A picture often makes a better background than a big figured wall paper, 

 the soft greens and grays and old bronze frame show off all the delicacy 

 of flower and stem of the apple blossoms 



The outward spreading boughs of the dogwood suggest a broad arrangement 

 rather than a tall, narrow one. The receptacle is attractive, but being whiter 

 than the flowers, catches the eye first; it should be darker in tone 



Art in Arrangement of Cut Flowers — By l. b. Carpenter, 



New 



Jersey 



BIG EFFECTS WITH LITTLE MATERIAL — THE FORM OF THE FLOWER ITSELF AND THE HABIT OF GROWTH ARE 

 THE KEYNOTES TO THE SUCCESSFUL USE OF CUT FLOWERS, LEAVING PLAY FOR THE FANCY OF EACH INDIVIDUAL 





THE longer 

 flower arrange- 

 ment is studied the 

 more convinced one 

 becomes that the 

 result should be a 

 complete picture. 

 Now, an artist 

 painting a complete 

 picture has to con- 

 form to certain con- 

 ditions ; that is, have 

 a subject, make it 

 interesting, compose 

 it so as to fill his 

 canvas agreeably, 

 and have a back- 

 ground to har- 

 monize. 



These same con- 

 ditions obtain with 

 the flower arranger. 

 He has a subject for 

 his picture in his 

 blossoms and he 

 clothes it with in- 

 terest, according as 

 he chooses special 

 ones of a kind for 

 their perfection, 

 their form, or beauty of line. He fills 

 his space agreeably according as he composes 

 these chosen flowers, both as to color and 

 size, against a background which may 

 be the corner of a room, a table or a piece 

 of furniture; and even a picture on the wall 

 may be brought into the composition. 



In accomplishing the harmony with the 

 background, the flower arranger proceeds 

 a little differently from the painter, inas- 

 much as while the latter may choose his 

 background to fit the picture, the former 

 generally must fit his flowers to his back- 



Tlie red maple. Note pro- 

 portion of vase to subject 



ground, since wall coverings, partitions, and 

 furniture in the modern house are fixed 

 quantities and cannot be changed at will 

 to suit temporary compositions of flowers. 

 If, therefore, we put large flowers or branches 

 into big spaces keeping little delicate ones 

 in smaller spaces below the level of the eye 

 when sitting (and working always with 

 the receptacle in its final position), we will 

 fill a given space much more successfully. 

 Two things, however, should be kept in 

 mind: First, the background whether per- 

 pendicular or horizontal like a table should 

 be kept as simple as possible to avoid a 

 confused mass of ornament. Second, the 

 relationship of flowers and vase or recep- 

 tacle is very close. The style of vase to 

 be used depends on the kind of flower 

 chosen, the conformation of the background 

 and the prevailing colors of the room. It 

 is more pleasing if the shape of the recep- 

 tacle is suggested by the form of the flower 

 or by the habit of growth of the plant. 



In color the vase should be subordinate 

 to the blossoms since they are to be shown 

 off themselves, instead of being a means of 

 displaying the vase. Green and brown 

 receptacles, by their color, convey to the 

 mind the foliage or bark of plants, and so 

 are more generally adaptable than any 

 other colors. The use of the decorated vase 

 is charming, provided the colors in the deco- 

 ration repeat, in a subdued way, those of 

 the flowers and background, and provided 

 also that the design itself is not 

 too bold. A vase in all-over design in two 

 colors is always attractive if one color is 

 the prevailing color of the room, and a vase 

 in solid tone of the predominant color of a 

 room will look well in that room even if of a 

 gay color, though in any other the effect 

 would be garish and out of place. 



Neutral colored vases do not conflict, but 

 336 



there is often a distinct loss in the general 

 picture effect by their use. Glass has the 

 advantage of showing stems and good 

 forms in it can be purchased reasonably. 

 In the modern pottery there are many vases 

 modeled after flower forms, some of which 

 are specially suitable for large flowers of 

 massive form, and they are not necessarily 

 expensive. For many small flowers nothing 

 is prettier oftentimes than little baskets 

 either of straw or made from gourds. Tin 

 or glass receptacles can easily be fitted 

 into them. 



There are two clearly distinct methods 

 of arrangement of flowers in the receptacle, 

 namely, in mass and in line. In the former 

 color is made the principal attraction, and 

 is very suitable for small flowers — pansies 

 and the like. The second style of arrange- 



The lines of the iris with its own foliage are al- 

 ways beautiful in isolation 



