Lunch and Learning Day

The Canadian Student Chapter presented their annual Lunch and Learning Day in April. It was held at Seneca College in Toronto and the students of both the full and part-time floral design programs were invited.

The objective of the day is to give the new people who are just finishing their courses and who are ready to enter the floral industry, a more global perspective on the career path they have chosen.

Members of WFC are asked to volunteer their time to spend the day at the College to design for, and answer questions from the students on all things floral. There is never a shortage of highly skilled and accredited members willing to give their knowledge to help the students reach their goals but this year was exceptional. Six designers shared their creative talent, their vision, their personal experiences and their sources of inspiration with an attentive and highly motivated group of young people.

The day opened with an information session about WFC, its’ goals, mandate and ideals, with videos of several recent Summit. We stressed the need for new people to be fully involved in more than just their corner of the industry.

The lunch break is more than just sharing a pizza. It is an excellent opportunity for the students to meet with the designers, to watch the preparation of the designs, to take endless pictures and to have techniques explained. We also encourage them to feel comfortable with the people who may perhaps be their employers soon, but certainly their mentors. It is a very important hour in this day.

The design team was as follow with the country they represented

Maija Asaris AIFD CAFA Northern Ireland

Velta Berzins CAFA Kenya

Patricia Patrick AIFD CAFA Canada

Sveta Shvedenkova CAFA Russia

Marianne Suess AIFD CAFA Japan

Inta Taurins AIFD CAFA Latvia

The designs presented were differed in style, shape, form and colour, ranging from a depiction of early Spring in Latvia using soft pastels and the natural elements of bulbs, roots, bark and mosses to an image of the green and fertile land of Northern Ireland with horizontal lines and interesting layering techniques. The tribute to Japan strongly featured the chrysanthemum in gentle colours with an emphasis on clean lines and space. The mass of red rose petals crafted into a Duchess Rose bridal bouquet with white pearl accents celebrated Canada’s 150th birthday with the flag colours. The Russian design used the circle as its main shape with an intricate weaving of vines and floral materials and the very linear design for Kenya featured giraffe masks, grasses and mosses in muted browns and greens to give a sense of the seemingly endless Plains where the animals roam.

The day ended with a Q & A session and, of course, many more photos of the finished designs giving the students a photo gallery of quality, professional work.

It was a very successful day for everyone and our thanks go to WFC for their ongoing support of this program.

Submitted respectfully,

Patricia Patrick AIFD CAFA WFC