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Art & Bloom

Art & Bloom is the Concord Garden Club’s signature social event.  Every year community members, CGC members, and local florists create floral arrangements to pair with art works by local artists.  The paired arrangements and works of art are displayed for the public over a three day period in January and provide a welcome colorful break from our New England winters. Community members are encouraged to participate as designers, or to just attend and enjoy the show. Or both!

Why Design for

Art & Bloom?

Designing for Art & Bloom is rewarding on so many levels. Take a look at what designers say about the experience:

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"For several years three friends and I decided to take a chance and do an arrangement for Art and Bloom.  It took all of us to pick art, flowers, and ideas for our arrangements. We had never done anything like it before and ours were not the fanciest or most creative but we had lots of fun.  I liked to think that someone could look at it without being intimidated and think “I could do something like that".

Mary R.

HOW TO DESIGN FOR

​ART & BLOOM

Below you'll find information on the design process for Art & Bloom.  Please feel free to reach out with any questions.

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1) DECIDE TO DESIGN SOLO OR IN A TEAM

Welcome! We're so glad you've decided to design for Art & Bloom.  The first step in the design process is to decide whether you will work solo or in a team.  Both options are incredibly rewarding.  We recommend teams of 2-4 max.  Make sure you include all team member's names and contact information when you sign up to participate.

2) SIGN UP TO BE A DESIGNER

We welcome Concord Garden Club members, community members, and professional designers to design for Art & Bloom. To sign up to be a designer (or design team) please contact one of us:

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Lucy Gentilhomme - lgentilho@gmail.com
Teresa Rosenberger - teresa.rosenberger@gmail.com
Millie LaFontaine - lafontainefamily@comcast.net

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Sign up
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3) CHOOSE AN ART INSPIRATION

The next step is to select a piece of fine art or craft from one of the Kimball Jenkins current exhibits. The Kimball Jenkins will offer three date/time opportunities for designers to come choose their piece. Take into consideration color, shape, scale, and tone. Make sure to take photos of your art inspiration! You can find the schedule of times to view the exhibit and choose your inspiration in the Designer Manual.

4) CHOOSE A VESSEL

Picking a flower vessel is an integral part of the design process because it can enhance or detract from how your piece relates to your selected artwork.

5) CHOOSE A COLOR PALETTE & YOUR BOTANICALS

In selecting your flowers be sure to communicate with the flower vendors to make sure they have or can order what you want. They may be able to offer suggestions on substitutions if needed.  You can find a list of places to buy flowers in the Designer Manual.

6) COMMUNICATE WITH NICKI KILFARA

At this point in the process, designers send the following information to Nicki Kilfara at nkilfara@hotmail.com:

  1. Name of Artwork & Artist

  2. Designer name(s) and contacts, and whether they are from CGC, Business, Organization or Community

  3. The list of botanicals that you are using!

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Please review the helpful Designer Manual.​

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7) CARE FOR YOUR BOTANICALS

It is important to care for your botanicals throughout the process including: processing your flowers, keeping them hydrated without over watering, monitoring the storage temperature, and transporting arrangements safetly.

8) PREPARE YOUR TOOLS & MATERIALS

Common tools that are used in flower arranging include:

Chicken Wire
Clean Shears
Water Tubes
Green Tape
Wire/Glue
Mist Spray

Making Flower Arrangements
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9) USE BOOKS FOR INSPIRATION

Flower arrangement books are a great source of inspiration. You can check flower arranging books out from the Concord Public Library or find online inspiration on sites like Pinterest

10) STAY ON TRACK WITH THE EVENT SCHEDULE

Art & Bloom is held over three days in January at Kimball Jenkins in Concord, NH. On opening day, designers drop off their arrangement at Kimball Jenkins and ​preview other arrangements. On the last day, designers pick up their arrangement. The current event schedule is available in the Designer Manual & Schedule here.​

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