“flowers… are a proud assertion that a ray of beauty outvalues all the utilities of the world“
With the promise of spring just around the corner, can not help but daydream of the perfect beauty of blossoming rose gardens and picnics in wildflower fields, afternoon teas on the terrace, overflowing with wisteria and nearly every corner of the house filled with favourite blooms . . .
In order to prepare for the sun-drenched days of beauty ahead, we met up with Nicolette Camille, owner of Nicolette Camille Floral Design. Nicolette’s love of flowers is hereditary—as her great grandfather was a dahlia farmer, she spent her childhood in a garden with her mother and grandmother. At her grandmother’s, Nicolette remembers an “. . . enormous section of lilac along the side of her house, and I adored it when it was in full bloom. We would cut armfuls of the sweetly scented blooms and bring them inside and share them with friends and neighbors.”
Nicolette studied fine arts in college and spent a few years working in the commercial photography industry in New York City. She decided to move to California to change things up, and return to her roots of working with flowers. There, she found a job working in a little flower shop and realized she was in her element, doing exactly what she was meant to do. A few years later, she returned to New York and opened her own floral business. In New York, Nicolette met Sarah Ryhanen of Saipua, and together, they formed The Little Flower School. Their popular classes have been featured in The New York Times and Martha Stewart.
above & below, arrangements by saipua; all others by nicolette camille or the little flower school
Nicolette tells us, “I love to make arrangements that have an airiness and just picked from the garden feel.” And so, without further ado, we are very excited to share Nicolette’s top five tips for creating lush, romantic, garden-style arrangements, just in time for the beginning of a promisingly romantic spring:
{top five tips for flower arranging:}
Generally, there are three stages to building an arrangement: foundation (greenery/branchy material), focal flowers (the larger showy blooms), and the finishing touches (wispy gestural elements).
01 | When choosing flowers, look for flowers of different shapes, size and texture.
02 | Let the flowers show themselves off. When placing flowers, be sure they have enough room open and air to breath; try to avoid packing too tightly together.
03 | Be bold! Cut some flowers short and nestle them deep into the arrangement, and leave some tall and wispy. Your arrangement should have movement to draw your eye into and all around.
04 | Cluster similar color hues & pairs of the same variety together for more visual impact, instead of scattering your colors evenly like a checkerboard.
05 | For longer lasting flowers, change the water every other day; you can do so by flushing the water under the tap.
— laily
p r e v i o u sf a v o u r i t e f i v e s :
* owner of ladurée : elisabeth holder
* food editor & author : donna hay
* photographer : debi treloar
* painter : janet hill
* jewelry designer : suzie gallehugh
* artist: michelle armas
* jewelry designers : megan & moira flynn
* actress & writer : shiva rose
* jeweler : camille eddera
* artist: kimia kline
* actress & fashion muse : chloë sevigny
* floral stylist, part 1 : denise porcaro
* floral stylist, part 2 : denise porcaro
* fashion photographer & illustrator : garance doré
* interior designer & architect : nina freudenberger
* entrepreneurs : rent the runway
* designer : rachel ashwell
* interior designer : tricia foley
* photographer : romina shama
* jewelry designer : cc skye
* designer & ceramicist: reiko kaneko
* perfumer : anne mcclain
* model, author & designer : india hicks
* interior designer : kelly wearstler
* fashion designer : tory burch
* designer & stylist : linda rodin
* entrepreneur : alli webb
* founder of ilia : sasha plavsic
[images: one /// two /// three /// four /// five /// six /// seven /// nicolette camille quote from here]
