The nature that you'll find is beautiful in the
way that it is curbed with stems, the buds, the
shapes, the seed pods that are dried and it actually
comes to life any time that you want to bring
foraged items into the home.
♪♪
My name is Katie Adams and I
own Stuart Flowers and Gifts in Stuart, Iowa.
Foraging has been part of my story since I took an
interest in flea markets.
I would see a container or get an idea from something
and then I could see and visualize what could go
into that.
When we think about foraging, you might think
back to the American Colonies right away when
they were foraging.
There's a lot of foraging of food.
They were inspired by what was going on with flowers,
it became more of an art form.
And so then to see the different wildflowers and
wild grasses over here that led to continuing the
art form of design.
So if you want to think back to the early start of
here in the United States that is a wonderful way to
celebrate that time period by going out, finding what
you can in Iowa and putting it in a container.
I encourage you to start taking walks outside,
seeing trees differently, seeing flowers
differently.
Take what you need and leave the rest for others
to enjoy.
Katie: Foraging can be done in Iowa year-round
despite the temperatures.
Always make sure that you have permission.
You will want to have some forage tools with you at
all times.
Gloves not only protect you from thorns or
something intrusive but also potential allergy
reactions.
Snips, you'll want a great pair of snips and you'll
want to keep these clean and you'll want to keep
them sharp.
And it's a craft in itself to have a great pair of
snips.
Then you'll want to think about the vessel that
you're using.
Think about different vessels that you have in
your home that you can use.
You can also go and forage for those as well.
They can hang above you, on your wall or on the
table.
Katie: Chicken wire fits the art of foraging
because it will have a looser feel when you do
your design.
I want to quickly share the chicken wire burrito.
And this is where you'll cut to the size based on
your vessel.
You'll roll and you'll start using the cut pieces
to fold in and secure the roll that you've just
done.
And you'll want to fold in your edges rather deeply,
like an inch or so.
And then you'll place it in.
♪♪
Katie: You'll want to start with greens and
then you also want to have different flowers that
have different focal points, larger flowers,
smaller flowers that are fill-in, a filler like a
grass.
And so right now with what we're able to forage, I
went with good old cedar.
But these blue berries on the cedar are absolutely
gorgeous.
Katie: There's already water in here, chicken
wire in here and you will not want any greens in and
below your water line.
I like to arrange and hope you do too and encourage
you to do this with the idea that you're hosting
people around your table, they're gathering and
everyone gets a great view all the way around.
I want to create a little bit more cedar heaviness
here because I'll plan to be heavier with other
items on this side.
And my goal is that that will give us balance.
Balance does not have to mean symmetry, especially
in foraging where you're working with the natural
elements.
♪♪
Katie: This pepper probably gives a little
bit of a wild vibe to the arrangement, but I can't
resist including a fruit or a vegetable in an
arrangement.
Because I went heavy with the cedar here, I am
putting the pepper on this side.
Opposed to approaching a vessel and seeing several
stems, you want to fill in this space.
But this vessel I intentionally chose
because when your stems are longer and you're
working with different flowers that have had a
lot of growing time, this vessel is wide at the
bottom, more narrow at the top and allows for that
collection, that internal stem grid inside to really
come together to a point and stay without too much
fluctuation.
But the stems are long so there is a strong base
there.
In this case, we need that extra support of this
chicken wire.
And I want this to come out a little bit over
here, it's near one in the back that we'll show you
here.
But I prefer a more wild and draped arrangement.
♪♪
Katie: So I'm going to start here in the
back.
I see a great gap of where we could use this dill
texture.
Delightful.
♪♪
Katie: I have been saving this little spot
for this little flower.
♪♪
Katie: The cedar is not quite fitting with
the color.
This is where don't be afraid to change what
you've done.
You're the forager and the designer.
You definitely want some height and decide how to
do it.
The yucca offers a fresh green.
So I'll be sticking these in before we get too far
and then I'll work around.
♪♪
Katie: All right, this might look like bunny
ears but I'm intentionally doing very different
heights so that we don't run into that because
that's what we're not going for.
This green of the cedar is a fresh pop as well so it
ties in here as a great texture and brings that
back a little bit from how we started.
Katie: When I was foraging yesterday, I found this
fun it looks like the top of a coneflower, and I
just think it will add a really fun pop.
♪♪
Katie: Kind of wild, pretty springy,
smells great and that's what we're going with.
Katie: As the seasons change, so will your
foraging adventures and experience.
I encourage you to grab your gloves, snips and
buckets, go out, explore the great outdoors, meet
new friends and neighbors, ask for permission, see
what you can come up with and enjoy your foraging
experience.
♪♪