Meditation Gardens- a new workshop inspired by Japanese Gardens- available on-line

Mindful Flowers virtual experience is available

Upcoming workshops_

MINDFUL IKEBANA with T project.

T PROJECT- PORTLAND, OR 723 NW 18th Avenue Portland, OR 97209 tproject.com

Join us for a cup of tea and a unique floral experience with Ellen Hansen to celebrate the season, winter melting into spring! You'll be introduced to the art of contemporary Ikebana (Japanese floral art) as a new self-care ritual: Pause, breathe, connect & create. Seasonally inspired leaves and flowers will be used and participants will create an Ikebana arrangement to take home or share. No experience required.
Feb. 22nd 2-4, $48. Sign up at tproject.com.

examples of past workshops_

SoulFlower Collage Workshop

Saturday, June 15 10am - 5pm 
Presented by Jennifer Starr & Ellen Hansen
Location: 19855 4th St., Ste. 104, Tumalo (Bend), OR 97703

coming to Portland in the fall of 2019!
 

Spend a day exploring your true nature by collaging with images, flowers and other natural materials. Let perennial wisdom guide you to pause and regroup, and nourish and fertilize your soul.

Have you taken time for yourself for a spring renewal?

What new life is stirring in your soul this spring?

SoulCollage and Mindful Flowers are joining together in Tumalo, Oregon to bring you a new way to explore your inner landscape at our mini soul retreat.  We invite you to pause, breathe, connect and create to reveal what is wanting to blossom within you.

$97 for workshop and all materials with an early bird special All supplies are included for both the collage and the floral portions. ( flowers, leaves and vase) Refreshments and light healthy snacks will be provided. Please bring your own lunch.

Early Bird special- Book now and save - $85 until May 15th.

We will be holding a workshop in Portland in the fall. Stay tuned and let us know if you are interested.

if interested please contact Jennifer Starr at Jennifer@coachwithsoul.com 206-852-5285 or Ellen Hansen ellenthansen@gmail.com/ 920 918-7264.

Please join me for Mindful Flowers workshops at Assembly PDX-

Assembly PDX

2520 SE 26th Ave

Portland, OR 97202

Mindful Flowers Workshop

Sunday, April 14, 2019 1:00-3:00pm

Friday, May 10, 2019 6:30-8:30pm

SIGN UP TODAY!

Class fee: $49

Let’s celebrate spring by creating with nature!

Join us for a unique floral design class using the principles of contemporary Ikebana, Japanese floral design. First we’ll pause and leave our troubles outside, next we remember to breathe, and then we play with flowers. In this simple relaxing process you’ll create a small arrangement using leaves, flowers, and branches.

This lovely design exercise can be used as a new self-care ritual that reminds us to be present in the moment and connect with nature and our own creativity. The results are amazing and you’ll leave with a long-lasting tribute to spring.

Below are examples of workshops ideas for your inspiration. I have divided them into two categories, contemplative and social. All of these can be modified and several of them can be done either as a social or as a contemplative experience. Please reach out to me to discuss so we can find the best solution for your group.

CONTEMPLATIVE WORKSHOPS-

Mindful Floral Meditation: 1.5 hours

The focus of this workshop is to find stillness through creative engagement and mindful meditation.

Participants are guided through a preliminary mindfulness exercise. Ikebana floral design principles are then introduced and the group creates a simple contemporary arrangement.  As we work, we continue to breathe and focus on the present moment.  At the conclusion of the design experience, we once again pause our activity and rest our gaze on our floral creations and breathe in the natural beauty.

The powerful combination of meditation and creative expression can help individuals cultivate awareness, presence and balance.

Additionally, this workshop can focus on one particular quality. As an example, our creative focus can be centered upon balance both as an important design element and also about finding balance in our lives.

Meditate, Create and Rejuvenate: 1.5 hours

Many of us occasionally feel the doldrums of routine daily life. In this time of technology overuse and a 24/7 work life, we long for more direct connection to ourselves and to the wonder and awe that surrounds us. What simple practices can help us reconnect with the present moment and natural beauty?

This workshop is designed to explore the idea of re-enchantment of every day life. You will be introduced to a new self-care ritual.  As you enter this experience you will connect with your senses and natural aromas that may remind you of entering into a spa day. This workshop invites you to breathe and reconnect with yourself in order to find renewed balance. It is a rejuvenating pause in your day and a chance to play with flowers. Through a combination of meditation, breath work and simple personalized floral design, participants feel the connection to self and natural beauty.

The take away from this experience is far more than a floral arrangement. Participants leave with a deeper experience of one’s own beautiful essence and the fullness of the present moment.

This workshop can include tea service or your beverage of choice.

Especially appropriate for tea salons, yoga studios and spas

Soul Temple- 1.5 hours

A grounding meditation will be shared to help participants get in touch with themselves. The clearing of outside energy is a pathway to the present moment and creative source.

What types of environments speak to you? Lets create a natural space that feels like a reflection of your soul and can support your spirit.

You will build your own mini floral arrangement that is your special place of refuge that feels safe, beautiful and inspiring.

Many take their work home and find a prime location for viewing and then use it as a focal point for mindful meditation and an invitation to return to stillness.

“everybody needs beauty as well as bread, places to play in and pray in, where nature may heal and give strength to body and soul.” John Muir

Sacred Altar- 1.5 hours

In this workshop, I will share the history of the tokonomo in Japanese architecture. Tokonomo is a built-in recessed space or room that is used to display art and floral design and often used as a reverence point in the environment. Often it is located near the entrance and serves as a reminder to pause, and leave your troubles in the outside world.

A personalized altar space can serve as a modified tokonomo in any style of home. As many of us feel the overwhelm from an overstimulated use of technology and busyness, it can serves as a reminder to pause, breathe and be in the present moment.

In this class, you will lead through a grounding meditation.  Each participant will select an intention for their altar and we will create an easy floral tribute to pausing, and being in the present moment.

You will learn design principles that are important to the creation of a tokonomo while exploring the importance of focal point in design and mindfulness in life.

SOCIAL WORKSHOPS-

Flower Bar - an inner happy hour experience

Pause, breathe and create

A pop-up designed to help you create with flowers and tap into the present moment while enjoying your favorite beverage.

This is a one hour experience designed to help you shift gears and tap into your own creative expression by connecting  with flowers and leaf materials.

You will be taught a contemporary Asian-style design.

Connecting with nature and flowers is a reminder to come back to the present moment in order to find a source of stillness, creativity and community.

Additional social offering ideas-

Flower Power- a one hour creative pause during the day to help re-energize and stimulate the creative process often held as a lunch and learn in a corporate environment.

Mindful Marriage Floral Tribute- participants create a tribute to the loved ones with their well wishes.

Mothers Day celebration- mothers and daughters can share a memory while they create with flowers. This experience is intended to be relaxing, creative and meaningful.

Fundraising- have a Mindful Flowers experience before dinner to help clear the palette and perhaps create the table arrangements. Additionally, the arrangements can be given away as to a charity or sold at auction.

Floral appreciation for staff members- instead of giving flowers, why not thank your staff by teaching them a new self-care ritual? In addition  to an enjoyable lunch break, they leave with a very personal flower arrangement and a sense of accomplishment.

Garden Club- offer this as a workshop that teaches a new floral skill. Ikebana is s an art form that is minimal and mindful and is ideal for a gardeners who can easily find material in their own backyard.

Team- building- a creative pause is offered to a team to help them find new voice and vision.

Celebration of Life- family members unite to share memories of loved ones. Together, they create a tribute.  What was the loved ones favorite flowers, colors and textures? Can we celebrate a life by recreating a beloved garden as we share memories of the beloved?

Well-being flower cart- I bring a portable cart filled with flowers and pop-up in a place that needs cheer! Is there a place that is experiencing the doldrums of daily life that needs some re-enchantment? I can make arrangements from the Flower Bar with the direction of staff or it can be a create-your-own experience.

Convention break- after a long day of listening to speakers, many people long to have an interactive and engaging break. Learn something new and experience a way to pause and find some creative stillness even in the midst of a convention hall.

Retreat break- create an interactive creative and mindful pause that differentiates your retreat. Especially appropriate for conscious, well-being oriented treats.

Meditation retreat break- offer a new form of active meditation. After sitting in silence, Mindful Flowers can offer either a social respite from contemplative work or a new way to meditate with flowers.

Garden Tour- share Mindful Flowers as part of a garden tour experience. Perhaps it is combined with a lunch break.

Forest Meditation experience- Come out to the moss forests with us for a mindful hike in the woods, oriented to the healing stillness of the forest trail. As you walk the path, your eyes turn both inward and outward to the enchanted and rich world of moss and trees.

After soaking up nature by taking a hike in the beautiful Northwest environments, create an arrangement that is a reflection of the beauty and stillness of the forest.

Embodiment meditation exercises will be shared to help reflect both the hiking and the creative activity. You will find that the stillness exists both outside and inside as one continuous space.

Relationship building- find a new way to connect socially by the engagement of activity. This experience reflects the value of the “quilting bee” or can be an excellent networking event. A unique theme can be created to support the goals of the workshop such as brand awareness.

Design Principles- experience the design behind Mindful Flowers. Learn about Ikebana design principles and how they relate to architectural space design. Learn about color, pattern, texture. line and shape. Create an arrangement that teaches the importance of creating spaces of engagement.

Biophilia and Mindful Flowers- How does the concept of Biophiia relate to Mindful Flowers? Learn about Biophilia and the importance of “listening” to nature. Use this experiential form to better understand an abstract concept. “Nature holds the key to our aesthetic, intellectual, cognitive and even spiritual satisfaction.” E.O. Wilson

Creativity and Mindfulness- clear out your internal space with breath work and find new energy for creative expression. Participants are encouraged to “play hard “and create with wild abandon.

New Vision- This workshop explores perspective and new ways of seeing. “ if you change the way you look at things, the things you look at change. W. Dyer

Create Your Own Event: time varies with content

Let's speak about your goals so we can personalize the experience. A food and beverage component can be included.