Tip Aifd, here we come

James, I have emailed and am awaiting an assignment, I am very excited to do any kind of work..It should be great fun and a whole lotta different...
 
Lori - You will have a blast volunteering......I make it a point to volunteer every time I go to symposium.......At Kansas City, there was a group of us........we were called the "Super-Volunteers" because as soon as we each checked in to the hotel......got settled, first thing was to go to the volunteer desk......talk to David and Leanne.....and we were off to the races.

You will LOVE volunteering for Blooms Over. That is soooooo much fun and so much great local MEDIA coverage.

Additionally, Each time I go to National and Regional......I make it a point to volunteer any way possible for the Student Design Competition. I have been asked numerous times to judge and it is an honor of the highest. Cherie knows full well, that if I am there........for the students.........I belong to her.
 
Ok, Now that symposium 2010 is concluded......Now, begins the wait till you get that letter sometime in the next couple of months.......When you find out if you passed to CFD, passed to AIFD, or did not pass.

Take my advice on this. Complete your day's work assignments FIRST !!!!! THEN open the letter and read. I say this because if you all are anything like me, if the results are not good news, you will be USELESS for the rest of the day.

Now, between now and then, you will find yourself second-guessing yourself. THAT IS NORMAL !!!

Now that the Revolution is over......We won btw !!! ( lol ) Now comes preparations for San Francisco and symposium 2011. Continue to post pictures of your work.......we will continue to critique and comment on what we see.
 
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Hi Linda,
Well, for a first try, I think you did pretty darn well. This is a difficult style to get right, and I know of designers who work at it for years, but never get it right.
When I teach how to create a wind or waterfall inspired design, I find it helpful to look to nature for the ultimate inspiration. So try this. Close your eyes, and picture a babbling stream, filled with moss covered boulders and rocks and pebbles. See how the water always travels along in the same direction, never up, never back, only forward....running along, caressing the boulders as it flows over them, and bubbling through the pebbles always moving forward, forward and down......

Now, the first thing that caused a bit of trouble for you is that your oasis is too low in the container, leaving you no choice but to insert your stems veritcally.
The branch material is almost great, but see how one part has an upward movement? Ideally it would also bend horizontally, and curve slightly downward.
Next time, try starting with your oasis 1/2 an inch higher than the lip of the container, and instead of inserting your branch directly into the oasis, lay it across the foam, and pin it in place with a dixon pin or two. When you start like that, it will be possible for you to make horizontal insertions, which will really help with that "water" movement you are looking for.
The myrtle on the branch material is good idea, just a little heavy handed, especially toward the tips.
Love the sheltering you did with the aspidistra, just remember that they all must face the same direction, wire can help you tame an unruly leaf if it won't co-operate. Also, remember what it is you are sheltering, and let all the aspidistra leaves work together to achieve the job.
Your weight distibution is a bit off...the 2 snaps, in their vertical position outweigh the mini carns in the heart of the arrangement...I wonder what would happen if you changed their position, so that they too, were inserted horizontally?
So much is dependant on the choice of the product in achieving success with this style. Calla lilies would have performed better for you, because you can massage them to gently curve in the direction that you need. Tulips also. The stiffness of the snaps and solidago worked against you here. But I understand that everybody can't run out and buy them whenever the mood strikes.
The scale would be improved by either using a slightly larger container, or shortening the length of the branches, or even allowing the branches to reach the table top, and then run along the surface of the table. By doing that, you would almost be marrying the container to the branch, to the tabletop, especially if the container were a rough brown ceramic, not high gloss black.
All in all, I think you did a great job, especially for a first try. You definately have an eye, no question about that.
Practice makes perfect!
Joanne Plummer
 
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Joanne,
Thank you for these comments, they are very helpful and invaluable to me as a designer. I could see through your description how the changes would improve Linda's really terrific design.
OB1 said:
Hi Linda,
Well, for a first try, I think you did pretty darn well. This is a difficult style to get right, and I know of designers who work at it for years, but never get it right.
When I teach how to create a wind or waterfall inspired design, I find it helpful to look to nature for the ultimate inspiration. So try this. Close your eyes, and picture a babbling stream, filled with moss covered boulders and rocks and pebbles. See how the water always travels along in the same direction, never up, never back, only forward....running along, caressing the boulders as it flows over them, and bubbling through the pebbles always moving forward, forward and down......

Now, the first thing that caused a bit of trouble for you is that your oasis is too low in the container, leaving you no choice but to insert your stems veritcally.
The branch material is almost great, but see how one part has an upward movement? Ideally it would also bend horizontally, and curve slightly downward.
Next time, try starting with your oasis 1/2 an inch higher than the lip of the container, and instead of inserting your branch directly into the oasis, lay it across the foam, and pin it in place with a dixon pin or two. When you start like that, it will be possible for you to make horizontal insertions, which will really help with that "water" movement you are looking for.
The myrtle on the branch material is good idea, just a little heavy handed, especially toward the tips.
Love the sheltering you did with the aspidistra, just remember that they all must face the same direction, wire can help you tame an unruly leaf if it won't co-operate. Also, remember what it is you are sheltering, and let all the aspidistra leaves work together to achieve the job.
Your weight distibution is a bit off...the 2 snaps, in their vertical position outweigh the mini carns in the heart of the arrangement...I wonder what would happen if you changed their position, so that they too, were inserted horizontally?
So much is dependant on the choice of the product in achieving success with this style. Calla lilies would have performed better for you, because you can massage them to gently curve in the direction that you need. Tulips also. The stiffness of the snaps and solidago worked against you here. But I understand that everybody can't run out and buy them whenever the mood strikes.
The scale would be improved by either using a slightly larger container, or shortening the length of the branches, or even allowing the branches to reach the table top, and then run along the surface of the table. By doing that, you would almost be marrying the container to the branch, to the tabletop, especially if the container were a rough brown ceramic, not high gloss black.
All in all, I think you did a great job, especially for a first try. You definately have an eye, no question about that.
Practice makes perfect!
Joanne Plummer
Click to expand...
 
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Joanne,

Oh my gosh, thank you SOOOO much! I felt like a fish out of water.......which is exactly why I chose to do this. It's time to push myself out of my comfort zones, and boy, was this uncomfortable! You cannot imagine the fear I went through before I finally decided to post this, I even almost went back to delete it because I felt like it was hideous. Now when I look at it, although it isn't hideous anymore, I want to go and chop a bunch of material off.

Your words about the babbling brook took me there........you are a marvelous teacher! What a gift to be able to do that.

I definately see where the myrtle should be trimmed, and now that I look at the pix, the snaps are ridiculously upright.

Your tip about the foam is very helpful, and I probably should have planned this before. When I was at symposium, many designers were sketching before they started designing. I have tried this before, with vapid results, I find myself making messes instead of designs.

......about the carnation petals blowing away, what would have worked better, and how are the visibility of those mechanics judged/evaluated?

Linda
 
I was hoping that Joanne would comment on that design.......I will go into greater detail later on as I am headed out the door, but you did not do bad for your first time.

The other designs posted I'll comment on as well.
 
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My pleasure, Linda,
Don't give up on the sketches, they can help to work out your mechanics. And no-one else has to understand them, only you.
Re: the floaing petals, I frequently use really light materials like petals, or tiny feathers (the ones I get from the fishing store, they use them to tie flies,) by taking the crimped really fine decorative wire. I knot a petal or feather every 3 inches or so along the wire. Then I take a toothpick, or wooden skewer and, between each petal, I make little coils of the wire by wrapping it around the skewer. This wire adds a nice tiny shimmer here and there, while almost being invisible. It is a good way to add floating petals to a design.
The way you did it would definitley cost yu marks, because the mechanics of the application far out-weigh the visual benifits of the use.
You may also try a tiny dab of oasisi glue, although they would no longer float, as you intended.

Twiggy, sorry I missed yours. I'm on my way to a birthday party, but maybe when I get back tonight.
JP
 
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twiggy said:
well here's a corsage- I will have to re-size my other pictures so I can upload them (I *think* that's the problem I'm having) Glad to see this going on again!

PS.. I fixed my issue! here are 3 more!
Click to expand...

OK, Twiggy, here goes.

First up, the "Sweet Peas"

I love a lot of things abut this arrangement...especially the Seet Peas! I'm not sure just exactly what the arrangement is meant for, and that might be a problem when it comes to judging... generally judges want to know what category a specific arrangement is intended to fit into.
The use of the streletzia leaf to separate the "Sweet Peas" from the base arrangement is good, but it needs to be much stronger. Using 2 or 3 leaves would create
a much stronger break, and that is important, because it would really help to define the area of intended greatest interest.
The base arrangement that surrounds the "Sweet Peas" is too cluttered. This happened because the materials you chose are all either variagated or compound or fillers, and excluding the 3 gerbera, are all about the same size. To make this more arrangement successful, the choice of product should be edited somewhat.
Generally it's best to use only one variagated product...so choose...the gerbera, or the variagated pitt. Same with the fillers...the monte casino or the gyp. The cluster roses are about the same size as the other flowers, so it would be better if you used half of them, and spent the money on the other half being full sized roses. Using a second strong foliage, like fatsia, would also give more weight to the base, which would be a good thing.
I guess what I'm trying to say here is that the entire idea of this arrangement is terrific, but it is lost because there is not enough definition between the "Stars of the show" and the "Supporting characters"...ie: the "Sweet Peas" and the collar of flowers and greens at the base.

Second...The Moody Blues

Working with all dark blue flowers is a difficult challenge, as blue is a recessive colour and tends to disappear into the background. Because of this, it is more important than ever to pay attention to texture.
Here we have roses which are all the same size, colour and shape, about 3 stems of dendrobium orchids, and it's all accented with a single varity of grey foliage.
Let's see if I can change this up a bit, and make the arrangement more engaging, and increase the movement with a few simple changes.
It looks like there are about 9 blue roses, 3 dendrobium and 3 stems of seeded eucalyptus in this arrangement.
First, lets imagine that 5 of the roses are opened upa bit, to 1/2 open stage, with the other 4 still in bud stage. Now we have 2 different shapes of the same flower, at no extra cost. Next, instead of only useing seeded euc, let's use 1/2 of the euc, and use the money saved to add some stachys (lambs ears) which is a fuzzy grey-green, and 1/2 stem of silver poplar foliage. If we reduce the 3 stems of blue dendrobium orchids to 1, we would be able to add 5 stems of lighter blue ageratum, and 1 stem of pale blue delphinium. By doing this we would end up with an arrangement that includes various shades of blue, and waxy, shiny, fuzzy, soft, and hard materials. By doing these few changes, a simple and 2 dimensional arrangement becomes a study of texture, and suddenly is mor interesting and tactile.
One last thing...I can see a few stem ends of foliage in the arrangement, and that will definitely cost you points.

Third, the "Cascade Bouquet"

This is a really great example of a waterfall inspired arrangement.
There are only a couple of suggestions here, because you definitley have a handle on the requirements necessary to be successful with this style of design.
The white daisies are not doing you any favours here. Better to leave them out. And the singe pink campanula is out of place, looks like a bit of use up.
If you were to eliminate the gerbera, and add one or two more pincushion proteas and lower them ever so slightly, your focal point would be a lot stronger.
A final suggestion would be to layer over one really long peice opf plumosa, trimmed quite drastically, so that it is very delicate. By layering it over the top of the finished design, it wuld add a final layer of diaphanous "Mist", like you would see in a real waterfall.
GREAT JOB!

Finally, the "Wrist Corsage"

From a purely aesthetic point of view, this is difficult, so I will address only those elements that are important from a practical point of view.
I think it would be better to use the freesia blossoms in the center of the design, because they are easily damaged and bruised, and using them on the perimeter of the design increases the chance of them being damaged by simply bending the wrist.
The use of irredescent ribbon with the glittering "butterfly wings" is over kill, and a simple diaphonous sheer ribbon, or even a solid double faced satin, would increase the contrast of texture in the design. I don't see any need for the fibreoptic plastic strands, but if you must use them, they should be distributed throughout the design, or at least used in a diagonal cross line, so that they create some movement in the peice.
Lastly, the addition of the diamonte diamond corsage pins in the heart of the roses is good, but would be much better if the roses were opened up to expose the stamens. By doing this, the diamonds would appear as though they really were born there, instead of being added as some sort of afterthought.
All in all, I think this corsage is pretty...just needs some work to take it up to beautiful

Twiggy, I have been watching you grow as a designer for a few years now, and although this critique may seem a bit harsh, it is not intended to be so.
You have a great eye for design, you just need a bit more training and practice.
Keep up the good work! I'll be on the side lines, cheering you on when you get your AIFD pin.
Cheers,
JP
 
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.
I'm jumping in to this thread, because I LOVE this design!!


Linda - you are a trooper to post your pictures, and to get out of your "comfort zone".


This is the evaluating method we use in our New Hampshire classes. ( I got it from Ann Jordan, and I think SHE adapted it from AIFD)


Here's my take on it... :)​

​
___________________​

5 – Excellent: Exceptional use of design principles and elements with strong creative emphasis.
4 – Above Average: Good consistent application of design principles and elements with a creative flair.
3 – Average: Good deigns work, applies use of principles & elements, but not demonstrating any special flair or creative emphasis.
2 – Below Average: Weak in the application of design principles & elements and creativity, would not qualify as a good basic design.
1 – Not Acceptable: Design work lacking the application of principles & elements of design; shows no creativity.

___________________​


Balance: (Physical & Visual) .....1 ....2.... 3 ....4 ....5 .....(Excellent application of balance)

Category Interpretation: .....1 ....2.... 3 ....4 ....5 ....(Exceptional... I feel the wind!!)


Color: (Balance, Harmony, Rhythm) .....1 ....2.... 3 ....4 ....5 ....
(average use of color harmony - looks like a complimentary color scheme - yellow to purple. By being a bit more daring/challenging, this possibly could have scored a 4 or 5 by adding a touch of orange, making it an ANALOGOUS COMPLEMENTARY = one hue (violet), its direct compliment (yellow), and the two hues on either side of the compliment (green, yellow-green , and orange).

​
Creativity:.....1 ....2.... 3 ....4 ....5 ....(great - use of shells, decorative wire, foliage manipulation; I almost went with a 5, but, I just came back from Symposium, and that serves to remind me of exceptional creativity - )


Depth: .....1 ....2.... 3 ....4 ....5 ....(good use of foliage to create depth - hard to really see on a computer screen)


Focal Emphasis: .....1 ....2....3 ....4....5
(average use of focal point - I had to "look for it". I ALMOST went with a 4 here... Clustering those yellow cymbids a little tighter might draw the eye to them quicker? Or possibly, the shell on the upper right of the basket is detracting from a strong focal area? Nestle that shell amongst the cymbids, so there is no doubt of focal area?)
​
Line: (Movement & Rhythm) .....1 ....2.... 3 ....4 ....5 ....(beautiful - nothing more needs to be said!)


Mechanics: (Professional Application) .....1 ....2.... 3 ....4 ....5 ....(looks "clean as a whistle")


Proportion: .....1 ....2.... 3 ....4 ....5.... (better than average - the "swoop" of the dennies is a good way to even out the tallness of the design)


Unity: (Harmony & Texture) .....1 ....2.... 3 ....4 ....5 ....
(4 instead of 5 here - something about the basket and it's texture - too much texture?, between the busy-ness of the dennies and the weave of the basket? would a smooth, stone-like container provide more unity? less dominance of the rough texture? just my opinion)

​
Total Score: ....42...definately above average

(ideally, two or three evaluators would also evaluate this, then THEIR final score would be averaged. )

I'll try to upload a blank evaluation sheet in the "Downloads" area.

Remember - this is not "judging" - it's trying to be an impartial evaluator...

Valerie in NH
 
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Evaluation Score Sheet

If anyone is interested, I hope you can access this evaluation sheet!

Valerie
 

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  • 2009 Design Evaluation Score Sheet.doc
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Thanks so much for the input, Val!

Yep, sometimes I get a little too caught up in my theme and end up trying to be too literal. (the dendros were the beach and the cymbs were the sand). Orange would have been fab in there.

And the basket, yes, every time I make something in it, I have the same problem, too much texture, plus the criss-crossing lines make it too busy. Good eye! I only have one of those baskets left, and I think it will be a monochomatic design with very little texture.
 
Linda, one thing that blatantly stands out to me and it could be the angle of the photo are "plains"... meaning the two purple dendrobs that seem to be on the same line and the same length. Also the "plains" of foliage (the aspidistra or dracaena foliage in the "middle" seem to be on the same plain. Slight variations on those two things would add even more to the movement? Think of strands of grass blowing in the wind? very few move as a unit...on the same line at the same time? (maybe I'm crazy.... just my thoughts *and I was marked down a couple of points on "plains"*)
 
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Ya Rhonda, I see what you mean. They are not like that when you look at it in person. I was trying to shoot from an angle that best showed the movement of the "palm fronds" and didn't pay enough attention to what was happening in the rest of the design. Maybe I should have done a vid, too.

Thanks for the input, AND the new word. Plains is a new one for me.
 
I promise I have not forgotten about this thread.......with all the issues pressing surrounding my pending relocation to Portland......I just have not had the time to devote to this as I should.
 
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