Review: Haute-couture Florale by Sébastien Lathuile

I was kindly sent this book of beautiful flower arrangements from the floral designer Sébastien Lathuile for a review.  The book has stunning photographs and the florist himself is very passionate about his work in China with deaf-mutes.  Here is my review of this book:

This book is truly beautiful and a wonderful gift for anyone who’s a fan of art, flowers or photography, or indeed all three! The book is delivered in a secured brown box to keep it safe. The book is large and heavy with thick, slightly glossed pages. The whole book is of an excellent quality which really helps you to enjoy the beautiful pictures inside so much more.

Inside each double page spread contains a photo of a flower arrangement on the left, with a selected part of that arrangement photographed in close-up on the right. The flower arrangements are stunning, with very unique designs, there’s a reason this book is called ‘Haute-couture Florale’. Each arrangement is very different and use a variety of different flowers and even fruits and vegetables, who knew an aubergine would work in a flower arrangement, but it does!
The close-up, macro, photos are fascinating to see. They are so clear and reveal something you often cannot see in the general flower arrangement, such as the stunning veins of a leaf or the beautiful pattern on flower petals.

The book is separated into colour sections where each flower arrangement follows the general colour, such as red, green or purple. The book has both introductions and biographies written in different languages including, French, English, German, Japanese, and Chinese. It is well worth reading both these sections to learn more about both the florist and the photographer. Reading the introduction made this book even more special due to the florist’s passion for employing deaf-mutes. The back of the book contains an index showing a small picture of each arrangement with a list of which plants were used in that arrangement.

I cannot help but look at this book again and again. I’ve always loved art and enjoy good photography and I’m simply fascinated with all the arrangements, and the close-up shots are so interesting! This would make a wonderful gift for anybody into art, photography or flowers and indeed even a gift for yourself.

Rating: 5/5

Author’s websites: http://www.hautecoutureflorale.com/ or http://www.sebastien.asia/