60th Birthday Party

Two years ago, I gave a birthday party for my mother. Her actual birthday was on December 23rd, but with the chaos of moving into a new house, hosting Thanksgiving two weeks later, flying off to Texas for Christmas with the in-laws, we opted to have the party at the end of January. Given my predilection for white flowers post-Christmas, I stuck with white hydrangeas, white calla lilies, slightly green chrysanthemums, white roses, eucalyptus leaves and berries, and from my garden jasmine and ivy vines. I wanted this arrangement to be wild and slightly over the top. So, I peeled off bark from a large log and put it inside the glass vase to create the illusion of a "log vase." Unfortunately, I should have put a few drops of bleach in the water or rinsed off the bark, as it turned the water a dirty color. (Live and learn.) I then used a grid of floral tape across the opening of the vase, put int branches as an anchor, and worked my way up. The hydrangea went in first. Then, I used floral wire to anchor several long stemmed flowers to the branches to create height, and finally I filled in the middle region of the arrangement with flowers. Unfortunately, the arrangement was a bit difficult to photograph, and I used a flash in one of the photographs. I also should have purchased the day lilies a few days ahead to give them a chance to open.