Being an Event Florist for a Day

When I decided to turn my passion for growing into a business, I had a lot of decisions to make. Was I going to sell retail? Wholesale? To florists? Did I want to concentrate my sales on a farmstand? A CSA? On events and workshops? There were so many options that my head was spinning before I even sold my first bouquet. While I understood that I didn’t need to have all the answers right away, I did need to have a general idea of which direction I wanted my farm to go. One thing I knew from the very beginning, however, was that I did not intend to be an event florist.

My reasoning was twofold. Firstly, being a micro flower farm, I have limits on my growing space and flower production. I was concerned about guaranteeing the large quantity of flowers typically needed for weddings and larger events. I know that many micro-farms expertly handle events such as these with no problem, after all, you can always supplement your flower supply with blooms from a wholesaler or other nearby farms. Yet, I felt that my relative inexperience and limited growing space would make it difficult to take on events until I gained confidence in my cut flower growing and arranging abilities. Secondly, and more importantly, one thing that I know about myself is that I can get overwhelmed easily. The stress and multitasking capabilities that go hand in hand with being an event florist for weddings and large events weren’t a good fit for my personality. I knew that about myself, and I was okay with it. So, arranging flowers for events was never part of my business plan. That is, until a few weeks ago.

You see, it was my parent’s 51^st wedding anniversary party (COVID prevented their 50^th anniversary party) and I couldn’t resist providing flowers for two people so near and dear to my heart. So, I decided to surprise my parents by arranging flowers for their special event. Despite all my fears and trepidations, I decided to become an event florist for a day.

Luckily, their anniversary is in late August, so I knew there would be ample blooms to choose from on the farm. As the event date approached, I visited the flower beds frequently, seeing what was in bloom (or close to it) that I could use in their arrangements. And when harvest day came, I cut buckets of mixed blooms for the event. Sunflowers, zinnias, celosia, gomphrena, ageratum, sedum, orlaya, veronica, rudbeckia, and more made their way out of the field. Now, the arranging could begin.

They had chosen to have a casual affair, a picnic in the park, to reflect their love of the outdoors and desire to have a more comfortable gathering of family and friends. So, I decided to make mixed flower mason jar arrangements for the tables, reflecting a rustic yet elegant design. I wrapped the quart mason jars in burlap and tied a white ribbon at the top to hold the material in place. I also added a tag that matched the color theme to each jar, saying “50 Years”. Once my jars were appropriately adorned, I arranged the flowers into each one until I was happy with the overall aesthetic. I am not an expert or a trained florist, but I was content with the outcome and confident that my parents would love them.

Now came the hard part: transporting the arrangements. The venue was two hours from our farm, and we had to ensure the flowers made it there in one piece. We decided to pack the jars into bins with bubble wrap to keep them safe and upright during the drive. Plus, I held two additional arrangements on my lap and applied a death grip on each one. We cranked the air conditioning to keep the flowers looking their best and went on our way. Even though I knew our flowers had withstood wind, rain, and all that Mother Nature decided to throw at them out in the garden, I cringed at every bump in the road. Each crack in the pavement and every pothole that rocked the car made it feel like we were navigating craters on the moon. And by the end of those two hours, I was convinced that every stem in my arrangements had perished. But, lo and behold, when we arrived at the venue, I pried my fingers from around the flowers on my lap and carefully removed each jar from the bins, and they were all intact! I only lost two stems, a zinnia with a bent neck, and a cosmos that had lost a petal or two.

I set up the arrangements on the tables and was thrilled with how they complimented the party’s theme. I finally was able to start to relax. The flowers were harvested, arranged, had made it to the venue in one piece, and were set in their places. There was nothing more I could do except worry about how they would hold up during the event. However, we lucked out with the weather for the day. It was sunny and the temperatures were in the 70’s with beautiful blue skies. The party was under a pavilion, so the flowers were shaded during the event, and the mild temperatures helped them stay perky and fresh-looking for the duration of the party. The only minor hiccup was when the wind started to pick up at the end of the event, and I was concerned that the jars would get knocked over. But, to my relief, they all made it to the end of the event.

The party was a great success; my parents were thrilled with the event. In the end, while being an event florist for a day was stressful, I am so happy that I could brighten their special day with flowers that I lovingly grew for them. They don’t often see the flowers I grow in person, so it meant the world to me to share our blooms on this special occasion. And to make my heart swell even further, the arrangements were shared with people in the community that my parents knew needed a pick-me-up after the event.

After this experience, I greatly respect event florists and what they do. While I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to share our flowers with my parents on their special day, I don’t think I’m cut out to be a full-time event florist. And while I know better than to say ‘never,’ for now, I’m perfectly content to grow, harvest, and arrange mixed bouquets for our customers and leave the big events to the experts.