My Journey as a Wedding Florist: Embracing Nature's Beauty and Ethical Practices

My Journey as a Wedding Florist: Embracing Nature's Beauty and Ethical Practices.

There's a certain magic in witnessing a flower bloom in its season—a sight that never fails to charm me. My friend used to refer to them as "smiling faces," a sentiment that always pops into my head whenever I see them. Little did I realise, flowers played a far more significant role in my upbringing than I initially acknowledged. What seemed mundane and ordinary in my childhood has since grown into a profound appreciation for nature's beauty and the artistry of floristry.

Growing up in a rural village along the rugged West Coast of Ireland, I was surrounded by an abundance of floral wonders—sea pinks, crocosmia, and yellow flag Iris adorned the landscape, painting fields with hues of pink and orange. Memories flood back of helping my Grandmother tend to her rose bushes, spreading tea bags for plant food, or marvelling at the resilient fuchsia bush weathering storms rolling off the Atlantic.

Never did I imagine myself pursuing a career in floristry. As a teenager, I envisioned a path filled with fashion and the buzz of city life. However, life had other plans. After studying film and television at university and enduring a series of unfulfilling jobs, I found myself in London, working at Scarlet and Violet—a bustling flower shop that became my floristry boot camp. Scarlet and Violet felt like a beehive of busy florists, fussing over arrangements, busy with customers, getting excited for a new seasonal bloom to return to us after its dormant season, whether it was seeing British cherry blossom return after the long, drab winter or autumn hydrangeas at the end of the summer, with their mottled, rainbow petals. We loved it all.

I naturally gravitated towards event floristry. I loved being on the move and driving a van meant I was given the freedom to explore the city of London by installing flowers for restaurants, fashion brands and private homes. I loved the buzz of being on the go, and getting to know the clients in their work environment, visiting them every week with whatever seasonal favourites I knew they loved. I loved the creative skill of designing arrangements for the spaces I was becoming familiar with, bar flowers that would pop against the wall colour, or big vases that would fit perfectly in an alcove. I tried to incorporate different themes with elements of a venue, for example using food related florals for my restaurant venues, such as crabapples, physalis or blackberries. 

Under the guidance of talented florists, I fell head over heels for the artistry, craft, and skill of floristry. Yet, amidst my newfound passion, I couldn't ignore the growing concerns surrounding ethics and environmental issues within the floral industry. It was a shadow I couldn't overlook, prompting me to seek out those striving to make a positive difference. The London flower market provides a selection of British grown flowers and foliage. It’s such a special resource to be able to pull from. The industry in Ireland is a little different, with florists developing relationships with individual growers, rather than being able to source locally grown flowers in one marketplace. 

Returning to Ireland, I embarked on a journey to build connections within the local industry. I dived deep into the wedding flower industry, working on every job that came my way. However, the onset of Covid-19 brought unforeseen challenges, halting weddings and events and stifling my creative endeavours. Yet, amidst adversity, inspiration struck. 

Inspired by a friend's charity, Bread and Roses, I launched a sister branch in Dublin in 2023—a floristry training program aimed at empowering women facing social challenges. Harnessing the therapeutic benefits of working with flowers, we provided a platform for creativity, confidence-building, and skill development.

In 2024, I made the decision to relocate back to my hometown in Clare, on the West Coast of Ireland, embarking on a new journey focused on sustainability within the wedding flower industry. It's a journey fueled by a push to contribute positively to an industry I love while championing ethical practices and environmental stewardship.

As I look back on my journey as a florist, I'm reminded of the transformative power of flowers and the importance of embracing nature's beauty while advocating for change within the industry.