Anna Shepard, Eco Worrier

Katie Warriner is a sports psychologist who works for a business consultancy in London. Today, she’s taken a day off to learn flower arranging. “I like the idea of winding down by doing something that brings you back to basics,” says Warriner, 28. “Although my friends had a giggle about me coming here, they’ll all want to know what I learnt. To be able to arrange flowers in a way that does them justice is a brilliant skill.”

Not many of us have the time or inclination to devote ourselves to time-consuming floral displays. But in the swell of enthusiasm for home-making hobbies, such as knitting and jam-making, flower arranging is being rediscovered. Judith Blacklock, author of the best-selling Encyclopedia of Flower Design, who is running today’s session, has noticed an increase in the popularity of her classes, especially among younger women. “When women reach their late twenties, they begin to appreciate nature, the garden and the satisfaction and therapeutic qualities of working with flowers,” she says. “In the past few years, it’s been rare to have anyone over 50.”

Gathered today at Blacklock’s flower school in Central London are a dozen young women, mostly in their late twenties and thirties, none of who seem remotely bothered by the mumsy reputation of flower arranging.

Just as Nigella brought glamour to cake-baking, flower arranging has also found the perfect pin-up. In the November issue of Red magazine, Mad Men star Christina Hendricks admitted that flower arranging was her favourite hobby, as well as confessing to being part of a knitting group.

A self-proclaimed home-maker, Hendricks revealed that before her acting career took off, she worked as an intern at a florist in LA and more recently considered doing the arrangements for her wedding.

If the thought of Hendricks sensually arranging her dahlias isn’t already enough to spur you towards an evening course, then perhaps the UK’s poster-girl for flower power, Kirstie Allsopp, will. Another enthusiast, Allsopp, whose TV programme Kirstie’s Homemade Home is now on its second series, was taught basic flower arranging techniques by Blacklock for the first series. “Kirsty was a natural,” Blacklock remembers fondly.

By encouraging us to improve our homes with traditional yet thrifty skills, Allsopp has tapped into a post-recession mood that gives respect to people who have made things rather than bought them. This resonates with Blacklock’s students. “I love the idea of taking flowers to a dinner party instead of wine or chocolates, and being able to say that I’ve arranged them myself,” Warriner says.

Apart from celebrity endorsements, the role models who appear to have had the biggest impact on the class today are female relatives, particularly grandmothers, who were a dab hand with flowers. For others, the appeal is in the fact that it’s the indoor equivalent of gardening. What is clear is that it’s not about the final display as much as the process. Blacklock is passionate about its therapeutic benefits. “You concentrate so hard on where to put a flower, whatever problems you have disappear while you’re doing it,” she says. “I see how absorbed everyone becomes and the calming effect that flowers have.”

Earlier this year, Japanese researchers at the National Institute of Floricultural Science reported that arranging flowers helps to reduce tension and anxiety in schizophrenic patients. When I tackle my first bouquet, I can see why. I’m lulled by the repetitive action and forced to focus hard on remembering which way to criss-cross the stems.

The day’s most important task is to make a hand-tied wintery bouquet of red and orange roses, combined with foliage and a few dramatic orange proteas flowers (see picture above).  The traditional arranging technique involves taking cut flowers, one stem at a time, and laying each one diagonally across the last to build up an elaborate posy. All you need are flowers, foliage, scissors, some string and a vase half full of water. One common downfall is to ruin an arrangement by putting it in a vase that is not tall enough; your vase should be half as high as the stems. Another grave error is to neglect to remove leaves that end up in water. These will rot, produce bacteria and kill the flowers. We’re also advised to remove 10 per cent of the stem ends before we start, cutting diagonally across the stem.

Building up an arrangement looks simple when Blacklock does it, but takes concentration and strong thumbs. There’s also the crucial job of weaving the right blend of colours to create a balanced effect. Mine somehow clump together and look amateurish. Just as I consider giving up, Blacklock dashes over, tucks in a few spiky orange protea stem, and suddenly it looks amazing. I feel a rush of pride and start fantasising about taking up flower arranging at the weekends, instead of spending the time clearing up my toddler’s squashed food.

Where would I buy the flowers, I wonder? For cheapness, Blacklock recommends supermarkets rather than markets, but says to make sure there is water in the buckets when you buy flowers, otherwise they won’t last long. To make an economy bunch, her suggestion is to use space wisely, making fewer flowers go farther by arranging them in a way that uses up space. As an example, she shows us how to criss-cross sticky tape over a wide bowl and poke a single flower in each square.

Although Blacklock is cautious about telling us to raid local parks, she does suggest that a little surreptitious snipping, particularly of plants such as tree ivy and privet hedges, can provide free foliage. Then you need only the odd flower to make a display. “Never be greedy,” she cautions. “If you take from the wild, take from something in abundance and never take so much that you leave a gap.”

By the end of the day, Blacklock has created a towering creation from amaryllis flowers, resembling a Lady Gaga headpiece, and we have honed the art of poking hydrangeas and foliage into water-soaked oases to create small but no less charming displays. But there’s no avoiding that I’m not a natural. What I like best is the atmosphere in the class. As with learning anything, whether it’s how to crochet or bake bread, it promotes gentle bonding. There’s intermittent chatter while we work and peals of laughter when things go wrong. Blacklock is right: working with flowers is relaxing.

Jackie Thomas, a flower arranging teacher based outside Edinburgh, tells me her classes have become popular with hen parties: “We do some flower arranging in the morning, then stop for a boozy lunch, then make another bouquet, which you can imagine isn’t as good as the first. It’s popular because it’s a great way to spend time with your close friends and family.”

Thomas says there has been an increase in the number of women signing up for courses with a view to setting up as a florist or working with flowers. “In the past year, I’ve taught lots of people who have been made redundant or got sick of their high-pressured jobs,” she says. “It’s a popular career move for people who want something completely different from a desk job.”

And don’t imagine that it’s only women who work with flowers. “It is a mistake to say that arranging beautiful things is feminine,” Blacklock says.

To prove it, she wheels out Tom, her 24-year-old assistant, who, she says, combines his love of designing flowers with football, chasing girls and smoking and drinking. This may be true, but I can’t help feeling that, the odd philandering florist aside, classes are blooming because younger women don’t feel the need to cast off the shackles of domesticity.

While I may not be receiving commissions for wedding bouquets quite yet, I can’t deny that when I catch the Tube home, clutching my dazzling array of home-made bouquets, I do feel absurdly cheerful. (This article first appeared in The Times, visit here)

Ring it up: how to make a Christmas wreath

You will need
A 12in oasis ring 20-25 roses Snippets of holly Conifer Heuchera, or ivy leaves Cotinus rhus or other foliage

Method
Fill a sink with water. Place the ring on top, foam side down. Soak until the foam turns dark green ( about a minute). Secure a loop of paper-covered wire through the ring. Twist the wire to secure. Cut short snippets of conifer and insert into the foam leaving equal spaces between them. Angle the sprigs to follow the shape of the wreath. Insert the heuchera leaves at different angles, still following the ring’s outline. Make sure there is equal coverage over all parts of the foam. Repeat with the holly and cotinus rhus to fill any gaps. Cut the rose stems short and tuck them between the leaves at regular intervals. To finish, you could add a ribbon, or Christmas baubles, secured with wire.