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AcaosT 15, 1912. 



The Florists^ Review 



39 



Decorated Automobile of L. C Beall, Jr^ of the H. Harrins^ton Co., Seattle, Wash. 



and there a bud of some small flower, 

 representing the lawn. The mat is placed 

 on the floor in front of the casket and 

 is intended to be trod upon, making a 

 pretty contrast to the usual funeral 

 arrangements. It can also be placed 

 on the grave after the services, thus 

 jiroduciug a pretty effect. It is made 

 from waste material that has to be dis- 

 posed of in some way, and thus, with 

 the exception of the labor, involves no 

 expense. We have made the mats in 

 two sizes, 2x4 and 2%x5 feet. 



From W. J.^Baker, Fort Worth. 



I noticed the article on "Baskets for 

 Funerals" in The Review of August 1, 

 and want to say that, according to my 

 judgment, it is one of the best lines 

 for development in the near future. 



The custom is a good one and is here 

 to stay, for there are many people who 

 are much prejudiced against designs, 

 and perhaps justly so, because manv 

 florists are making thetti stiff and 

 grotesque, seeming to think it is their 

 rightful opportunity to unload a lot of 

 junk, though it would be real economy 

 to throw it away. Many customers also 

 ^ay that a casket bouquet is so flat that 

 It does not show up well. 



^o what is more logical than to turn 

 to the basket for comfort? It can b3 

 niado elaborate and showy with fewer 

 flowers than almost any other form of 

 ^^"oik. A nice basket, some good green 

 ^'kI a handsome piece of ribbon — all of 

 those can be kept on hand at times 

 when one is practically out of flowers, 

 ^I'd, if well arranged, will not neces- 

 sitate the use of many flowers; a few 

 0*' good quality will suffice. 



To a funeral recently I sent three 

 '*asUets, all sold to customers who 

 Ranted something nice, but would not 

 take a design. Of course baskets at 

 ^"•lerals will soon cease to be a nov- 

 ^'ty with us at that rate, but the more 

 niuckly they become a staple the better, 

 ^he near future will, no doubt, show 

 J^roat strides in this direction. 



USE OF THE EASEL. 



There has been considerable discus- 

 sion of late with regard to the use of 

 the easel for floral designs. Some de- 

 sign-makers think the easel should be 

 obscured by a winding with smilax or 

 some similar material. Others consider 

 that the covering of the easel only em- 

 phasizes its presence; these think that 



Anchor of Beauties and Cycas. 



the easel is merely a support for the 

 design and not a part of the design, 

 preferring to use it without covering. 

 Of course they paint it dark green, 

 never exposing the bright copper wire. 

 In this connection the accompanying 

 illustration will be of interest. It 

 shows a large anchor with American 

 Beauties and cycas leaves arranged on 

 an easel. It is the work of Gude Bros. 

 Co., Washington, D. C., and was for the 



funeral of the long dead members of 

 the crew of the Maine. The use of the 

 easel was essential to the proper posing 

 of the piece. It is inconspicuous. With- 

 out doubt the wrapping of the easel 

 with smilax would have detracted from 

 the appearance of the arrangement in- 

 stead of having improved it. 



BEALL'S DECOEATED AUTO. 



The accompanying illustration is re- 

 produced from a photograph of the 

 automobile owned and driven by L. C. 

 Beall, Jr., secretary of the H. Harring- 

 ton Co., Seattle, Wash., as decorated 

 for the automobile parade during the 

 Golden Potlatch. Dorothy Perkins 

 roses and pink carnations were used 

 over a groundwork of light blue, with 

 pink ribbons and chiffon. The effect 

 was much admired. There were about 

 200 decorated cars in the parade. The 

 florists were kept busy for several 

 days, although most of the cars were 

 decorated by their owners. 



WHY ASK THE EDITOR? 



We did some work the other day that 

 T think no other florist ever handled: 

 We decorated a dog's grave. A lady 

 in a town near by lost a favorite dog. 

 She put him away in a $30 casket and 

 called on us to fix his grave lovely with 

 roses and other fine plants. We did so, 

 and now our whole force is anxious to 

 know if she expects to meet that dog in 

 a future world? 



West Huntington Floral Co. 



SOWBUa EXTEBJiaNATOES. 



Along with the renewal of my sub- 

 scription for another year, I will give a 

 little experience. Sowbugs became so 

 numerous that all kinds of seedlings 

 were nipped in the seed leaf, though I 

 trapped them by thousands in potato 

 and turnip traps. With the first warm 

 days of spring I let the small boys know 

 that toads were worth 5 cents each, and 

 now it is seldom a sowbug can be 

 coaxed out into sight. W. L. Leeka. 



