Dominant Christmas decorator

If you ask yourself what the most prevalent Christmas material is you would first think of pine greens and other traditional materials. Yet worldwide first place must surely be ceded to the poinsettia. Dominantly present, widely accepted as a Christmas symbol, and the most cultivated potted plant in the world.

'Creating warmth and light with flowers'

Oliver was born into flowers, his parents owning a garden center near Ostend. While training as a florist in Belgium and the Netherlands, he learned to transform the balance and beauty of nature into floral design, seeking the perfect harmony in his creations.

'Christmas I think is a fun and cozy celebration. You just see people getting happy because of the Christmas craziness. And of course it is also a family event. I have a close relationship with my family and together we celebrate a cozy Christmas. With floral creations you can bring warmth and light inside.

In the run-up to Christmas, there are a lot of decorations on the agenda. Thereby it is always fun to challenge yourself to create something original. Usually I start with drawing, that's how the ideas arise and I can start experimenting. I like to try out new materials. That design process does take a few days. As far as color is concerned, this year I am going for wine red, a color that is also very popular in fashion. Also, the traditional red and green will return - those remain classics.'

'I like to surprise. For example, I made some things in black, something people don't immediately associate with Christmas. That way you create something completely different for a change.'

Christmas, feast of light

Just when the days are shortening, floral designers can add warmth, glow and a festive touch to interiors with their arrangements. Handcrafted creations, natural materials and playful accents in wine red, bronze, gold or surprising black link an individual story to every room. Family and friends gather around the table, floral creations bring warmth and coziness. In the darkest time of the year, Christmas is rightfully the feast of light.

'Shaping what wants to emerge'

Botanical artist Erik Lockley has more than 30 years of experience in floral design. For the clients of his Flower Shop in Antwerp, he creates field bouquets, special arrangements for top restaurants and designs gardens. Erik does not create floral arrangements but shapes what wants to be created.

'Christmas for me means celebration of light. The days grow longer again, life begins again, towards spring. Even though the flowers are still in the fields, their heads are hanging down because it is winter. They are dying, but also already bear life for the new year: the seeds that will soon fall into the earth. Broken branches are dead, but in combination with living materials you get a certain tension. That, too, is Christmas.

'For inspiration, I simply listened to the field, to the materials, to the space, and that's how these pieces were created. The creations are mainly based on light, on life, on direction, on balance between winter and summer. In the summer the materials have grown and now they come to their full potential here.'

Midwinter Magic

In the winter season, the world sounds just a little softer. The colors
shift to grayer tones, shapes and textures clearly outline themselves. In arrangements, each flower and branch is given its own stage.

'Working with a rich, wintry palette'

Floral designer Hanneke Frankema, as a native Frisian, loves the winter season very much. 'Creating a winter atmosphere is always a fun challenge. For a distinct winter atmosphere, working with candle wax remains very powerful - it has a beautiful cool sheen and a very wintry look that consumers find very special. By coating substrates of simple Styrofoam shapes (from packaging material) in quiet hours with a layer of candle wax, you can sell quite a lot of it during the Christmas and winter season.'

She thinks sustainability is something to consider more and more. 'Winter for me is also working with 100 percent natural materials. And reusing packaging or residual materials, for example, are very widely applicable. By placing bamboo tubes as water reservoirs on residual materials such as wooden cylinders, for example, you very quickly create slender objects that work powerfully as a group but also attract attention as single-flower objects.'

A peaceful look and cuddliness are also part of winter. 'A wreath of Davallia roots with Gypsophila 'Million Daisy' needs only three white Clematis flowers. But also consider mixing plants and cut flowers. Dried Corokia gives a beautiful gray winter look, Tillandsia matches it in color and appearance. With beautiful Gloriosa, Clematis, Scabiosa, Phalaenopsis, Bromelia and Polianthes tuberosa, a rich, winter palette is then created.'