Over the Easter holidays, I did deliveries for some contract work
for my college. The tutors and technician needed a proper break,
and I was happy to get some different work experience. It was a little bit scary having so much
responsibility (the client is a chef with a number of restaurants
all over London), but once the first day was over, I felt fine. The driver was
brilliant, as was the supply tutor at college (who made most of the
designs during the Easter break). The work involved packing and carrying flower arrangements (some were
huge) to and from the restaurants, doing maintenance work at some restaurants
(i.e. removing wilting flowers and topping up arrangements and outside plants with water), and making lots of
small table arrangements on site for three of the restaurants. One day, I got to
college at 7am, only to find my poor tutor madly trying to make arrangements
that were supposed to have been made in his absence, so I helped out – and wow,
I have never worked so fast or so instinctively! Doing this work has certainly
tempered my tendency to over-think arrangements.
Here are some of the arrangements that I’ve made.
And here are some others in situ.
One restaurant had new arrangements three times a week. The old flowers
would be thrown away, and it seemed like a waste, so one day I asked if I could
take them back with me. My tutor gave me a new stem of cymbidium orchids that
hadn’t been used, and I made a table centre for my friend and three little arrangements
for me. I think this shows how effective simple arrangements and grouping the
same flower and/or colour can be. These parrot tulips and orchids were used in different arrangements for the contract work, and they are two flowers that I wouldn't have thought of putting together, but I loved how the lime green colour and curvy shapes linked them so well.
