Welcome to my first blog.
From my blog posts I hope to inspire, entertain, teach and give you a little insight into the perks (and life) of being a
Wallflower Florist.
What better way to start than to introduce myself and my story a little...
So, Hello! My name is Zoe.
I'm 29 and currently live with my boyfriend (Tris) in a quirky little market town in North Suffolk where fields and woodland are only a short walk away. Being a lover of the outdoors, I feel very at home here and often use my surroundings as inspiration for my work. My little flower room looks out onto the garden and is often filled with dried flowers, cuttings from the garden or foraged twigs/branches that Tris brings home for me after a job (he has his own Tree/ Landscape/ Maintenance business, so we work well together!).
My floristry journey started at the young age of 14 - you could say it was almost fate. Art and English Literature were my favourite subjects at school, the time for work experience placements came around, however, I wasn't chosen for the placements I applied for. The school offered me a florist work experience placement, but was a little difficult for me to get to. My Mum came up with an alternative idea of contacting Windmills Florist in Woodbridge as it was a lot closer to where I lived at the time. The other main reason was Natalia owned the business and had trained and worked in my Gran's Greengrocer and Florist shop - Morning Glory, back in the day at Martlesham village square! What a lovely idea everyone had said. Now being a 14 year old girl who was quite the introvert, I didn't have the best expectations of working at a florists... I assumed it would be mundane, old-fashioned, and quite daunting having to talk to customers!
After my 2 weeks of having an insight into the world of floristry, my opinion had changed dramatically. I had found a new medium to create a form of art with and had been looked after by the lovely (and not old-fashioned!) ladies who worked there. Leaving a good impression, I was called back to help at peak periods to write cards, help with wrapping bouquets and loved seeing all the flowers come in on delivery days.
I carried on at school, was successful in my GCSE's and began sixth form. I didn't have a career path planned as such, only that I knew it had to be creative. My parent's had always highlighted how important it was to do something that I loved. One day, out of the blue, I had a phone call from Natalia, offering me an apprenticeship. I gave it a lot of thought, and the main idea of being able to be creative in so many ways won me over.
I studied my Level 2 Floristry Diploma at Otley college for two years alongside working at the shop with the support of Natalia and the team. I furthered my education studying at Easton College and graduated with a Level 3 Distinction. My confidence and knowledge blossomed greatly from working within the shop and has definitely helped shape me into the florist I am today! Even after all this time I still help out at Windmills at busy & peak times; they are like family to me.
I parted as an employee of Windmills Florist in 2017 to travel Europe for a year with Tris in our old VW campervan named Charlie Brown - a year I will never forget (but a story for another day!).
On our return, I decided to go self-employed, to branch out and see other aspects of the floristry world (not just retail).I also had the vision of having my own floristry business - focusing on wedding and event work.
Shortly after being back in England, I was honoured to be asked by my college friend Beth to help look after her beautiful flower shop in Saxmundham when she fell pregnant. I have also had the pleasure of working for some talented florists doing wedding freelance work.
Over the past couple of years I have been growing my own business - Wallflower Florist. The name inspired by the Wallflower I once was, and how floristry has brought out who I am today. I have a real passion for big installations, bespoke bridal bouquets, seasonal flowers,
nature inspired designs and bold colour palettes. I feel very fortunate to have a career I absolutely adore and look forward to sharing my love for flowers with you.
Zoe
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