I love the beautiful decorating books in our collection and enjoy reviewing the new ones. Many of them are glossy and shallow confections which I still appreciate if I like the design style portrayed. A picture says a thousand words and all that.

Every now and again, one of the pretty ones offers a little more than I expected and that’s a treat. Like this one.

Bringing Nature Home is a new book about flower arrangement that combines the talents of a lifestyle photographer with floral and prop arrangers.

They have chosen common flowers from garden and meadow, arranged them with inspired simplicity and placed them in lovely, uncomplicated room settings which are as intriguing as the arrangements.

As well, they provide information about the historical cultivation of the flowers and their place in art and literature.

A graceful branch of bleeding heart is tucked into each of a pair of modern white vases that complement an art grouping. Bleeding heart is combined with daffodils, pansies and Solomon’s seal for another charming kitchen bouquet. You see it again mixed with tulips, crab apple blossoms and geranium leaves in a sturdy pottery container set on an end table.

Along the way you learn, among other things, that there are more than 25,000 cultivars of daffodils and have been reminded of a famous Wordsworth poem.

The book is a beautiful page turner with arrangements organized by season. And it all looks so effortless.

“This would make a great gift book,” said Janet, an Arts Department colleague. I agree.

- Jane

Paper Garden, by Molly Peacock, has been on my reading list for almost a year and I am very glad that I finally got to it. It’s a non-fiction story of an artist that is as engaging as a good novel - a good choice for your book club or gift list.

In 1700, Mary Granville was born into an obscure branch of an aristocratic family that was struggling to maintain and advance its position in English society. As a child, she was trained in social graces that would equip her for a position at court.

At 17 she married an oppressive, alcoholic squire aged 61 in a bid by her family to improve their fortunes. But that didn’t happen. When she was widowed at age 25, she was left with just a modest pension.

Mary spent the next two decades of her life on the fringes of court society with pals like Jonathan Swift and Handel. She was wooed by a succession of impressive suitors, but remained resolutely single until her marriage to Irish clergyman, Patrick Delany, in middle age. Together, they enjoyed a gentle country life for a very happy 23 years.

At age 72, following the death of her beloved husband, Mary developed a new art form and created an amazing 985, botanically correct, floral collages which are housed today in the British museum.

Poet Molly Peacock tells the story, based on information from a wealth of letters that Mary exchanged with family and friends. Along the way, Peacock explores the issues of women’s independence, the sustaining nature of good marriages, the trials of economic uncertainty and the unexpected blossoming of creativity in old age.

If you are inspired by Mary’s collages, have a look at New Creative Collage Techniques: How to make original art using paper, color and texture. Author Nita Leland demonstrates the collage process, including design principles, working with ready-made papers and creating your own. She also offers instruction on mixed media collage and making textured supports.

The on again/off again rain this week has made me think more about our focus on indoor life. In Calgary, we can’t count on a long hot summer to spend outdoors on patio or deck. Our climate has us scurrying for cover most of the year.

Because of this, I feel anxious if I’m not outside enjoying a beautiful day. It’s like I’m not grateful enough to the gods for it, and they might deprive me of future fine days as punishment for my ingratitude. I have observed this in others as well. I think it's a defining characteristic of being Calgarian.

So I say to you, if you have beautiful flowers in your garden, don’t think twice about lopping them off in their prime and bringing them inside for rainy-day pleasure. Or sunny-day pleasure, if you are bold enough to defy the weather gods.

At the Library, we have more than 150 titles about flower arrangement and they are an inspiring lot. However, I have specifically selected a few more titles that show you how to make clever arrangements work with the décor of a room.

Easy flowers: ideas for every room in your home (2003) “is a book about how not to arrange flowers”. There are no strict rules of arrangement. The focus is on making a match between the flowers and the container and fitting the result into an appropriate setting. For example, in a room dominated by dark heavy furnishings, a stunning array of parrot tulips fills a large black ceramic vase. A mass of grape hyacinths pack a tall glass vase and decorate a kitchen counter.

In Flowers by Design (2003), author and designer Jeff Leatham brings a sculptor’s approach to his chosen media. He begins by analysing a room, assessing, for example, its mood and light sources and looks for bold, dramatic shapes to accentuate the spaces. This book will impress those seeking both beauty and drama.

Living Art: Style Your Home with Flowers (2010) features stunning creations by a floral designer who revels in the total sensual experience offered by flower arrangements. This a house tour book where the focus is on the flowers and both the homes and flowers are fabulous.

Next week: French Country

Early morning finds me, coffee cup in hand, surveying my little balcony garden. This week, the zucchini plants have exploded with blooms; this bodes well for a good crop if I can keep the powdery mildew at bay. Staff at Sunnyside gave me a formula to spray on infected leaves: one teaspoon of baking soda to one liter of water. I’m giving it a try.

Besides loving zucchini and all the wonderful things you can do with it, I just love the plant. The foliage is gorgeous and so are the flowers – though short lived. I think of it as the day lily of the vegetable world.

Flower gardens throughout the city are at their peak. At this time of year, one of my favourite forms of entertainment is a stroll to check out what’s growing my neighbourhood. When your neighbourhood includes Lougheed House and the Reader Rock Garden, you have some very good places to check.

Inside our homes, flowers bring life and beauty to any room. My favourite potted plants indoors are budget-friendly, readily available, stalwarts that stay in bloom for 6 to 12 weeks: African violets, orchids and cyclamen.

“Not orchids!” you say. The charmer in the picture was purchased at the North Hill Home Depot, on sale for $12.00, and has been blooming happily for several months.

At Home with Flowers(2011) by Jane Packer demonstrates the enormous decorative impact of clever floral arrangements. Single, lime yellow dahlias, cut to different heights, fill a cluster of exotic brass vases grouped on a brass and glass coffee table.

On an antique sideboard revived with white paint, sprigs of veronica and astilbe fill a large collection of vintage milk bottles. Flowers fill mugs and seashells. Arrangements decorate bathroom ledges, kitchen counters and stairways.

It’s all very inventive and often dramatic. It makes me want to try harder and stretch beyond my stalwarts.

Perhaps next year I will try to grow some cutting flowers to bring indoors.