Bright Sky Press has published a delightful book on floral design. The Church Ladies’ Guide to Divine Flower Arranging is by Gay Estes.

Estes is an award winning floral designer and flower judge who has written extensively on flower arranging in various periodicals and books. She is a widely sought speaker on the lecture circuit. Her other talents include editing floral design books and photography.

This inspiring title is based on the author’s experiences doing floral designs for her church in Houston, Texas. The author shares her personal stories, pleasant and unpleasant, over the years. In this book, her love of flowers comes through loud and clear.

This beautifully designed book is a pleasure to read and use. With a few obvious exceptions, such as designs with religious motifs, most of these suggested arrangements are certainly very suitable for other public places and festivals as well as personal use.

Novice flower arrangers can learn much from this enlightening, enjoyable, well-written book as it covers all the basics.

The titles for the chapters are from hymns or quotes from scripture. Each chapter focuses on a specific aspect of floral design. The author begins by explaining what tools and aids are needed. A chapter is also devoted to choosing appropriate containers. There are chapters on fresh flowers as well as everlastings.

One chapter explains how to condition the flower stems. Readers can also learn about the elements of design. There are helpful chapters on seasonal flower arranging, such as for special occasions like Thanksgiving and Advent. Other chapters present ideas for specific church events during the year.

The author covers all types of arrangements from swags and garlands to wreaths, candlesticks, and floor vases. She even discusses maypoles.

At the end of the book there are several helpful lists of flowers. One lists the flowers by color, and discusses each type. Another presents the seasonal flowers throughout the year.

There is a blank page at the end of each chapter for making notes. This title has wonderful color drawings by the author.

For disclosure purposes, I received a review copy of this book from the publisher.