Welcome to the website of the Northern Ireland Group of Flower Arrangement Societies, an area of NAFAS.We are affiliated to NAFAS the National Association of Flower Arrangement Societies a registered charity. Currently the NIGFAS Area has 21 clubs with a membership of 1000. Our aim is to encourage all in the art of flower arranging, through demonstrations, talks, classes, flower festivals and show work. Many of these activities take place in local flower clubs to which you would be made most welcome. No experience is necessary to join a flower club. Go along to one, you might discover a new talent! Please click on Flower Clubs to find one near you. NIGFAS take an active part in the Belfast Spring and Autumn Fairs. Come and see us at our stand. See the Belfast Parks Department events brochures or website for details of these Shows. There are lots of exciting events coming up and we would love to have your support at as Many of these as possible Please Check Floral Events for Information Liz Manning NIGFAS Area Chairman Northern Ireland Group of Flower Arrangement Societies Presents their next event Join us for Afternoon Tea via Zoom and A Virtual Spring Flower Competition
Information for Zoom Afternoon Tea on 6th March 2021
As this is a first for NIGFAS members on a Zoom event, we are keeping things to a minimum. We want you to relax and enjoy, with your cup of tea to hand and your favourite treats in front of you. If you really want to impress us, a little Spring arrangement to set off your table will get us all in the mood for a lovely Afternoon of Friendship through Flowers.
To attend you must inform your Club Chairman by 1st March 2021 so that the log on link can be forwarded to you by 4th March 2021
Information for the Zoom Virtual Competition
We have also kept the Competition to a minimum Open to all members with a Novice Class and an Open Class - both have the same title - the photograph of your design is front facing. Further details on the Poster. Please take this opportunity to show of your flower arranging talents Elaine cannot wait for her inbox to be full of entries. Log on link of the event will be forwarded to you by 4th March 2021
We are delighted that our NAFAS Chairman Katherine Kear will be joining us and saying a few words of greetings from NAFAS.
If you have any problems and your Club Chairman cannot help you out, please contact Elaine on her email address elainetaylor29@btinternet.com
We in the Executive look forward to seeing your competition entries and your attendance at our “Afternoon Tea” please attend and we will have a couple of hours of Fun, Flowers and Fellowship.
Marretta
Chairman's Challenge This is the NAFAS Chairman's Challenge for 2021 Please click on the link to view the message This is the schedule for the NAFAS Virtual Competition Please click the link below to view NAFAS National Photography Competition 2021 Please click the link below to view the schedule Congratulations from NIGFAS Milton Porter a member of the Omagh Floral Art Society has been awarded the BEM in the Near Year Honor's List For Services to Cancer Research and The Community in Castlederg Co Tyrone NAFAS AGM This is the link to view the NAFAS AGM to access please click on the link below The Flower Arranger Magazine Save 30% if you are a Club Member and order through your local club. Find your nearest club to join go to NIGFAS Website and click on Flower Clubs. Then tell the Club Flower Arranger Officer you would like to subscribe £12.80 for 4 issues. Annual subscription Rate, Price includes postage and packing for the convenience of having each issue delivered directly to your door. UK Addresses £22.00 Subscription form on page 50 of Spring issue 2021 or go to NAFAS Website and click on The Flower Arranger. The Flower Arranger DIGITAL EDITION to day £9.99and receive See page 71 of Spring issue 2021 or go to the NAFAS Website and click on The Flower Arranger NIGFAS Christmas Video Demonstrations Leslie Brant Bangor Flower Club Presents " Reach for the Stars " Please click on the link below to view the Video List of Materials used for making the exhibit 1 Block of Oasis sprayed silver Cones sprayed silver 5 Dried Stalitiza leaves 3 straight canes 8 Glass tubes and cable ties 8 White Gerbera 8 Stars made from Midelino canes ( 5 Pieces to make a star) Silver bullion wire Christmas ribbon Metal Tray and 2 frogs Johann Henderson Holywood and Inspiration Club Presents "ALL Wrapped Up " Please click the link below to view the Video ![]() Colleen Hamill Ballymena Club Presents Title "Second Time Around" Please click on the link below to view the Video These are the materials needed to complete the designs in Colleen Video ![]() Elaine Taylor Lower Bann Flower Club Presents "Hoarded Christmas" Please click on the link below to view the Video Part 2 "Hoarded Christmas Click on the link below to view the video Part 3 " Hoarded Christmas " Click on the link below to view the video Linda Lyons Presents " Home for Christmas" Please click the link below to view the Video ECT Travel Virtual Demonstration with NAFAS Katherine Kerr and Di Smith Click on the link below to view the video with full list of all materials listed AOIFA Advent Calender Please click the link below to view the calenderhttps://www.facebook.com/AOIFA.Ireland/posts/16081142360620 NIGFAS Facebook Page This is the link below to click if you wish to follow the NIGFAS Facebook Page This is the Autumn Virtual Photography Competition These are the links to view The NIGFAS Autumn Virtual Photography Competition They have been sent to our Judge Brian Hennessey and the winners will be announced shortly Class 1 Hydrangea with Style 1st George Madden Belfast Flower Club Class 2 Colours of Autunm 1st Jacqui Anderson Greenisland Club Class 3 Times are Changing 1st Marbeth Wilson Ballymena Club Class 4 Twig Tastic 1st Ingrid Jellie Comber Flower Club Class 5 Animal Antics 1st Jacksie Catherwood Comber Flower Club This is the Latest NIGFAS Virtual Flower Show NIGFAS Autumn Virtual Flower Show People's Choice Award Class 1 Hydrangea with Style Phyllis Loughrey Letterkenny Flower Club Class 2 Colours of Autumn Phyllis Loughrey Letterkenny Flower Club Class 3 Times are Changing Elaine Taylor Lower Bann Flower Club Class 4 Twig Tastic Ingrid Jellie Comber Flower Club Class 5 Copper Glow (small scale exhibit) Liz Manning Londonderry Flower Club A Message from the President of NIGFAS I would encourage everyone to download The Stop Covid NI App. A small thing we could all do to help in the fight against Covid 19 Liz Manning NIGFAS Area Chairman The link below is the CovidCare NI App A Message from the President of NAFAS And The Board NAFAS Christmas Demonstration with Chairman Katherine Kerr and Di Smith Please click the link below for information on this event Looking Forward News from our National Chairman Katherine Kerr LOOKING FORWARD NEWS
Christmas lights seem to have cropped up earlier in gardens, windows and on house fronts. It’s so nice to see their familiarity giving a sense of anticipations towards Christmas.
We are pleased to welcome Chris Brown, Surrey Area Chairman and Louise Jones, Cheshire Area Chairman to the Articles of Association Sub-Committee. We also have welcomed Suzi Castle (South West Area) and Debbie Wadge (Wessex and Jersey Area) to the Finance Committee and Pip Bensley (Wessex and Jersey Area) and Janet Schofield (Cheshire Area) to the Strategy Committee.
By now you will all have received the NAFAS Virtual National Show Schedule and Entry Form. Do circulate it to clubs, let’s make this a welcome back to creating together and enjoying what our members have to offer.
Below is a press release for clubs. Please feel free to use the wording to advertise the event on your various news outlets:-
Looking forward to next year and the NAFAS Virtual National Show April 2021 The Spring.... The Happy Time of Singing Birds is Come This is our first Virtual Show, and it will have everything you would expect. Each week for the first three weeks of April there will be a demonstration, talk and ‘how to’ session viewable on all our various media platforms including the new website. These will be provided by our National Demonstrators, Speakers and Teachers. The full list of these platforms will follow nearer the time. During the last week of April all the judged competition entries will be on view. The Schedule ‘Springtime’ created by our National Judges Committee has a wonderful variety of 12 classes. A feast to look forward to.
Media update: Steven and I have met with the Director of Magic Bean Media, they are to take over all parts of our social media i.e. Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, and Pinterest. They start working with us on January 1st. We will be having monthly meetings with them.
Keep safe all, best wishes.
Katherine Kear National Chairman MDPF National Association of Flower Arrangement Societies Osborne House, 12 Devonshire Square , London EC2M 4TE Telephone 020 7247 5567 Email: info@nafas.org.uk Website: www.nafas.org.uk
Company Registration No. 4934904 Charity Registration No. 1101348 Registered Office: Osborne House. 12 Devonshire Square. London EC2M 4TE VAT Registration No. GB239 8888 88 Exciting News from our National Chairman Katherine Kerr NAFAS National Chairman Resignation NAFAS STATEMENT ON COVID 19 Can NIGFAS MEMBERS and Flower Clubs please check the Guidelines for Northern Ireland This is the link for Guidelines for Northern Ireland Please click the link below to view the Facebook Page Flower Arranger Please click the link below to view the page NIGFAS DIARY 2020 NAFAS Appointments Congratulations Congratulations to Alan Beatty on his award as a
NAFAS National Associate of Honour in recognition of his work and dedication in
many areas of NAFAS and NIGFAS . Well done Alan from everyone in NIGFAS Challenges during Lockdown Good Evening Members The NIGFAS Executive Committee have come up with some challenges for our members over the coming months. There are some exciting things to look forward to. To start of we are asking for you to send in a photograph to sum up your personal experience during lockdown. Please send them to nigfassocialmedia@gmail.com They will then be posted to the Facebook page by the 20th July 2020 Many Thanks in Advance Social Media Officer Bernie Jackson
Challenge 1
Here's a selection of the challenges to view all the entries see NIGFAS Facebook page
Decorating has become a big part of Lockdown Liz Manning
Paperwork doesn't stop for NIGFAS Treasurer Lorraine Bothwell
PSNI Teddies Mary Tompsett
Time to admire the beautiful May Sunsets Phyllis Boyd
![]() ![]() ![]() Challenge 4 Photo of Flower /Bloom or Blossom NAFAS FLOWER POWER NAFAS NATIONAL NEWS This is New NAFAS Committee Chairman of all NAFAS Clubs and Administration Please Click on the link below to view Pre- National Assessment and National Demonstrators Test Revised Dates Wednesday 21st April and Thursday 22nd April 2021 PRE-NATIONAL ASSESSMENT on TICKETS £12 per person, per day cheques payable to NAFAS – please include a SAE or card payments taken at Headquarters 020 7247 5567 – digital tickets issued tea & coffee available Reg Charity No. 1101348 Test held by kind permission of The Cheshire Area of NAFAS Update on Deliveries of The Flower Arranger Magazine
Our Flower Arranger
Officer George Madden has forwarded this information from Sylvia Loader NAFAS
Just to let you know during this very difficult time,
Warners are having to make some changes to their staff levels. I have
been advised that my normal contact for delivery issues will not be around for
the next 3 weeks, all the Flower Arranger work is being spread between
different staff all now working from home. Please continue to
report problems in the normal way, but please be aware that delays in
information getting back to me/you will be inevitable.
It is essential that when reporting problems to me
that you supply the following information:
Club Ref and Club name
CFAO name and address
Problem reported
Number of magazines ordered Rings of Hope & Appreciation
Flower Arrangers all over the country are creating door rings to show their appreciation of the NHS staff and essential workers during this emergency. They are decorating them in green and blue, with ribbons, flowers and foliage.
The ring symbolises unending and everlasting love, the cycle of life and hope. Green is for renewal, balance and progress, and blue for the NHS.
Gloucester based NAFAS member and Master Florist Katherine Kear, whose idea this was, thanks all who have already decorated their doors and encourages the public to find creative ways to take part in this gesture of thanks.
Step by step ideas, suitable for beginners and children, can be found on the NAFAS Facebook page @NafasFlowers and also Katherine Kear’s Facebook page @KatherineKearFlowers. A ‘How to’ video is available on the nafasflowers YouTube Obituary to The Rev Mac
In 2000 Mac was asked by Father Finnegan to design a festival to celebrate the Millennium at Dromantine House, Newry, Co Down and 120 of his friends from 26 different countries came to Design 2000- An International Symposium of Floral Art. Delegates gave him a standing ovation and Mac quoting his beloved Yeats ‘Tread softly / Because you tread on my dreams’ said simply ‘You have made my dream come true’. This international gathering was repeated in 2006. Liz Manning NIGFAS Chairman Condolences Message From Our Chairman It is with great sadness that I have to inform you that Rev William McMillan MBE died peacefully this morning. Rev MAC was a Special Associate of Honour of NAFAS , a past Chairman of NIGFAS and a friend to many and will be greatly missed . Our thoughts and prayers are with the family at this sad time. Liz Manning NIGFAS Chairman
WAFA EVENT
20 April 2020
SOUTHERN SOJOURN – INTERNATIONAL WAFA SEMINAR
In South Island, New Zealand
14-25 March 2021
Dear members
The UK has been invited to send 10
delegates to take part in the above event. The Seminar will give attendees a
chance to experience the host country’s culture, see floral art presentations
and competitive work (which may involve judging), take part in workshops with
top tutors and view wonderful scenery around the Seminar’s hubs in Christchurch
and Queenstown in an atmosphere of fun and friendship along with other delegates
within the WAFA family.
The cost of the Seminar ONLY for shared accommodation has been estimated as approximately NZ$8,000
and single occupancy as NZ$10,000. Due to the New Zealand Government’s
plans/rules for post lockdown in the months ahead, the programme and costs are
subject to alteration. The WAFA NZ Host Committee suggests that WAFA members
keep up to date by using the website www.wafanz.co.nz
PLEASE NOTE: Delegates will be expected to pay for themselves, arrange their own
insurance and organize their own travel to and from New Zealand at the
appropriate time. If desired, delegates can make their own
arrangements to extend their stay in New Zealand before and/or after the
Seminar.
If interested, please submit your name and
contact details to me by 30th May 2020, via vanessa@nafas.org.uk and a list will be prepared. Should there be more than 10 applicants then a ballot will take place. Some countries do not take up
their whole allocation of places and if unsuccessful in the ballot, attendance
may still be possible.
With kindest regards
Yours sincerely
Dr. Christina Curtis
NATIONAL CHAIRMAN These are Hints and Tips for Members who would like to know more about taking Photographs of their Exhibits. Courtesy of Brian Hennessey (judge) Some of the members who took part in the Challenges we have held made comments that it took them longer to photograph the exhibit that it did to make it. So our Photography Officer Jackie Gilmour kindly asked for hints and tips from Brian Hennessey Judge. Here are his hints and tips . Flower Arrangement Photography Guide One of our golden rules in portrait photography is “never practice on the customer”. How this applies to flower photography is - ‘do not build your arrangement and then wonder how to photograph it’. Preparation is key! Read the rules of the competition as regards the dimensions, if stated, or, if not, your own choice of size and then prepare a physical representation. This could be a cardboard box, pillow, frame, mirror or just some bamboo or similar sticks. Next is to place your dummy in front of a suitable background. Ideally, the background should be as unnoticeable as possible. A white background is possibly the worst as our eye (and the judges’) is drawn to the lightest point in an image. Some contrast between your arrangement and the background will help it to stand out. A predominately blue arrangement against a blue background, or similar combinations, can be confusing as it may be difficult establish which is which. How you light your arrangement is crucial. Avoid on camera flash at all costs as it will create harsh shadows on both your arrangement and background. It will also produce unwanted highlights, especially on glossy foliage. My number one choice is natural daylight. Today in Portstewart we have perfect lighting conditions for this type of subject. Cloudy but bright, with no harsh shadows. Hazy sunlight will also work reasonably well. Example 1 My arrangement, cardboard box 36” X 18”, placed on a black cloth covering our blue wheely bin that is parked about 6ft in front of a dark stone wall. The dark stone and grey mortar will be an out of focus, dark grey mottled background. If only we did not have the gale force winds and heavy rain, this would have been the perfect setup! Today’s lesson is always have an alternative if timing is important. Example 2 As I was not allowed to bring the wheely bin inside the living room, the support was my wheeled computer table. Again parked about 6ft in front a cream painted wall, facing a bay window. Had to move TV to one side and some pictures off the wall. This is where a tripod comes in handy as after composing the image I can stand to one side to make the exposure and avoid casting a shadow. While the dummy was closer to the light source the background appeared several shades darker. Always take some photos of your intended setup, study and refine as necessary NATIONAL Photography Competition 2020 These are the winners of the NAFAS National Photography Competition Please click the link below to view the results These are the winning Images from the NAFAS National Photography Competition 2020 Please click the link below to view the winning Images NIGFAS PHOTOGRAPHY Congratulations to Mary Pearson Comber and Inspirations Club Receiving 3rd Prize Class 5 "Something Beginning with A" NAFAS National Photography Competition https://youtu.be/6JmFl55LvLE |