flattering, with the flowers being heavier on one side than the other.  This crown was made with silvery leafed tea tree in flower.  


Added to the left hand side was some Eucalyptus Crenulata foliage, pink Kangaroo Paw, pink flowering gum and a gum nut, to tie in with the bouquet.

Photography by Sarah Williams
I think it worked beautifully.


For a brightly coloured summer wedding in January, the bride wanted a crown to match her bouquet with pink and orange tones.


Flowering gum in a rich orange, pink kangaroo paw, myrtle beech foliage and geraldton wax flower were combined into her crown.

Photography by Looks Like This
With the gorgeous brunette hair, the colours looked wonderful.


For an autumn wedding at Port Arthur, the bride wanted something leafy with yellow tones to match the grooms yellow tie. 

Photography by Fred and Hannah
The bride looked amazing!


For this early April wedding the colour theme was burgundy.  I added rich red leucadendrons to the front of the crown, mixed in with Cootamundra wattle foliage in bud, peppermint gum foliage, and some lemon-scented tea tree which made the whole thing smell delicious.

Picture by Kristy L Photography
Such a stunning wedding!


Flower crowns are often chosen for flower girls or children.  For this little crown, worn by a little girl for her first birthday photo shoot, I wove thryptomene, myrtle beech foliage and little sprigs of Berzelia. 


The ribbon is mostly for show.  I make crowns to be slightly adjustable so they fit the head perfectly, but adding a ribbon is usually just for the effect.


I love the way the textures and colours combine in a crown.  This one had to be petite, for such a sweet little head.

Photograph by Astrid Simone Photography
What a little cutie!


You can see the difference in texture depending on the ingredients used.  For the one in the above photo, made for a flower girl, I added berries and wattle buds to flowering tea tree foliage.  

Photography by Love Jennifer
For the same wedding, the bride wore a half crown.  Half crowns can be a great way to work some flowers into a hairstyle that doesn't suit a full crown.  They can either be made on a hair comb/slide, or they can simply be a wired piece that is attached with pins.


For this bride, the berries were a particular request and we blended them with some interesting foliage and textured elements.  This half-crown was a simple wire piece, pinned into the hair style.

Photography by Love Jennifer
It looked gorgeous!



Another half crown made on a hair comb combined silvery blue-green foliages, white and red.  This half crown used a comb to anchor it to the hair, so all the foliage and flowers were attached to the comb. 


I find that metal combs make the best bases for floral combs.  They are bendable if they need to be, and are less fragile.  This cute comb was embellished with pale pink flowering gum, tea tree and wax flower.


Its always so lovely to see how it sits in the hair.  


Hair combs can be more flamboyant and asymetrical too.  This one for a February wedding with pinks and lots of foliage used coral fern, gum leaves, gum buds and bright pink flowering gum.  



I also used some deconstructed Brunia Albiflora to match the bouquets.


Island 26 Photography
It was great to get photos of the hair dresser doing his thing!  

Island 26 Photography
And the flowers sitting so well in that hairstyle - gorgeous!


Another comb, this time for the back of the hair.  The pink and red tones mirrored the bride's bouquet,  using banksia, hydrangea, hebe, pittosporum and wax flower.  


Great contrast with that luscious dark hair!


A silvery, leafy comb with peppermint gum, brunia albiflora, flowering gum and buds, wax flower and leucadenron cones.

Photography by Acoma
It was worn by the mother of the bride, instead of a corsage.  What a great idea!


Another comb, using wax flwoer, leucadendron pisa, cedar, peppermint gum and echinops, for a symetrical design,


I loved the beautiful colours in this spring flower comb.  The main flower is a Tasmanian Waratah, surrounded by purple Isopogon, creamy Leucadendron Discolour, peppermint gum foliage, leucadendron cones and Berzelia.



This simple comb has a row of Leucadendron Jubilee Crown cones topped with tea tree and rice flower.


The simplest of all are some small picks of flowers on wires, which can be woven into a hairstyle for a scattered effect. 

There are so many possibilities for hair flowers - I hope these have sparked your imagination.

Friday, October 13, 2017

Stonefield Wedding in March


For a March wedding at Stonefield, just north of Hobart, the bridal party were in shades of steel grey and black.  The bride and groom had a love of natives and the outdoors and wanted their flowers to reflect that, especially using juvenile eucalyptus foliage with its gorgeous blue grey colouring. 


Steel grey, black and red are always a stunning combination so I teamed up the requested foliage with some proteas and banksias in rich reds and pinks.  


The main flowers were a rich pinky red Protea Repens, and red Banksia Occidentalis.  The bride's bouquet also had a Protea Compacta in pink and red, and a Protea White Ice.  


Other flowers include flowering Brunia Albiflora, Leucadendron Discolour, and some Safari Sunset Leucos.  


The beautiful silky Leucadendron Silver Tree was one of the mix of foliages I used.  Eucalyptus Crenulata has a gorgeous silvery grey colour and it was the main foliage ingredient.  Juvenlie Risdon Pepperment foliage was also sprinkled through.  


For the floral comb, I used a mix of foliages and some smaller flowers in colours matching the proteas of the bouquets.  I love to use Pittosporum berries and these are a light sage green and come from a variegated leaf Pittosporum. 


The boutonnieres were all in greys, and were all slightly different.  Brunia, both flowering and not flowering, gum nuts, and the purple-tinged Leucadendron Discolour. 


They always look so lovely all lined up!


The groom had a bit of colour to his boutonniere, with the addition of a Leucadendron Safari Sunset.  The new season's growth is always such a fresh, rich colour.

I loved playing with muted greys, greens and reds for this wedding.  I always enjoy the challenge of creating something completely unique for each couple who I work with, and this was no exception.  

Thursday, October 5, 2017

February Wedding at Steeles Island


February is a busy month for weddings in Tasmania and the dates book out early.   The bride for this February Wedding was super organised and had planned everything well ahead.   But a last minute change to the bridesmaid dresses changed the flower colours and we ended up with the combination of peach and plum.  


Pincushion Fountain was the main flower that I used.  Grouped together the orange makes a bold statement.  The bridesmaid dresses were covered in a very large floral print in orange, purple and green - so a bold statement was called for.  



Acacia Bailyana, or Cootamundra Wattle, is a gorgeous native foliage that is wonderful to use in bouquets.  It comes in two colours, a beautiful eucalyptusy blue-green, and a purple.  I was able to use the purple foliage for these bouquets which give a wonderful misty purple texture. 


The brides bouquet included some Protea Pink Ice.  I love the way the purple centres of the Pink Ice are brought out with the purple surrounding them. 



Poppy pods peep out from amongst the flowers.  I love them!


Other foliage used is the Leucadendron Silver Tree.  Each bouquet also had Brunia Albiflora and some large native fern leaves.  


The brides bouquet also included some clusters of berries.  Such a beautiful colour!




The lovely bride was so organised she had purchased her vases almost a year before the wedding.  The copper colour of the geometric vases went well with the orange, purple and silvery blue green of the flowers.  


I grow Brunia Albiflora sourced from two different nurseries here at Swallows Nest Farm, and have ended up with 2 slightly different colours.  For this wedding, I used the more browny purple Brunia.  


More native ferns, purple Acacia Bailyana, Pincushion Fountains, some rosy Jubilee Crown Leucadendron cones, Silver Tree foliage, Risdon Peppermint foliage, and light purple Caspia.


For the cake 'topper' this arrangement was to sit against the base of the larger bottom tier of the cake.  I love the fern leaf in this design.  



This little mini-bouquet was laid on the top tier of the cake.


It was a pleasure to play with such beautiful bold colours and to be involved in this couple's happy day.   


I wish them all the best for their future together.