Digital photography permits the student to take many different angles of the arrangement.  By doing so the evaluation is more comprehensive and the student gains more from the home-study floral design course.

Studying at home has been utilized for many years, but the long wait period between processing film, mailing pictures and waiting for a response has now been reduced to a fraction of the time.  Even if the student wishes to contract with the school—for a separate fee—they can use Skype, and the instructor can watch them create an arrangement.   Often in the process of designing the teacher can offer suggestions, such as how to hold a knife, that will help the student achieve a better final product.  It would be a virtual classroom.

Florists are still producing a tangible product that evokes emotion, but how they learn to accomplish that can be done in many different ways.   Studying at home isn’t the same anymore.

click here to read more about Distance Learning programs and the course offered by The Center for Floral Studies.

Educational material such as books and DVD’s aid the student in practicing their flower arrangements at their own pace. Since so many wonderful fresh flowers are available in the supermarkets and discount stores all the students needs is the instructional material and nonperishable mechanics, such as containers and wet foam, to create their floral designs offered in the distance learning class.

The other side of the coin is that the students must be self motivated in getting the work done during a reasonable time frame. While there shouldn’t be a cut off time for the student to complete the floral correspondence course, he needs to remain committed to work toward the final goal—finish the class as soon as possible.

If a student can allocate time they may find it best to physically come into the classroom. There the instructor is touching the arrangement checking for sound mechanicals. A photo wouldn’t reveal any mechanical discrepancies, such as too many holes in the wet foam allowing flowers to fall out. It would be up to the student to check on the solidness of their designs.

click here to read more about Distance Learning programs and the course offered by The Center for Floral Studies.

The important thing is to find a program that best suits that particular student’s needs. They should ask themselves, what are the most important aspects I take from the class? Is it mechanics, elements and principles color harmony, or something else? Then seek out a remote floral study program that fills those needs.

Don’t be afraid to call the Director of the school offering the floral home-study program. If you feel more comfortable having a conversation with the person, or people who are evaluating your work, then do so. And ask for references. Has someone else taken this course that I can contact?

click here to read more about Distance Learning programs and the course offered by The Center for Floral Studies.

Field Trips

In the past students attending the classes have had the occasional opportunity to go on a one-day field trip as part of the course.  The students pictured here recently attending the Society of American Florists Convention in Orlando.

While at the conference the students watched designers as they participated in the Sylvia Cup Competition.  Afterwards they the class took in the Outstanding Varieties Competition featuring the latest and best in new flower cultivars.

Click the Center’s Video Tab to view a brief video of the competition.

During the Advanced Course students visit area shops. Here, shop owner and instructor, Vince Petrovsky AAF, AIFD, explains the Point-of-Sale computer system in his shop.  Vince also talks with the students about the process in taking a wedding order.  The students leave the shop with a stronger sense of what goes into running a florist.

(Students visiting a local orchid greenhouse.)

John Klingel, AAF, AIFD, PFCI, judges the Interflora World Cup

By Heidi Anderson, editor

The 13th Interflora World Cup was held March 26-28, 2010, in Shanghai, China. The prestigious floral art competition, held every four years, showcases the highest standard of domestic floristry. Aiming to advance the horticultural industry, this event brought together Interflora florists from 20 countries around the world.

The 2010 theme was kept secret until one week before the event. Designers were required to create a table setting with the theme ‘Green Tea for Two,’ a bridal bouquet themed ‘Oriental Petal,’ a ‘surprise item’ and an exhibit of the designer’s choice with the theme ‘Flowers of the Orient.’ The top 10 florists move on to the finals, where they compete for the World Cup title. Designers used two surprise items in their design, which forms part of the unique floral fashion show.

The six World Cup judges were, Karen Barnes, Interflora UK; Greg Block, Interflora Australia; Yutaka Jinbo, FTD; John Klingel, FTD; Rolf Torhaug, Fleurop; and Nicole von Boletzk, Fleurop. Norway won first place, Switzerland took second, and Korea third.

Judge John Klingel, AAF, AIFD, PFCI, director of The South Florida Center for Floral Studies, spent a week in China absorbing the competition and the culture. He took in the differences between floral designers of the east and west.

“Western designers tend to be less detailed-oriented and work to finish a job quickly,” he said. “It also seems that the oriental culture gives more thought to their work, which really shows in the finished arrangement.”

Klingel and the other judges used scoring sheets to rate each arrangement for all of the themes.

“I thought the themes of the competition were wonderful because they inspired creativity,” he said. “The designers took full advantage of the ideas and expressed themselves very well through their work.”

The work of the first-place winner from Norway was Klingel’s favorite.

“His work was uncomplicated and very clean,” he said. “In the surprise package, where a very talented designer can show his best work, he kept the design simple and creative. He used the wheel as an armature, building his floral arrangement around the spokes. I thought it was brilliant.”

After spending time with florists from around the world, Klingel came home with a fresh perspective on flowers in America.

“In the U.S., consumers are looking for a good value,” he said. “This means very fresh flowers and a generous amount – lots of perceived value. Especially in a down economy, consumers want to see lots of flowers that last a long time for the money spent.”

And Klingel will never forget the time he spent in China.

“It was truly a once-in-a-lifetime experience,” he said.

Photos:

From left to right: John Klingel, USA; Greg Block, Australia; Karen Barnes, UK; Rolf Torhaug, Norway; Yutaka Jimbo, Japan; Peter Johnston (Judges Liaison from New Zealand) and Nicole von Brutzky, Switzerland.

Placing first in the hand-tied category was Norway with this beautiful design of green anthurium, Phalaenopsis orchid sprays, callas, hanging amaranthus, roses and bromeliads. The design had to represent the future of floral compositions, which would be delivered by the Interflora Mercury Man.

The surprise package included a large container and two bicycle wheels in addition to an assortment of flowers. The designer from Norway, who won the competition, created this arrangement. Here, the designer used the bicycle wheel as an armature structure. He inserted the flower stems through the spokes of the wheel. The stems of the flowers were placed into the container. The judges felt that his was the most creative use of the wheel, which helped him score higher than the other contestants.

The contestant from England used two bicycle wheels. One was placed at the base of the container and the other was used vertically. This design was more complex and used more of the product, but it just goes to show that sometimes, small and simple is better.

Greg Block, Rolf Torhaug, Yutaka Jimbo and Karen Barnes closely examine a hand-tied bouquet during the final day of judging.

Save an additional $25.00 off all courses by enrolling 30 days prior to the class starting date.

We recommend that students contact the school’s office at 561-684-8100 or email john@centerforfloralstudies.com for verification on the class date they are interested in.  Dates are subject to change.

FAX 561-684-9388
www.centerforfloralstudies.com

South Florida Center for Floral Studies

360 South Congress Ave., West Palm Beach, FL 33406

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Distance Learning Classes Available in Floral Design