Halifax Public Gardens Ikebana Workshop

Added on June 11, 2014 by the ikebana shop.

The Halifax Public Gardens organized an ikebana workshop at The Lord Nelson last June 10th.

First, Miyako created these two moribana arrangements on-the-spot to give the participants an idea of what they'd be making.

Next, it was their turn...and the fun really started! :-)

One great thing about having the Public Gardens as a sponsor was that we had an abundant supply of branches! Early morning that day, Miyako had visited the gardens and had "helped" with the pruning. :-)

All the participants were intent on learning more about ikebana. They asked many questions and really thought carefully about the placing of the blooms and branches.

Everybody enjoyed!

See the results. Wow! They did not disappoint. Hard to believe everyone was experiencing ikebana only for the first time that night.

By the way, Miyako arrived at the function room early and had a bit of time in her hands so she made a few free-style arrangements to welcome everybody!

Thank you very much to all who joined the workshop. We hope you had an interesting evening. May your interest in ikebana grow further! Thank you Halifax Public Gardens for organizing this event.

Halifax-Hakodate Friendship Azalea

Added on June 10, 2014 by the ikebana shop.

It's that time of the year when the azaleas start to bloom in Halifax.

Tucked in the southwest corner of the Halifax Public Gardens (near the corner of Spring Garden Rd. and Summer St.) is a special azalea bush.

Here is a closer look at the plaque.

Wish we could find a photo of the bush when it was first planted back in 1986 to see how much it has grown!

May the friendship between Halifax and Hakodate grow and deepen further!

Ikebana At The Halifax Public Gardens

Added on June 9, 2014 by the ikebana shop.

It was our first time to do an ikebana demonstration outdoors. It was a bright, warm, sunny day. We were surrounded by wonderful trees. The setting was perfect....

....until the wind started to blow! By normal standards, it was a mildly pleasant breeze. By ikebana standards, it was a bit scary! :-) Those rocks on the table were not ornamental. They were there to keep the table cover from flapping about!

Anyway, Miyako started doing what she did best. At first there were only a few people...

...but not long after, people started to take notice.

Something beautiful was being created here!

And more people came to watch.

Pretty soon, there was a good-sized crowd.

The Public Gardens had let us take some branches from the trees and bushes, like these beautiful rhododendrons. (We added rocks on the kenzan to give it more weight to withstand the wind!)

Also some very lovely crab apple blossoms! Unfortunately, the wind gods were merciless with this arrangement. It got knocked over right after completion! At least people still got a glimpse! :-)

At the end, some curious members of the audience wanted to try using the kenzan!

We thank everyone who spent the afternoon with us. We hope you enjoyed the "show". Thank you to the Halifax Public Gardens, most especially to Ms. Helen MacLean, for making this possible (and for letting us take some of your branches!) Thank you also to Miyako's students who came to offer support. You know who you are!

Ikebana Demo & Workshop At The Lord Nelson

Added on June 1, 2014 by the ikebana shop.

Updated June 5, 2014

Due to unavoidable circumstances, the schedule has been changed as follows:

Jun 8th (Sun), 1:00-3:00 p.m. ikebana demonstration by Miyako at the Halifax Public Gardens. Open to the public.
Jun 10th (Tue) 6:30-8:30 p.m. Beginner ikebana workshop* at The Lord Nelson.

*Advanced registration for workshop is necessary. Please contact Halifax Public Gardens directly.

Our apologies for any inconvenience. See you there!

In celebration of the Nova Scotia Gardening Week, we are working together with the Halifax Public Gardens to present an ikebana demonstration and workshop at The Lord Nelson Hotel (1515 South Park St., Halifax NS) on June 8th, Sunday, 1-4 p.m. The workshop is suited for those who have never tried ikebana before!

The cost for the activity is $30. You get to bring home your arrangement! We will prepare the containers and flowers but participants are asked to bring with them their own floral clippers (your regular gardening clippers are OK!)

Advanced registration is required. Please contact Halifax Public Gardens directly by phone (902) 490-4518 or email.

We hope to see you there!

My Ikebana: Just Maple

Added on May 31, 2014 by the ikebana shop.

Around this time of the year, young branches start to shoot out of the thick trunks of big maple trees.

I took a few branches and decided to use nothing else. This is called isshu-ike (一種生け), creating an arrangement with only one type of material.

It does not possess the colourful gaiety that flowers could bring but branches are great for showing lines and space!

Here is a shot in black-and-white. Please enjoy the space between the branches!

...and here is the whole arrangement.

I hope you like it. --Miyako

My Ikebana: Perpendicular Lines

Added on May 19, 2014 by the ikebana shop.

For this day's challenge, I had chosen a box-like container and had hoped to show some sort of contrast between the corners of the vase and the curves of branches. However, on the branches I had available, there were a few stems that would not allow themselves to be curled into submission. They kept bouncing back! So I decided to use those stubborn parts to put more focus on the perpendicular lines instead.

I set about cutting away the smaller stems. I used pink and white alstroemeria to create mass.

Last but not least, I added a branch that connects the flower container to the ground.

Here is the whole arrangement.

I hope you like it. --Miyako

Etegami Workshop At The Bedford Library

Added on May 11, 2014 by the ikebana shop.

That was a lot of fun! Thank you very much to all the participants of the etegami workshop last Saturday, May 10th, at the Bedford Public Library. Everyone did wonderful work! We hope you all enjoyed!

Special thanks to the Halifax Public Libraries for making this possible!

Find out more about our etegami workshop here.

Bloom Exhibit

Added on May 1, 2014 by the ikebana shop.

Once again, we are working together with our friends at Argyle Fine Art (1559 Barrington St., Halifax). This time the exhibit is called Bloom, showcasing the beautiful floral paintings of Twila Robar-DeCoste. In keeping with the flower theme, Miyako will put up some ikebana arrangements around the exhibit.

BLOOM: New and Recent Works by Twila Robar-DeCoste
& Ceramics by Emerging Artists brought to life by The Ikebana Shop

OPENING RECEPTION: Saturday, May 10th, 1:30-3:30pm
At Argyle FIne Art, 1559 Barrington St., Halifax NS

We'll let the Argyle Fine Art press release speak for itself...

(HALIFAX)- Please join Argyle Fine Art in downtown Halifax for an afternoon filled with ART and FUN for the entire family. We’re launching a new body of work by artist Twila Robar-DeCoste in a show entitled BLOOM, which is fitting as all 14 watercolour and acrylic paintings are celebrating local SPRING flowers that we can all hardly wait to poke their heads out of the ground and greet the SUN. Let’s hope for lots of that too, on Saturday, as we’ll also be showcasing a selection of ceramics by emerging artists that will come to life with living floral arrangements by the talented Miyako Ballesteros from The Ikebana Shop. All artists will be in attendance. The show will continue until May 21st at Argyle Fine Art and online once the show has launched.

Twila Robar-DeCoste has exhibited work throughout Atlantic Canada and Ontario, and her art can be found in many corporate and private collections in North America and Europe. Twila was juried and elected to the Society of Canadian Artists (SCA) in May of 2009. Inspired by the beauty and diversity of nature, Twila creates realistic paintings of natural subjects; birds, butterflies, flowers, landscapes and seascapes. Her paintings are created in watercolour, acrylic and ink. Her work is found in many private and corporate collections in North America and Europe. Twila Robar-DeCoste has illustrated numerous books and publications for such clients as N.S Tourism, The Nova Scotia Museum of Natural history, Agriculture Canada, Ducks, Unlimited, Canadian Geographic and the Municipality of the County of Kings to name a few.

All images provided by Argyle Fine Art.

Added May 11th, 2014:
See photos of the exhibit.

My Ikebana: Sculpting Salal

Added on April 27, 2014 by the ikebana shop.

Salal leaves are already beautiful in themselves so normally, I never think of trying to alter their shape; but my challenge today is to make something "sculptural" with salal!

Salal is not a leaf/branch that bends to one's will easily. If I try to make them curl or force them to take a certain angle, they always bounce back. So, after folding, I slice across the crease. Then, I insert another leaf into the slit to create a three-dimensional shape.

The activity feels more like paper craft than flower arranging!

I add one carnation stem for extra colour.

Here it is... my salal sculpture arrangement!

I hope you like it. --Miyako

A Small Private Workshop

Added on April 9, 2014 by the ikebana shop.

Last night we were host to a very genki (means "lively") group of friends who came for a private ikebana workshop.

Despite some weather setbacks (the workshop, originally planned for last week, had been postponed due to a snowstorm....yes, you read that correctly...snow in April!), we finally got around to doing it!

We hope you enjoyed the workshop!

Thank you everyone for coming. Our special thanks to Shannon P. who organized the whole thing. We really appreciate it!

Learn more about ikebana workshops here.