Northshore magazine showcases the best that the North Shore of Boston, MA has to offer.
Issue link: http://read.uberflip.com/i/1281965
119 gardens, still shimmering with autumn blooms, led by Laura Bibler, who restored the Stevens-Coolidge garden in 2010 to its historic roots. From there, the group returned to the greenhouse with all the ingredients, ready to master the art of dahlias. Sigman had previously conditioned, hydrated, and refrigerated the newly cut flowers for a day. Hollow stems of the dinnerplate types were filled with water to help them last several days. Everyone worked with a pre-sealed watertight pedestal terra-cotta container fitted with a pin frog "to keep the stems from popping out of the vase." With a little coaching urging them to move through the gamut of colors, attendees proceeded to create take-home works of art as evening fell. By the time it was dark, everyone was fully dexterous with dahlias. Every arrangement was a masterpiece—but that's exactly what Sandra Sigman had predicted as the outcome. "In the end, the flowers were the true stars." thetrustees.org/place/the-stevens-coolidge-place/; lesfleurs.com This fall, Sandra Sigman of Les Fleurs and Northshore magazine will recreate the magic of designing floral arrangements with Dahlias virtually. Visit Northshore's Facebook to learn more about this fun, creative, and virtual event this September.