Embellishing: To Bling or Not to Bling

Techniques Tutorials

by Lorraine Usher

With all the tempting products available to floral designers, we have to make a decision when to use or not to use those exciting embellishments or accessories.

So, what exactly is bling?

It is a slang term popularised in the hip hop culture, referring to flashy, ostentatious or elaborate jewellery and ornamental accessories that are carried, worn or installed (especially diamonds).

In floral design it can be translated as embellishing. A method used to decorate or enhance, using plant materials or using non-plant materials.

Embellishing or adding 'bling' can be successfully utilised by the floral designer to accent and add that point of difference or X factor to a design. We can embellish with plant materials or non plant materials.

There is a huge array of materials available for our use to decorate or enhance floral designs. For example, small lights, feathers, coloured pins, sequins, baubles, paint, dyed material, sea shells, fabric candles, decorative wire, the list goes on.…. These are considered to be, for floral design purposes, accessories or embellishments.

Non-plant material should be used in a subtle way so that it does not take over from the stars of our designs…. our natural plant materials. Embellishing or accessorising should be used in such a way that it accentuates or highlights the
foliage and flowers.

There are two styles of design where accessories can predominate - Still Life and Assemblage.

So, What is considered to be natural?' Plant materials without any artificial treatment. Fresh or dried plant materials.
Some interesting examples of dried plant materials include: nut shells, cones, lichen, fungus, moss, kelp, berries, grains, beans, seed pods, nuts. Any of these could be used effectively to achieve embellishment or natural bling in our designing.

It is interesting to note that in Europe, there is a visible movement among floral designers away from using non-plant material 'bling' in designing.

Floral Techniques can be used with plant material to achieve embellishment - 30 techniques are listed in 'Flair'- most of which can be used without any non-plant material bling or accessories.

For example, binding, bundling, clamping, clustering, crosshatching, folding, plaiting etc. Non-plant material 'bling does have a place in our designing but it must be used with discretion, allowing foliage and flowers to be the stars to express our art form.

A thought to ponder from Pim van den Akker: "Floral art is like painting. The flowers and foliage are our paint, the structures and shapes are our canvas. It is the person in front of the canvas who makes all the difference".

And that person IS you!