I almost missed out on Flower Philosophy, thinking it just another pretty floral design guide; then I spied a mushroom altar within its pages. A mushroom altar? Curiosity piqued, I discovered florist Anna Potter’s gorgeous writing about the solace of returning to the wild, the gifts that come with close observation and the wisdom of bending our lives further toward the seasons. Potter’s flower-forward project ideas are first-rate, too—there is a sunburst mandala made of dried flowers, leaves and other summer plants that kind of blows my mind—but even if you never clip a section of floral wire, there is such sweetness and beauty to discover in these pages, along with well-chosen quotes from writers and thinkers and stunning photographs by India Hobson.
Floral design books sometimes make me feel left out, because who but a professional has these kinds of materials at their fingertips? But the beauty of this book earned my attention.