About

Sitting in my kitchen in the peaceful early hours of the morning, nursing a cup of tea, my mind is awash with ideas. Where in the garden could I plant Aster? How best to personalise a funeral tribute for my latest client? I ponder ideas for Christmas, Easter…
This is my florist’s mind at work. I love the creativity that comes with my work, using my imagination to interpret my clients’ ideas and then my craft to bring them to reality. Since I am my own boss, I have the flexibility and freedom to follow my creativity where it leads me, serving my clients and loving the work.

Early Years

I always loved arts and crafts as a child. I was always making
something: models, cakes, cuddly toys. It often drove my mum up the wall! I took Art at A level but then followed a sensible career route, becoming a Civil Servant.
Some years later, motherhood provided a natural break and an opportunity to change. I enrolled on an evening class in floristry which gave me a creative outlet and a much-needed break from a clingy three-year-old! My love affair with flowers began here and I subsequently completed three further courses at Writtle University College.

Working as a Florist

During the 17 years since, I have worked on many weddings all over Essex, at a variety of venues including gardens. I always enjoyed the buzz of seeing the beautiful brides on their special days.
My work has included freelancing for other florists, and I have been the Flower Secretary at our local Church. That involved organising the rota and seasonal floral displays as well as creating weekly arrangements as part of the team.

Passing on my Passion

I have run workshops covering subjects such as wreathes, Mothers’ Day and Christmas arrangements. These have been both for larger groups and smaller, more intimate gatherings.
More recently I have learned a lot from training courses including some from ‘The Business of Growing Flowers’ as well as personal development courses.

Art and Craft Skills

I enjoy using my art and craft skills, not only when I am creating floral arrangements themselves, but during every stage of the process. For example, I often use sketches while discussing ideas with a client, to provide a visual image of their idea. I am also able to provide drawings for funeral directors, for example, to show the size, shape and placing of the various pieces.

A Passion for Funerals

I work independently, designing floral pieces for funerals and special occasions. My real passion is for funeral work. I also delight in incorporating my home-grown flowers and foliage, resulting in a unique style. I am continually expanding my plant varieties in the garden and use British flowers where I can. I think we are all trying to do our bit to help the environment, and my business is as sustainable as I can make it, so I reduce packaging and recycle materials and containers.

Family

My husband and two grown-up sons support and encourage me, and my constant companion is our dippy Cockapoo dog, Rosie. She is my Quality Control Assistant, her nose always into whatever I am doing!
I enjoy the flexibility of working from home as I love spending time with the family, going for walks in the woods or countryside or at the beach and keeping up with my crafts. I’ve recently returned to crochet, which I used to enjoy as a child. One of my favourite things is to catch up with friends or family over dinner or tea and cake.

When I’m not Working

Like most people, I enjoy holidays when we are able to travel. I
particularly like to holiday in the UK because then we can take Rosie with us. I also enjoy the cinema and theatre and am looking forward to trips to see films and plays when restrictions are lifted.
All my interests are connected to flowers. I love nature, gardening, arts and crafts and cooking, but even my cakes have flowers on them!

My Garden

My garden is well established with lots of shrubs, a couple of apple trees and a pear tree. We are well supplied with fruit over the winter. I am constantly adding to the garden and I try to choose flowers and plants that are both useful to my work and beautiful to have in the garden. My next plan is to add raised beds so I can increase the amount of flowers I am able to cultivate. In addition to the garden, I lease an allotment where I grow mainly vegetables. My passion clearly lies in growing and working with plants!