As you know my daughter and best friend, Sydney turned twenty-one last week. It was a fun week filled with twenty-one lavender macarons, sushi from our favorite restaurant, and she had finally decided on a cake and topper. It was wonderful creating together again, and when we finally finished all the flowers for her cake she decided she would rather keep the sugar paste Alstroemeria Lily full blown rose spray in a vase.

It is strange to think of my baby as 21 years old, in some ways it feels like yesterday I was bringing home my 5 1/2 week early little girl, and in other ways it has been a wonderful journey helping Sydney become a responsible adult. While Sydney was home she found me looking through one of several photo books of her as a young child. She sat beside me and asked if I wished baby Sydney was still here; it took me a moment to figure out what she was trying to articulate. She felt maybe the baby Sydney was special and grown Sydney not so much, my heart sank. I love my adult daughter as much if not more than the baby daughter (I have had twenty-one years to know her). Her question though heart breaking is understandable, how many mommy blogs are there…hundreds, however there is not one that posts about mom’s of adult children. I can tell you as a mom of a college child, it is more complicated than when she was young. There’s so much more to worry about when your child leaves home, you have to trust you did the best job you could and now it is up to that child to make good choices. There is also a great deal of fun, Sydney and I were able to sit at an oyster bar at happy hour and order a drinks together with a couple dozen oysters!

Alstroemeria Lily Tutorial Class:

Equipment:

• Alstroemeria veiner, SKGI
• Alstroemeria cutter, TT
• 33, 26, and 22 gauge wire, white
• Metal ball tools
• Tweezers
• Foam pad
• Six petal blossom cutter, Op
• Tap-It mat,ISAC
• Groove board, Celcakes
• Fine scissors
• 1/2-width white floral tape
• 1/2-width green nile floral tape
• Wire cutters
• silk veining tool
• Toothpicks/cocktail sticks
• Mini rolling pin
• Wire cutters
• Dusting brushes
• #1 artist brush
• Tape shredder,JEM
• Needle nose pliers
• Celpin

Material:

• White gumpaste/sugar paste, Satin Ice
• Plum petal dust,Sf
• African violet petal dust,SF
• Aubergine petal dust, CK
• Pearl shimmer petal dust, Blossom
• Vine green petal dust, SKGI
• Moss green petal dust
• Sage green petal dust
• Everclear or vodka
• Egg white
• Crisco
• Cornstarch

 

 Prepare your mise en place.

The Pistil:

Cut you 1/2 width white tape into quarters with a tape shredder or small scissors and 33 gauge wire into quarters, you will need one pistil per lily. Cut three  5mm/1/2-inch long pieces of tape attach them to the 33 gauge wire, with the back of a pair of scissors curl tape, like Christmas ribbon. Place in a straw in a floral wire, we created 8 Alstroemeria lilies for the two sprays.

The Stamens:

You will need six stamens per Alstroemeria lily. With a pair of mini needle nose pliers, bend a small hook on one end of the 33 gauge wire (cut into 1/4th). Knead and condition some gumpaste/sugar paste, take a #2 size ball of paste and roll into a smooth ball. Dip the hooked end of the wire into a dish of egg white, wipe away the excess, and inter into the ball. Form the ball onto the wire with your thumb and forefinger. Turn the ball into an oval shape bring to a rounded tip with your thumb and forefinger. Tape the wire with 1/4 width white tape. Repeat for all the stamens you will need for your project, we needed 48 stamens.

Assembly and Colour:

With three to one mixture of plum and african violet dust, dust the pistil and the taped wire. Dust the bulbous part of the stamen with a three to one mixture of pearl shimmer and vine green dust and the taped wire with the plum-african violet mixture.

Mix 3 drops of Everclear to a separate mixture of the plum-violet dust. Paint several little spots with a #1 paint brush on the bulbous part of the stamen.

The pistil and stamens of the Alstroemeria lily are curved, add bend to each wire after you attach the stamens around the pistil.

The Petals:

Striped  Narrow Petals:

The Alstroemeria lily has three narrow striped petals two are longer than the third, for each lily you will need three striped narrow petals.

Knead  and condition a number 12 size ball of gumpaste, roll the paste into an even log and press the log over the 5 grooves in the groove board roll down, and then roll up until the paste is transparently thin. Transfer the paste to your Tap-It mat or cutting surface. Place the the petal centred over the groove and press until you feel the cutter reach the mat and gently move the cutter to cut the petal cleanly. Dip a 26 gauge wire into egg white, wipe the excess, and insert the wire into the groove of the petal.

Place the petal on a foam pad using your ball tool half on the petal and half off  soften the edges. Place the wired petal in your double sided  veiner and gently press together. Place the petal back onto the foam pad use your silk veining tool to add a little more texture and movement. With your thumb and forefinger pinch at the base to attach the petal and give a realistic effect, and pinch the tip to a point.

Add a slight curve and allow to dry on dimpled foam.

The Broad Back Petals:

Repeat the same process as the narrow long petals.

Colour and Assemble:

The Narrow Petals:

Mix three parts pearl shimmer to one part vine, dust the narrow petals from the base towards the middle with the pearl-vine mixture and from the bottom sides towards the inside. Mix three parts plum to one part african violet, dust the top of the petals towards the centre. Place some of the plum-violet colour to the side and add a few drops of Everclear, paint fine lines throughout the petals.

The Broad Petals:

The broad back petals are dusted with the plum-violet mixture, from base to centre, the sides to centre, and top to centre. Remember to dust the back of all the petals as well.

Assemble:

Take your pistil- stamens attach two of the narrow petals close together with 1/2 width nile green tape, wrap once around and add the third petal under the pistil. Wrap the tape as you stretch it once around and add the broad petals one at a time.

 The Ovary:

Roll a number six size ball of well kneaded paste, place the ball on the centre hole of your groove board, flatten the ball out with a Celpin, creating a mexican hat. Remove the paste from the groove broad and cut out a six petal blossom with a six petal blossom cutter (using the pie dough cutting method). Place the 6 petal blossom on a foam pad thin and hollow out each petal. Thread the blossom onto the assembled Alstroemeria lily and attach with egg white.

Allow to dry and dust with moss green petal dust, sage green petal dust and accent the edge with aubergine.

Sydney’s visit was much too short, she had been apart of a summer psychology  program and only had three weeks of summer break, but we we had an amazing time together and now that she is legal we can cause twice the trouble! Although my baby is an adult she will always be my baby! I am blessed to be friends with my daughter and this spray was created with and for her!

Enjoy!