Hello From Michelle Part II: Her Floral Journey
- final touches in preparation for a styled shoot.
Hello again, dear friend! It’s been a hot minute since the last posts where we talked about Circuit Breaker and also introduced Michelle on a more personal level in part 1. This one’s the continuation, where we share more on the flowers side to her!
M I C H E L L E ’ S E X P E R I E N C E W I T H F L O R A L S -
I was lucky enough to grow up seeing flowers appreciated. It was pretty simple - my mum loves flowers, my dad gifted them #happywifehappylife. Flowers being gifted to bring smiles seemingly stuck with me. My earliest memories of playing with flowers dated all the way back to primary school. During recess, I would follow my friends to the school field and while they played catching, I will wander around the corners of the field and pluck flowers to bring home! Kid you not, I even brought those plastic water tubes to stick them in so that they will survive till school was done for the day. I still remember the type of ‘flower’ I very happily presented my mum with after school was called “love grass”, because it was taught in the science textbook. But in actuality, I was just bringing weeds back from my school field and going “nah mummy for you”. I guess that means I can tick foraging off my checklist.
As I grew older, I would go to Far East Market to get flowers for some DIY bouquets whenever I can, be it for my mum or friends.
This went on until graduation from uni was looming and I had to decide what I wanted to do - which tbh, I was clueless about. All I knew then was that I didn’t enjoy a desk job after my internship and that’s when I decided to work part time as a florist to test if I could put money where passion is…or whether this will ruin my interest in flowers (my fear, really). That ‘aha’ moment that floristry was it came when I was very happy to wake up early and make the trip from west to east every morning to do flowers. After that, zooming past details and conflicting thought processes on whether to start out on my own, I dived right into The Bloomish Eden! Needless to say, the journey has not been easy with steep learning curves in aspects beyond flowers. And of course, as with any business, there will be personal sacrifices to be made but at the same time, there’s something different about it because you know that at the end of the day, you’re one step closer to your dream.
H E R P R O F E S S I O N A L G R O W T H
Inching forward towards being responsible for others’ wedding flowers, I wanted to ensure I was properly equipped to work towards making the floral dreams of my couples come true. Although I had gained experience previously through exploring flowers and arrangements for those around me, and working at another florist’s shop, I was not satisfied with what I knew and wanted to learn more.
There was still a gap from where I was and where I wanted to be. Floristry being an art in itself, I knew I was going on a journey of constant self-improvement. Plus, it’s what my clients deserve from me and what I would expect as a customer. I guess you could call it part of my work ethic and standard set for myself since I’m building something from the ground up. So, that’s how I went to floral school! And yes, I didn’t know floral schools existed too. It was definitely eye opening where I got introduced to traditional and European styles that I don’t usually encounter.
Other than that, the other way to grow was honestly the most enjoyable: just doing it. I really count my lucky stars that I got to explore concepts and ideas with my very trusting clients as I embarked on my journey of growth. I got to push my creative boundaries and it remains something I’m incredibly grateful for. Although new concepts and ideas take more time to come into fruition, it is so so worth it at the end. And these have of course become fond memories I hold on to and will be sharing more on, further down the road!
On that note, if you’d like to see more of TBE florals and me making floral dreams come true, be sure to head over to my Instagram (@the.bloomish.eden) and give us a follow for more regularly updated beautiful content.
Till the next one, be kind out there -
xx, mich.
bonus —
floral school vs. following other florists?
During chats with other budding florists, I do get asked if floral school is a must. I think it really depends on where you’re planning to go with your floral journey and what you’d like to learn. Floral schools focus more on traditional methods, so it is good if you want to be equipped to generate new ideas on your own / explore new concepts with good basics to back you up and ensure quality behind those. Workshops by other florists are more of learning another’s style and maybe picking out what works for you. In a way, it can serve as a shortcut to picking up certain skills you want to target.
Be it workshops or floral school , what is more essential in making you better at what you do is lots of practice. Neither options are a magical answer to transforming your skills or developing your own style overnight. As with any form of art, beautiful works will take lots of practice, hard work and time to get to the aesthetics you are after. That’s also why artists charge for their experience and time. Always remember to have your own style and be uniquely your own. Be authentic and original. :-)