Musings of a flustered florist: March

“It was one of those March days when the sun shines hot and the wind blows cold: when it is summer in the light, and winter in the shade”

— Charles Dickens

Another month gone and not sure where that one went - again. On paper it wasn’t a particularly busy month but the weeks have been full. And hasn’t the weather been fab? Everything is better in the sunshine. 

The month started with a wedding. A wedding that’s been postponed a few times in the last couple of years. But we got there eventually. It was lovely palette of vintage hues. Soft mauves and pinks. I must confess it’s one of my favourite mixes and it means I get to go play with two of my favourite roses - the blush of quicksand and the blue of amnesia. It’s a match made in heaven. And best of all the sun was out and it was my first outside ceremony of the year. 

Spring is definitely the theme of the month. I “popped” up to Bristol for a spring shopping spree. Filled the van to the brim with some beautiful blooms and oodles of plants and spring bulbs   Now the shop is starting to warm up a bit (well it’s above freezing in there most days ) it’s time to fill it with houseplants. Lots of your favourites (blue ferns, succulents, spider plants) and some newbies; Oxalis triangularis, moonshine sanseveria 

And with this sunshine, who can resist some pretty spring bulbs. Muscari- in white and blue and some scented miniature daffodils. Perfect for inside or out. 

Normally I’m a lone wolf working by myself week in week out. But this month I’ve have a variety of company. First up - an incredible six former on work experience. Only in for a couple of days but I must say how impressed I was with her. Confident, mature and great customer service. Nothing like me when I was a teenager! She also tried to share with me the dark art of video editing for social media. Watch this space…..

Mothers Day is of course a key date in the florists calendar. I do have to limit myself and learn to say “no” as there is only so much I can do. Plenty of pre planning. And prep and the other “p”s of position and perform. I have to say I actually really enjoyed this Mother’s Day. So so many beautiful bouquets so many beautiful flowers, beautiful messages - and a day of beautiful sentiment to celebrate mothers and mother like figures in peoples lives. And a touch of rare smugness - it went without a hitch! 

I owe some special thanks of Mother’s Day organisation to the return of my Christmas elf, Aimee. Some of you may remember her from helping me out in the shop on the run up to Christmas. So it was great to have her back at another busy time. 

I have to say that with both Aimee and Lani who are 15 and 16 respectively- I was so amazed by their commitment, their performance, aptitude and ability. They are both girls that will go far in this world and I confess changed my view of the “yoof” of today. 

I was still sweeping the floors following the mayhem of Mother’s Day when we had the first outdoor setup of the season for a wedding at scenic Sandycove. The pergola overlooking the ocean is a stunning setting. Roses, English grown tulips and exotic orchids worked wonderfully together within  the colour scheme. But once again I was not alone because I now have the pleasure of introducing a new recruit to the Church Park Flowers team - Beth. She’s my Kickstarter. Part of a government apprentice scheme, Beth will be onboard to learn the ropes and discover if the life of a florist is for her! I’m sure she’ll pop up frequently in my monthly musings but if you’re in the area make sure you pop in to say “hi” and make her feel welcome (she likes chocolate biscuits too!)   

So an organised and successful March - buoyed up with some springtime sunshine (snow is forecasted for the start of April!) And with two of us now in the hood you can expect double the output in coming months. 

Musings of flustered florist: January

“For last year’s words belong to last year’s language, and next year’s words await another voice. And to make an end is to make a beginning.”

— T S Elliot

New year. Fresh start. Clean slate. Big ideas. High expectations. Let’s do this…….

Of course that was the vibe in week one. Well, week two actually as I took an extended Christmas break to recover from the whirlwind of 2021. It was a very intense year and it almost broke me, definitely a learning curve not to be repeated. New notebook and great intentions were the way forward for 2022. 

The first problem was that the 2021 me wasn’t notified of this mindset and literally did a runner from the shop on the 23 December. Cue opening the shop door two and a half weeks later to be greeted by what can only be described as a scene from the “morning after the night before”. The floor was strewn with foliage, orange slices were still trying their best to freshen the air and of course pine needles everywhere. And I mean everywhere! Pieces of paper with random cryptic notes written on them and fairy lights twinkling half heartedly. 2022 me was not impressed. Not the fresh start I was hoping to embrace. 

A week of cleaning, mopping, sorting and tidying and the shop has once again taken on the look of a vibrant fresh space. Lots of new houseplants, bulbs, pots and vases. Perfect for filling those spaces left in your house when Christmas trees and decorations have vacated for the year. 

January is notoriously a quiet month in retail. Not a lot of footfall to break up the day. There has been a very repetitive, too frequent playing accordion player on the street - but trust me when I say that doesn’t float my boat. But there has been weddings. Actually five weddings in the first month, all small affairs, but a good gentle introduction to the year. Wedding one was a gorgeous dried flower event. It was also rather nerve wracking as the bride-to-be was a wedding photographer - and a very good one too - so of course she has seen a lot of wedding florals in her time and knows exactly what she wants hers to look like. The bar may have been set high but I leapt it well. They looked great and needless to say to the bride loved them! Weddings are a go go for 2022. 

Burgundy, coral, white and ivory were the colour themes for the rest of the months weddings and it’s been wonderful to have some variety and play with seasonal offerings in what is sometimes seen as a “difficult” month. British spring flowers are coming through so expect to see plenty of them in the shop over the coming weeks. 

The key word for January has been “admin”. I don’t mind confessing that admin is not one of my favourite pastimes. Why spend time typing emails when I could be playing with flowers. But emails don’t go away if ignored, therefore many an hour has been spent catching up on correspondence, quotes, invoices and consultations. It’s the backbone of what I do and definitely one of my resolutions to improve on in 2022. In all honesty I probably could do with a VA to help with email management for me so if you know of any admin angels that could help please send them my way?

I have many grand plans for 2022 and lots of new initiatives and adventures scribbled in the new notebook. But I’ll drip feed them out to you as the year goes on. No point in telling you everything now as have to keep the suspense up all year!

I have found some new exciting suppliers for this year. Boy, I can get carried away over a beautifully photographed trade catalogue. I’ve got some draft orders put together so hopefully there will be amazing new stock in during the spring.  Think French brocante style for inside and out, revamp that outdoor space or even just a windowsill. And there are new designs and ranges coming of the already popular botanical gifts I stock. I’m so impatient to see it all come together. One of my plans for 2022 is to increase my non plant and flower offerings. As hopefully the high street comes back to life after the “covid pause” we can tempt more people to shop local and support all the fabulous independent businesses Bideford has to offer. 

Scarily, January is pretty much been and gone. Yes it’s a cold and quiet month but sometimes we need that pause in the mayhem to stop and evaluate where we are. Look at where we’ve been and where we want to go. As I said at the beginning I have big ideas and high expectations and I’m relying on the 2022 me to deliver them. She better not let me down!

“Daylight, I must wait for the sunrise
I must think of a new life
And I mustn’t give in
When the dawn comes tonight will be a memory too
And a new day will begin”

— T S Elliot (Cats)