Paula Pryke

Friday, 6 May 2011

Everyday Flowers to be published Spring 2012

Anita working with me this week on the shoot for my new flower book out next Spring!

My Garden looking splendid with Alliums! Rachel Whiting is my talented photographer for this project and she has taken some fabulous shots!

Sarah Rock the Art Director and Designer

Tip toeing through the Alliums

Asters, Stocks and Phlox with Stachys Byzantine or Bunnies Ears!

This is the best time to be in the UK!

"It should have been me!" Well of course you all know that if I had brought trees into the Abbey they would have been pink!

Romance has been in the air and my favourite plant for this season has been Dicentra Spectabilis Bleeding Hearts!

Its been a great year for the Dandelions! Lack of winds have kept them more intact.

The Bluebell woods near my home in Suffolk have been spectacular!

The magnificent Horse Chestnuts in our area are struggling from disease but they flowered profusely this Spring.

The calm weather has been bad for reproduction!

As an X-Hay Fever sufferer I know there are many that will be happy to see this yellow fade!

The first green of Spring is so vibrant. The Hornbeams and Maples in the Westminster Abbey had this glow!

Bluebells

You just want to bottle it!

Wild orchids in the woods!

Connie (named after Mrs Spry!)

Frustrated Dandelions waiting for the wind!

I can't imagine going through the winter without some ivy berries but here they are about to strangle and kill this ancient Beech.

Blue skies, calm winds, sunny weather - you can't beat Spring in sunny Britain!

Tuesday, 30 November 2010

Demonstration at Dullingham Flower Club

On the 11th November we packed up two vans and swept up the M11 on a wild and windy autumn night to Dullingham which is between Newmarket and Cambridge!
I don't usually have the time to do evening demonstrations for flower clubs but Lesley Bird who organises this club was very persuasive and managed to pack the hall with over a hundred guests. Itwas a fabulous evening and I was helped on stage by Anita and Hisako while my neice Katie efficiently organised the book sales!

Thanks to Lesley Bird and the flower enthusiasts of Dullingham.
Grateful thanks also to Waitrose for their sponsorship! - Next demo stop - San Diego in April!

Anita, Hisako and Paula on stage!

White Amaryllis is a great favourite of mine for the festive season.

A typical Paula Pryke colour combo!
I adore pink and purple together as
any one who has visited our London
Studio will know!

Waxed mini apples in all the colours are inspiring our
Christmas Decorations.

This new luminous wire by
the Smithers Oasis company is
fabulous for corporate flowers!

Festive white and green topiary

Multicoloured Xmas

Birch is such a wonderful and useful wood!

Conical Topiary

Favourite Decorations

Hanging decorations are my favourite at the moment!

Exotic hanging decorations!

Paula visits the Aalsmeer Show, Holland

Always on the lookout for new pink rose varieties. "Taboo" is a new large pink rose with a large head and last for two weeks in a vase:

This red "Naomi" heart was a show stopper!

Perfect new variety for the Autumn:

We had once worked with these 1 and a half metre roses at the Royal Opera House but I couldn't resist being photographed with this vase from the Nervada Farm in Ecuador!

So many great bi-colours!

Thursday, 21 October 2010

Downtown Abbey

It is great to have a good TV historical drama to watch on Sunday evenings in the Autumn and we love all the images of the beautiful Highclere Castle. This castle is one of our favourite venues to decorate and over the years we have designed some very different weddings there!

These lovely bright and colourful images were taken in the summer when we decorated the Castle for a surprise birthday weekend party! The guests had a great summer weekend in the English country.