Easy Fruit Garnishes - Apple Boat

>>  8/13/2017

easy fruit carving lesson
Apple boat - easy fruit carving lesson

Fruit carving video today!

An amazing apple boat, a super easy fruit garnish you or your child can do too.




This apple boat is the most popular fruit garnish I show at my fruit carving demos. It is a quick and easy super hit.

You need the following fruits and tools:

Apple
Orange skin
Toothpicks and a wooden skewer
Paring knife
Small size melon baller



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Baby Pumpkin Carving - Practice Of Unconscious Creating

>>  8/08/2017

art of food carving
An apple size baby pumpkin

I am in love with the baby fruits and vegetables. Couldn't miss this cutie when I saw it at a farmer maket. It just is an apple size baby pumpkin.

I let my head to be free of any concepts, and allowed my hand to carve a pattern with having no idea what the finished design would be. I like to do this exercise of uncounscious creating.

What is your favorite exercise for creating?

Do you make a practise of unconscious creating?

Do you think that following a plan gives a better result?


food photo pumpkin




food photographing
Do you practise unconscious creating?



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How I Do Design For VIDA Collection

>>  7/19/2017

It's midnight. Drops of paint on the floor. I am doing designs for VIDA.

I do design for myself. I want this clutch with eco-print!


Design For VIDA

Painting, drawing, planting, carving, photographing, I joined them all in my VIDA collection

There are so much joy about creating the collection, because I can't simply take my sit and put paints on paper. I go to a forest to collect leaves, flowers, seed, thinking what kind of prints they can make on paper. 


leaf print for fabric design

I picked up the best-looking designs for the clothes and bags which you may want to ware this summer.



my VIDA collection
The leaf makes an interesting print. It was picked up for the collection design.


My VIDA Collection With The Prints

This clutch with the plant prints is the most-desired item for me. 
This "Lil June" clutch is in my VIDA collection. FREE SHIPPING on the first order.


Clutch for my VIDA collection


Have a look inside the bag



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What Tools Do You Need To Start Fruit Carving Business

Let's talk about what tools you need to start your fruit carving business. This question arrised from a blog's visitor. I will answer it and put my thoughts and recommendations here.

If you want to make some money from your fruit carving hobby, or you feel you are ready to turn it to a business, you need to make some investments. The main investment items for your fruit art business are:

* TOOLS and SUPPLIES

* SKILLS (will talk about it in the next article)


TOOLS AND SUPPLIES FOR FRUIT CARVING BUSINESS

I suppose that you already have tools and knives for carving. The question is about picking good tools those will serve you well. Because you will have to do lot of carving works as soon as you become receiving orders. The knives must be well sharpened and made of good metal, with a convenient handle. In other words the tools should be for professional using.

Tools producer

I recommend you to choose the professional tools I myself started with  in 2007, Triangle Tool Set. The "Triangle" company is Germany based family company specialized on kitchen knives and supplies. Now they are known in Europe, Russia, the USA and Japan. You may come across the famous carving artists who use the Triangle knives for work, for classes and  for fruit carving demo at the FOOD EXPOs. Some of my fruit art colleagues in the world have been contracted by the company to present the Triangle tools on TV and Internet. 

Triangle carving tool set



I use Triangle tools and knives from the beginning of my fruit carving career back in 2007. I use the tools for making my fruit arrangements. To me, the Triangle tools give lots of inspiration and possibilities to create. I implement a teaching method based on the tools usage. 

THE RESUME: With the Triangle tools you are able to create worth watermelon carving designs, nice and neat fruit and vegetable carving centerpieces at the money-making level.

Types of knives

I will give you a list of tools and knives you need for fruit carving business.

1. Thai knife. This is a name for a specially designed type of knife used for Thai carving. Thai knife is a basic must-have tool.

2. U-knife and V-knife. The knives are called after the shape they have. These knives do U and V cuts on a watermelon or other product, usually used for carving different types of flowers and designs when combined. These kind of knives is produced in different sizes. Can be wavy as well. Must-have knives.

3. Melon baller. This is a name for a tool that looks like a ball spoon for icecreame, but smaller. The tool carves balls out of watermelon, melon, papaya, apples, kiwi, vegetable, butter and many other products you can try this tool on. The tool is produced in different size ranges. A must-have tool.

4. Crinkle (or wavy) knife. The tool cuts wavy slices of whatever you use it on. Must-have tool for plating art and fruit buffets.

5. Paring knife. A big paring knife is necessary for cutting massive fruits as watermelon, melon, pumpkin. I recommend you to have a big and small paring knives for different types of fruit.

6. Peeler. A must-have tool to skin fruits and vegetables and make simple garnishes. 

7. Toothpicks and skewers. You will need them to provide a secure attachment of the details in your carving displays, fruit bouquets and other edible arrangements.

This is the list of the must-have tools in my kit. If you look through the blog posts with my fruit carving displays you will find the notices about using tools for the certain carving designs.

There are more extra tools you may want to have and of course you need them too, are slicers, spiral slicers, cookie cutters etc.


Supplies For Fruit Carving Displaying

Depending on your fruit carving business idea you will need a number of kitchenware supply. To understand what kind of kitchenware you really need for your fruit business I would suggest you to think about two things:

How you are going to present your fruit creations

Where you can get the enough amount of the supplies 


fruit bouquet maker may need a number of baskets and flower pots to arrange fruit bouquets in.

If you make fruit carving arrangements for events as wedding receptions, baby showers and birthdays, and your fruit creations are supposed to be displayed at the head table or fruit/candy bar, you may need to have glass or wooden stands, vases and kind of fruit holders, in order to set up things nicely at different heights, and to save space on the table. 

When you do food catering and give fruit carvings to garnish a fruit buffet or a chocolate fountain, you may need a range of bowls, platters, stands for finger food and fruit kebabs presentation. 

A stand for pick food - Restaurantware

 I know that it's good for business to have the necessary things available any time when you need them. I also know that fruit carving business depends on many things like a season, market demand, economic situation, and finally it depends on your entrepreneur skills and your wish to be in the business.

I don't think it's a good idea to buy a large batch of the kitchenware in the beginning of your business to make a provision for years. I recommend you to find a solution with kitchenware suppliers, shops or stores where you can buy a small amount of the suitable platters, vases and holders at good price.

For example, I used to use the special watermelon plates with pins for watermelon carvings and fruit sculptures. The plates allows a secure transportation of the fruit displays. Later I found another solution and started using cake stands for watermelons and disposable cake cardboards for fruit platters. 


The Final Word

A good professional tool set helps you create professionally looking carving displays and garnishes.
A good knife is your reliable business partner.
Be wise in spending money, buy good tools which you will use for years (I use my Triangle tool set for 10 years already).
Have some extra new tools to sell at the exhibitions and during carving demo. It is a good business. 



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The Peony Kiss - Ikebana Sogetsu Lessons Book 5

>>  7/12/2017


peony ikebana composition
The Peony Kiss 

What seems to me special about Ikebana Sogetsu is how the plant materials are arranged in a vase  in incredible positions.
There is a system of crossed and splitted stems that allows the branches lay in a certain way.

The flower's stems are shorten for this securing technique.  That makes the total look of composition floating in air.

I called the arrangement "The Peony Kiss", not just because I love the flowers, but also for the blessing of my Floral Angel and inspiration sent to my way for creating this. 

ikebana sogetsu lessons book 5



The other composition makes the vertical line with the same wood branch. The branch with a mass on the top like the one on the photo will fall down from this position when simply put in a vase. The secure system makes the impossible things possible. 

These Ikebana compositions with peony show how how to arrange heavy flowers in a tall vase.

Made at our Ikebana class, Ikebana lesson Book 5.

More Ikebana Sogetsu lessons Book 5:
Born In The Rain - Ikebana Design  
Sogetsu Workshop 2017


peony ikebana composition



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Food Art And Fashion?

>>  7/10/2017

I am a person who say "YES" to the new opportunities. 

When I was approached by VIDA, a global design company, with an invite to combine my art with fashion, I concluded they might be daring and innovative ones. What? Wearing a fruit buffet image in your clothing?  Wait, I do different arts. Maybe I can come up with my paintings and floral designs? 

VIDA is a San Francisco based, well-doing start-up ventured by Google, providing digital printing on fabric with using original art pieces of photographers, artists, sculptors and crafters. The company's CEO has a big dream for improving lives of the artists and factory workers who produce the fabric and clothing.
The idea of bringing together the art and commerce looks very attractive.

My First Collection

I sent some paintings to design studio to figure out if we could match. And BINGO, my rose painting designs were approved. My first collection of soft pillows has been launched on ShopVida website!
Some of my Net friends and test group have received the collection announcement. So I could get a feedback.

This all made me want to create a summer collection  done specially for VIDA, with bags, clutches and scarves.

Now I am working on a collection based on my fruit carving sketches which I do for watermelon carvings and fruit sculptures. I am so excited to see what my hand can draw.


It Is Time For Fruit Chic Fashion



I did some fruit paintings for the Summer Collection and got them printed on the bags and clutches. It will become an amazing and playful addition to your look. I sure these designs will suit a woman in any place in the world from Sidney to New York and from Siberia to Brasilia.

Accessorize with this bag for a statement look that turns heads and sparks conversations - around town or across the world. 

VIDA gives free shipping on the first order and varoius promotions each month and on holidays. Take your chance to shop the uniquely designed accessories for a good price.

Custom Orders

If you want me create a special design for you, I am ready to do that. Feel free to e-mail me or send a message to Facebook account. I am open for creating on custom orders, dealing with buyers and shops, and I am also open for collaborating with the other VIDA designers on making "guest" collections, supporting items or whatever your idea is.


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Born In The Rain - Ikebana Design

>>  7/03/2017

Sogetsu Ikebana is a floral arranging art popular worldwide. For now Ikebana art has become modern and based on the main principles of design. At our Ikebana class we learn the floral and overall design related things together with the classical Ikebana rules.
I thank our teacher Alexandra Kudryshova for sharing the passion and gifts with us, and for letting us to create and do magic with flowers.

Task #1 - Expression

What do you express with your floral composition? It can be a feeling, a thought, and a status. You can explain with the flowers yourself, your inner world or a global thing.

At the lesson we got a task to express a rain

Most of us connect flowers with joy and rain with melancholy. So to our group the task looked "unexciting" and bit difficult as well. As for me, I like rain. I like the sound and scent of rain, I look more attractive in raining weather :) As for feeling, I can feel a joy and sadness at the same time, and have them changed fast. So the rain is a time to have a fan to myself. 

This is what our teacher has expressed about the rain. A long Iris leaf makes a curvy line. It comes out of a round ceramic vase. The tip of the leaf point to a cup of water. The teacher has also added a tear on the leaf's tip to stress the rain related theme. 

ikebana expression
The rain themed Ikebana composition


This is what I see about raining. I called the arrangement "Born In The Rain". Curved and deformed stems of Allium (decorative onion) explain that the plant was raised in an uncomfortable environment. There a crying stem was added to stress the rain theme. 


ikebana lessons book5



Task #2 - Placing

The next task was to find a place in the room for your Ikebana arrangement. We placed them on a floor, on desks, on a window. As we engaged a meeting room in an office center for our classes, there were fire-safe and electrical things in the walls. I found that my arrangement fits well this kind of boxes. The floral arrangement brings a harmony to the corner. Ikebana can be a part of the technical equipment.


ikebana lessons
This is how the Ikebana arrangement suits the office interior.

Task #3 - Usage of materials and sources

This is the main principle of Ikebana art - using the local seasonal plants, using the available sources. In other words use what you have right now. And make it look beautiful. 

Studying the Ikebana art helps me to accept the life as it is. Of course it makes me skillful in designing too. See how Ikebana skills allow me to decorate events:



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Sogetsu Ikebana Workshop - 2017

>>  6/28/2017


A big event is holding here now. It's a Japanese and Russian Culture Festival. 

The one of the Festival activities is the Sogetsu Ikebana workshop by the japanese teachers, Takako Nishimura-sensei and her team from Hokkaido. Few years ago our local Ikebana group became a Studio Group officially recognized by Mrs.Akane Teshigahara and Sogetsu School in Tokyo. So each year we are visited and cared by our teachers from Japan. 

ikebana sakhalin art museum


These last days in June made a wonderful meeting with the flowers and art. Inspite of my ability to attend only 2 of 4 lessons, I got a real pleasure to study. We learned how to create a vase for the floral arrangements by weaving a sphere vase with thin rotang.

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Sogetsu Text Books:


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sakhalin studio group
Ikebana workshop was held in Chekhov Museum. The hall with a photo exhibition was turned to the classroom.
The photos on the wall are by japanese artists sharing their vision of the Russian land. 

sogetsu ikebana lessons
Our studying group. We started with making a paper sphere.


ikebana rotang weaving
Learning how to make knots

how to bend sphere of rotang
My rotang sphere is done!
It can change the form to oval or whatever when sinked in water and pressed for a while


nishimura sensei sakhalin
Teachers explain the process and some tricks of the weaving

sogetsu study sakhalin nishimura takako
Love my sphere : ))
hokkaido nishimura 草月いけばなサハリン
The next step is to create an arrangement.
 I like this shot. Think you agree with me that it's important to surround yourself by a beauty

 草月レッスンロシア
I choosed plants for my design

ikebana arrangement blue flowers
The idea is brought to life

blue floral design  草月レッスンロシア
This is how the details make a melody

サハリン草月研究
Ladies at work


サハリン草月研究
Minna no shyashin
A must have photo :)


草月サハリングループ
The teachers show what else you can do with the spheres. 

sogetsu ikebana hokkaido takako nishimura
Nishimura-san got an ecochic hat 
草月サハリングループ
With friends.
The outdoor ikebana installation in front of the art museum



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Traditional Korean 60th Birthday Table Setting (Hwangap)

>>  6/25/2017

I have been invited to a teem of designers to provide a traditional korean festive food decoration for the 60th birthday. The korean 60th birthday is called Hwangap. 

typical korean table decoration


 Two fruit carving arrangements were done for the event. They are watermelons with fruit sculptures on it sending a message of health, long life and love to the birthday woman from her family.


hwangap fruit style
The watermelon carving design with  a message "To Mommy" 

fruit carving designs 60th birthday
The watermelon carving with a message of the long life wish



The other designers covered the head table with typical koren clothes and set the festive table ware. They also placed the jelly towers made in a traditional festive way. These towers you see on the photo are plastic ones. In the past korean families did the towers with using real traditional sweets. 


jelly towers 60th birthday hwangap
Korean 60th birthday (Hwangap) table setting with the jelly towers and food decorations





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Phytodesign With Ferns In Self Watering Santino Planters

>>  6/21/2017

santino latina selfwatering plant pot


When I am free of fruit carving work I sell my green designs. 

I have been asked to create two containers with ferns to be placed in a bathroom corner garden of a client. 

Except of providing a planting design I was charged with the Santino self watering pots I was supposed to plant in. If you have never dealed with this type of planter, it could be a difficult to figure out how to use it. The Santino Latina self watering planter has drenage cartriges which are a smart watering system.

This video is a good help, thanks the guy for the instruction.





As for the decorative part of my design, I used the north moss (gathered on  a local hill), white rocks and shells.

self watering planter santino latina

phytodesign for the bathing corner garden

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Eco Fashion And Ikebana Show 2017

The Sakhalin Art Museum, the main art space in the city, has turned to the blooming garden for 3 days in May 2017.

You know that I am a part of the local Ikebana community. We float from one exibition space to the other to bring more beauty to the world. This time the Ikebana community celebrated the 15th anniversary of Ikebana Sogetsu school in our city.

People who follow my blog might remember that I live on the island called Sakhalin. It is in the Far East of Russia and very close to Hokkaido. We are historicaly tied to the japanese culture here. So Ikeana floral art organically came to our life.


sogetsu floor installation
"Spring Catchers" ikebana installation

For this big event I created a floor instalation which I called "Spring Catchers" with using the north bamboo, spring plants and flowers. The painting on the wall is a part of the installation.


Preparing the material and creating the fans of the north bamboo in the workshop

The painting and the plants

Specially for the event I have created a dress of the flower packing materials to show up in the Eco Fashion Defile (here is the link for Eco Fashion 2011). Thanks to the model Angelina for making the look.

eco fashion dress 2017
Angelina 

eco dress
Eco Fashion models


Watch the video from the Show and Eco Fashion Defile:




Oh that's me trying on the dress while making it:



I hope you will like our eco friendly designs

eco friendly dresses






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