Designer table settings

Centre of attraction

A table dressed with a beautiful flower arrangement can turn supper with friends into a dinner party to remember. By Leigh Robertson.

 

Then US futurist Faith Popcorn coined the term "cocooning" in the mid '80s to describe the trend of hunkering down as a means to protect ourselves from "the harsh, unpredictable realities of the outside world," even she might not have guessed it would be as pertinent a verb as it is more than 20 years later. The idea of "staying in" being "the new going out" has long been bandied about by those making the transition from hard-partying, single 20- or 30-somethings to respectable adulthood, finding themselves home-bound because of family demands or exhaustion after a long day at the office.

It's the easy way out of facing up to becoming a boring oldie. But with the advent of a volatile economy, for many people of all ages it simply makes sense "to nest", another of those terms owing their existence to a growing breed of trend forecasters or "cool" hunters. Yet this is not to say that it's all about frugality and finding diverting ways with canned beans and pilchards; if anything, nests are being lavishly feathered, and dinner tables decked with designer ingredient feasts. For some, hard times signal an instinctive urge to be surrounded by anything potentially happiness-inducing, whether it's consuming more comfortdriven products (chocolate and lipstick sales are booming), reaching into the wine cellar for those long-cherished "investment" bottles (no time like the present) or weekly deliveries of fresh flowers for the house.

Right on trend is inviting others to share in the feel-good nesting experience; the news channels might emit their hourly missives of doom and gloom, but the reassuring buzz of friends partaking of your best wines and cooking efforts at a dining table lavishly dressed with French linen and custom-designed floral arrangements is an effective panacea. It's all in the details; the little things amounting to a whole that titillates every sense: the Riedel stemware, the heirloom silver cutlery and yes, certainly the flowers. So inspired by horticulture, flowers and the corollary between floral design and fashion is influential Dutch trend forecaster Li Edelkoort that she founded her lauded Bloom magazine and lavish coffee table book in the late '90s. It follows that flowers are all the rage from Amsterdam to Tokyo.

The demand for personalised, expertly designed floral arrangements is on the rise in South Africa too. "The briefs we're getting all have one strong focus," says Johannesburg floral designer Franz Gräbe, "and that is to create beauty beyond understanding, whatever the budget." His business, Franz Gräbe Flower Couture, fittingly alludes to the strong fashion element of floral design in its name; Gräbe says they are "always looking at new trends, always reinterpreting them". Resident florist to establishments such as the Westcliff , the Saxon, the Grace and the Blue Train, they also do flowers for private events.

"I do private functions at homes every week," he says. "I think it goes hand in hand with the growing celebrity catering services, like Vicky Crease and The Tarts in Johannesburg, which offers individualised home entertainment beyond imagination - nothing can be more exclusive than your own food and entertainment brand. And it makes you, as the host, look rather grand and glamorous." Naturally, it comes at a price. "It's wonderful if you have the budget to spend on floral décor as it can change any venue, including a home, from predictable to magical. Floral design has moved into a new sphere where design becomes the main issue; with floral décor closer to art and installation, a glorious budget can transform an event such as, say, a formal birthday dinner into a living artistic experience." But, he adds, this does not imply that a small budget cannot have "beautiful, simple, effective and tasteful floral decoration: an understanding of beauty and wise choices can offer you a fabulous looking event without breaking the bank."

Stellenbosch floral designer Hermien Swanepoel believes a table without flowers "is like a party without wine". Her business, Flowers in the Foyer, named for its fi rst location in the entrance hall of the Dorp Street Gallery, caters for weddings and corporate functions as well as private dinners. Whatever she does is infused with her intense love of nature.

"Doing flowers for a home is like creating a painting or a sculpture with blooms," she enthuses. "It's an organic artwork that changes shape, colour and texture as it dries out." Her clients are those who are "happy to spend money on things that do not need to last forever."And it's not only women who have a thing for flowers: "Men are infiltrating the flower consumption market on all thinkable levels; they all seem to be all closet flower lovers," says Gräbe. For the Aleit Group, coordinating events such as private dinners is as much a part of their portfolio as putting together spectacular weddings. Operational director Hans Roosenschoon has seen a clear shift to entertaining at home. "It's definitely the in-thing, especially when hosts can impress their guests by pulling out all the stops. That's when they call us in. We're briefed to go all out with the catering and décor, and that includes bringing in floral designers."

Trend-wise, he says themed parties are making a comeback. It's like a backlash to the economic mood. "You even see it in the colour schemes; they want fresh, light and summery, not warm, dark colours. Throw in amazing food and wine, how can you not feel positive?"

FLOWER POWER
We asked Franz Gräbe of Franz Gräbe Flower Couture and Hermien Swanepoel of Flowers in the Foyer...

What is the allure of a "bespoke" floral arrangement as opposed to an arbitrary bunch thrown into a vase?
FG: An informal bunch done by a flower enthusiast has its own merit and charm, but a floral sculpture done with the intention of shape, form, rhythm, line and texture has an allure that can move the soul.

HS: Flowers should portray the emotion you want to express or the atmosphere you want to create, which you are more likely to achieve with a bit of thought and effort.

What are the current trends for tables?
FG: There are three trends running parallel at the moment. There's a return to romance and opulence, yet the very formal, stiff, studied, structural designs are also really big. Then there's also a focus on the botanical - think leaves, pods, grasses etc rather than just flowers.

HS: Collecting the components for an arrangement from a garden, beach or forest - no money can buy that. I think the wild, home-grown look is very current, and putting it together can be a really enjoyable experience. I like to use a lot of the same type of flower rather than different varieties. And then, a single, striking bloom can be as good as a selection of flowers.

What is completely "out"?
FG: If you like what I call a "coffin arrangement" in the middle of a rectangular table, never dare to admit it! When it comes to colours, mixed red and white flowers frankly resemble blood and bandages, while mixed red and yellow flowers are at their best hidden from your guests. Very definitely out are gerberas in test tubes. But my advice is never to follow a trend completely, only to be infl uenced by it.

HS: It has to be flowers manipulated into tightly packed symmetrical rows or lines.

Your DIY advice for a table arrangement?
FG: Any repetition on a table of a simple floral unit is most eff ective. Always use candles. Never use cheap looking containers. Keep the colours simple. Don't hesitate to ask for advice from your local florist; it's the only thing you get for free!

HS: The secret is to use an appropriate container to display the flowers.

CONTACTS:
The Aleit Group, Stellenbosch. Tel: 021 887 4448
Flowers in the Foyer, Stellenbosch. Tel: 021 887 8138                                                  Franz Gräbe Flower Couture, Parktown North, Johannesburg. Tel: 011 022 3894
Lush Flowers, Gardens, Cape Town. Tel: 021 423 5503

FLORAL TRENDS Flower trends are not unlike fashion trends; they are transient. Somewhat akin to the nature of flowers. They are often also highly subjective. There are however certain "looks" that are curently considered in style wherever you go. But by the time you read this, they may already be passé.

• Groups of identical containers, each holding one perfect flower. As many containers as you like. It's the overall effect that counts.

• The monochromatic look repeats one colour in mixes of different or same flowers.

• "Outside-in" arrangements feature the flowers as well as the stems enveloped inside a clear vase, with nothing peeking over the rim.

• Inverted proportion arrangements buck the rule of "more top and less bottom", with the flowers sometimes as short as or shorter than the vase. Darker vases, round or square, can secret flowers within, a surprise when viewed from above. Stick to densely packed flowers of the same colour.

STEP-BY-STEP: DIY FLORAL DESIGN

1. For Garth Paton, the owner of Lush Flowers in Cape Town, the trend of the moment is natural, organic and botanical, with mismatched flowers, leaves and even succulents used in a "multi-vase" look. He suggests using interesting containers such as old jam jars, antique carafes, science beakers, glass pudding bowls - perfect for floating the head of a flower - and even used Roses cordial bottles along with standard clear glass vases of differing heights and shapes. The overall look can be as retro or modern as you like.

2. Just about anything blooming in the garden can be used: hydrangeas, agapanthus, camellias and magnolias all work well. For this arrangement, Paton used willowy-looking nigella (found at the side of the road), white roses, pale green proteas, fynbos and a few succulents "to add a wild element".

3. Paton suggests using similar or contrasting textures together, and keeping it either monochromatic (ie all white or all green) or in closely-related hues. For this arrangement, the various tones of green, yellow and white plus contrasting textures creates an eye-catching effect.

4. If you don't have a verdant garden, you can take a mixed bunch of the type Woolworths sells, "dissect it", and isolate the various flowers, each in its own vessel (selected to naturally complement the height and shape of the flower).

Photographs courtesy of The Aleit Group.