Flowers for concert

Press, Volume CXIV, Issue 33448, 1 February 1974, Page 5

Flowers for concert

Even amidst the, colour and glitter assembled at the Town Hall for the Royal Variety Concert last evening the floral arrangements did not escape favourable notice. The white marble of the foyer was enhanced by two very tall, formal arrange-

meats, predominantly red and green. The entrance to the Limes Room, where the Queen and members of the Royal family mingled informally with guests at supper, was dominated by a very large, freestanding arrangement in white, green, and apricot, touched with coloured berries and fresh green foliage.

The artists and organisers of the concert, and Christchurch City Councillors were introduced to the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh in the two conference rooms. The floral decorations had a basic theme of green and white, one highlighted by pale yellow and the other by salmon pink blooms. Five members of the Canterbury Horticultural Society arrived promptly at the Town Hall at 9 a.m. yesterday morning to get an early start on the decorations. All are horticultural society floral art judges. Mesdames J. C. Fraser, J. N. L. Okey, A. R. Powell, L. W. Robinson, and R. L. Sparrow applied both technical skills and a keen judgment of over-all effect. The arrangements took almost five hours to complete.

“We had to take into account the very strong colours in the Limes Room and the conference room,” said Mrs Fraser yesterday. “We chose the pale apricot tones to complement the curtains in the Limes Room. We had to keep the dominant red carpet in the entrance in mind too, and the gold carpet in the conference room is also a strong feature.” The blooms, which included lilies, dahlia, hyacinth, chrysanthemum, and roses with a variety of greenery and berries, were supplied by the park ands reserves department, but the women also augmented the supply. A pyramid arrangement of chrysanthemum blooms was arranged for the Royal alcove in the Limes Room by Miss Joan Baker, of parks and reserves. Miss Baker also arranged the decorations in the private lounge used by I the Royal family.