While in Turkey, Lady Wortley Montague in the eighteenth century collated the symbolic meanings of flowers as part of local tradition. Once published in England, the idea spread like fire, and posies that were.

Here are the meanings attached to the flowers that some we use in potpourri.

Basil, Good wishes

Bay, Glory

Chamomile, Energy in adversity

Damask rose, Beauty ever new

Forget-me-not, True Love

Larkspur, Lightness or levity

Lily of the Valley, Return of happiness

Pansy, Thinking of you

Peppermint, Warmth of feeling

Purple lilac, Love’s first emotions

Sage, Esteem

Zinnia, Thoughts of an absent friend

I also researched some more meaning of flowers from http://wikipedia.org

Acacia Secret love

Acanthus Art

Aconite      Misanthropy

Agrimony Thankfulness

Aloe Grief

Almond Promise

Amaranth (Globe) Immortal love

Anemone Forsaken, sickness, unfading love

Angrec Royalty

Apple blossom Preference

Arborvitae Everlasting friendship

Arbutus You’re the only one I love

Arum Ardor

Asparagus Fascination

Asphodel My regrets follow you to the grave

Aster Symbol of love, daintiness, talisman of love

Aster (China) Fidelity, variety, I will think of you

Azalea Take Care, temperance, fragile, passion, Chinese symbols of womanhood

Baby’s breath Innocence, pure of heart

Bachelor button Single blessedness, celibacy

Balm Social intercourse or sympathy

Balsam Ardent love

Balsamine Impatience

Bay wreath Glory

Bumblebee Orchid Industry

Begonia Beware, a fanciful nature

Bellflower “Thinking of you

” Bells of Ireland Luck

Bird’s-foot Trefoil Revenge

Box Constancy

Broom Humility

Bulrush^{[disambiguation needed]} Docility

Buttercup Riches

Cabbage Profit

Camellia japonica Unpretending excellence

Campanula Gratitude

Canterbury Bells Gratitude

Carnation:

general Fascination; ; distinction;

love red ” My heart aches for you”, “Alas! For my poor heart”, deep romantic love, passion

green secret symbol of the followers of Oscar Wilde

white Sweet and lovely, innocence, pure love, faithfulness

pink “I’ll never forget you”, “Always on my mind”, a woman’s love, a mother’s love

yellow “You have disappointed me”, rejection, disdain

purple Capriciousness, whimsical, changeable, unreliability

mauve Dreams of fantasy

striped “No”, “Sorry I can’t be with you”, refusal

solid color “Yes”, “Affirmative”

Cherry blossom A good education

So, the next time you give flower to somebody. Try to know what flower you will hand in and try to get your message across  to the people  by knowing its meaning. Knowing these meaning can be a gem to you and you will be a treasure to the people you love.

We are busy to please others by giving them your time and attention, it gives a nice feelings inside but when we think about ourselves we push the idea aside for so many reasons we could think of. We forget that we can be at our best to our friends and to others when we have given quality time for the important person and that is yourself. Hence, you must love and treasure yourself first. After all, if you don’t take time to occasionally renew and restore yourself  you wont have the energy to give to others.

Some gift ideas that you can give to yourself.

• Write a letter yourself describing how great you are.
• Schedule moments of artistic and spiritual refreshment in your day. Like giving a  flower for yourself.
• Take a stroll to a place you want to go.

Make a Bag Out of  Potato or Candy Wrappers

Using a rotary cutter or paper out all wrapper pieces. You can also makes a template from hard plastic or cardboard. Trace and cut each piece individually.

You can choose various sizes to cut each piece:

2 5/8  x  6 1/8  inches

2 3/8  x  5  1/4  inches

2 1/4  x  5  inches

or  dollar  bill size  or  paper bill size

You cut  144 total pieces to make a large coin purse using   2 1/2 x 4  3/4 inches size making 36 links per row, 4 rows. For a cosmetic or make up pouch you cut 264 total pieces, making 44 links per row, 6 rows. And  for a bag your cut 260 total pieces making 52 links per row, 5 rows.

A Make Up Pouch

Materials:

- potato chips wrapper

- scissors

- hand sewing needles or make your own needle from old ATM cards

- clear thread or crochet thread

- and cord for strap

Steps in making a Make Up Pouch

1. Cut potato wrapper according to desired sizes. Wash it first so you don’t end up being attacked by ants.
2. Unfold your piece and fold on side to the center crease line.
3. Do the same to the other side of the piece.
4. Fold the whole piece together along the center crease. Your folded sides should be in the center of fold. Do the same with the rest of the pieces.
5. Sew together each piece, bring needle up and thru any chain and back down the other side and tie a knot. You tie your thread only in the beginning when you run out of thread, tie with a square knot and continue sewing. Sew up and down until you go all the way around. Make sure the thread is tight enough that you would not have any gaps or you can see the  thread.
6. Continue, add the next row by positioning positive to negative. Put two chains together with the positive and negative.
   
7. Once you go all the way around, you need to run your thread over the top of the  rows to sew to the other side of the purse.bag. You will be sewing the inside and the outside of your bag. Your purse will become very stiff as you pull the thread tight when sewing the chains together.
8. Sew the bottom part, squeeze it together just start running your needle thru the rows to hold them together . You go around a square a couple of times because the thread will not show. The bottom is harder to have a consistent sewing pattern because you are sewing positive to positive
   

Candy Wrapper Purse

Materials:

• gum, candy wrappers (stick gum, starburst)
• scissors
• monofilament fishing line or clear thread
• hand sewing needle (made from old ATM card not going to use anymore)
• cord for strap

Steps:

1. Lay flat the candy wrappers. Fold them in half along the length
2. Follow the same procedures in how to make a bag from steps1 to 8. The difference will be is on the desired sizes you would like your purse to be.

Here are two projects that I will show that my students made last December. Each of my students made one they were too excited to use their projects. It was the first time they made something useful from their trash.

Here I found some cute designs apart from the bags that my students made for their project in recycling.

This may not be a big  solution but a small step towards solving the inherent problem that everybody is facing with no exception to my country where lately we had a flood from an almost an hour of rain, that ends up clogging the canal due to plastics that ends up in the drainage.

Too much plastics is the cause of this. So,I decided that I would post about recycling potato and candy wrappers in my next blog.

A garden is an area where art and nature collaborate to create serenity. In the Ancient Shinto religion, gods, where nature spirits, so the Japanese people’s perception of the garden as a place to worship is  really not at all surprising.

Japanese gardens  is neither usually a slice of raw nature enclosed by a wall nor an artificial creation that forces natural materials into unnatural forms to celebrate nature by capturing it’s essence.

Gardening is much more than just growing plants. To make garden appealing, it is very important that the setting in which the plants are placed is right.

The landscape of Japan reflects uniqueness and distinction you could say is dramatically rugged. Japanese landscape in history was influenced by the picturesque landscapes of China until now it still reflects that influence.

Five Garden Styles in Japanese Landscaping

Hill-and-Pond Style

This Style originated in China this design was only for the leisured rich rulers and nobles. The Isles which according to myth originally floated, believed to have been stabilized by the rulers of the universe, who ordered tortoises to bear them on their backs. But when a giant destroyed many of the tortoises, some islands floated away. The remaining was thought, could give immortality to whoever found and visited them.

Dry-Landscaped Style

Referred to as Karesansui Style, means the dry landscape or flat-garden style. The original of this style came from the Japanese gardens but came as a major art form after the advent of Zen Buddhism in the late sixth century. It started to grow in small garden spaces of many Zen temples and monasteries, where monks used it as an aid  to their contemplation of the essence of nature in human life. This garden is minimalist art, with little form and detail that the effect is starkly and maybe obscurely symbols. This landscapes suggests simple form and reduction of scale

An edging of rocks and some plants is common. Simple naturalistic bridges such as flat slabs of uncut stone fits this style

An evergreen backdrop beyond the walls is a standard feature in dry-landscape garden.

Tea-Garden Style

This style requires just enough space for a path through a narrow outer garden to an enclosed inner garden, which contains a waiting pavilion, or a bench and a tea house, and a touch of rock and greenery. This design is popular in United States since it needs spacious back areas that can be made private.

This style has few features and simple, but you must chose and arranged with great care. The form only follows that is if the it functions perfectly. Stepping stones usually is surrounded with moss.

You can adapt this  style in it’s design and of course it’s functionality to an occidental setting and life-style.

This design can provide you with a place of calmness especially if you want to experience solitude and pleasure or you can share memories with your treasured friends

Stroll Style

This design exudes a considerable influence over the strollers. Built during the feudal era.This design should be strolled trough so that you can appreciate it, so this  stroll garden should be spacious enough, thus it needs huge space that will provide sufficient area to allow turns in the path. This provides a quiet and peaceful haven for meditation.

Paths that repeatedly shift direction by a moving in a zigzag pattern rather than along a straight line, it shows unexpected vistas and provide fresh views of familiar features that a stroller may have seen from other angle.

Courtyard Style

For the Japanese history the wealth and the ability to make gardens belonged to high ranks of nobility and imperial family society at that time was split to upper class and lower class, after the advent of Zen Buddhism, monks were allowed to make small in monasteries and temples  though due to commoners grew richer and the middle class became prosperous that gardens became possible for all levels of society.

Before the popularity of courtyard gardens were mostly built at palaces that can be viewed from a single rooms or apartments.

This design incorporates  three basic traditional basic tea-garden features: stone lantern, stepping stones, and  a stone water basin. These features unlike the tea-garden, are nearly ornamental rather than functional, and the courtyard is never walk  in. Most courtyard gardens use evergreen plants suited to a growing condition as low light. The courtyard style offers us many possibilities.

This design uses pliant plants such as  bamboo, a trunk of a tree or  a driftwood, smaller plants and artifacts to create an uncrowded artistic presentation of a natural world.

Here are some pictures taken by John Weiss from his photo collection Garden, who was so generous to let me use this pictures without hesitation. I could see in him the pure talent that he got in photography  he not only captures his subject but he captures  with it the serenity and the essence of the place.

Next month I would blog and show the different garden styles using dishgardening.

gca

When I was younger I usually cry just to get attention from my mother to buy me a balloon, hey I have to  admit  I got fascinated by then up to now.

Now people are looking for another alternative extra income and why didn’t I think of the balloons that took my fascinations when I was younger?

I’ll think for that option as my new venture for passion in art while mixing it with business. What do you think?

Here are some books I found to be helpful for us to start using balloons as an alternative for fresh flowers.

Here are an excerpts from You tube showing you on balloon designing and sculpting.

balloon decoration ideas

The craft of pressing flowers requires patience and a creative eye. From decorated  papers to framed compositions of pressed blooms, this is a craft that preserves the beauty of nature’s most transient delight- the flower.

The crafts is based on simple concepts; fresh flowers are collected and are then pressed between sheets of paper so that their moisture is absorbed. The dried specimen can be last indefinitely and can be included in a variety of handicrafts.

The pressed flower no longer has three dimensions. It is flat and therefore two dimensional. The pressing process alters colors. A pressed bloom will never be exactly the same as it’s fresh counterpart and understanding of this framework of the craft is crucial. Before starting to work on a craft project, it is a good idea to spend several hours collecting and pressing various specimens and observing the result. Trial and error is an important part of the learning process.

Since pressing flowers is a craft which requires careful attention to detail. clear space in which to set your equipment. where you can work uninterrupted.

You will need good light. Daylight is best. If it is not possible to work near a window, a small desk lamp with direct downlight will help. Good ventilation is important. Any hint of dampness can lead to mildew which destroys pressed plant materials.

Materials needed:

Flower press
or you can use old phone directories or books or you can make your own simple flower press watch this video.

and other materials required for pressing floers

snips, scissors, tweezers, magnifying glass, clear craft glue, ruler, eraser, cutter or scalpel orange sticks or tooth picks, pencil and a fine marking pen.

Techniques Of The Craft

1. Arrange fresh specimens on a sheet of blotting paper on base layer.

2.Place a protective tissue layer between the specimens and the next layer of blotting paper.

3. Keep plants in specimen groups if possible. Continue layering paper and specimens in this way until the press is full.

4.Do not overload press

5. if bulky plant material prove difficult to press, trim away excess parts such as the lower end of the stalk using sharp scissors.

6. Fleshy flowers such as the hyacinth can be cut in half and then pressed. Use a scalpel to insure the bloom is cut cleanly.  Once pressed, the two halves can be used individually or placed together to form a complete flower

7. Flowers which prove difficult to press because of their size or shape can be carefully pulled apart, the various parts pressed separately, then the plant can be reconstructed.

Beginners project

Personalize your own stationery by decorating pressed flowers

A glimpse from the past…

The ancient Egyptians relied heavily on the wonderful properties of perfume. Flowers and fragrances influenced their leisure, medicine, religion and even their architecture- indeed, they were the most extravagant users of scented materials in the ancient world. It is said that Cleopatra covered the floors of her apartments with a deep layer of rose petals and had pillows stuffed with them to entice Mark Anthony.

The Magic of Scent

Smell is one of the most important of our senses. Primitive man’s very highly developed and was essential to his survival. Our senses of smell is several hundred times greater than our sense of taste, but modern times have lead to decline in our eyes to detect the freshness of food than our trustworthy noses.

Ingredients

When making potpourri, a wide variety in the texture and color of the flowers, leaves and additives is of great importance. Preserve a  good selection of flowers and leaves by picking them out on the newspapers in a dry sheltered place, or tying them in bunches. and hanging them upside down in a warm, dark, airy room. Dry to a papery feel.

Because so many of our modern varieties of flowers have been bred for looks rather than perfume, most modern potpourri recipes require the additional use of plant essential oils.. These are extracted or distilled: it requires enormous quantities of flowers to produce a small phial of perfume  oil. Essential oils are extremely powerful and volatile and so must be used with great care of blending. They should be added one drop at a time to the correct amount.

To retain the scent within a potpourri a fixative must be added. Orris root powder is used most often and can be obtained from chemists or special shops. It can be made from the older fleshy roots of Iris florentina peeled, chopped, dried and then ground with a pestle and mortar. Other fixatives, some of which are scented, include myrrh, sandalwood, tonka, bean, frankincense, oakmoss, and gum benzoin.

Making Potpourri

Ther are two methods of making potpourri:the moist and the dry. The moist method uses damask rose petals for a long-lasting, sweet scented mix, but the easier method for a prettier mix is the dry. Note: do not use wooden utensils these absorb oils.

The Dry Method

Measure the materials into a bowl and stir gently. Transfer to a tight-lidded container and seal. Leave for 3 to 4 weeks to mature, shaking occasionally.

The Moist Method

Dry scented cabbage and damask rose heads until they are leathery in texture. Pack 3 cups of their petals into a straight sided crock and cover with a cup of non-ionized salt. Layer rose petals and salt until the crock is half full. Cover with a weight on a saucer. Stir the mix each day for 10 days, pouring off excess liquid. Store for a month. Break up the caked mixture and display in a container with a perforated lid.

For a relaxing, skin-softening bath, add to it a potpourri sachet containing equal parts of the following:

organic oatmeal

wheat bran and

dried whole milk powder

to each  2 cups of this add 1/4 cup of chopped and dried lavender and rosemary

Mix all the ingredients in a bowl and use 2 tablespoons of the mixture for each sachet they can be hung from the running taps if desired.

“Start of the Day” Footbath

If the prospect of a long day on your feet seems daunting, soak them for 10 to 15 minutes in this therapeutic bath and the revitalizing elements will quickly refresh and energize the whole body. The recipe is very easy.

1 pint cider vinegar

1 pint mineral water

4 tbsp baby shampoo

20 drops lavender essential oil

20 drops lemongrass essential oil

3 drop food coloring (optional)

Pour the cider, water, oils and food coloring into a bottle and shake vigorously for a minute. Add the baby shampoo and store in a refrigerator. To use, shake and add half a cup to a hot footbath.

Here are an video excerpts on how to make potpourri and how to add scented oil.

I remember my mother used to say that during their time they  have to go to a studio before they can have pictures of themselves. Since then photography has evolved a lot together with technology. You can take picture of yourself, places and any experiences  using the digital camera and even cellphones , you can just immediately erase it if you do not like it. How it has changed through times.

To preserve our pictures now a days we have this scrapbooking.  I have here samples of scrapbook:

Great scrapbooking start with great photos, using a professional photography for all photos is not practical or necessary. Snapshots captures the most memorable moment in life.

“Scrapbooking” is a hobby that not only provides creative outlet for the scrapbook designer,but also promotes a strong sense of self esteem and belonging for those whose lives and accomplishments are creatively chronicled and compiled into an album or collection of albums.

Use both black-and-white and colored photos in your scrapbooks. While black-and-white photos last longer, the value of colored photos is undeniably more alive.

Be sure to duplicate your favorite photos and negatives if possible somewhere besides in the home. In the event of a fire, flood or other natural disaster, at least some photos will survive.

Many photos suggest a theme or represent a special event. Decide what emotion or mood is reflected by the theme and use it as a guide when choosing paper patterns and accents.

To add color to your scrapbook pages use colored paper products, pen markers and more. Chose colors that reinforce and enhance the pages theme, not detract from it.

Take note that acid damages photos so use acid free supplies when creating scrapbook pages. There are a lot of scrapbook suppliers ans standard crafts stores you can take a look some scrapbooking books that you can find in National Bookstores and other stores that sells scrapbooking materials or you can make your purchase through scrapbooking.com.

Here are some Basic Tools

You can go to ready made materials sold in any craft stores or you can recycle some materials like gift wrapper, used ribbons etc. Just go with your imaginations and creativity. I tell you that scrapbooking is an addicting hobby but of course a worthwhile one where you can do this as distressing or honing your creativity. I am sure you’ll forget the time while doing it and definitely will be one of your treasured hobby.

Here’s a video so that you can have a guide in doing your own if you are newbie.
Happy crafting and have fun…

Other related topics:
www.scrapbookingplace.com
www.scrapbookscrapbook.com
www.allaboutscrapbooking.com
www.scrapbooking.com