This decor buzzword perfectly describes the beauty of Hillcrest Floral Art Club, where more than 90 women meet to indulge their love of flowers, but it’s so much more!
story hayley dennyson picture hayley dennyson and shirley gillitt
There’s something so special about a hand-picked bunch of flowers, given with love. Now imagine the sense of magic when you walk into a room filled with flowers, busy hands perfecting intricate arrangements. This is what awaits you at a meeting of the Hillcrest Floral Art Club, where members share their creativity and skills.
“We have 93 members and are a friendly bunch, so you know you’ll have fun,” says long-time member Jean Hancox. The club was started by Theo Wynne and Joan Beaumont in a pre-fab building in Waterfall in the late 70s and has grown substantially since then. “It was the hottest place you’d ever been in, with a wonky floor, so you had to be so careful with your arrangements!”
Over the years, the club has been based at Kearsney College and more recently at the Holy Trinity Anglican Church in Hillcrest, where it has seen healthy growth in numbers.
Each meeting has a strong social element, as well as a competition and expert demonstration or workshop. The competitions are open to amateurs and professionals alike, are run to a specific theme and judged by professionals. When we visited, the theme was “Manipulated Magic” and the competitors were judged by Fay Fenn, Sandy Talbot and Sandra Pillay – all accomplished flower arrangers – who offer constructive feedback about each arrangement.
Hillcrest Floral Art Club is fortunate to have a high concentration of qualified judges and demonstrators. People like Marieke Ric-Hansen (President of the KZN Association of Flower Arrangers), Helen Bellew (who judged at the World Flower Show 2011 in Boston), Yvonne Eijlers (who won an award for most creative design at the World Flower Show 2013) and Shirley Gillitt (runner up at the Demonstrator of the Year competition at SAFU Congress 2015).
“We’re mostly retired ladies who finally have the time to spend on our passion for flowers,” says chairlady Judy Sheard. “We have varying degrees of expertise, but we all get something out of it. The inspiration lifts our souls! There’s also an element of personal challenge. It takes courage to enter a competition for the first time and to push yourself to improve.”
Watching Vaughn Harrington, President of the South African Floral Union, demonstrate a selection of Easter arrangements, the creativity was astounding! These ladies look at everyday materials through different eyes, from foliage to seed pods, even a bucket becomes a fun vase. “You don’t have to use expensive flowers all the time. Have fun, do something different,” she said.
There’s a wide variety of styles, from traditional to modern and everything in-between, but there is one common theme – every creation resonates love. Whether made as a centrepiece for a family occasion or to brighten someone’s day, these are artistic love letters.
This May, the club is hosting “Darling Buds of May” at Watercrest Mall (details on the opposite page). Be sure to drop in to experience this floral fantasia for yourself. *
**Hillcrest Floral Art Club meets on the second Wednesday of every month, 9 for 9.30am at the Holy Trinity Anglican Church Hall, corner Elangeni and Nqutu Roads, Hillcrest. Chairlady Judy Sheard tomnjudes@border.co.za
