Today is Mark's 70th birthday. We had a big party Saturday night to celebrate the occasion and didn't take one photo. We were going to capture a few shots of the table and the food but it never happened. So this morning I quickly ran around the house snapping photos of the bouquets that I put together early Saturday morning.
The window sill above the kitchen sink: Everyone always congregates in the kitchen so you know flowers are a must for that room.
His bathroom. When it comes to Heuchera leaves and flowers, I usually can't identify them. I just walk through the garden looking for colors that work with my vase and the room where it goes.
Her bathroom. I used two of my favorite plants: Calamintha nepeta ssp. nepeta and the seedheads of Perilla with the purple leaves pulled off.
On the bookshelves in the library. I just freshened this arrangement with a pink Sedum flowerhead and the flowers from Heuchera 'Grape Expectations' to echo the touch of pink in Mark's pastel on the wall above.
On the altar table in the living room. A touch of drama to go with the container and the gold screen behind.
On the fireplace mantle in the living room. A Dahlia flower opened just in time for the party.
Mark found this vase last summer at a garage sale. It's heavy enough to hold tall stems without getting tippy. And it fits nicely in-between the framed artwork on this wall.
The birthday boy: This photo was taken earlier this summer by one of Mark's friends — George, the artist — who more or less lives on State St. Mark's taken many photos of George over the last couple of years. George has taken only two pictures of Mark and I love them both. I used this one on the invitation to Mark's b-day party.
To see what other gardeners have put in a vase today, visit Cathy at Rambling in the Garden who hosts this Monday meme.
What a youthful 70 Mark looks! Thanks for sharing all your little vases - you will empathise with how I managed not to take any pictures at Younger Daughter's wedding earlier this year! I especially like the tall heavy vase that Mark found.
Posted by: Cathy | Monday, September 12, 2016 at 11:23 AM
I'm sure all your guests thought the flowers lovely; they really add to a celebration.
Posted by: Christina | Monday, September 12, 2016 at 11:43 AM
Happy Birthday to Mark - a joyous celebration for 7 decades! Your arrangements so suit their spaces. I found it interesting that you defoliated your perilla - I wouldn't have thought of that!
Posted by: Eliza Waters | Monday, September 12, 2016 at 02:18 PM
Happy birthday to your husband! You did a great job with all the vases, Linda - the contents are well-matched to the containers and the placement sets each off perfectly. My favorite is the one in your bathroom but I'm impressed by that dahlia too.
Posted by: Kris P | Monday, September 12, 2016 at 02:24 PM
Linda, each of your vases is nicely rendered and it's fun to see glimpses of the art work in your home. Happy Birthday to Mark.
Posted by: Susie | Monday, September 12, 2016 at 06:23 PM
Your vases are a nice addition to the party. Happy Birthday Mark. Hard to believe he is 70. I am with you in regards to the picture of Mark, it is terrific.
Posted by: Lisa at Greenbow | Monday, September 12, 2016 at 07:50 PM
Happy birthday to Mark! All your vases are wonderful. I think my favorite is the Calamintha. How is the vase life with that plant? It's one of my favorite plants, but I've never tried it in a vase.
Posted by: Beth @ PlantPostings | Monday, September 12, 2016 at 08:10 PM
Having flowers throughout the house during a party is such a nice touch, happy birthday Mark!
Posted by: Loree / danger garden | Monday, September 12, 2016 at 11:42 PM
Beth — Beth I cut the Calamintha early Saturday morning and used stems that were quite full of open flowers. They are definitely fading this morning, so that's four days. But I think it would not be as obvious if they weren't the main flowers in the bouquet. I usually use them more as filler rather than the star!
Posted by: Linda from Each Little World | Tuesday, September 13, 2016 at 07:40 AM
Susie — my husband and I both have art backgrounds so we have a lot of our own art on display along with work by artist friends. A couple of times per year we change it around as we own more than we have room to display.
Posted by: Linda from Each Little World | Tuesday, September 13, 2016 at 07:48 AM
Eliza — The perilla leaves were rather shredded from the weather. Plus I decided I wanted to emphasize the green and white combo and the purple leaves would have distracted from that. I love the seedheads so I always have it growing in the garden!
Posted by: Linda from Each Little World | Tuesday, September 13, 2016 at 07:51 AM
No doubt your arrangements were the hit of the party! What a nice shot of Mark. Do wish him a belated happy birthday. Yours is obviously one of those May-December marriages as we know you're in your early thirties.
Posted by: Peter/Outlaw | Tuesday, September 13, 2016 at 09:09 PM