Bowl of Creepers

Sunday morning ( 6 June) is normally a day of rest for me. But somehow this morning I feel energetic and would not waste the cool and cloudy early morning hours whiling away my time. I therefore decided to clear some woody climbers around the chalet that have become unruly and out of control. Two climbers became my target. First, the Bignonia ( Bignonia magnifica) which has mauve- pink flowers that are bell - shape. I had them planted over the bird's aviary which is located by the southern side of my chalet. It is a vigorous climber. The flowers are large and showy, but wilt immediately if plucked. This remains my morning challenge. How to keep them good all day?.

Next, the Maiden's Jealousy ( Tristellateia australasiae) which has just started to establish itself on a wooden pole nest to the huge yellow bamboo clump. The Maiden's Jealousy is a slender climber and thus very suitable for chain link fence, pergolas or trellis. Its small yellow flowers are arranged in pyramidal sprays. I love them because they are free flowering and regularly producing big yellow masses of colour

The mauve-pink colours of the Bignona are very compelling to me and always seems to catch my attention. I was thinking, how do you put interest into them ? First mauve- pink is close to purple in colour and the next thing I think of purple is ' purple heart'. Then , again yellow as in the 'Maiden's Jealousy' invoke the very strong emotions of jealousy. What if you combine the two emotions? How could they become interesting? Water always add interest, I thought. Why not mix them in water?. Without much ado, I immediately set my foot indoors to look for a bowl that could sufficiently accommodate a few petals of Bignonia and Maiden's Jealousy and Jasmine . Below is how it turned out to be. This view taken from top, shows a frangipani flower added for that special interest and symmetry and also to magnify the small white flowers of the Jasmine. Thirdly, the frangipani provides a lively contrast to the whole composition and a lot more fragrant.

Arangement#26

Below is the bowl in its first stage with the Bignonia flowers floating in it. This alone is already a finished piece,I thought. However on second thought, it may appear too plain. Therefore I decided to add other flowers at make a contrast of colours interesting.

Bignonias are believed to be originated from Colombia, but grows very well here too because we enjoy the same tropical climate and lots of sunny days. ..I name the completed piece... Bowl of Creepers.