Massimo's Masterpieces

Since my mom owns a wedding expo business, I have always been around various florists and flower shops in the East Texas area. However, I have never had the chance to actually sit down, learn about how floral arrangements are made, and actually get to do one myself. A local florist in Castiglion Fiorentino named Massimo Benetti came to Santa Chiara to teach us about what he does for a living. It was a really neat experience to get to watch Max construct several different arrangements right in front of us.  I was very impressed with how fast he was able to make a bouquet or transform a structure into a beautiful masterpiece. One of my favorite pieces he did was the very last one with the sunflowers. He simply took a straw structure that he had previously constructed and then strategically placed different flowers throughout it. After watching him we were able to get our hands on our own flowers and let the creativity flow. I chose to stick with a purple theme and selected flowers that I thought would go best together. I started out with some twigs as my base just like Max used in his first arrangement, and then I slowly added the flowers one by one including my favorite purple roses. I really enjoyed how my bouquet turned out, and am looking forward to the next time I am able to create another one. I have discovered a more profound interest in plants and flowers from taking this course, and a new appreciation for what florists do. I know that I will be able to use the tips that I have learned from the floral design and horticulture classes very frequently in my life. Now when I help out my mom with her wedding expos, I will definitely pay more attention to the different flowers that each of the florists use in their bouquets and arrangements. -CJC