Joys In Smaller Weddings

I totally understand the position many florists take on being the exclusive florist at a wedding. I agree with their desire to protect their image/reputation, and to be able to create an overall look and feel that flows beautifully together for the couple. As the florist, you are a part of something that is magical and all the hard work you pour into your designs can really shine in the professional photographers images they capture. It’s always an honor to be trusted with a couples vision for their flowers for their wedding day and be the solo floral designer for the event.

I also find great joy in providing only part of the floral designs for a couple’s wedding. Each couple has their own vision and reasons for wanting me to do it all or only part of it. Both ways are okay by me. Here’s my personal position on it.

I love it when I get to do all the flowers. I really enjoy creating an overall look that is well synced together. I also delight in handing a bride her bouquet and a bucket of flowers that her people will then happily create centerpieces with. At smaller weddings, often times there is a combo of my bouquets and wearables and their table/reception decor. I personally want your wedding to be the way you want it to be. If your aunt Sally loves to make mason jar centerpieces and that is the look you desire, then I am okay with you doing so. It’s your day, and I feel you have the right to choose how and who does what for your special day. Everyone is uniquely different and has a different vision of what the ideal floral look should be. I’m here to design beautiful flowers, to pour my love and passion into each piece I create but not to micromanage the flowers. My position if you choose to work with me, is to understand your vision as best I can and see how I can support that dream coming true for you.

Yes, I do ask if you are having others do part of the florals to please acknowledge everyone who has a hand in it. I ask that you not tag me in your social media posts as the florist who did all of the flowers. Give Aunt Sally the credit for the part she played in your special day.

Here’s a recent smaller wedding I enjoyed being a part of. Last week, Zachary and Courtney had their wedding ceremony at Manito’s Japanese Garden and reception was to be held at their home in the back yard. It was a small, close gathering of family and friends. They asked me to create bouquets, boutonnieres, a couple larger arrangements to take to the park to use in the ceremony that they’d bring back and use to decorate in their reception area. They wanted to brighten up the inside of the tent where they would gather for the reception with garlands on three sides and flowers in the upper corners facing in, because everyone would be inside and they wanted them to enjoy them. They did all the decorating of the tables using pretty dusty pink runners on black tablecloths and gold chargers with pink napkins rolled up like roses on each plate. Candles for the tables and twinkle lights hanging down inside the tent. It was truly a cute, cozy little space that was going to be filled with those close and dear to their hearts. Their friends who were there setting up when we were hanging garlands were the sweetest folks and it really was fun to work along side people who were having so much fun putting together a space to honor their friends. I believe smaller weddings like this where you trust your friends/family to help with your vision can make for some treasured memories for all.

I understand and respect the florists that have contracts that state they are providing all the flowers. You as a couple don’t have to worry about how it’s going to turn out. It will be a masterpiece of floral art for you. I am not one of those florists. I allow couples to have their wedding planner or friends help to execute their vision if they so desire. I know that by doing so there is a possibility that someone may mistake Aunt Sally’s work for mine, but I’m okay with that. There are enough posts and pictures out there of my work that I’m not going to fret about it. I trust that all the hands that are working together to create this beautiful space to celebrate the love being shared will do a beautiful job and those attending will feel their love and support. If you are a couple looking for a florist to design your bouquet but you want to dyi other parts of your wedding. Keep looking around, there are some florists out there that will work with you. Even ask those floral shops who won’t do so, if they might have a recommendation to someone who will. Most of us know each others style and are happy to give you suggestions to help you.

My Changes That Will Embrace "Less Being More In 2024"

This past September in 2023, at a time I was feeling overwhelmed, stressed and stretched thin being over committed to my business, I decided to make a change. Moving away from being a full service floral studio to primarily a wedding and events florist. It wasn’t an easy choice for me to give up my daily orders and deliveries but one that I feel is for the best for where I am in life right now. With my husband now retired, it’s been great having him around to help me more with the floral business. But it has also made me very aware of the fact that he has more time to play and travel and to hang out with our children who live away from the area then I do. That’s one reason. Another is my parents are getting older, I’m getting older! I really want a little more time to spend hanging out with them and taking them on trips and being available to help when they need it. So saying goodbye to so many wonderful regular customers isn’t easy to do. I love my customers and designing for them. Yet in my heart I know this is the right choice for me. I know I will be happy to have these special moments creating memories with family and friends. Plus slowing down a bit will also renew my own spirit and fuel my creativity.

October was the first month with no weddings or daily orders and I enjoyed a lot of time tending to my gardens needs, cleaning and organizing the studio. As well as some time in Colorado visiting two of my west slope kiddos and sharing this trip with my parents. Their first time to see their grandson’s business in person. It was a great trip for all of us and reinforced my belief that this is the right choice for me. As I start to think about what I want next year to look like, I realized that in every area of my life, I want less to be more in 2024.

I want to commit to less floral obligations, less over committing to what other’s would like me to do, less rushing around, less go, go, going. I’d like to experience more moments of stillness, pausing to simply enjoy a sunrise or sunset without feeling like I am late for some obligation. I also want to pay more attention to my own well-being and make changes for increasing my own physical activity. I look forward to getting back out there and enjoying some hiking, biking and kayaking. Yes, dropping some extra pounds will be great for me to do as well. I look forward to staying open to changes in the coming year, to continuing to clear out clutter from my life/home/studio, leaving open space for something new to come in later on. But for now, for this moment, this next year, I simply want to focus on creating open space for possibilities. I look forward to not having my time so booked up, so I can enjoy a few moments to pause and appreciate my life and those I love.

I had an ah-ha moment a few weeks back when I changed the location of a class from a venue to my studio. There were 5 lovely souls signed up and I didn’t want to cancel but I also knew it wasn’t very smart to pay a venue to host that size of a gathering. What I found was that I enjoyed having this small group in my humble little studio. It gave us all an opportunity to just relax, enjoy creating at a slower pace and engage in more conversations between us. It was wonderful, I loved it and decided these smaller, mini classes were something that really fueled my spirit. and so I will most likely have more of them in the coming year. Details to come!

Sharing in classes and outings is really enjoyable to me, but I need to be careful not to stretch myself to thin, so this coming year instead of doing the Local Delights series for 6 months in a row like we did in 2023 we will just meet up for one or two gatherings. They too will have a different twist to them but I’ll save that surprise for another post.

Another activity I’ve done the past couple of years were farm tours and those were a big hit visiting local flower and veggie farmers. Working with the Airway Hts. Rec Center we visited a variety of farms and everyone loved the outings. This next year I will team up with both Airway and Medical Lake Rec programs so that twice as many people can join together on each tour. We will visit less farms, only 3-4 a trip instead of 5-6. We will have lunch at a farm and have more time to spend at each one. Plus a couple of the farms will be those who raise animals. So anyone who is thinking about diving into raising chickens, goats, pigs or cows will have an opportunity to learn more about raising them. Right now it’s looking like a later May and mid August date for those.

I think I will also team up with the Rec centers to do a late spring plant shopping outing. We will visit just nurseries and farms that are open to sell plants, bulbs, tubers, seeds for planting. This outing will truly be for those who would find it fun to visit several places to shop for items for your garden. The fun part about doing this is we all meet up at one location and travel together on a bus to each location. This way you can relax and visit with each other and enjoy shopping all day without having to do the driving.

All of this class information is sent out in my monthly newsletter. You can visit my website to sign up if you’re interested in hearing from me once a month on what’s coming up.

Here’s to less being more in 2024. May we all find small ways to focus more on what will better serve us in the months a head so we enjoy a happier, healthier more balanced life.

All the best to you, Sue

Taylors October 2020 Wedding

Sharing a few highlights from the Taylor’s October, 2020 wedding at Mont Lamm Events, 7501 W Enoch Rd., Clayton. Photos shown here were taken by Oxana Brik Photography.

First I want to say how proud I am of all the couples who had to make so many changes to their dream wedding plans last year and those who are still facing changes in 2021. Your positive outlook, joyful attitudes and willingness to embrace the changes is commendable. Though your dream wedding plans have gone through major shifts you still are celebrating love in beautiful ways.

Oxana Brik Photography did a lovely job of capturing the Taylors wedding and beautifully showing their love story through photos. Today I wanted to share how she captured not only a couple in love, enjoying their day but also the beauty of their venue and how it complimented their style. I love how she used elegant sweeping willow branches of Mont Lamm Events large willow tree to create such a romantic airy frame for a variety of the couples pictures. I like how she tied in the venues sunflower garden with the Taylors and her sunflower bouquet. It’s a charming photo next to the weathered wood fence and sunflowers peeking over don’t you think? Then the way she displayed Leslie’s boots and bouquet on the wine barrel next to the reception hall window. A perfect spot for making the reds in her bouquet pop next to the red siding. And the venues far corner birch arbor lightly adorned with sunflowers added a little more floral interest to the ceremony area that is nestled in the privacy of deep green arborvitae shrubs. The last photo I choose to share is of Leslie with her bouquet on the porch of the sweet little bridal suite cabin. I appreciate Oxana’s eye for lighting and locations at the venue that really enhanced the couples vision for their wedding day. And the folks at Mont Lamm Events do a beautiful job of upkeeping the grounds, planting pots of flowers and in beds that provide additional fun spots for some of those special photos.

I think it’s valuable when couples start to consider venues for their wedding that they really consider what is the look and feel they want for their wedding day. Take time to explore venues that will easily support that vision. There are so many beautiful venues here in the Inland North West that have their own unique flare that I’m sure couples will find several that would be perfect for their day. Same with selecting photographers. Don’t just do price shopping, look at their work and how they showcase the couples and select photographers to visit with that you feel would get your vision, whose style of work excites you and of course read the reviews. Reviews for all your vendors and venues will give you good insight into what other couples experienced and may help you narrow down your choices. Your vendors are all experts in their field and I think when you take time to really inquire about them as individuals and their passion for their work, you will find the ones that are going to be a perfect match for you.

Where My Flowers Come From

When you buy a floral bouquet, do you ever wonder where those beautiful blossoms come from? For those buying from me in our Eastern Washington area during the winter and early spring months, I’m purchasing most of my flowers through our local wholesaler. Here in the Spokane area, we are lucky to have two fabulous wholesalers who not only provide florists with cut flowers, but they are also our go-to place for plants and all the various supplies, materials and containers we need for doing our business well. Some of my flowers I purchase directly from growers. When I need tropical flowers or garden roses, I have accounts with the grower so I can buy directly from their farm. From time to time, I buy flowers on the flower auction when I need large quantities of any one particular flower or boxes of greens for a wedding. Most of my weekly purchases this time of the year come from my local wholesalers.

The wholesaler buys flowers from growers all over the world. And as consumers ask for more locally sourced flowers, they work hard to provide those when they are available. In the summer, they work with local growers. Purchasing their flowers not only makes it easy for us to have a one stop shop saving time, but it also adds more variety to what they have to offer us. For this time of year, the end of January, there are some things coming in from California, Hawaii and Florida, but a lot more come from South America, Holland, and some from Canada. When I pick up my order on a Monday, the variety of different flowers I’ve ordered can easily consist of flowers grown at more than a dozen different farms across the world. My suppliers also purchase supplies from a variety of companies who sell glass, ceramic, cement and wooden containers. For a florist tapping into their local wholesaler, it saves a lot of time to be able to place an order for all the various materials and supplies needed and then pick it all up in one place. Working with a local wholesaler is a real time saver for a florist. Please note that not all towns are as lucky as we are in Spokane. Many areas don’t have a local wholesaler and they depend on wholesalers like ours to ship their orders to them.

There are a lot of people involved in the flower supply chain. From the folks at the farms growing and harvesting the flowers to the employees at the distribution and processing centers who wrap, bundle, package and box the flowers to the transportation of the product be it by airplane, truck, or van. Flowers are then delivered to wholesalers who have to unpack, process, hydrate and prepare individual florist shops orders and send them out for delivery. If you’re a local floral shop you may choose pick your orders up yourself. Our Spokane wholesalers are getting flowers from growers all over the world and then taking those boxed bulk orders, opening them, sorting and filling individual shop orders and shipping them out by truck/van to shops in Washington, Idaho, Oregon and Montana. It’s pretty amazing how much traveling a cut flower does before it ends up on your table in a centerpiece.

During the early summer through early autumn, our local community has a wide variety of local flower farmers who are providing us with an amazing variety of flowers and greens to design with. Each year there seem to be more new growers providing locally grown flowers which I think is really exciting. I personally buy from about ten different local growers but know there are more available to us here in the Spokane County area. All of these flower farms grow beautiful flowers, I just tend to buy mostly from those closer to my studio. Either they will deliver to my studio or I will take the time to go to them and pick up my orders. Sometimes we meet in the middle somewhere too. One mixed flower bouquet in the summer may be made up of flowers from one farm or blossoms from all ten farms. I love being able to purchase flowers in the summer from our local growers to use in my designs. Not only is it a way for my business to really support businesses locally, but each farm tends to have their own special varieties they like to grow which gives me more variety to work with. The flowers are fresh and fragrant and come in a variety of vibrant colors! I can often have flowers that are cut and processed one day and designed and delivered on the second day to. This means you’ll enjoy them for a longer period of time on your table. Local growers are able to offer us varieties that our wholesalers can’t simply because not all varieties have a super long vase life. As such, they just don’t make the cut for being a flower to be grown and shipped from somewhere that takes several days to arrive before being designed with. Locally sourced flowers add so much unique beauty throughout the summer that I always encourage people that if they’re only going to buy someone flowers once of twice a year, they should wait until sometime between May and September when there are so many lovely locally grown flowers to enjoy.

Keep in mind though that just because the flowers are grown locally, it doesn’t mean they are less expensive than those grown in some other part of the world. Our local growers work hard all year round to be able to provide us with these beautiful flowers to work with. Here it is the end of January and those growers are putting in long hours planting seeds and getting those plants started so we can have beautiful blossoms to enjoy this summer. It takes a lot of time, organization and prep work even before seed planting happens to grow flowers for designers.

Since we are buying our flowers in 5 to 25 stem bunches, and every florist is purchasing anywhere from a few bunches to 100’s of bunches a week, that’s a lot of flowers to be grown. When you have a a flower like a Lisianthus that is a super tiny seed and a rather tricky one to germinate and grow that makes just one or two stems of flowers, you need to plant 100’s or 1000’s of seeds. I spent 3.5 hours this week planting seeds at the Snapdragon Flower Farm and I only got about 750 seeds planted. Of course some of my time was spent learning how to figure out how many plants I wanted in each of the rows I will be planting, in order to know how many plants I would have the space to grow. Once I had my plan mapped out, I was shown how to do it and how to record what was planted in each tray. So much more goes into the art of being a good flower farmer than most of us realize. These people work hard and certainly deserve the profits they make from the sales of their flowers. I know I’m proud to tell customers that I’ve used locally grown flowers in their bouquets. Yet I’m also proud to support growers across our nation and use vases and materials made in other parts of the U.S. too.

If you want to support the businesses of florists/designers who use locally grown flowers, please buy more bouquets in the late spring through early autumn season when we are using some really gorgeous blossoms. Each season has it’s own variety of beauties for you to enjoy so consider buying one every week or two or at least once a month from May to September. One thing you might consider for a holiday like Christmas or Valentine’s Day, is buying a single rose or tulip with a gift certificate for local fresh bouquets in the summer. I have customers who will prepay for several arrangements at Christmas or early in the New Year and then spread them out for delivery throughout the spring-autumn when we are able to share more from our local growers.

I hope this information helps you to understand a little better how many people and businesses are involved in bringing us beautiful flowers to work with. If you have a garden and grow a few flowers, I hope you will take time to cut a few stems and bring them into your home to enjoy throughout the summer too. They will brighten and lift your spirits and are always such a delight to look at.

2021 Flowerstand News

If you read my blog post about following my floral dream you already know about my mother and her legacy of giving away 100’s of flowers every summer for more than 35 years. She is truly the most amazing lady I know. Well, in 2020 there were a lot of changes for all of us and for me and my business one of them was more time for me enjoy in my own garden. With weddings being postponed another year or down sized to meet state requirements it left my summer more open so I choose to fill the time getting back into gardening and I am so glad I did.

In years past from time to time I too have set out free flowers for my rural community to pick up and enjoy like my mother. Which has always been heart warming for me as well. In 2020, I decided to do a little more than just an occasional giving and on a regular bases I shared not only flowers from my garden but veggies, flower bulbs, tubers and painted pumpkins and flowers from some of my growers gardens as well. My rural neighborhood seemed to enjoy it for they left me all kinds of sweet thank you notes, jam, smoked fish and more. It was so much fun I’ve decided to continue with it this year but want to add a little twist to my giving from time to time.

This year for those who want to have a heads up on when flowers and treats will set out you can join my “Sue’s Flower Stand & Specials” facebook group where I will post when I’m putting flowers out at the stand along with photos of weekly arrangement specials I will have available for sale to be delivered. Throughout the year I also plan to run other seasonal specials that only the members of the group will be notified of. Specials for Valentine’s, May Day, Mother’s Day, as well as my signature pumpkin pals, autumn/winter wreaths and hopefully this year we will be able to gather again in person and I will have a few “funshops” lined up for sharing floral design techniques on all kinds of fun floral projects for those in the group to partake in.

A reminder to those picking up my Free flowers at the flower stand, they aren’t all freshly cut from the garden that morning. Sometimes the free flowers also include blossoms from my floral cooler that are past their sellable freshness but still have a day or two of beauty left in them to be enjoyed. Please know that flowers you get that are “FREE” aren’t necessarily the freshest. Yet they can bring a smile to the one you give them too and brighten your table for a meal or two. I share my flowers as a reminder to all of us to bring a little of natures beauty inside and feel the ways the blossoms lift your spirits and calm any tension.

Flowers help you to express your feelings in a way that words sometimes fail to do. Flowers are rather magical and can touch the heart of a loved one in a special way. I hope my flowers will encourage you to pick some from your own garden or purchase a bouquet from time to time for yourself to enjoy and to share with another.

Remember, follow me on Instagram and on facebook under suehinesfloral and join the FB group under Sue’s Flower Specials to stay in the loop on my Flower stand updates which I will probably start having flowers set out in late April.

November 2023 update. I’m sad to say that this year we ran into troubles with vandalism several times. So throughout the winter we will be revamping the flower stand and coming up a more secure way for people to leave their kind donations. People have suggested we put up cameras but for me that takes away from that surprise and delight of simply stopping to pick up, leave a note or donation. I want to leave it like it is. Stay tune in the spring of 2024 for updates.

Benefits of Trusting Your Florist

I want to share with you some of the benefits couples experience when they choose to fully trust their florist with their wedding flowers. Let me start with sharing why I ask you for an inspirational photo of the floral designs you like. I’m not asking so that I can copy that bouquet style from Pinterest of another designers work but to get a feel for the styles you envision for your wedding. Photos help me have a starting point to build from in creating designs that will fit your vision for your special day within your budget. I want couples to have flowers that are uniquely designed for their day not a copy of someone else’s. Seeing the styles and hearing your vision and knowing what your floral budget is, is helpful for me to known whether or not it is going to come together easily or if there may need to be some creative modifications for the order to fit into the budget.

Your wedding color palette may include multiple colors so when you discuss the colors that will be used in flowers, clothing, linens etc. your florist will have suggestions that may help your flowers be more complimentary to your overall look and feel than you originally had thought of. Be open to listening to their guidance and look at all your options before deciding on whether your flowers need to include all the wedding colors in your palette. Sometimes leaving a few of your colors out of the flowers and using them in clothing, draping, table clothes, runners and napkins will bring the look together more beautifully.

Take time to look through your florists albums of wedding designs. You want to see their work and read the brides reviews. Look for comments like “they went beyond my vision…., the flowers were more beautiful than I expected….., I loved the designs they created for me.” These types of statements will help you feel more trusting that your florist will be attentive to your vision too.

Trust that your florist is going to be looking for the highest quality flowers in your colors for your special day. Flowers grow in seasons too and they aren’t all available 12 months out of the year. Even your greens like seeded eucalyptus for example have a period during the year they are off. When the quality of seeds are sparse and small. When you’re looking at photos for inspiration that photo may of been taken during a different season of the year than your wedding will be taking place in. Not all flowers look fabulous all year long. By trusting your florist to select the best in the season your getting married in, I’m sure you will have a gorgeous bouquet.

Maybe a style of a bouquet you like has mostly traditional flowers like roses, carnations, hydrangea in it and your wedding date in the middle of July. That is a time of year here in the Inland NorthWest that our local flower farmers have an abundance of beautiful blossoms for us to work with. Maybe you really like those traditional flowers and that’s great if you do, if you’re trusting your florist to create something unique for you than be willing to trust them in selecting a few local grown flowers to add in to your bouquet. I think you will love it even more when you see those sweet little extras that really make your bouquet pop with originality and style. Some of my favorites to add are sweet peas, lavender, fama scabiosa, gyposphila, dara, strawflower, asters, phlox, and Madame butterfly snapdragons to name a few. These are like the icing on the cake type of blossoms. Those that add that sweet little dancing extra flair that catches your eye and makes your heart sing. Florists who have good relationships with their local flower farmers love to use these in wedding designs. So be sure you ask your designer if they know what types of local blossoms will be available during the week of your wedding that they may be able to include in your designs.

Sometimes couples call to get an estimate on flowers and are simply price shopping between florists. I understand everyone wants to get the most bang for their dollar but there is more to booking a florist than just the price of the bouquet. I encourage couples to talk with different florists and get a feel for personalities and their style of designing. I can’t over emphasize the importance of reading reviews because buying the cheapest flowers doesn’t always mean giving you peace of mind that your flowers will be everything you want them to be. You want to feel good about the company that will be designing for you and feel confident that they are going to handle the details professionally and with dedication and passion to making your designs fit your vision for your day.

Trusting your florist with items that are meaningful to you to be incorporated into your designs. Some couples have lockets, charms, fabric, vases, or items from nature like dried flowers and branches they want woven into their designs. If this is you, ask your florist if they do this and if they have photos of examples from doing this. Bringing in touchstones from your life that are meaningful to you can add a special touch to your day. I enjoy the opportunity to be creative with my couples treasures. Last summer for example I had a couple who got married at the brides families lovely country home. They wanted to use pine branch limbs on the guest tables as part of the centerpieces. Because the home was nestled among pine trees. They had a budgeted amount for me to work with and totally trusted me to come up with something that would be lovely. I made garlands of greens to twin in and around the branches and tucked dahlias in water tubes here and there with strands of twinkle lights woven through out so their outdoor nighttime reception on farm wood tables would have a touch of sparkle to it. The photo included is from this wedding.

Trusting your florist I believe will allow you to have the most gorgeous floral designs that may even exceed your dreams. I’d love to hear from you if you’re planning a wedding. Please fill out the wedding inquiry form and I will look forward to hearing about wedding vision soon.

Darling in the Dahlias

Whether it's a corporate event or a wedding reception, re-purposing fresh flower centerpieces is always something I encourage my customers to do.  I offer to pick them up and donate them to patients at rehab centers, senior centers, or organizations of their choice.  Allowing others to be blessed by the beauty of their fresh flowers is a kind and generous gift to give.  

This summer one of my brides choose to give her centerpiece flowers to her sister to be used in a photo shoot with her little girl. What a beautiful way to share the beauty of all those gorgeous locally grown dahlias. Another bride had all of her colorful votive cups filled with blossoms go to one of the senior centers to decorate their tables for their weekly luncheon. This allowed each person to take home a cup of flowers. They were over the moon excited about it too. Others went to Meals on Wheels seniors delivered with their hot lunches. It warms my heart to have couples who are so generous to share their flowers with others in our community. It may require a little more work on my end, but it’s always worth it to see the smiles and hear how much joy they bring to the lives of others.

Sayde & Cameron's Winter Wedding Flowers

February 17, 2018 a winter storm was brewing outside but inside their hearts were overflowing with so much love and excitement for this special day, I doubt Cameron and Sayde noticed it much.  She choose a mix of eucalyptus greens for her brides maids to carry and wanted a king protea as the focal flower in her bouquet along with a mix of lovely burgundy blossoms.  I included Black Magic roses, scabiosa, chocolate queen anne's lace, anemones, hellebore, cymbidium orchids, service berries, jasmine and seeded eucalyptus. It was a gorgeous winter bouquet.  Her break-away tossing bouquet included love quotes she choose printed on ribbons that tied around each of the 5 clusters of flowers including one queen protea.  The plan was that she would untie the burgundy ribbon that held it together before tossing it and as she did it would scatter so 5 different people would get to have a piece of her bouquet.  It worked too!  It surprised everyone.  She had greenery boutonnieres with seeded eucalyptus and tiny pinecones as the focal point for all the men.  Italian Ruscus  swags were aisle markers with burgundy ribbons and orchids at the church.  After the ceremony they were taken to the reception and used as a garland for the head table with her bridesmaids green bouquets added in and her bouquet in a vase in front of her.  The reception was held at the Red Lion at the Park in the Skyline banquet room on the 12th floor with  lots of windows offering guests a beautiful view of the downtown Spokane area.   I can't wait to see the photos  of their special day that their photographer captured.  Here's a few pictures I took prior to delivering her flowers.  It was a joy to be a part of your special day Sayde!  

Love My Local Flower Farms

It may be cold outside, but all across our Inland North West area there are warm greenhouses and grow lights glowing as our local flower farmers are busy tending to the planting of seeds for this years flower crops.  My local flower farmers provide me and many other florists with fresh, fragrant and gorgeous blossoms to design with starting in late spring.  As a florists it's kind of like the feeling a child has waiting to open their birthday presents. The anticipation and excitement are growing daily and by March it starts getting hard to wait.    I want to find the package and peek inside.  Just like our children when traveling in the car and asking us "are we there yet?"  That is me with the flower farmers, asking "are they ready yet? How much longer do I have to wait?"

 I thought it would be fun and educational for my readers this year to experience a little of the behind the scenes of floral designing to help you understand and appreciate those blossoms on your table a little more.  While I am visiting the farms, picking up my fresh blossoms to design with I plan to create some little video clips to share with you so you can see for yourself just what a treasure we have here among our local farmers.  I'll take you on a  flowers journey from  her start on the farm to her final delivery, covering all the steps in between.   You might be surprised to the amount of time and work that goes into an arrangement prior to your receiving it.  I hear comments from people about what a wonderful job I have working with flowers all day.  I agree, it is a work I enjoy immensely, but there's a lot more to it than just arranging flowers in a vase.  I look forward to sharing the ins and outs of a florist in the months ahead with you.

I have been buying flowers from my mother's "Little Bit" garden since I started my business in 2014. Weaving the beauty and freshness of her local gladiolus and dahlias into many of my summer orders.  Last year I became acquainted with another local florist Esther Ryan owner of Special Touch Florist who introduced me to a group of the most amazing local flower farmers who are growing a wide variety of flowers including those gorgeous Cafe au Lait Dahlias, peonies, lilies, sweetpeas and so much more.  In fact, when it comes to dahlias Scott and Nicki owners of Tall Grass Farms even sell the tubers of their dahlias in the fall and ship them to you for planting in the spring.   They are the place to go in the spring to purchase your bedding plants, flowers, veggies and more if you are here in my local area.  Healthy, fresh and locally grown, you can't get it any better than this.  You can also follow them on facebook to get updates on their greenhouse days/hours.  I will visit them in the spring to give you a tour of what they have available for you to purchase and plant.   

Just down the road, around the bend and over a hill or two among the wheat fields you will find  Dream-Dirt-Florals  Terri Bongarts-Carstens grows some more stunning blossoms including peonies, more lovely dahlias,  sweet smelling molucella/Bells of Ireland (my favorite), dusty miller and so much more. You have to drive slowly for her chickens roam freely  and always seem to be out enjoying a snack along the driveway.  Follow her on instagram under her name to see more photos of the gorgeous blossoms she has to offer.  Terri is also a floral designer and does beautiful wedding flowers.  Then we travel to the south hill of Spokane out the S. Palouse Hwy to Beth's Snapdragon Flower Farm.  Yes, Beth is the queen of snapdragons and oh so much more!  Last year I remember getting some the loveliest mini lisianthus and her sweetpeas were to die for.  You can visit her on facebook under Snapdragon Flower Farm and sign up for her newsletter.  On her website you can also sign up for a subscription for fresh flowers on a regular bases from weekly to monthly. 

Now we head north up to BeeHaven Flower Farm in the Bonner's Ferry, Idaho area.  Oh my,  talk about a heavenly place!  Some of the most beautiful peonies I used last year came from them.  They are the ones who introduced me to the fun of using raspberry canes as foliage in my designs and I loved it.  You will find their blossoms being shared and enjoyed across the Eastern Washington and Northern Idaho area.   I was like a little kid in a candy store when their van packed with flowers arrived at Special Touch Florist shop on Wednesday mornings and got to personally select the blossoms I wanted.   

After being introduced to these wonderful local flower farms my customers started commenting even more about how much they enjoy the unique and fragrant fresh flowers.  The most common comment I heard last year over and over was on how long lasting the blossoms were and I contribute that to the loving care the growers give them and in their processing practices prior to me receiving them.  Brides loved having local flowers in their bouquets too.  Using these fresh unique blossoms helped me to design a more natural, organic, fresh out of the garden look for them. 

 I will be sharing updates on these growers with you  from time to time.  For some will be offering classes, demos, or will have beautiful bedding plants available for their communities to purchase. One way you can support your local growers is to purchase flowers from florists who do business with them.  Ask your florist if they buy their flowers from the local growers and if so then you know you are helping to support your local growers too. 

Follow the flower farms on facebook, instagram or on their own personal websites.  If you have a question about flowers I'd highly encourage you to reach out to them for their expertise and insights on plants/flowers.  I haven't met one yet that didn't love to talk about about plants, flowers, and gardening.    I know there are more local growers out there and new ones starting up this year in our area as well.  It will be fun for me to meet them and share them with you.  It may be cold and snowy out right now, but spring is coming and soon we will all be enjoying warmer days with the bees and butterflies in the sunshine among the flower blossoms.  

Local sources blossoms in a May Bouquet

Why The Change

Today is New Years Day 2018!  I have been in business for a little over three years now and have made the decision recently to go forward with changing my business name from Personal Touch Florals to simply Sue Hines Floral.  Some are asking why change it Sue?  Several reasons have played into my choice and I'd like to share the top two with you today.  I have gone back and forth in my mind for the past year and half do I keep it, do I change it?  It has felt like I've been on the teeter totter and I decided it was time to get off.  

1.  I was hearing this comment a lot from customers.  "I can never remember your business name so I told my friend to just google "Sue Hines" to find you.  By changing my name to Sue Hines Floral it solves the issue of what is the name of my business.  It's simply me, I am a independent florist with a rural floral studio located at my home in the woods.  

2. Another reason I choose to make the change is to help eliminate having my business confused with other local businesses.  I hadn't realized at the time I choose  the name Personal Touch that there had been years earlier in my area another similar business that also used Personal Touch in their business name. Nor did I know about the wonderful local shop in Spokane called Special Touch Florist.  I have become friends with the owner of Special Touch and I don't want our customers to get us confused.  I want her to have all the business that is meant to be hers and the same for me.  So by switching my business name to my name helps to solve all confusion between other floral businesses in my area.  

If you're interested in knowing my service area and hours in studio you will that information  here.  Want to contact me about placing an order, or have a questions? Please go to  either the wedding inquiry or the general contact form.  I look forward to 2018 and continuing to share with my community fresh lovely flowers from the amazing flower farmers right here around us.

I'd love to have you connect with me on Instagram, Facebook, and Pinterest too.