Book Review of Flowers by Carolyne Roehm

I was delighted to recently receive a review copy of ‘Flowers’, a new book by Carolyne Roehm.

For UK readers who may not be familiar with Carolyne, she’s a former fashion designer who is now viewed in America as a trendsetter in fashion, elegance and taste-making.

‘Flowers’ is her eleventh book and it contains over 300 stunning colour photographs.

The book is split into nine sections, each one focusing on a particular bloom.  They include the daffodil, tulip, lilac, lily of the valley, peony, iris, rose, clematis and dahlia.

Inspired by Irving Penn’s iconic ‘Flowers‘ book published in 1987, Carolyne herself has photographed these gorgeous flowers which grow in her gardens, both in situ and in beautiful table arrangements in her home.

And to accompany the images, she writes about the flowers and explains their meanings to her, how she has grown them and why she arranges them in the way that she does.

I love her comment about the image on the right below:

 ‘I find that putting flowers in a container decorated with the same (or a similar) variety makes for a pleasurable combination.  I have a large collection of old majolica pots, one of which features a trio of narcissus painted on its side and when I fill it with daffodils, it’s a bit like saying “see above”.’

Here are some more pages from ‘Flowers’…

And here’s a short video where Carolyne talks about the book:

Plus one where she creates a flower arrangement:

Large in size and bursting full of inspiration, ‘Flowers’ is a perfect coffee table book for flower lovers. It’s a real feast for the eyes and the perfect antidote for grey, overcast days.

With such a beautiful setting of her house and gardens at Weatherstone, which is her eighteenth century Connecticut estate, the images are spectacular.

I hope you’ve enjoyed reading today’s blog post.  Not surprisingly, the section in the book about peonies is my very favourite one too…!

If you’d like to keep up-to-date with Carolyne’s news, she is on Twitter and Facebook.

P.S. The book is available in the UK and US.

(Images : Carolyne Roehm)