I finally spent a Saturday with a master arranger from Japan

Last week I had coffee with an older guy who trained in Tokyo for 12 years. He told me he still strips every leaf by hand because machines 'bruise the stem.' Made me realize how much I rush through prep work. I started taking an extra 5 minutes per arrangement this week and honestly the difference is huge. Anyone else slow down their process and notice a real change?

2 comments

2 Comments

wesley87323d agoMost Upvoted

You ever have a buddy who's a total perfectionist about the dumbest stuff? My friend Dave spent like 45 minutes trimming the thorns off a single rose once, telling me its about preserving the 'veins' or whatever. I thought he was full of it until I saw his arrangement next to mine, the stems on his were totally clean and smooth while mine looked like I fought a cat with them.

the_jesse23d ago

Twelve years in Tokyo just to come back and tell us we're all rushing? That's wild. The stripped leaf thing is where I draw the line though - are we talking about like every single leaf on every stem? Because I've got a guy who insists on trimming each thorn off a rose stem with scissors instead of a knife and I thought he was insane, but now I'm wondering if I'm the lazy one. I've been trying to slow down on my Sunday morning arrangements and yeah, the stems don't look all bruised up like they did when I was taking a machete to them. Makes you wonder what else we're accidentally destroying by going too fast.