Miles of Hope

Several months ago, while house hunting in upstate New York, one of the realtors we contacted to show us around the area just so happened to be a reader of ours as well. Her name is Evy Weiss, a jovial, warm-hearted woman with a laugh that lifts you instantly. Her work for Miles of Hope, a non-profit foundation providing support for people affected by breast cancer in the Hudson Valley, fell especially close to home; my own grandmother Dottie is a three-year survivor and still going strong. Well, it didn’t take long before Evy, Jaithan and I became fast friends; she was even a guest for our very first party last spring! It was then, over brunch at our house, that Evy first told me of another, the Miles of Hope Annual Brunch, and would I perhaps consider donating something for auction. Yes, of course, I said, thinking immediately of all the pretty things in our basement, stacked, one upon the other, in precarious piles. But Evy had something else in mind, a demonstration of sorts, wherein a small group of women might gather, perhaps over lunch, and learn a bit of the way I work. After some thought, we decided upon—well, what else?—flowers! Now most of the arrangements I like to do are not expensive; the flowers I find at the grocery store, the bodega, or even my own garden. But it's the vessels, the color palettes, and all the florist tricks that make them look expensive, and that's what I wanted to bring to the demonstration. A Flower Arranging Party for Ten, we called it, and wouldn't you know? It sold! All together, this year's brunch raised over $100,000 for Miles of Hope, and I'm so thrilled that Jaithan and I could be a part of it.      

The winner was Dana Effron, co-founder of the foundation and herself a fifteen-year survivor. There's an ironclad will in Dana—you can hear it in her voice, see it in her eyes—a quality matched only by her overwhelming generosity of spirit. And so last Friday in LaGrangeville, a quiet, country hamlet just east of the Hudson, ten friends gathered for lunch and flowers to support a cause in which they deeply believe.    

Now for the food, Dana served the most delicious spicy gazpacho, followed by a light, flavorful poached salmon, wild rice salad, brownie crisps for dessert and plenty of white wine and Prosecco. Afterwards, we all went out to the pool house, where I'd prepped the space with everything I needed. For the flowers, I'd brought a mix of zinnias, dahlias, snap dragons and roses, all from our garden, together with stock carnations from a wholesale florist nearby. Then, for the greens, I used an assortment of leaves and grasses, all snipped from Dana's garden. And here's a trick of the trade: hostas are one of the easiest ways to hide uneven stems. Simply line the inside of a glass cylinder for a look that's professional and pulled together. Speaking of, remember this one?    

Another beautiful, inexpensive way to enhance a cylinder vase is with ribbon. So when I was preparing for this event, it was all about pink!

First, I layered one shade upon the other, then hot-glued a simple hope ribbon to conceal the seam. This vase I might use on a vanity for brushes, on a desk for pens, or even for a single pillar, perhaps from our friends here.

For this arrangement, I did a mix of hydrangea, stock and pink spray roses. They're not unusual flowers; nor or are they expensive. In fact, all of them are either from our own garden or from a wholesale florist in town. It's what you do with them, I told the group, that makes them look expensive!

The other two arrangements I chose to do in more unusual vessels. First, there was the tulipiere I picked up at Elephant's Trunk for which a carnation arrangement would be perfect. Second, I wanted to use a Revere bowl from our Etsy store to show the group how a grid of floral tape can act as a frog. This arrangement would also have clusters of grapes wired to floral skewers for that special florist's touch.

Here I am filling up the tulipiere with plenty of cold water to keep the flowers fresh.

Now when it comes to carnations, the more the better! This arrangement I think would be such an easy, inexpensive centerpiece for a baby shower or wedding. Two would be fantastic on a fireplace mantel as well. Very Mary Haines from The Women—the 1940s version, of course. And trust me: you don't need a tulipiere to do this. Simply stack a set of glasses or compotes to create a beautiful, one-of-a-kind vessel perfect for a tiered arrangement.

Finally, for the last arrangement of the day, I began by showing the group how to wire the grapes to the floral skewers. Make sure to do it from the stem, I told them, so they're attached securely.

Check out the finished arrangement! The dahlias and snap dragons are from our garden, while the grapes are from the grocery store. An arrangement like this would certainly be in the triple digits at a fancy florist in New York, so why not recreate the look for less yourself? Oranges, limes, pomegranates—even artichokes—all make for unusual and beautiful additions to flower arrangements.

In fact, for the workshops we're doing at Creative Candles in Kansas City this week, fresh fruit is a key component in the mix. Stay tuned for a full recap, but in the meantime, join me on Twitter for Friday's event from 11-1 CT as it happens! 

Comments

[Johan]

U r needed @ a castle in Sweden. Have an e-mail? jisberg1@hotmail.com

[star]

eddie- i love your blog, and this post was wonderful! i enjoy reading your entries!can you please tell me where i can find the beautiful pink ribbon in the pictures?

[amber]

Breathtaking! Just lovely!

[Clarity]

It is charming that such beauty came about for a good cause.

I especially adore the spray rose concoction. The dahlia and grape arrangement is so decadent, it seems to have evolved from Marie Antoinette's table. What is your inspiration?

[cristin]

Love these arrangements and the layered ribbon on the glass vase is my fav.

Great cause - far too many woman have and are battling this terrible disease.

xo,
cristin

[Dana]

Looks like everyone weighed in but me! Eddie and Jaithan, I can't say thanks enough for the wonderful day we all spent together. Learned so much about flower arranging but even better I made two new friends.

Thank you, thank you, thank you.

Dana

[Heather]

Thanks for great tips Eddie - I am assisting with a breast cancer fundraiser in October (a fashion show) and I look forward to incorporating some of these ideas into our centerpieces!

[Mary]

Eddie, You are thoughtfull and generous besides being talented! I would love to attend an instructional arranging class by you. My favorite is the roses and hydrangeas, I love the simple adornement of the ribbon and even I could arrange that! They were all stunning but that arrangemtent was special.

[pve]

Eddie & Jaithan,
You both are so wonderful. I love the way you just take on life, with such gratitude. What a better way to show your appreciation than with flowers. I illustrated a wedding and the florist "The Flower Firm" used carnations....and it was fabulous....I said -Oh now Eddie would love this.
Say hi to that bubbly "Evy"- I liked her when I met her at your brunch.
pve

[NenaghGal]

Just beautiful Eddie - what a great cause! Would have loved to have been there. Lisa

[Caitlin]

Wow! I bet the ladies loved you! I loved how classy the carnations look in the tulipiere.

I used to work as an event planner for the American Cancer Society and met the most amazing people. Thanks for bringing attention to this cause.

[Sadaf Trimarchi]

Fantastic!!! Totally blown away, and am mentally bookmarking this post for future reference. Your teaching donation is such a wonderful idea! And for such a great cause (I'm running for the first time in NYC at the race for the cure 5k).

Keep up the great work Eddie - I just love your site!

[Evelyn Weiss]

Dear Eddie and Jaithan,

Oh, my! I don't even know how to thank you. This post brought tears to my eyes and extra beats to my heart. Your kind words about me were such a sweet surprise!

I love you both dearly, and it's been an honor to work with you and witness the talents you each possess.

The afternoon was such fun, and I'm so glad you really meant yes! I adore the photo of you laughing (I can hear you!) and that blissful look as you "watered" the flower bowls.

xoxo
Evy
http://www.prudentialserls.com/evelyn.weiss

[Shawn]

Eddie, I love the one with the grapes and your previous arrangement with the thistle is still one of my favorites.

[Katarina]

The flower arrangement with the grapes is lovely! :)

[Kary Gonyer]

Oh, Eddie...you are not only a talented person, but a caring and giving one as well.

How lovely the flowers are...as are you.

Kindest Regards,
Kary and Butterscotch

[d&l]

Loved your post. You are such an inspiration. So love your blog. Will be following you on twitter on Friday.
d&l
http://www.shopshelbylynn.blogspot.com

[Kara Hebert]

Eddie!
You are so cute I could just squeeze you!! I love the demonstration. You should check out this cottage I am trying to buy in my last post - it's seriously drool worthy. I think even YOU would approve my love.
xx
Kara

[Engred]

Great post as usual Eddie! Following the link back to your first party at the new house, I noticed you mentioned that the silver coffee pot you used for the brunch was from a junk shop in London. As I am going to be in London for a few days in early September, with some time to shop, I would love to find out the name of the junk shop and any other shopping suggestions you have for London (or Florence or Rome).
Thanks again and let me know if you ever consider a trip to Portland, OR!

[mss]

You do well and you do good. Beautiful job!

[Darci]

As always I love the easy flower arrangements that have that expensive look. I have a plethora of calalily leaves - can I lone the vases with those instead of hostas.

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[Judy Gomberg]

Eddie-where are we meeting tomorrow and Pu-leeze bring the Edie Beale pitcher. This was a hoot, so much fun and a perfect final course to finish Dana's wonderful meal. I was smart to be "Lucky." Thanks again-- Dana, Eddie and Jaithan--Best, Judy Gomberg--Already gave ur name to a friend.

[Shannon]

Looks like an excellent day! Miles of Hope is an amazing organization and Dana and amazing woman! Looks like you fit right it!
Thanks for your support and generosity!

[Kathysue]

Eddie, You are such a gifted talent and even more important than that you have the gift of giving of yourself. You just keep chalking up points in my book, the more I know of you the more I respect and admire you. Love ya, Kathysue

[Bette]

What a timeless, selfless act of kindness. This was a great post. Good things happen to good people!

Bette

[Mimi]

What a lovely charity...Your flower arranging party is great idea and looks like so much fun! Brought me back to my floral designing days and why I loved it so much...Good luck! This is a wonderful cause.

[Amphritrite]

You're a good man, Eddie Ross (and a cracker-jack flower-arranger, too!)

[Karena]

Lovely! The impromptu frog with the revere bowl, great idea!

[LeilaMac]

Your arrangements are always so lovely and creative. I could just look at the pictures all day. :) Thanks for the constant inspiration!

[Cherry@NewburghRestoration]

That is awesome to be apart of that. But I really appreciate that you don't use expensive flowers. The carnations look so dainty.

[Kate]

Eddie -- This is fabulous. Such great ideas! I'm very, um, shall we say, "flower arranging challenged," and this post helps people like me. Thank you!

As an aside, thank you so much for your support of BC awareness and service to the community. My girlfriends and I are walking in the 3 day walk for breast cancer in New York City in the fall. We'll include Dottie as one of the women "we're walking for" as an honored survivor. We're all in this together!

- kate

[LindsB]

I LOVE the last arrangement- it is so beautiful with that touch of dark purple from the grapes! What a fantastic idea to use grapes, I never would have thought :)

[Shandell's]

Looks like you had a great time, the flowers are beautiful. Enjoy your workshops. See you and Jaithan when you get home.
XOXO

[Monica]

What a great charity! You're such a nice guy Eddie, and the class/arrangements look gorgeous!

[Carrie]

What lovely flower arrangements!!

[lamaisonfou blog]

What a wonderful & beautiful engagement!
I love doing something for such noble and worthwhile causes. Alas, the flowers are great too! Love the double wrapped ribbon vase!
Leslie

[Jac Boutique]

Heard it was such a great event! Hope to meet you soon ER!!

[sheista]

What a great day!
I love the pic of you filling up the vessels with water. Just something about it....

Thanks for sharing.

[Joyce]

Looks like a perfect day to create beautiful arrangements for a wonderful cause!

xoxo

PS I hope you enjoyed the cookies

[Jill]

So lovely - floral arranging has to be my number one favorite hobby. I love that you use carnations so eloquently. I used to abhor them, but I think I am coming around... clustered together they look so pretty!

[Pru]

I have been looking at your blog for a long time but never felt the need to comment, but what you did was wonderful. To give up your time and do such a thoughtful presentation. Well done! I loved how everything matched - even down to the scissors all being of the right palate. The flowers looked beautiful and I will be giving the task a try over the weekend.

Thank you.

Pru

[julie]

I love the pic of you laughing. I've just realized the one common thread of all your posts is... happiness! Thanks

[The Blushing Hostess]

Oh, its lovely, in sentiment, but also easy on the eyes. Wonderful of you to call attention to this is lovely way.