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Add-on products ADD PROFITS – Attention Florists – Stock your shelves for Mother’s Day!

Books make wonderful add-on gifts and can be the perfect non-perishable item to stock on your shelves, whether your store is physical or digital. Get ready for an increase in profits by offering that little something extra without the worry of it wilting!

For a business owner, the best additional product to sell is one that ticks at least 3 or more of the following criteria:

1 High profit margin

2 Long shelf-life

3 Visually pleasing/eye-catching

4 Complements the businesses’ core products

5 Easy to store

6 Requires no maintenance

7 Increases the sale of your core products

Whilst stocking and selling Feed Your Soul with Flowers ticks all the above criteria, the one with the greatest power for your business’ longevity is #7! The very premise of this book highlights the importance of buying fresh flowers every week––not just on special occasions––which will only result in more regular customers for your store.

Feed Your Soul with Flowers is not a floristry how-to, although it does include basic flower care and maintenance guides for your customers. The aim of the book is to show how each of us can live happier, more fruitful lives through the power of flowers.

The book includes stunning floral imagery captured by photographer, Brodie Seals.

Use this LINK to register as a stockist and for more info.

How To Prepare Your Floristry Bench

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When it comes to creating showstopping arrangements, preparation is KEY.

Taking the time to properly prep your botanical material, set up your bench with your tools, and envisage the design you want to create before you place the first flower is the sign of a great florist. Even just a little preparation can mean the difference between a rushed, messy arrangement, and something that will blow your clients away.

To get started, we need to make sure we’ve got a designated place to work. We recommend finding a workbench that’s approximately 90cm in height. Kitchen and laundry benches are usually a good place to start looking, as these benches will usually come with a large in-built sink area which is perfect for filling up your vases and buckets. They’re also quite spacious, and given that we recommend having about one metre of space to arrange on, this is a big tick.

Another advantage to kitchen/laundry benches is that they’re purpose-made to deal with spills and water. Whatever type of bench you choose, make sure that the table part is equipped to deal with water and can be easily cleaned. This is why we don’t recommend arranging on your dining table – it’s likely to get nicks and water damage!

Don’t be afraid to look around for custom options either – at the Bloom Studio we used the beautiful, wooden Ikea table tops and had the legs custom fitted to make them the correct height. We also had wheels added for movability. Add a thick coat of gloss on top to protect the wood from scratches and water damage – and ta da! You’ve got some gorgeous, custom floristry benches.

Now that we’ve got our floristry bench set up, let’s have a look at the tools we’ll need on hand.

First and foremost, make sure you’ve got your trusty, highly absorbent hand towel close by for mopping up any spills as well as keeping your hands dry.

You’ll also need:

Pair of protective gloves – important for making sure you don’t get nicked and for removing any leaves on flower stems
Flower cutting snips – ideal for cutting softer flower material
Secateurs – for cutting hard-stemmed foliage and sticks
Apron – for protecting your clothes from any splashes or dirt, as well as providing a handy pocket to keep your tools in
Parafilm floral tape – for wiring and taping
Snips sharpener – to keep your snips nice and sharp
Wire – we recommend having a variety of sizes

(Pssst. We have all the basics available in a ready to go pack if you’re not sure where to start!)

Now that you’ve got your bench and tools all set up, you’re ready to start arranging! For some easy arrangement tutorials check out our Bloom Basics course – it’s the perfect place to get started on your floristry journey.

The Floristry Kit Starter Packs Every Florist Needs

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A great florist needs equally great tools. That’s why we’ve redesigned our Bloom College tool kits – to ensure you can begin your floristry journey with ease. These floristry tool kits have been designed to help beginners and professionals alike, and are the result of decades of first-hand experience and research by Bloom College’s founder, Yvette Timmins.

Whether you consider yourself an aspiring florist, a seasoned professional, or just a flower lover, this blog is for you. So, let’s dive in and discover Bloom College’s brand-new floristry tool kits.

The Bare Essentials Kit

Treat yourself or a flower-loving friend to the best flower-cutting snips and secateurs ever made. We have bundled these Sakagen tools from Japan with the softest and lightest gloves to wear whilst you remove pesky thorns and leaves from the flower and foliage stems, saving your hands in the process! This tool kit contains the bare essentials you’ll need for creating your first arrangement, and where better to start than with the tools that real florists use day-to-day?

What’s inside:

1 x Sakagen flower cutting snips

1 x Sakagen secateurs

1 x pair of gloves

The New Basics Kit

For the budding florist or to complement your new hobby, our Basics Kit has everything you need to start creating beautiful arrangements. Complete with ultra-high quality Japanese Sakagen snips and secateurs, a comfortable pair of gloves and a few Bloom College essentials, this is the floristry tool kit for those at the very start of their floristry journey.

What’s inside:

1 x Sakagen flower cutting snips

1 x Sakagen secateurs

1 x pair of gloves

1 x Bloom College embroidered apron with pockets

1 x Bloom College logo towel

1 x Bloom College bag

The Upgraded Essentials Kit

This floristry tool kit is for seasoned florists or those looking to take their floristry to the next level. You get brand-new secateurs and snips from Sakagen, a light and breathable pair of gloves, a few Bloom College essentials and floristry accessories including grosgrain and ribbons for use on your arrangements. While we do recommend that beginners start with one of our simpler tool kits, if you’re excited to jump right into the deep end with floristry, this tool kit will suit your needs just as well. If you are a more experienced florist, you know the importance of high-quality tools, so if you’ve had your snips for years, this kit is a great way to replace or replenish your current kit.

What’s inside:

1 x Sakagen flower cutting snips

1 x Sakagen secateurs

1 x pair of gloves

1 x Bloom College embroidered apron with pockets

1 x Bloom College logo towel

1 x Bloom College bag + PLUS assorted florist grosgrain and satin ribbons

Unsure which kit is right for you? We’re more than happy to provide our expert opinion. Simply contact our team with your query and we’ll get back to you as soon as we can.

Emotional Connections through Flowers: The Importance of Giving and Receiving

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By Georgie Stanton

The giving of flowers is a timeless gesture that has been used for centuries to communicate and connect with others. By sending flowers, you can show someone that you are thinking of them, and offer appreciation and/or thanks. You are making an intentional effort to express your emotions and connect with that person. This act of kindness and thoughtfulness can have a profound effect on the recipient.

It is a way to express emotions, convey love, affection, sympathy, congratulations, or simply brighten someone’s day. Flowers have a unique ability to evoke feelings and convey messages that sometimes words cannot, and serve as a symbol of kindness and understanding. It can be a small but powerful way to strengthen relationships and show gratitude.

Improving mood and mental well-being

Studies have shown that being around flowers can have a positive impact on mood, reducing stress and anxiety levels, while increasing feelings of happiness and calm. These qualities are extensively depicted in Yvette’s book, Feed Your Soul with Flowers.

Studies on the impact of giving and receiving flowers have shown that flowers can have a positive impact on people’s well-being. Receiving flowers has been found to improve mood and reduce stress levels while giving flowers has been shown to increase feelings of happiness and satisfaction in the giver. Flowers have a profound emotional and psychological impact, making them a valuable tool for improving mood and creating emotional connections between people.

There have been studies that have investigated the impact of flowers on maternal well-being and stress levels. One study found that new mothers who received flowers experienced reduced stress levels and improved moods compared to those who did not receive flowers. This study highlights the importance of providing support to new mothers and the role that flowers can play in making a positive impact on their lives.

Another study found that flowers can also play a role in promoting feelings of social connectedness and support among new mothers. Participants in the study reported feeling happier and more connected to others after receiving a bouquet of flowers. One florist I worked for had a beautiful initiative called “patient of the month”, where we would send two small bunches to our local hospital and ask the nursing staff to choose two patients they thought might benefit from the blooms, a man and a woman. The messages of gratitude far outweighed the actual cost.

In essence, both giving and receiving flowers are important because they can serve as a symbol of love, support and appreciation.

P.S. Whether you choose to pick blooms from your own garden or have a curated bouquet created by a florist it is always a good idea to give them to yourself!

Feed Your Soul with Flowers Series Preview

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How To Care For Cut Banksias

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We love our banksias down here in Australia.

These beautiful, native spring flowers bloom in August all the way through to sunny December, making them a stunning addition to any spring arrangement. Banksias are a symbol of rebirth and new beginnings, which makes sense considering they’ve become a popular wedding flower.

These flowers are also ancient––the earliest fossil record of one being more than 50 million years old!

A member of the Protea family, there are around 80 different species of banksia. Despite all this variety, banksias are easily recognisable by their distinctive cone-shaped flower clusters. When all these little flowers open up, they give the banksia its classic fluffy appearance. Banksias also come in an array of colours––yellow, red, green and even a beautiful peachy orange.

They’re well-loved by Australian florists because not only are they scentless (ideal for customers sensitive to strong floral scents), they have a long vase life and they add a distinctively Australian touch to any bouquet. Even the cones are used in floral arrangements!

Tip: When buying cut banksias, look for those with only the bottom third of flowers open. You should also avoid any banksias that are wet, as the moisture can cause the flowers to develop black streaks.

Step 1: Keep them cool

Because florists are well-versed in flower care, they’ll know to have kept your banksias nice and cool right up to the moment they’re in your hands. Once you’ve got them, get them home as soon as you can and keep them in a cool room while you get ready to prepare them. Avoid direct sunlight for long periods of time or placing them in front of a heater or air conditioner.

Step 2: Strip leaves

Once you’ve got your banksias laid out on the table ready to prep, you can take a pair of scissors or a floristry knife and strip the leaves from the lower half of each stem.

Step 3: Recut the stems

After stripping the leaves, take your scissors and recut each stem, taking about 2cm off the ends. Make sure you have your vase of cold water on hand to place the flowers in immediately after they’ve been cut.

Step 4: Be gentle

Damage to the stems can spell the end for your banksias, so be very careful when handling them so that you don’t knock or split the stems. A nice healthy stem will make all the difference in ensuring a longer vase life!

Step 5: Keep them hydrated

Banksias are very thirsty, so make sure you’re replacing the vase water each day with fresh, clean water. Adding preservative to the water is also a good idea, but it’s entirely up to you.

Step 6: Keep the flowers dry

As we mentioned before, wet banksia flowers are a no-no. Don’t be tempted to spray them with water or use a mister––these will only aid those awful black streaks in popping up.

Follow our steps and your banksias should have a long, happy vase life. Make sure to tag @bloomcollege on socials if you snap a photo of your own banksias––we’d love to see them!

What flowers are in season for Melbourne spring?

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Spring has to be one of our favourite times of year here in Australia. The trees are starting to bud, the air is thick with the scent of blooming flowers and the sun is starting to set a little later, providing those beautiful warm nights on the verandah. It’s also an exciting season for flowers, with so many gorgeous spring varieties popping up over the next month or so, ready to steal the show in your arrangements and bouquets.

Let’s take a look at a few of our favourite spring blooms.

Ranunculus

Ranunculus is a popular spring-flowering bulb that flourishes wherever it grows, from chilly Tasmania and Victoria all the way up to the subtropical environment of South Queensland.

The wide variety of colours that ranunculus flowers come in make them a super versatile addition to any bouquet – whether on their own or as an accent flower. If you’re using ranunculus flowers on their own, you can use a mix of colours to make them more eye-catching. Other colourful flowers like tulips, peonies and dahlias also work well alongside ranunculus!

Season: September to November

Lily of the Valley

White Lily of the valley

Lily of the valley is a sweetly scented, pendent, bell-shaped white flower native throughout the temperate Northern Hemisphere in Asia and Europe. This delicate flower has a short season throughout Australia’s spring and makes a beautiful, soft touch to your arrangements, especially for weddings.

The origin of its name comes from the legend of Saint Leonard, who is said to have slain the last dragon in England. The legend says that lilies of the valley sprouted in clusters wherever the saint’s blood was spilled and earned its meaning of “the return of happiness”.

Season: September to October

Lilacs

Lilacs are one of the most fragrant flowers in the world. They’re also one of the most popular, with their vibrant bunches of purple blooms. Native to southeastern Europe and eastern Asia, lilacs are able to grow easily in Australia, so you can find them at most growers in the spring months.

Lilac’s meaning of reminiscence and first love came originally from Greek mythology. The nymph Syringa feared the advances of Pan, the god of the forests, so she turned herself into a lilac bush. When Pan realised this, he cut the hollow reeds of the shrub to form the pan flute, memorialising his first love. The more you know, huh?

Season: October

Magnolias

magnolia

If you’re looking for flowers in season in spring, magnolias are a good choice. They are a symbol of spring and can be found all over the world. Magnolia trees bloom with large white or pink flowers that have delicate, soft petals. Magnolias are one of the most popular blooms for weddings and make great bouquets or centrepieces at events like parties and banquets.

Magnolia’s meaning of dignity is derived from its tall, hearty structure. In the American South, magnolia trees will grow to magnificent heights and endure scorching hot summers.

Season: August to October

David Austin Roses

David Austin Roses are named after David Austin, a British rose breeder. They’re known for their fragrant, many petalled blooms and can be found in a variety of shades of white, yellow, pink and red. The difference between David Austin Roses and regular, field-grown roses is the abundance of extra petals – many varieties almost look like a different flower altogether. Some varieties are available early in the season and others make us wait in anticipation for their beauty and scent. My all time favourite is Fair Bianca, a creamy white rose with burgundy pink outer petals.

Despite the differences, this variety of roses maintains the meaning of love that all roses carry, making it ideal for wedding bouquets.

Season: October to May

With so many beautiful blooms available in Spring, it makes sense to start to plan your bouquet offerings around these. In season flowers are going to be fresher, more vibrant and more fragrant than other varieties that may have had to be grown outside of their regular season. For local growers in Victoria, make sure to check out our two-part series on local growers in Victoria. You’re sure to find the best flowers possible, all while supporting local Aussie businesses.

Local Growers Part 1

Local Growers Part 2

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How to use the element of line when constructing a fresh flower wreath

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Yvette shares with you a quick tip straight from the classroom on how to use the element of line when constructing a fresh flower wreath.

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How to finish a bridal bouquet – Tips and advice straight from the classroom

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Learn about how & why Bloom got started

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Bloom College was created in September 2012 and launched in March 2013. The school has been through a number of changes since but one thing has stayed the course, the mission and intention remains the same. In this interview from 2017, Yvette is asked to share her purpose for founding Bloom College.

Improving mood and mental well-being

Step 1: Keep them cool

Step 2: Strip leaves

Step 3: Recut the stems

Step 4: Be gentle

Step 5: Keep them hydrated

Step 6: Keep the flowers dry

Ranunculus

Lily of the Valley

Lilacs

Magnolias

David Austin Roses

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Watch the Interview Here