On Sunday morning I got in touch with my inner cave woman and went to the garden to bag my vase. I didn’t use the prop in the photo, instead a pair of clippers was used to hunt and gather some summery flowers from the garden.
The prop. It’s a Native American stone ax head. This is an heirloom from my father, the geologist, who frequently found these near rivers on his field trips in the Southeastern US. I suppose they were using it for bashing fish (or bashing something?!)
The vase is a jar tucked inside a paper bag. It occurred to me the colors would look nice together so, I gave it a try. Lesson learned from this. Put the jar in the bag first. Then add flowers and water.
The flowers: in white, ‘Miss Alice’ Bougainvillea; yellow sunflowers are ‘Brown Eyed Girl’, still flowering at about seven months in the garden; yellow spikes are Thyrallis (Galphimia glauca); bigger red flower is Miniata bromeliad (Aechmea miniata); red bell shaped flowers are Firecracker Plant (Russellia equisetfolium); white daisies are Bidens alba.
The other side:
Even cave women like a little fragrance, the white flowers are ‘Bridal Bouquet’ Frangipani (Plumeria pudica); a few varigated leaves of ‘White Java’ Copperleaf (Acalphya wilkesiana ‘Java White’); and a ‘Lady Di’ Heliconia (Heliconia psittacorum) is in the mix in red and yellow.
My vase is in the bag this Monday. There will be no fish bashing in the garden. Thanks to Cathy at http://ramblinginthegarden.wordpress.com for hosting – follow the link to see more vases.
The Shrub Queen 
Such a novel idea, Amelia, but it seems to work – and what a lovely heirloom to have in the form of your ‘fish basher’. It must be lovely to hold, and so tactile. We are back to tropical today, and as effective as ever. In particular, the wiry russellia draws all those stalwarts together – lovely
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Thanks, Cathy. It is a very smooth ax head and heavy. I don’t think I could swing it as a hammer.
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I thought maybe there was some hooch in that bag, lol! But with all those pretty flowers, I think water is better. 😉
I found one of those ax heads by our river long ago. Unfortunately, one of my boys decided to use it as a hammer and ruined it. sigh, boys!
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No hooch, just tap water. I would like to know what the axes were used for by the river? They seem really clumsy.
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I often thought it was a grinding stone, for corn, holding the pointy end and rolling the opposite against a stone bowl? But maybe bludgeoning hapless beasts? 😀 Who knows for sure?
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By the water, though. Corn was ground with round millstones in the south. Near water. hmmm, the mystery continues.
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We need to consult an anthropologist!
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Well, I found what I have is a stone celt. Common to the US and the UK. They were used for felling trees and shaping wood. Used by putting the stone through a hole in a handle. No fish bashing.
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Perhaps mine was the same, I’ve never researched it.
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I’m intrigued as to what lies underneath that bag Amelia 😂 I love the combinations of colours. What a special heirloom to inherit from your father. Did he work as a geologist or was it an interest of his?
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Thanks, Anna. There is a mason jar in the bag. My father was a geology professor. He had an extreme interest in rocks and fossils. I find them around the house – they always make me smile.
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What a great idea….never thought of putting my vase in anything else but maybe I will look at bags and other containers differently now! And I adore the Native American stone ax head in both its history and the perfect prop.
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Thanks. A gift bag is a great idea!
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You surprise me with either flowers or vases every week Amelia. I have never heard of the Thyrallis before and will be googling it for a closer look. The paper bag is a great idea – novel and cheaper than buying a new vase! 😃
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Thanks, Cathy. It’s fun to try something new. I had just brought home a perfectly sized bag for the jar, total serendipity. Thyrallis is a pretty shrub, native to the Caribbean.
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Well done, Amelia! I love the Aechmea flower. Do you fertilize your bromeliads to encourage blooms, or do they produce all those flowers without urging? The brown paper bag was an inspired touch.
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Thanks, Kris. I very rarely do anything to the bromeliads. Unless they are in containers, then Osmocote lightly and rarely. They are their own little ecosystem if kept in the garden.
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Genius prop and nice you have it to remind you of your Father. Your flowers are always an interesting assortment. Miss Alice is a standout.
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Thanks, Susie. The combination of tropical flowers with more what? normal flowers always seems a bit off to me. Like they should be separated.
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Ah, Miss Alice, and Lady Di!
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The jar in a bag idea is really cute! I’ll have to give it a try one of these days. And you have plumeria! Is it a greenhouse flower?
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Thank you. I live in South Florida. That Plumeria is a hedge,
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Oooh, do you have a picture of it in bloom? That sounds beautiful.
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I think so. This one is not what you think of as a plumeria.
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I’ve been baggin’ it at the Teeter.
They put my Sangria in sleeves.
Ha
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That would make a great vase.
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