Essential oils rule!

Hi there,

I discovered someone very special a few months ago. David Kopler is a master at creating custom fragrances using nothing but organic essential oils. He came to my studio for a scent-a-thon which included a fantastic box of oils from all over the world that he had me experience. Ever the careful teacher, he divided the session into top, middle, and low notes, replete with pieces of wool and coffee beans to cleanse the nose.

As I told him what I thought I was sensing, and on a scale of one to five my ratings, he quietly took notes, sometimes giggled at my enthusiasm and after an hour of tea, conversation about botanicals and smelling some wonderful, and oft challenging fragrances, he got to work. Two weeks later I had a custom fragrance that was absolutely perfect. Perfect I say and, well, I can be hard to please.

David joined me for one of my famous seminars at the fabled Mayacama Golf Club last week. The ladies were in awe as he expertly guided them with a sampling of his oils, in creating a fragrance of their own. It was all great fun...cocktails of course and lots of laughter. Though suddenly the room fell silent. "What" I said, ever anxious to keep everyone enjoying themselves and laughing...."what is going on?". It was concentration and enthrallment. The ladies were seeing the subtle differences achieved by adding Virginia Cedarwood to Lavender....Pink Grapefruit to Pimento Berry. The evening was lovely.

You can reach David at davidkopler.com for information about a private session. From custom fragrances to soaps, to atomizers...you name it. I am lucky to have found him and it is my joy to bring him to you.

Have a great holiday and remember the key to a beautiful holiday centerpiece can be right outside your backdoor.

Much joy and abundance,

John James

BERRIES

What do you do this holiday? Clients are confused. Some of them quite privileged and unwilling to be garish and tacky with an exuberant and yes expensive holiday party. This economy is sure hard to swallow. Seems almost unreal coming off a decade of such amazing advances....such conveniences. No Catholic guilt here....just looking for a way to see the good in a world gone mad.

I say berries. Fake and real, styrofoam and plastic, from the vintage store or from the craft store. Thread them on the chandelier and be sloppy about it. Nice and asymetrical. Up and around your favorite mirror or piece of art, or bend them around an existing wreath for a whimsical accent. By the way, if you use real ones from your yard, or the local flower market, they will last "ok" for about 2 weeks. If real is what you crave, wait until the 12th or so to do the decorating and prepare a couple of weeks later to be sweeping and vacuuming like a mad person.

My apartment, outside of a charming little tree, is decorated with red berries. Red red red. I found that a simple arrangement or two of red flowers and lots of candles (ringed with red berries of course) was indeed an elegant and lovely approach.

It is indeed a time for reflection as stories of insecurities and fear temper the joys of a season whose true meaning is often obscured by such difficulties, and clouded even more by the wreckless acumulation and giving of....stuff.

Berries are fruit for the birds, a metaphor for the future, So with the garlands and sprigs of berries in hand, think of the future that lives bright in all of us. We are gonna make it. Innovation and our hard working spirit demands nothing else.

Happy Holidays to all of you.


John James

BRAVERY!

Today is the day! I am installing a series of very large paper airplanes, yes paper airplanes, at one of my favorite places on earth...Mayacama Golf Club in Sonoma County. There is, I have been told, a bit of speculation and nervousness about this particular installation and so, I must admit, I am a bit nervous. What is my solution you ask? BRAVERY! I was told that one's life expands and contracts based one one's courage....so I am going to go for it.

I encourage each and everyone of you, in design and in life, to let that nervousness, the apprehension propel you to new places. Success or failure, the one guarantee and assured reward for such an endeavor is knowledge. At best, a fantastic new way of looking at the world and the knowledge that you can do whatever it is you want to do, despite the billions of butterflies in your belly.

Go for it....I am.

(check the web site in the next few weeks and let me know what you think!)

Dried hydrangea...as far as the eye can see

I regret, every year, that I throw away my hydrangea after using them in late spring, summer and early fall arrangements. NO MORE I say. Such beautiful flowers, at this time of year they dry to perfection.

Look for firm heads, preferably mop heads and treat them like you would any cut flower. They will dry on their own, (though the dark blue and red varieties, and also the white generally do not dry that well...floral spray paint works fine if this is the color your heart desires). Pay special attention to the green, those "stained" with pink spots and the deep burgundy with khaki tips. of and of course the more delicate and beautiful pale blue with green....these are the best!

Visit your local florist and load up on these beauties and soon you will have the most beautiful materials to make a wreath, a garland, or simply enjoy them on their own in a glass vase or a decorative basket. (A spray of millet grass looks great spilling from a basket of dried hydrangea).

Now is the time darlings, get out and grab some while they are hot. Go see Neve growers at the SF Flower market and tell him that John James sent you. Their collection of Hydrangea Paniculata (aka Pee Gee) this year is sublime.

Have fun!

Artificial flowers? you bet!

Okay, I am going to confess something, and frankly I am going to do it with a fair amount of pride. Today I was shopping for goodies for a fantastic client who wants lots of pretty things and I happened across Pottery Barn. Yes, Pottery Barn. The artificial Bittersweet branches in particular were stunning. Not cheap at 50 bucks a stem, but intrigued I was...enough to walk inside.

Before I knew it I had a car full of the most beautiful, um, artificial flowers and branches I have ever seen. So the secret here is, do not hesitate to use good artificial flowers in your arrangements. They last forever. ha ha. Whatever you do though, do not use them on their own. I fear I have not crossed that bridge yet, but who knows. For now lets add lots of life and beautiful color to our lives with the addition of artificial flowers in our fresh flower arrangements.

See you soon!

PS How many of you are glad that Fall is here?.....Ah fall in the city. Time for lots and lots of scarves...be brave with them Think COLOR COLOR COLOR

Spring has sprung

Driving so often to Sonoma, and then back to downtown San Francisco for work it amazes me the enduring beauty and importance of roses. Up north they are resplendent. Literally billions of them grace the roadsides.

Today I saw a rather poorly dressed woman, (sorry ladies, my love of a well dressed woman is absolute...you know...the sneaker thing? ) However, she radiated in a cloud of her proudly grown roses that I am sure would soon make it to her desk. Why is it that CEO's never have garden roses on their desks? It is a very "9 - 5" kind of thing don't you agree?

So this post is to encourage all of you to step out into Spring. Take a blossom or two. Remember a fresh cut with a sharp knive (never scissors) and take a minute to, well, you guessed it...smell the roses. It is times like these...the ides of May and beyond that the world is filled with roses.

Oh, and don't hesitate to add a drop or two of bleach in the water on the second day. Let your roses drink a nice sip of tap water that you have let stand for at least 30 minutes and then add some bleach to keep the water clean.