Belle Camp Blog

Here at Bellingrath, the two beauties I am excited about are very much like the hollies that Michael Triff asked me about: utilitarian on one side, but exquisite in the details on the other. Without further ado, here we go!

1. One of the oldest service buildings on the BGH campus is our Security Building. This simple wooden structure dates back to the 1930s when it, along with a now-gone twin, served as the main ticketing and entrance building. Today, the Security Building is stuffed with all sorts of things, mainly serving as a catch-all storage building for us. However, as with all things Bellingrath, we have grand plans! You see, the Security Building is a sturdy, well-built structure, and it has held up better than several of our other “general purpose” buildings.This past week, we were finally able to accomplish the first of several projects that will see this building repurposed into new offices. The first order of business was to address the rather old asphalt shingle roof. In the “beautiful” photo below, please see our sparkling new roof, which will protect everything inside from water and the elements. Stay tuned in the coming months for updates on what we will be doing with this “old but useful” building here at BGH!
2. Now, for the second of the two beauties, we actually have two photos showcasing the fine artistic talents of two of our local florists, as exhibited in the Bellingrath Home during the Fall Floral Showcase event held on October 18. (To most people, these are the beauties, and not the roof on the old Security Building. Yes… I get it, but here at Bellingrath, I am happy to celebrate all our achievements.) I will always be especially enamored by floral arrangements because my father, who passed away 11 years ago, was immensely talented in this subspecialty of horticulture – talents I do not possess. Earlier this week, I was able to walk through the Bellingrath Home to see all the beautiful floral art pieces designed and created by masters of the craft. Looking at the two pieces photographed here, I felt the rooms in which they were placed come alive. The first piece (see top photo), created by Martha Butler of The French Potager (Bay St. Louis, MS), is a masterful use of color subtleties – the faded lotus pod, the “antique”-looking hydrangeas, the copper beech foliage, and the incredible spider mums and roses in buff to rose-tan tones – the entire arrangement is so perfect that you would think it was created before the room itself. Bravo!!!The second piece, set in the formal dining room and designed by Carl Clark of Southern Veranda Flower and Gift Gallery (Fairhope, AL), is a wonderful study in mass, texture, and air – a basal bouffant of roses that perfectly matches the room’s drapes, topped by an incredible swirl of purple calla lilies, lilac-toned delphiniums, and a dazzling twirl of contorted twigs. Like the first arrangement, this one enlivens the room in which it is placed. Other pieces for the Fall Floral Showcase were created and displayed by Bay Flowers, Beth Cranford Floral Design, and BGH’s very own Barbara Smith! We thank them all for adding such delight and beauty to Bellingrath Gardens & Home!