Wonder of the Woodlands, a book by Françoise Weeks

Of course you can hear about a book, and think it's going to be wonderful, but until you're actually holding it in your hands, you just don't know for sure. I can report it's just as inspiring as I'd hoped it would be.
The first part of the book (introduction, how I build an arrangement, respecting and appreciating nature, and tools) lays the all important groundwork for the coming chapters which cover many of my favorite things like bark, branches, moss and ferns. That's Françoise herself in the lower corner...
The artful photography in the book is by Theresa Bear, who did a great job of capturing both the detail and magic of Françoise's work.
Throughout the book Françoise shares tips for creating your own arrangements. She tells you about the underlying structure on which you'll build, where to buy and forage for material (while being respectful of public and private property) and with every page you'll become more and more inspired to create. One of my favorite quotes of the book: "Like the Dutch masters who painted abundant floral still lifes, many with flowers that never bloomed at the same time, we are not aiming for reality. Rather, our goal is to imitate Nature by enhancing the visual experience." 

You might be reading this and thinking, "well that's all well and good for someone like Loree who lives in the PNW where she has easy access to forests for inspiration and collecting"... but Françoise wouldn't let you off that easily. She aims to inspire you to find your own way of expressing the nature you see around you, wherever in the world you are. In fact many cactus and succulents find their way into her creations: "Though succulents are hardly a forest crop, they make their way into many arrangements because I find their shapes so pleasing: burro's tail, hedgehog aloe, tiny cactus--all gathered at my local garden center. You'll find that these add movement and color to a forest still life." Take a scroll through Françoise's Instagram account to see what I mean.

If you're local you might want to attend a book signing and demonstration coming up at Portland Nursery this weekend (info here), and if you're not... well I urge you to buy the book and get lost in the imagery and inspiration of its pages.