Wow! Like night and day isn't it?

I think you can see quite a difference between the basic hat form unadorned, and the hat decorated with flowers.

We are obviously using so called silk flowers, (more recently known as permanent botanicals) which result in a much longer lasting piece than if we styliized this using fresh flowers.

The variety of permanents available to modern floral designers is truely awesome.

There are various price points in permanents ranging from more moderate materials to very expensive.

We can choose silks based upon our favorite flowers--or pick fantasy flowers that one may never find in nature or the green house.

Alternatively we can choose according to color. This implies that our hat can incorporate the favorite color(s) of the person who will wear it. Better still, we can coordinate the colors of the flowers on the hat with the color in the other clothes that will be worn along with it.

Construction of the floral part of the hat is quick and easy.

One of two general approaches can be used.

We could simply glue the permanents on to the hat, starting at the top, and gradually working out way down, alternating the materials, (primary silk, permanent foliage, and fillers)

Alternatively, this design can be built on a wire infrastucture, with the various silk materials taped down to the wire skeletal structure. The entire unit can then be either glued or wired/tied to the hat.

Here is another view of the completed hat design, taken from a slightly different angle.

Although we are definitely featuring this design as something to be worn, keep in mind that this flower hat could also be adapted as a design to decorate a wall. In other words it is useful as a hanging item as well.

We hope that you really enjoyed this brief floral design lesson. At Rittners Floral School in Boston we provide floral design instruction that includes a wide range of different styles and techniques. Please come and take one of our hands-on workshop programs!!

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