10 



The Weekly Florists^ Review* 



August 11, 1910. 



I THE RETAIL 



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FLORIST 



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I 



MURDOCH'S STORE. 



It recently was reported in The Ee- 

 viow that A. M. Murdoch, the Pittsburg 

 retailer, had retired from business, 

 leasing his store at a price which would 

 make him independent, and the com- 

 ment was subjoined that Mr. Murdoch's 

 Btore probably brought the highest 

 rental per square foot of any flower 

 store in the country. 



The accompanying illustration shows 

 the building in which Mr. Murdoch has 

 done business, at 252 Fifth avenue, 

 Pittsburg, fot the last fifteen years. 

 The building is only 15x35 feet. The 

 rental is over $10,000 per year, $125,000 

 for the term, and is at the rate of over 

 #20 per square foot per year. Is there 

 any other florist in the country who has 

 done business in a store which would 

 command so great a price? "Who won- 

 ders that he should retire and live on 

 bis rentf 



ESSENTIALS OF DESIGN. 



The Stock and Its Arrangement. 



We have been taught to believe that 

 one-half and one-half make a unit, but 

 as we grow older we are inclined to ob- 

 serve that even a mathematical truth 

 may be altered in that a large half and 

 a small half may make a more harmoni- 

 ous unit than if the accepted propor- 

 tions were equai. The query often 

 arises: What is a good design, or what 

 are its essentials, simply stated? 



Bearing in mind that a design means 

 any combination of flowers, from a 

 boutonniere to a wedding decoration, 

 and that the derivation of the word 

 itself hints that there is to be a mark- 

 ing out, a sign, an expression, there 

 must be some idea or thought to be 

 expressed. 



Taking for granted that there must 

 be some quality to the flowers or plants, 

 there is but one other essential to any 

 display, and that is arrangement. Thus 

 simplified, our design must contain flow- 

 ers somewhat notable for beauty or 

 size, and must also show good arrange- 

 ment. Let us discover which of these 

 two essentials weighs the more in the 

 discnssion of the subject. 



That the quality of the stock is an 

 important consideration, say in a win- 

 dow decoration or a bride's bouquet, 

 does not require lengthy argument. Ex- 

 cellence anywhere is its own recommen- 

 dation. Extra good stock sells itself, 

 other things being equal. But other 

 things are not always equal. The mar- 

 ket may be overcrowded, the season 

 dnll, and something must be added to 

 the excellence of the stock to induce 

 sales. This topic properly belongs to 

 the latter part of our subject and will 

 b« considered later. Neither is it al- 

 ways possible to have stock of tiptop 

 quality; average stock is what can be 

 sold in everyday trade, and while excel- 

 lence of quality is the ambition of every 



up-to-date grower, ideal stock is not 

 met with every day, and we must make 

 the best of what we have. On the other 

 hand, we must avoid degrading fine 

 stock by poor arrangement. 



A Difficult Combination. 



But somebody will suggest that while 

 arrangement for display is important, 

 some consideration must be given to 

 good storage at the same time, and good 

 storage and good arrangement are on 

 the oil and water order, — they don't 

 mix worth a cent. Flowers, to look 



well, must be loosely and individually 

 arranged, and if pulled too far out of 

 deep water they will suffer. This is 

 all undoubtedly true, but we must ex- 

 pect a certain per cent of stock to be 

 sacrificed for the sake of display and to 

 sell the rest. Frequently, also, those 

 flowers used for display, and which 

 show deterioration, can be removed, 

 placed deep in water over night and 

 brought out again as good as new, or 

 they may come in for immediate use in 

 formal designs. A few extra steps and 



thoughts will make up the larger part 

 of loss which comes in this way. 



Passing on to the second essential of 

 a good design, let us observe that good 

 arrangement will sell stock of excellent 

 quality more quickly and will emphasize 

 the best points of common quality stock. 

 Let us see what are the principal points 

 in any good, correct arrangement. In 

 the lifetime of a decorator, flowers or 

 plants, to be well placed, must not be 

 left to one style, often repeated, but 

 should have the advantage of varied 

 schemes. 



To add to the value of excellent stock 

 to develop medium quality, to create 

 value for poor stock, the following prin- 

 ciples of design will be found neces- 

 sary: First, lines or stems must come 

 from a common source or series of 

 sources; second, the coloring must be 

 harmonious; third, there must be a 

 limit to variety of form and color; 

 fourth, there must be present some signs 

 of individuality in the tone and expres- 

 sion of the completed piece. 



Harmony of Outlines. 



Eeturning to the first essential, the 

 starting of all lines, or stems, from a 

 common source or series of sources — in 

 other words, form harmony — let us illus- 

 trate. In filling a handle basket, group 

 the stems in, say, two places next and 

 around the bases of the handle. Set 

 the stems, short and long, close together, 

 as though all were springing from one 

 root, and flare them far apart at the 

 flower ends, so that each group shall 

 resemble a tree top. By the time two 

 such groups are in, the basket will be 

 about filled, with the exception of a 

 little background of moss or ferns. Just 

 for comparison, fill the basket as is ordi- 

 narily done, with every stem where 

 there is room for it, and compare the 

 results. 



There is no kind of floral design 

 where this principle will not hold true. 

 Show me a well-arranged bride's bou- 

 quet, shower or armful efl'ect, and I 

 will show you where the charm of all 

 its lines lies, and that is in their con- 

 formity to this cardinal principle of 

 arrangement. They have the effect of 

 all running back to one source if thev 

 were carried out. It is the same way 

 with the easy grace of an armful ar- 

 rangement; the stems all are directed 

 to one point, and the tie, if one is used, 

 should find its source here also. 



Harmony of Color. 



So much — ^but not too much — has 

 been said about color harmony as a wide 

 subject of itself, that it is not within 

 the limits of this discussion to do it 

 justice. One sees so many violations of 

 the simplest rules of color, which, it 

 seems, ought to be apparent to even the 

 most casual student, that one is almost 

 compelled to harp on the subject contin- 

 ually. Anybody can learn the rudiments 

 of color and develop their practice to a 

 reasonable extent. But he cannot do 

 it by ignoring all he has learned and 

 slapping into his window every old color' 

 that happens to be nearest. 



African marigolds and Beacon carna- 

 tions are the cats and dogs of color: 

 yet three-fourths of self-styled "floral 

 artists" have no conscience about dis- 

 playing them close together. American 

 Beauty, colored phloxes and Chatenay 

 roses jar each other like a dischargee of 

 dynamite; yet every other window you 

 see blinks like a pair of cross eyes with 

 jusit such attempted combinations. 



