Country Decor Blog

How I love lilacs (I don’t even need to count the ways!). And this weekend (the true May 24th weekend!) is the perfect time to experience everything gorgeous about lilacs.
I spent the wee hours of yesterday morning photographing the spectacular lilac dell at the Royal Botanical Gardens in Burlington. Photographer Andreas Trauttmansdorff and art director Jose Woertman joined me for an early morning surrounded by absolutely gorgeous lilacs. The RBG has close to 800 varieties of lilacs (possibly the biggest collection in the world!).
As I stood overlooking the dell while the sun came up behind me, I was almost overcome with the heady scent of lilacs. Every variety smells slightly different, from potent and intoxicating to the subtlest of fragrances. As I wandered the gardens while Andreas worked his photographic magic (the story will be published in the May 2010 issue of Canadian Gardening magazine), my thoughts turned to a story I had done a few years ago for Canadian Home & Country magazine’s very first Cottage Style issue.
The shoot was done at my stepmother’s place in Prince Edward County, and we shot on the May 24th weekend. If you haven’t been to Prince Edward County but have been thinking of going, nothing is more spectacular than driving through the country roads when the lilacs are in bloom. They are PLENTIFUL. You may not see the multiple varieties like you would at the RBG, but you’ll be thrilled by how prolific and magnificent they are as they grow wild along the winding roads.
At any rate, I got up early in the morning to gather as many varieties of lilacs that I could find to use for my shoot. In fact, I may have even snuck a few clippings from neighbours’ yards while the homeowners were still sleeping peacefully (not to worry, I fessed up later!)
With my armloads of lilacs, I filled every spare vessel I could find. I did small clusters of them in the kitchen, and put a huge branch of them on display in the living room. Just like in the dell at the RBG, the scent of lilacs hung heavy on the air.
If you’re inspired at all by lilacs, I implore you to head to the RBG this weekend where they are in bloom in all their glory (or of, course, take a road trip to Prince Edward County - you won’t be disappointed).
For my next blog, I’m going to list my favourite lilac varieties (hint: one of them was developed by an icon in the style industry).

I did promise to add photos from the event last Saturday, so here they are. The first image is of a really cool glass vase (it kind of looks like an inflatable inner tube) that has a spot that you can sneak in a flexible flower. Orchids work really well… I’ve shown an example - it’s a fun look that could also work at any kind of dinner party. You could add water in the bowl and display some pretty white floating candles.

Note: ANY kind of scented candle should be verboten on the dinner table at parties. Perfect for hallways, powder rooms and other tight spaces, keep scented candles off your table. Many times I’ve started sneezing when the overpowering scent of vanilla candles have set off my allergies at a dinner party!

But back to ideas for floral arrangements. Other thoughts are to keep to a simple colour theme. When I do flowers at weddings, I usually like to stick to basic white and green flowers as my starting point. I can add colours in to this basic palette quite easily, OR just stick with this minimalist, but pretty look. The key is to make sure you’re using a variety of different white flowers. At the demo, I combined a variety of flowers, both high-end and low-end, to show how you could achieve this look. The usually verboten carnations can actually be surprisingly spectacular if used right. I like to combine two or three carnations with every single rose I use - As long as the colours are consistent, the texture of the petals is incredibly complementary.

One of my demos at the TBG involved wiring together your own bridal bouquet or posy.  It’s easy to learn how to create a simple bouquet and the technique can also be used to create awesome floral arrangements. Once you have chosen the flowers you want to use, start with your first and wire additional flowers onusing flexible green floral wire (easily found at floral supply shops or craft store). Then wrap floral tape around the wire. Now your bouquet should be firmly secured and you can add a perfect ribbon.

This week we are in production on Canadian Home & Country’s April issue and I’m delighted with the cover we’ve chosen… but more about that later. Till next time!