Amanda went to see the film Over Your Cities, Grass Will Grow, Sophie Fiennes's film about the artist Anselm Kiefer, due to middleagedad wanting to get inspired for his art projects. We both found it hugely absorbing (well, I did fall asleep during the first 20 minutes but after that it was very good…) and it inspired me to get creative and I felt a Martha Moment approaching soon after we got home.
I've waxed flowers before, but this time I used my fading agapanthus blooms, with the seed heads removed and they worked a treat. I melted the skanky ends of old scented candles, big candle trimmings and stunted ends of candlestick candles altogether in a metal bowl (I stuck it in the simmering oven of the aga but it works in a saucepan over a low heat too) until it was runny.
Then I dunked the blooms into the wax two or three times, letting them dry a bit between each dipping (takes seconds to dry) immersing them (quite roughly) to just where the stems start. They look great in a glass vase altogether. I also dipped figs (which do look a weeny bit like preserved testicles), hydrangeas (took up lots of wax) and rose hips. Youngest teenageson wanted to go a bit punk and tried to dye the wax red but we found the food colour clogged into a scabby blob, turning the wax a delicate pink…not what he had in mind at all but it worked for me.
I reckon this might work quite nicely for Christmas decorations…..what do you think?
