MY EXPERIENCE : LONDON FLOWER SCHOOL

One month after the wedding, I visited London for studymoon trip. If you are wondering why I call it studymoon, it is because my husband came along with me to London for honeymoon yet I spent most of the days there taking floral classes. So yes, I left my husband and his laptop in the hotel to do classes.

In LFS, I took The Foundation course. It was 10 of us in the class, such a fun and memorable experience to get to know friends from across the world with the same passion.

From this course I got to know another fellow Indonesian florist, Monica of Bibury Flowers. We were not in the same class though, since she was doing career course (I envy her :( )

Within a week, the students get to learn many arrangements from hand-tied, vase arrangements, centerpieces, Ikebana and large scale installation.

What I like about LFS is that you get to learn both classic and contemporary style, so you don’t have to learn and stuck with specific style only. This really helps their students to discover and figure out what personal style they prefer to do.

My funny-looking dome shape arrangement

As I am more into anything unstructured and natural-looking arrangement, I struggled a lot in creating dome shape arrangements.

I just don’t know how to create the perfect dome. I remember that I was the last student to finish this arrangement. I took the longest time to create yet it is still looking somewhat funny. You can see how it looks like on the next picture.

Meanwhile, vase arrangement class is my favourite. Ammi, grasses, peppers, asclepias, by looking at the ingredients I just know that I would enjoy arranging this one.

Image credits Marcelo Deguchi

Before I started this course, I wonder why there should be one day class dedicated just for Ikebana.  I remember we were only given pink chrysanthemums, agapanthus, and grasses.

I was like, “what should I do with these?”.

After further explanation about Ikebana by our tutor, Wagner, this class is such an eye-opener for me. With certain rules and limited ingredients, you need to be creative and thoughtful at placing your blooms. It is amazing to learn that with minimum ingredients you can create an impactful arrangement

On the last day, we worked on a large, well, more like ENORMOUS floral installation, the Flower Tornado. This installation was made with no floral foam, 100% chicken wire.

It was such an amazing experience to work on such huge installation with another 16 students.

FIVE MINUTES INTERVIEW WITH WAGNER KREUSCH

WHAT IS YOUR BACKGROUND AND HOW DID YOUR JOURNEY INTO THE FLORISTRY WORLD STARt?

My background is in graphic design. I have been interested in art for many years and originally wanted to become an architect. Architecture is very challenging though and can be very dry, so I decided to take a graphic design degree instead. I did this in Brazil where I am from and worked there as a graphic designer for 5 years before coming to the UK.

I didn’t actually work properly with flowers until I came to London, although my mum is a florist and had a flower business in the Brazil. The world of flowers seemed far too crazy for me when I was young, but now, I can’t imagine doing anything else.

do you have signature style?

This is a difficult question for me, because I don’t have a signature style personally - I like all styles of floristry. This made it very easy to create the school though, because we teach all styles within the school. This is very different from workshops where the florist running the workshop has a particular style and people attend it because of this.

Also, at LFS we try to vary floristry styles as much as possible. There are styles I am more connected with, but I am very open to being creative, so I try not to limit myself. I am however, more drawn to the message that is conveyed through the arrangement than the arrangement itself. I believe this comes from my background in Ikebana which I have been studying for 5 years.

What do you think of the use of floral foam?

There has been, quite rightly, a lot of discussion around the use of floral foam in the floristry industry. Since its invention in the US in the 1950’s it has become the primary mechanics for most floral arrangements, especially in weddings and events where time is short and profits are small. I personally believe though that the industry will move away from floral foam in the future. Not only, because of the evidence that will emerge related to its lack of biodegradability, but also more generally, because it restricts the natural nature of floral arrangements, and also limits creativity.

how do you see in the future of floristry?

I believe that the future of floristry lies in self-expression. A true artist in any field is never concerned about what others think about what they have created.  They have created, and that is what is important.

Florists; artists; creatives in general need to express themselves through their art without the restriction of trends. This should be and hopefully will be the future of floristry.

Five Minutes Interview with Helen Dyson

Helen Dyson is the CEO and Co-founder of London Flower School which is now a year old and is attracting many overseas students. In this interview, Helen will share her flower journey and some tips for floristry start-ups.

What is your background and how did you getting into floristry?

My background is in teaching. I taught for 25 years, but nothing related to floristry. I taught children in middle school.

How did you get into floristry?

After teaching for such a long time, I wanted to do something different, although I did not know exactly what. I took a one day floristry workshop, because I do like learning and then I was hooked.

When and Why you decided to start LFS?

I took the McQueens Career Course with the intention of becoming a florist. Wagner was the Head Tutor at the time and we got on very well and became friends. We decided that we would like to work together on a project and because of our backgrounds, the natural business choice in floristry for us was to create a school. There was very little plan at the start although there was quite a lot of wine over discussions.

Also, teaching is my passion and Wagner is an exceptional floristry teacher. More than this though LFS was created to encourage others to be creative. As Constance Spry is quoted as saying, ‘do what you please, follow your own star, be original if you want to be and don’t if you don’t want to be’. This is exactly why we decided to start the school. It is a safe space where we encourage students to do as they please and be creative.

WHAT is the biggest challenge in floristry industry?

The biggest challenge is to stand out, because the market is saturated. There are a lot florists out there, especially in London, so to be different; to continue to be creative; to challenge yourself; to not get to that steady comfortable state is vital. It is important to wake every morning and be excited by what you do, and do something different. This is the biggest challenge, but also provides the most reward.

Do you have any advice for floristry start-ups?

I would say passion is the key to what we do. It is a hard and physical job, so you need to wake every morning and love it; go to work and love it. Have passion, and a lot of courage, and you will succeed.

Also, on a more practical note, I would say that it is important to think about why you are do it and what you want to get out of it when you start out. Write a 4 year Business Plan which should answer the questions: Where will my business be in 4 years? What do I want to achieve? This will make you 10% better than other people in the industry. That 10% will make you stand out.