Oc-Tc.i-.m: S, HMI3. 



The Weekly Florists' Review. 



787 



1 THE RETAIL " -^^^ i 



FL( RIST 



DRAPERY STUDIES. 



I— Drooping. 



•■Any old way" is applicable to no 

 phase of decorative work. A worker in 

 greens may form his plan long before- 

 hand, or upon the last rung of the lad- 

 der, with material in hand, but whenever 

 lie dees, there must be a plan in mind 

 of what will be soon growing from his 

 hands, else the product will be a mean- 

 ingless jumble. On the spur of the mo- 

 ment is all right for details, but the 

 general plan can scarcely be an off hand 

 product. 



According to the circumstances and 

 surroundings, choose some definite type 

 of design and let that style be the dom- 

 inant one of the whole d 'ation, This 



does not mean that every drape shall be 

 like every other one in the who],- plan, 

 but let most of the material be used in 

 harmony with this one idea, and the 

 few variations will serve to emphasize 

 the main theme. An instance of this 

 is seen in the illustration herewith, of a 

 simple wedding decoration in the droop- 

 ing stvle of drapery. 



In nature we find this stvle in straighl 

 festoons like those of the Florida moss 

 which grows in the live oak forests of 



rupted or caught is the festoon so 

 largely adopted in conventional design, 

 as in the upper foreground of our study 

 illustration. 



In the analysis of this decoration ob- 

 serve that the lines of drapery do not 

 come from nowhere. They have definite 

 centers and terminations. This particu- 

 lar decoration was chosen for this ex- 

 ample on account of the distinctness of 

 the lines. It is not an elaborate ar- 

 rangement, hence the lines of drapery 

 can be traced easily. There are three 

 centers or sources of drapery lines. One 

 is the upper right hand corner of the 

 mirror. Here are placed about six or 

 nine strings of separated smilax tied to- 

 gether at the heavy ends. From this 

 place as a center the sprays of smilax 

 form drapery lines extending down and 

 out in all directions, catching here 

 and there on another festoon or any 

 inviting projection, nowhere obscuring 

 any great portion of the mirror. An- 

 other cluster of about as many strings 

 is started from the upper corner of 

 the door frame partly visible on the 

 left. A knot of drapery belonging to 

 this center falls to the top of the seat 

 below and reaches in a slender spray 

 to the floor, thus balancing the effect of 

 the long garland that extends to the base 

 of the pillar on the right. Another 

 part from this center is draped along 

 the ceiling toward this pillar. A third 

 bunch of strings festoons the pillar, 

 joins the chandelier several feet behind, 

 and completes the line of festoons to 

 the extreme right. The heavy parts of 

 the drapery are at the center, and the 

 terminals are never abrupt. The light, 

 delicate ends naturally belong there. 

 As should be the case, the bulk of the 



decorations are kept well up to be more 

 easily seen. The lines of the graduated 

 drapery are distinct and all the centers 

 of drapery are connected. No matter 



heavy or elaborate these same 



dm |" lies might be made, these two prin- 

 ciples should obtain; namely, heavy lines 

 n the center, gradually becoming lighter 

 toward the vanishing point, and the 

 whole scheme connected either in fact or 

 in attempt. 



Were this same corner to be decorated 

 in autumn colors, a very different pro- 

 cedure would be followed. Panels and 

 masses of rich coloring would be used, 

 both with foliage and flowers. This 

 style of drapery is the most commonly 

 used and easiest of execution. 



A long line of festoons like that of 

 the upper foreground serves to lengthen 

 the space in which it is used. That was 

 -ii i the purposes of its use here. The 



with this variety, that I am forced to 

 believe there is some truth in the claim 

 that it is running out. The trouble 

 most commonly noted is a softening of 

 the foliage, which gradually increases, 

 even under the best conditions, until the 

 leaves begin to drop. There is little 

 doubt but that the high temperature to 

 which we are forced to expose it in order 

 to make it productive during the winter 

 months must after a time have a baneful 

 effect on its constitution. 



When a variety refuses to do well un- 

 der the same conditions and treatment 

 in which it formerly flourished, and when 

 it shows itself much more susceptible to 

 all and every trouble there is evidence 

 to lead to the conclusion that its con- 

 stitution is being undermined. So far 

 as I can learn every Meteor grower has 

 contented himself with wood from stock 

 forced in this manner, for propagating 

 purposes, and of course has to use it at 

 the time when it is nearly the height 

 of the forcing season, when the wood and 

 foliage must necessarily be at their soft- 

 est stage. Under such circumstances it 

 is astonishing that the symptoms of de- 

 terioration have not become apparent 

 before now. 



A brother grower made a suggestion 

 to me recently, that the best way to 

 overcome this difficulty would be to grow 

 as many plants as would be required for 



The use of Smilax in a Home Wedding Decoration. 



space between the pillar and door seemed 

 almost too contracted for the purpose 

 until this line of festoons, aided by the 

 narrowing of the space behind, relieved 

 that appearance. Gertrude Blaib. 



Difficulties with Meteor. 



I have recently had so many com- 

 plaints about Meteors failing to do so 

 well as in former years, and these in 

 many instances coming from growers 

 who used to bo noted for their success 



stock raising at a lower temperature in 

 order to regain the vitality lost by over- 

 forcing. There might be some value in 

 this and those who are afflicted and have 

 the room to spare might find it profitable 

 to giv« it a trial. 



In some notably heavy loam soil the 

 conditions are the reverse of this. The 

 plants seem to be increasing in vigor 

 from year to year and the blooms get- 

 ting larger and deeper in color. Where 

 such soils are available and its culture 

 carefully studied there is no doubt but 

 that it is one of the most profitable 

 varieties, and that there is a demand for 



