All in Articles
Becky shows the process to create different circular flower installations for your next event. She outlines how to plan to use the structures, support and integrate them. From a hanging piece to a ceremony backdrop, you’ll learn tips for your next installations.
Kelly Wood shares how she converted two acres around her house to a microfarm to augment her floral design business and add beauty and refuge for wildlife. It eventually turned into a commercial cut flower and foliage farm supplying floral designers in her area.
You don’t need to be a graphic designer to create a professional-looking proposal for floral design clients. Learn the key to creating a great floral plan, one you can quickly adapt to each new client by changing a few simple things.
Even if you haven’t heard of ikebana, the ancient Japanese art of floristry, you’ve probably seen its influence. Purposeful, feeling floral design and fine art floral design—to my particular joy—have become popularized and publicly celebrated in recent years. Those striking and sparse table designs aren’t necessarily a modern trend born of minimalism or abstract art; many are actually informed by the Japanese floral practice of ikebana.
If you have kept up with the local food movement over the past two decades, the term CSA has probably been something you have come in contact with. CSA is an acronym for Community Supported Agriculture, the concept of which can be interpreted in a number of ways. At its core, a CSA is a model in which the customer financially invests in a farm at the beginning of a growing season, when sales are at their lowest, and in return receives a share of the farm’s harvest once crops are coming out of the fields. Vegetable farms often use CSAs as a business model that helps pay for the upfront costs of getting crops into the ground – seeds, compost, time and labor spent of growing and maintaining crops, water and energy costs, etc.
It's funny where a glittered poinsettia in the entry of a hardware store can take you — from "I need some paint" to an invitation to create even more space for everyone in my heart.
Freelancing In's and Out's: How to use freelancing while building your floral business to gain experience, make contacts and hone your professional skills.
How can we foster community? How can we hand over flowers that aren’t empty pretty things? How can a wedding belong to more than one couple, and be an agent of unity and restoration in a community? I believe that by the way we think about design and what we communicate in our creations, and by the way we conduct our businesses, actively knitting a family around us as we work, a wedding can serve as a public signpost of hope in a city.
Team Flower member Madelaine Jean walks through some ways to store flowers effectively if having a cooler isn’t a possibility for your business.
In reality, the floral design world can be quite overwhelming - both to designers and to potential clients. There are color options and combinations in addition to a vast amount of available flowers, all on top of various styles and design techniques. How does one make decisions with so many options? That’s a loaded question! I believe that the best way is to educate yourself and your client.
As a florist, it is essential that we spend our time wisely to be as productive and efficient as possible. Between prepping flowers, designing, and installing events, the tasks involved in the backend of our business start to pile up and so much falls between the cracks. Especially with couples of today, everything is fast paced. It can be a challenge to keep up and respond to things, and the odds of losing a sale are very high.
In August, ten sweet women from various locations, backgrounds, and careers became flower friends at the Team Flower Wedding Florals Workshop. Maybe it was the refreshing North Carolina mountainous atmosphere, or perhaps it was the power of flowers in bringing people together, or maybe it was their welcoming and open hearts. Honestly, it was probably all of the above - the perfect storm - and we watched in awe as these women not only received but also poured out. They came to one another’s aid when needed, offering advice with humility. They celebrated with each other when one overcame an obstacle, and they cheered one another on as they created one arrangement after another.
Our industry has a bit of a problem with originality, and it’s not entirely our fault. Conceptual design in weddings and florals can be a hard sell when working with clients and colleagues with less design experience. There is inspiration all around us waiting to be harnessed for our next project, but when the time comes to build that mood board, often the first stop is Pinterest to search.
Call me crazy, but I asked Jesse to save mean comments people have left me since I started Team Flower, and today (maybe even crazier!?) I'm sharing a few with you.
Seven sweet souls gathered in the North Carolina mountains in July to do just that. They sought to cultivate creativity and find rest in inspiration. They overcame obstacles, broke through norms, and increased their design knowledge. And oh the creations they made! They poured their hearts into these flowers, so as you scroll through and admire the beauty they made, may you also be inspired to tap into the ingenuity within yourself.
Have you ever wondered why a bride would choose fake over fresh flowers? I mean, let’s face it. It’s her big day, and most brides get married with the intent of forever, right? So why not invest in the best and get fresh? After creating Silk Real Touch bouquets for over 400 weddings across three continents, I’ve discovered why some brides choose this option over fresh blooms. Fake flowers offer brides advantages that cannot be found in fresh flowers. This is especially true for beach and destination weddings.
This year, I booked a wedding where the bride requested only greenery. I included a few blooms in her bouquet and the groom’s boutonniere, but other than that, there were no flowers. It turned out beautifully! The ingredients I chose were a compilation of items from a local farm, from a local wholesaler, and from my backyard. While it was much more difficult than I thought it would be to narrow down the ingredient list and choose shades of green that told a cohesive story, I enjoyed the challenge and would welcome it again!
We had a seemingly thriving business, but we were approaching burnout. After a while, each time I dropped off an order, I had a sinking feeling that the wholesale stem prices we were getting just weren’t enough to justify the amount of hard work, expense, and time we had put into growing them. It was time to re-evaluate our business model.
We need to be an everyday philanthropist in our local communities and world. One step at a time, we can accomplish big things. Teamwork makes a difference.
This creative journey began with delicious ice cream and sweet smiles in a cozy living room in Boone. The group of 7 ladies entered into a two-day bouquet designing spree with open hearts and laughter. They encouraged and challenged one another creatively, and they found great delight in one another's company. During the two days of the workshop, attendees created every style of bouquets: round, cascade, garden, hand-tied, pageant, etc. Their individual personalities shone beautifully as they arranged the farm-grown flowers into uniquely designed bouquets that any bride would be lucky to hold on their wedding day!
