Having planned a relaxed, outdoor supper party at the weekend, I wanted to decorate the table with flowers and candles. Armed with my Chicken & Carnation tote bag and favourite scissors, I headed to my local ‘Pick Your Own’ farm in search of some brightly coloured blooms.
‘Garsons’ in Esher has been a firm favourite day-trip of mine for many years, and I feel very lucky to live so close to this gem. Their PYO fields are an absolute joy to visit and the variety of produce available to pick is just incredible. The availability of crops changes regularly of course, but when I visited the ‘Wittem’, ‘Thomas Edison’, ‘Yellow Star’, and ‘My Love’ Dahlias were all looking spectacular.
It’s very easy to get carried-away when picking flowers, and I had to force myself to leave before I had more flowers than I could hold. The dahlias had also started to look a little sad in my hands as it was a really hot day, and they hate being out of water, so I headed home with my haul.
I had read somewhere that, to prolong the vase life of dahlias, you should plunge the cut stems into hot tap water (not boiling) and leave them in the water until it cools to room temperature. So, I thought I’d give it a try. Whilst the water cooled, I gathered a selection of my favourite small vases in different colours and shapes.
The dahlias certainly looked a lot happier after their drink and so I filled the little vases with cool water and started to make some simple arrangements using the dahlias along with other grasses and foliage that I had foraged; Mixing different heights and textures to make my display.
The finished posies looked ever so sweet and really brightened up the table for supper.
Words, Styling and Images by Emma Whicheloe.
Get the look:
Shop Chicken & Carnation by Thornback & Peel
Scissors: HAY
Wide glass vase (Empty): Arket