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S S STEP 1 In this design, you can use the Dendrobium orchids fresh, in water tubes, or waxed. To wax individual orchid blooms, briefl y dip each bloom in melted soy wax, followed quickly by a plunge into a bowl of cold water. Repeat this process as many times as you wish, to achieve whatever frosted effect you desire. Waxed Dendrobium orchids will retain their fresh appearance for several days. NOTE: For this project, you can melt soy wax in a professional electric wax melter, available for around $75 to $90, or a double-boiler (a saucepan topped with a heatproof glass or metal mixing bowl works well). DESIGN TIP: If you want to infuse some color into the wax, add shreds of a wax crayon—or several. STEP 2 FROSTED FOREST ARRANGEMENT. Dip individual lightweight seasonal botanical materials (e.g., sticks, dried leaves, sago palm leafl ets, small pine needle clusters, miniature cones, dried pods, cotton bolls, dried limes, moss fragments, snippets of raffi a, etc.) into melted wax soy wax, and then layer them into a trifl e bowl while the wax is still hot. Once you have achieved the desired depth for this design, allow the materials to cool and the wax to harden for an hour or so. Then, fl ip the bowl upside down and tap it on a hard surface to release the waxed design. Display on a decorative base—tray, cheese board, footed pedestal, etc. (I made two of these for this tablescape, one of which I covered with a bell-dome glass cloche and the other I displayed on a silver pedestal tray.) Finally, incorporate additional elements into each design—botanical or nonbotanical, waxed or not waxed—such as an orchid bloom, sprigs of fresh greenery, Christmas ornaments, additional pods and cones, feathers, clumps of chartreuse reindeer moss, a wax "snowball" (see Step 3), a pillar STEP 3 "SNOWBALLS." To craft wax spheres that can serve as miniature containers for individual favors and/or be a part of the design, fi rst fi ll white latex balloons with cold water to range in size from chicken egg to ostrich egg. (If your wax melter is large enough, you can make bigger spheres; if it's too small, you can ladle several layers of wax over the exteriors of larger balloons.) Next, dip the cold-water-fi lled balloons into melted wax and then immediately into cold water. Repeat this process approximately 20 times. When you have achieved the desired thickness of wax, cut the knotted tip of the balloon, drain the water, and either gently remove the remaining balloon from inside the sphere or add a bit more of wax inside, to cover any balloon remnants. DESIGN TIP: These distinctive wax spheres can be used individually or combined to create "wreaths" or other multi-pod structures by gently warming exterior spots and fusing them together. Get creative and have fun! 42 December | 2023 Design 42 S S Design

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