This is was my entry for “50 Shade of Pretty” OSSAS. They wanted romance so I chose “The Gardener and The Painter”.
A romantic love story of a painter who goes to the garden to paint the lovely flowers and falls in love with the beautiful gardner. My inspiration photo is called Gardener in straw hat by Jean-Frederic-Schall. He painted the same woman twice even though we don’t know who she is. I imagine her picking flowers for her vase which sets my first tier.

Dutch floral arrangements and paintings were my second inspiration. Amy Merricks’ floral work was studied for two years to try to accomplish the wild look. I have never arranged flowers so the movement of her examples was crucial.
The next tier has a very small painting of the actual vase with the flowers above. Then the tiers are separated by a folie something very common in gardens back then. Each dowel is covered with fondant and smoothed to replicate the marble columns.

The third tier is royal icing decor on either side. There is a fruit similar to a pomegranate and a fantasy flower. I looked at wood carvings and tried to emulate that. These decorations and the swags represent their home furnishings. The swags a draping to their windows which I imagine look out over the very garden where they first met. Lastly, the bottom is a painting of that garden painted on wafer paper.

The private pinterest board will now be unlocked where you can see all the inspiration photos.
http://www.pinterest.com/smittyface/competition-ossas-the-gardener-and-the-painter/
Thank you so much for looking and reading.