Better Homes and Gardens (Australia)
Editor’s letter
Spring! What a delightful time of year. And indeed, it brings to mind a key necessity for our homes, an arrangement of sorts...
sometimes I do go on about my mother. But she did do a bunch of things I really liked and which I keep loving years on. And one of them (forgive me if I have told you this before) was to create a display of flowers, foliage, grasses, even weeds – anything she could get her hands on – and creatively arrange them in her vase of choice and position them on our TV set (do you remember when televisions were on legs). She did this without exception, whatever the weather, indeed whatever the season. Spring gave her an abundance of choice because she lived in a cold climate. But when the winters were bleak, she managed to forage different foliages from anywhere and everywhere (the neighbours’ gardens were certainly not out of bounds), and put them together with such flair they might have come straight from the local florist. In her early days of marriage when she lived in a very dry climate, she brought grasses and weeds together with such style and panache I’m sure they themselves were overcome with pride in their oft unrecognised beauty. She just had a gift for artfully arranging anything. But more importantly she knew an arrangement made a house feel like a home and not a day went by we weren’t greeted by something from the garden. In fact, I think creating a vase of anything was her secret love affair – move over Dad! Luckily for me I inherited her ability to put a vase together and I just about love it as much. Secret love affair? Nearly! But while we celebrate spring, let’s not forget how many people across the country have experienced terrible drought in the past months where close to nothing is growing. But if there is a weed or two that is defying the odds, perhaps you can reward them by arranging them in a vase and making them and your home a little cheerier. Lovely idea for everyone, thanks Mum.
‘Fake it ’til you make it’ we hear! But faux flowers are faux fabulous these days they’ve made it before they begin. If time (or $$$) stop you from having fresh flowers at your place regularly, fake ’em! Just might be a whole new love affair in your life!