Ikebana vase, Forest Green

Ikebana Vase – Forest Green

Wheel-thrown in stoneware with a built-in flower frog; the dome in the center has holes pierced through it so your stems stay exactly where you put them. Fill the bowl with water, push your stems through, and the arrangement holds itself.

The glaze is a deep forest green, glossy and alive with small crystals, shifting from earthy olive to rich brown where it breaks on edges.

A little on ikebana

Ikebana is the Japanese art of flower arrangement. Moribana, the style this bowl is made for, uses a shallow dish and a flower frog, and it's more intuitive than it looks. The golden rule is to work in threes: one tall stem (heaven), one at a middle height (man), one low and close to the bowl (earth). Use odd numbers, varying heights, and a little negative space between them.

A few tips:

• Angle your stems  - let them lean out from the center rather than standing straight up.
• Double up in one hole to make thinner stems stand straighter, or to angle two stems in slightly different directions from the same point.
• Odd numbers feel better. Three stems can look more considered than ten.

Because these are thrown one at a time, the hole spacing and proportions shift slightly between pieces. That's the charm of handmade!

Details

• Height: 4,5 cm
• Diameter: 15 cm
• Material: stoneware clay
• Glaze: Glossy forest green with brown breaks