In A Vase On Monday – Late Summer Basket
Today, the first Monday in September, is designated as Labor Day in the United States. It has been a federal holiday since 1894 to recognize the importance and contributions of workers. It is also time again to join in Cathy’s challenge In A Vase On Monday. The goal is to fill a vase using materials gathered in one’s own garden.
Although I love blue-hued flowers my garden most often seems to be filled with pink ones. Since for today’s arrangement I avoided reusing multicolored Zinnias and yellow Rudbeckia, today’s Monday vase is also filled with pink flowers.
Everlasting Sweet Pea is blooming better than it did at springtime and Obedient Plant is in its prime. Most of the Echinacea is attractive now only to the American goldfinches, but I found one large, fresh bloom to include. For a touch of blue I also chose a handful of Salvia guaranitica ‘Black and Blue’ and more pink, a few stems of Verbena bonariensis.
Pinkish hues dominate the garden’s blooms: Everlasting Sweet Pea, Obedient Plant, Echinacea
I collected a mix of greenery to support the arrangement, so much in fact I later had to remove quite a bit to allow the flowers to stand out. The foliage is dark green Japanese holly, bright yellowish-green, Wintergreen boxwood and silvery Dutch Lavender.
Dark and light green and silvery foliage was used for this late summer arrangement.
The arrangement was created using floral foam in a shallow, plastic dish. The vase today is a small potato basket.
In A Vase On Monday
The basket is one of the first baskets I made one autumn many years ago during a 4 or 6-week program at The Arts Center in Carrboro.
Potato basket-detail
Potato basket-detail
Materials
Flowers
Echinacea purpurea (Purple Coneflower)
Lathyrus latifolius (Everlasting Sweet Pea)
Physostegia virginiana (Obedient Plant)
Salvia guaranitica ‘Black and Blue’
Verbena bonariensis (Tall Verbena)
Foliage
Buxus microphylla var koreana ‘Wintergreen’ (Wintergreen boxwood)
Ilex crenata (Japanese holly)
Lavandula x intermedia ‘Dutch’ (Dutch Lavender)
Mechanics
Lomey 6″ clear designer dish
Floral foam
Handmade basket
I found this old photo of my baskets. Commercial dyes were used to color the reeds and the color has faded considerably. The egg basket handles were formed of wisteria vine, a material easily found in my yard at the time. For several months my kitchen was filled with basketmaking materials. I made baskets for my daughter, my sisters and a special friend and gave them as Christmas presents that year and then never made another one.
Susie’s Baskets
Thanks to Cathy at Rambling In The Garden for hosting. Discover what she and others are placing In A Vase On Monday.
pbmGarden 
Susie, I love the basket, I love the foliage and I love the flowers. A stunning mixture that is just gorgeous….really, really gorgeous!!
Thanks Donna. It’s fun each week to just create something.
I’m glad you kept one of those beautiful baskets for yourself. It must bring back happy memories and this week it’s the perfect home for your pretty arrangement.
Thanks Marian. Baskets always seem just the right container for summer flowers.
And I have just put all my wisteria prunings in our garden waste bin – think of all those potential basket handles!! 🙂 You always get such a good balance of flowers and foliage in your ‘vases’ and today is no exception – it looks really professional! Thanks for sharing it with us
Thanks, I was wishing I had a few more flowers in good condition today but didn’t find many. Wisteria works well for baskets and those tendrils can add interest. Next year you’ll have an alternative for those prunings Cathy!
Your arrangements are always so pretty. I have a few handmade baskets but have never made one. Your basket is so well made. 🙂
Thanks so much! I enjoyed making the baskets for a short time, but they’re more complicated than I’d expected.
Very nice!! Last season my husband accidentally mowed down my Obedience plants. And I really like them. Blooming now.
Thanks Beverly. If you need some more let me know. I have to keep pulling them out to keep them under control
Beautiful arrangement, the obedience plant really stands out, and I like all the greenery.
Funny how you got your fill o the baskets and moved on. Good for you that you didn’t overdo it until all the fun was gone.
Thanks. The obedient plant has been pretty aggressive, but then it blooms and looks so nice I’m glad I didn’t quite get rid of it. The baskets were very fun for a while and interesting to construct.
Lovely flowers and lovely baskets. I’m sure they were a joy to create.
Thanks John. LIke many things in life, when I was working on the baskets they were frustrating at times, but ultimately rewarding.
The baskets are beautifully made and gorgeous colours, you are very talented at so many different things Susie. I too seem to have a lot of pink flowers, I did another arrangement using some of the Asters from last weeks vase with more Dahlias and Cosmos. I suppose I should decide on a colour scheme for the cuttings beds for next year but I quite like the haphazard nature of making something from what’s there rather than it all being thought out before. You always put your flowers together so well.
Thanks Christina. My basketmaking time was short-lived, but one of the most fun aspects was experimenting with the colors. Good luck working out your cutting garden color scheme. I agree it is interesting to keep some spontaneity.
It’s a lovely arrangement Susie – romantic and perfect for late summer. The foliage mix is especially well-chosen. I like the baskets too. I bet you’re glad you didn’t give them all away!
Thanks Cathy, I am glad I kept a few of the baskets–they can be very useful on occasion. Finding appropriate foliage is a challenge sometimes–may have to plant something in particular but not sure what.
Beautiful arrangement. I’ve made one basket in my life. Everyone should make at least one to appreciate what goes into the making of a beautiful hand-made basket. 🙂
Judy, I’d love to see your basket sometime if you still have it. It was a surprise to me how complex the basket patterns can be.
The baskets look like quite a project. They aren’t easy to make, so I’m impressed you made so many. Very creative using one as a vase for your flowers today and, as always, a beautiful creation.
Thanks Stephi! Making the baskets took some dedication, but it was a worthwhile project in the end.
Your arrangement is very pretty – the obedient plant was a great choice! Love the baskets, too!
Thanks Elizabeth. Glad I hadn’t managed to get rid of all the obedient plant because it is attractive. Just wish it wouldn’t spread so much.
What an unusual vase, Susie, and so full of harmony and so well balanced. That coneflower is so pure and perfect – is it a special variety?
Thanks very much Annette. Sadly I don’t know the name of the coneflower and it was the only one of any size on the plant. I admit I had to brush aside a couple of pollinators in order to bring it indoors–felt a little guilty about that.
The flowers are beautiful, Susie, but I’m especially impressed by the baskets! Why did you give up making them?
Thanks Kris. The basketmaking became, like many of my projects, all-consuming and I just didn’t have enough time.
Great arrangement and I love the baskets you made. Clever you.D.
Thanks Dorris. The weekly vases are fun and for that one fall, I really enjoyed making the baskets too. They were frustrating at times though.