Florists Learn Techniques at ‘Inspirational Design’ Event
Florists from all over the world learned new design techniques this week in Montecito during Inspirational Design Days.
The workshop was hosted by Florabundance and Flutter Magazine.
The third annual event brought in 65 floral designers, some from as far away as Australia and Canada. The event took place at LotusLand.
“Yes, I live three blocks away. Yes, I am a member of LotusLand, but to work in this environment with these creatives, it just doesn’t get any better than that,” said Margaret Lloyd, a Montecito florist.
The outdoor classes are taught by top teachers like Francoise Weeks, a European floral designer.
“When I teach, I basically showed techniques to obtain a certain result. And people kind of just run with what they learned and they all make something that comes from here,” said Weeks as she pointed to her heart.
The workshop is hands-on and every participant creates a piece.
“I’ve met fabulously interesting people and learned tons of new techniques and mechanics and have had a great time,” said Sheryl Tines, a florist from San Francisco.
The arrangement the group made Wednesday morning started with local drift wood and turned into pieces of art.
Leanne Kesler, the director of the Floral Design Institute, stopped by the florists’ tables to see their work. Many of florists are former students.
“I come here and I see how they’ve taken those skills and just created their own looks that are so fabulous,” she said.
The workshop also helps the Golden State economy by featuring local flowers.
“They’re learning new techniques, they’ll learning how to source, they’re finding out if you’re a designer in Texas how to get flowers from California,” said Holly Chapple of Chapel Designers.
“It’s very gratifying when people come up to you and say, ‘Gosh, this was awesome. I’ve learned so much.’ Because they are many trade shows around the country or gift shows you can go to but this is purely educational floral design and our hope is of course that these people will be so excited that they keep buying flowers from us throughout the year,” said Joost Bongaerts, the owner of Florabundance.
The flower arrangements will not survive the trip back home for some of the designers but they will end up on someone’s table. The flowers will be donated to the Dream Foundation, a local charity that helps adults facing life-threatening illnesses.
