Chapter IV: The Arrangement of Flowers

"I know not which I love the most,
Nor which the comeliest shows;
The timid, bashful violet,
Or the royal-hearted rose;

"The pansy in her purple dress,
The pink with cheek of red,
Or the faint, fair heliotrope who hangs,
Like a bashful maid, her head."

--_Phoebe Cary_

Formerly when the furniture, pictures, and draperies had been arranged in our rooms, with perhaps a few pieces of bric-à-brac, we considered their decoration quite complete. But we have learned how much cheerfulness a few simple flowers, properly arranged, impart to the same rooms; and so flowers have come to be considered as almost essential to the complete decoration of the home.

_A Lesson From the Japanese._--If we have learned much from the Japanese in regard to the arrangement and hanging of pictures, from them we have learned more about the artistic arrangement of flowers. They have taught us to value the stem and leaves of the flower as essential to an artistic arrangement, that flowers of the same kind should be grouped together, and that harmony and blending of colour are necessary to secure the most artistic effects.

_Flowers of a Kind Grouped Together._--We may have been in the habit of putting several different kinds of flowers together and of being satisfied with such a composition; but the Japanese would tell us that when several different kinds of flowers are combined in one grouping the full beauty of each is lost; and after a few experiments we shall come to see the truth of this. Here is an illustration: At a summer camp with which I am familiar it was the daily duty of one of the younger boys to go for the wild flowers we used for keeping the camp gay. He often brought home snug little bunches of the flower of the wild convolvulus and the wild rose, to be used together. No pleasing arrangement could be made from such a handful, so he was asked to bring long pieces of the vine of the convolvulus and gather branches of the rose, especially those with the buds. The convolvulus we arranged in a flat dish at one end of a gray stone mantel, letting the vine hang over the mantel, and he quickly saw that it "looked prettier--more as though it were growing." When a few of the stalks of the wild rose were arranged by themselves in a green glass vase he pronounced them much "prettier than when mixed up with other flowers."

_The Way of the Garden._--In our gardens we plant the sunshiny daffodils by themselves, the sweet peas grow in a mass together, and we have beds of roses. If we follow the same plan in the arrangement of our flowers indoors we shall realize their decorative qualities to the utmost. So we may consider it a safe rule to follow in arranging flowers,--to use only one kind of flower, with its stems and leaves, arranging them loosely, rather than to have many in a compact grouping. One single, long-stemmed rose, with its beautiful foliage, in a tall, slender glass is more decorative and gives us more pleasure than a dozen roses stripped of their foliage and crowded into a small vase.

_Exceptions._--While the above rule should be generally followed, there are exceptional instances of the perfectly harmonious arrangement of flowers of two or more kinds together. Among these we may mention the combining of field daisies and buttercups, or buttercups with the grasses among which they grow. So, too, the lacy flower of the wild carrot may sometimes be effectively combined with some other flower. The spikes of the cardinal flower, for example, are gorgeous in colour, but very stiff and difficult to arrange; so the addition of a few sprays of the wild carrot softens the effect and makes it more pleasing.

COLOUR ARRANGEMENT

We have just considered the grouping of flowers by themselves. There is another element to be considered before we can have artistic results, and that is arrangement as to colour.

_Colour Grouping._--We may not all be sensitive to colour ourselves, but in arranging flowers we should always keep in mind the pleasure that is to be given others, and so we wish nothing in our colour grouping that will offend those whose colour sense is keen. There are three colour schemes that can be followed with success and satisfaction to all. In one we group together only flowers of the same colour, as red roses, pink sweet peas, yellow iris, not red, pink, and white roses, nor all of the various colours of sweet pea.

Another arrangement calls for shades and tints of the same colour. With many flowers it is possible to get exquisite effects by following this scheme. For instance, pansies ranging from a pale lavender to deep purple are lovely arranged in a low basket of damp moss. Sweet peas have beautiful shades of pink that can be combined, as well as shades of red and of lavender. Nasturtiums are never so effective as when the various shades of yellow, orange and brown are used together. The garden aster of to-day is another flower that affords much pleasure in colour arrangement; for it has lavenders and purples, a variety of pink tones, beautiful reds, and perfect white ones.

And the white ones! What shall we do with these? Three or four pure white asters of the same variety may be used together; or two or three white ones may be grouped with a few lavender ones, or pink ones. White may be combined with any colour with good results. Nature is a good teacher here for she gives us both the coloured and the white in almost every variety of flower. For example there are crimson cosmos and white cosmos, scarlet geraniums and white geraniums, blue violets and white violets, and so on through a great many varieties.

_Combination of Complementary Colours._--Another colour grouping that is sometimes desirable makes use of the complementary colours. The salpiglossis, a garden flower that ought to be better known than it is, gives us examples of these, with its blue and orange-yellow flowers that are so effective together. The iris also has flowers of complementary colours, yellow and violet blue being common among them.

THE FLOWER HOLDERS

_A Flower Composition as a Picture._--Having learned something about the artistic use of colour, we come to the consideration of the arrangement of the flowers, and this includes the vase or other receptacle used for holding them. An artistic flower composition is a picture; and as the mat and frame give finish to a picture hanging on the wall, so the vessel holding flowers should give the required finish to the flower picture. Like the frame, it should be simple in design, have graceful lines, and serve only as a medium to set off the flowers to the best advantage. There should be as little decoration as possible, and when jars or vases of colour are used they must blend or harmonize with the colour schemes of the flowers placed in them.

_Receptacles for Flowers._--It often is a problem to find the most fitting thing for holding flowers; but in the reliable Japanese shops one can always find some simple holders, and there are very good designs in the clear and in the green glass that are inexpensive and appropriate. As a rule the less expensive the article the better adapted it is as a suitable holder for flowers. One need never mourn that she cannot afford cut glass vases for flowers, as they and their cheap imitations are among the most unsuitable of holders.

_Four Typical Flower Holders._--Let us suppose our equipment includes four simple receptacles,--a small, clear glass fish globe such as may be had for twenty-five cents; a clear glass vase, about twelve inches in height, cylindrical in shape though flaring a little at the top, costing twenty-five cents; a large cylindrical Japanese jar of a pale green tint, eighteen inches in height and costing about one dollar and a quarter; and a deep green one, about eight inches in height, which may be bought for sixty or seventy cents.

The fish globe is very effective when nasturtiums and their leaves are loosely arranged in it. The stems show through the water and glass and form a part of the composition. Short stemmed roses may be most artistically grouped in it. I have seen a very charming combination of mignonette and bachelor's buttons in the same bowl, as well as a harmonious picture in yellow, composed of the various shades of California poppies and their foliage.

The tall glass sets off two or three long stemmed roses: and a few yellow daffodils or the narcissus with their leaves look equally well in it. Poppies for a day, in the same vase, have given pleasure to the beholder. At Easter it has joyously borne a stalk of two perfect lilies, and in the autumn tall spikes of salvia have been equally at home in it.

Our tall Japanese jar is suited to larger arrangements, for we need to remember that in tall or vertical compositions the vase should be about one third the height of the whole combination; so this is adapted to holding branches of apple blossoms or mountain laurel; or, if one is fortunate enough to find tall lilac bushes, about three branches from these are effective in it. Tall-growing golden-rod looks equally well placed here. It furnishes a modest setting for dahlias and chrysanthemums, and one of its most decorative compositions has been two or three branches of pine bearing their brown cones.

The possibilities of the smaller green jar are numerous, and only a few are given as suggestions. A loose arrangement of jonquils and their leaves, or of white narcissus, is effective. The shorter stemmed lilacs, either the purple ones or the white ones, may be placed in it. An arrangement of white field daisies, and one of yellow roses, have been found equally successful. One soon discovers the harmony and balance that exist between the flower and holder.

THE BACKGROUND

_Space and Harmonious Surroundings._--To obtain the largest decorative effect we must have not only artistic grouping and harmonious setting of flowers, but space and background, just as are needed for the hanging of pictures. Many a floral composition has lost all decorative effect from being placed in too small a space and surrounded by distracting objects. A few days ago I stepped into a room on an errand and forgot my errand in the pleasure I derived from seeing some beautiful yellow chrysanthemums, three or four, I think, in a yellowish brown jar on a large mahogany table, having for a background the upturned leaf of the table. It stood some little distance from anything else, a shaft of sunlight lay across the whole, and as I looked at it I thought: Here is all that constitutes a decorative arrangement of flowers. It was the feature of the room that held one's attention.

_Flowers for the Dining Table._--If we can have flowers in but one room in the house, it may be difficult to decide which one it shall be. Since it often happens that the dining-room is the only room where a busy family comes together for any length of time, flowers should certainly be introduced here that all may share their beauty and cheer. Any arrangement for the home table should be moderately low; and there are many simple flowers that can be used in this way to advantage. For instance, one can gather a quantity of the innocence or common bluet (root and all), to be found in any field in the spring, and put them in a shallow glass dish. Simple and effective decoration for the table is the result. Flowers with any degree of fragrance should never be used in the dining-room. The fragrance of some flowers is offensive to many people, and when combined with the odour of food doubly so.

At a luncheon served by the girls in the model house the floral decoration for the table was a half dozen single, yellow jonquils with their foliage, placed in a creamy brown vase made by one of the girls. Their dishes being in white with a gold edge and the walls and furniture in browns, nothing could have been more harmonious than these few simple flowers.

_Expensive Flowers not Necessary._--It is evident that for floral decoration neither expensive nor lavish displays are necessary, that simplicity is the thing to strive for, and that a few sprays of wild flowers in their season are more truly artistic than many expensive hot-house flowers. In this country we do not, as the Japanese do, make a festival in honour of certain flowers; but if we rightly appreciate and utilize the flowers of each season, we may give a touch of festivity to the life of every day.

In the early spring nothing can be more appropriate than an arrangement of pussy willows or branches of the alder with its tassels, while the red maple when in flower gives a touch of colour that will brighten any room. A clump of blood root in a small jardiniere is as decorative as the expensive plants one may see in the home of some friend. The flowers of the field and the garden offer so many possibilities for decorative results that no one's home need lack the cheery touch which they can give.

There is a personal element in flowers such as is not found in any other means of decoration, not even in pictures, with the single exception of good portraits. They seem to speak to us. We can almost believe that they feel an interest in all that we have said about them. If they really could know, would they not approve the principles that we have laid down? We may fancy that they _would_ approve and that, if they could really speak and we would listen, they would tell us so in some such language as the following:

WHAT THE FLOWERS SAY ABOUT IT

Don't mix us; we are exclusive and prefer our own kind.

Don't make a confusion of colour with us.

Don't arrange us in snug, solid masses.

Don't neglect to use our stems and foliage as a part of the decoration.

Don't tie us with ribbons, nor put paper-lace frills around us.

Don't crowd us in with an assortment of household goods; we need space and a background.

Don't arrange us in tall, stiff forms for the dining table.

_Do_ love us and use us in the home as much as possible. This is well for you. By so doing not only will your love of us increase, but your artistic perception of the fitness of things will constantly enlarge. For truly has it been said, "The poorest woman in the world, if she has faith in beauty, will always be able to fill her home with light; she can always place there some flowers."