Across the Spectrum

Floristry with Ria Marra

April 01, 2021 Season 1 Episode 1
Across the Spectrum
Floristry with Ria Marra
Show Notes Transcript

Join me and my good friend Ria Marra, as we talk about floristry!

A few content warnings for:

  • Discussion of funerals 
  • Mentions of Death  
  • Implied Violence  
  • Non-harmful smacking  

This episode's transcript can be found alongside the episode on the podcast website, and you can find every transcript in this Google Drive Folder.

If you enjoyed hearing from Ria today, you can find her social media over on tumblr and twitter.  If you'd like to see some of her work - including the peacock design discussed in the episode - then head over to her instagram

This show could not have been made without our artists!

Eric Monk-Steel's work is available on tumblr and instagram
Maki Yamazaki makes music on Bandcamp, and you can support her on Patreon

Mark: Hello, and welcome to Across the Spectrum: A podcast about special interests! I’m your host, Mark Spark, and today I’m talking to Ria Marra. Hi Ria! 


Ria: Hi Mark! 


Mark: Thank you for being here today 


Ria: Thank you for having me 


Mark: Would you like to tell the audience what we’re talking about today?


Ria: Right, today we are talking about Floristry 


Mark: And for anyone who may not have heard the term, can you tell us briefly what that is? 


Ria: Yeah, floristry is, very basically, flower arranging. You make bouquets, arrangements, you work for weddings, funerals, events, stuff like that. 


Mark: Yeah, so do you want to tell us a little bit about the basics of floristry? 


Ria: Right, so obviously the bit- uh- one of the big things of floristry is the simple act of making bouquets. I’m sure that uh, most people listening have bought a bouquet of flowers for someone in their life; your mum on Mother’s Day, or you know, someone on Valentine’s Day. 


So um, the basics of, like, for example bouquet making - in the UK at least, which is where we’re based - uses the kind of English Garden method, it’s called? And, like the idea with the English Garden method is that… you have things, like, radiating outwards from a point. Which is why you’ll notice that bouquets- uh, the stems are often spiralled. And they kind of come out into a nice, round topped bouquet with very little space. So either flowers or foliage are going to be taking up all that space. 


So that’s- like that’s the method we use in- in the UK. And that’s, like, the most basic idea of um, a bouquet. 


And then, like I said, you have work for events like weddings and funerals. Funeral work is… [smiling] kind of morbidly, uh 


Mark: [Laughter] 


Ria: the biggest kind of industry for a florist, like, it’s very wa- rare that if you work in a floristry shop that there’s - that- that actually does funerals - that there’s gonna be a week go by without you doing any funeral work at all. Which, like I said, [Smiling]  a little bit morbid, but you know, it’s a fact of life


Mark: Yeah it- it does sound a bit grim, doesn’t it? 


Ria: [Laughter] Yeah, it uh- [laughs] it- it’s a fact of life though, you know. 


Mark: yeah that’s- that’s just the statistics of living in a country-


Ria: Yeah 


Mark; -with fifty five million people


Ria: Yeah [chuckles] But with funeral work there’s obviously a lot of uh- a lot of of variety, in regards to like, design, shape, et cetera. You’ll have the more basic things like wreaths, which is quite common for… people who, like, knew or were close to the deceased, but not necessarily like, immediate family or best friends or anything. Something that’s nice but a little- like, like nicer than just a bouquet, but a little bit more, like, simple and standard. 


And you’ll have things like coffin sprays, which will be kind of like diamond shaped? Or tear drop shaped, depending on how you go. They’ll go on the coffin.


Of course, like, you’ll have seen like, names, or “mum”, or “dad” or, uh, something i-in letters. Also a very common one, and actually a lot more simple thank you might thing, because it’s mostly just working with, like, a base; So you’ll, say you’ll have chrysanthemums, and you’ll basically cover the letters in those. So it’s- uh, it’s time consuming, to do, like a whole name, but it’s quite simple. 


Mark: Yeah, easy but- but long work. 


Ria: Yeah. Erm, you’ll have- like, when it’s like immediate family or best friends, you’ll have a lot more like, personalised and intricate work and that’s when lots of shapes will get involved, like- depending on like, hobbies and stuff, like some people get- for example, if they’re really into football they’ll get a football t-shirt. Or uum, they like gardening then people will do things like d- try and depict a little garden. 


When I was in college, I did… an artist’s palette? So it was literally like, a big paint palette, with um, different coloured flowers as the different paint splodges. 


Mark: Oh, that’s interesting 


Ria: Thank you. Actually- getting a little bit morbid, but funeral work can actually be very interesting to do.


Mark: Yeah? 


Ria: Especially when it is something, more personalised? Which is like [Chuckles] like, a duality with floristry, like you- you do work that, y’know, you enjoy and that is creatively fulfilling and it’s- not always necessarily for a great reason, but… it does bring, that kind of… y’know, some comfort to that occasion-


Mark: Yeah 


Ria: -as well. Yeah, and another- uh- another big thing is wedding work. Which erm… You’ll know is like, a-a-a-another big thing. Not as frequent as… other work, but it’s a lot of work when you do have it. Because, well u-usually- well for a bigger wedding, I’ll say, y’know, you’ll have the bridal bouquet, some people have bridesmaids having bouquets, you’ve got all the um, buttonholes, for the groomsman and the grooms party. Sometimes people want everyone at the wedding to have a button hole. 


Mark; [Laugheter] 


Ria: [Chuckling] And then that’s a lot of button holes . 


Ria: You’ll decorate the church, or wherever they’re actually having the ceremony. And then you’ll be decorating the hall. So it’s a lot of work doing a wedding. And of course, because everything needs to be like, perfect on the day, it’s not the kind of thing you’re gonna be able to make, like, a week in advance, for example. 


Mark: Mmm 


Ria: Uh, the day before, is gonna kind of be when- is gonna be the sweet spot- 


Mark: Oh, gosh 


Ria: -of arranging everything 


Mark: I’m just imagining staying up the night before the wedding, having to put all that together. 


[Beat] 


Ria: Yeah [laughs] 


Mark: [Laughingly] Basically? 


Ria: Basically. Sometimes it’s like, right; [laughs] we’re not sleeping tonight fellas.  We’re just [chuckles] 


Mark: Ooh, god. Yeah,  no, I guess the flowers at a wedding are a thing a lot of people might not consciously notice, but the wedding would look very bereft without them? 


Ria: Yeah. Like, imagine a wedding with no flowers, you’d be like: ‘Something not quite right here’. 


Mark: Yeah, I’ve never given full thought to how long it must take just  to arrange the flowers 


Ria: Yeah, it’s a lot of work for a wedding. The florist will actually go there themself, and set everything up. 


Ria: [Chuckling] A lot of people running around on a wedding, before- 


Ria: Like, before you get there as a guest, and like, and everything is set up and lovely, and you’re like ‘Aw, this is great’, like a few hours before, there was like, a hundred people running around, very stressed, [laughs]


Mark: [Laughs] 


Ria [Laughing] Trying to set everything up. 


Mark: Yeah, I guess the key to doing something perfectly is that when people get there, they won’t be thinking about how much work went into it? Unless it’s like- 


Ria: Yeah, Basically 


Mark: An area that they know a lot about. They’ll just be going ‘Oh, how pretty!’ 


Ria: Yeah. Yeah, most- most people, to be honest, most people will only notice, like, the flowers in two scenarios. One: if they look fantastic, in which case, brilliant. And the other will be, if like: [Disappointed] “Oh, these look a bit like, droopy and dead’, and that’s not what you wanna hear 


Mark: [Laughs] 


Ria: The last thing you wanna hear is that like, for example, the bride had a issue with her bouquet. 


Mark: Mmm, yeah. God. 


Ria: Tha- that- Disaster [laughs] level [laughs]


Mark: Yeah, I’ve seen glimpses of wedding culture, [laughing] I can imagine what it’s like if something goes wrong with the bride’s bouquet. 


Ria: Yeah that’s- that’s a very big part of the wedding. And um, that’s something that’s quite- again, quite- quite enjoyable, and quite engaging with wedding aspect. I know I said with the funeral aspect it’s, y’know, a lot of interest in design, and also in knowing that, y’know, you’re bringing this [stammering] you’re bringing something to an otherwise solemn occasion that, y’know, just brings a bit- a little bit of colour and happiness to it. Y’know, knowing that people brought all these flowers and y’know, it’s looking really beautiful. 


In regards to weddings, it’s… as far as like, the bridal bouquet, it’s such a big part of typical wedding culture, y’know, the bride will hold it, walk it- I’m being heteronormative here, but uh, that- [stammers] typically- 


Mark: Yes 


Ria: You will have a bride coming in for a bridal bouquet, but anyone can have a bouquet 


Mark: Yeah 


Ria in fact, I welcome designing, like, bouquets for if, like, [stammers] if both people want a bouquet. I would welcome designing complementary bouquets. 


Mark: Ooh, that sounds cool 


Ria: That sounds like a lot of fun 


Mark: Yeah. ‘Cause- I don’t know how much, like, Individual- ality goes into… making a lot of bou- bouquets in a year? 


Ria: Yeah, it depends what the erm, what the person getting married really wants? Y’know, some people will want a- quite a standard, like, ‘Oh, just a bouquet of roses’ all like, in a nice tight posey, which is a little circle? Basically? 


Mark: Mmm 


Ria: Which is fine, obviously, if that’s what you want, and that’s what works for your wedding. So you will have more typical ones like that. Some people obviously want something that’s a bit more out there. Obviously depends on the theme of their wedding, what flowers they want, what colours they want. These days people come in with a lot of Pinterest boards. [Laughs] 


Mark: [Laughing] Sorry, that’s not something to laugh at, I can see why they would bring things in from Pinterest 


Ria: Oh Gosh, no, Pinterest is like- li- literally, uh, people come in and be like: ‘Okay, so here’s my Pinterest board’ [Chuckles] And you’re like ‘Okay, I guess I’ll follow your Pinterest board. And see everything you’ve pinned.’ 


Mark: So are they bringing in the board to give you an idea of the theme, or have they found pictures of a bouquet they would like you to replicate;  What’s- [chuckling] what’s happening there? 


Ria: Both. [Chuckles]  Depending 


Mark: [Laughs] 


Ria: They’ll be like: ‘I want something like this!’ [mumbling]  And you’ll just be like: [distinctly] ‘Okay!’ 


If anything that’s actually helpful, to be honest, to have someone bring something visual in. There’s- Like, sometimes people come in and they’ve got, no idea what they want. Or they think they know what they want, but- when it comes to telling you what it is they want- 


Mark: [chuckling] They- they don’t know any of the terms for it 


Ria: [Laughing] Some- somehow they- they don’t know what’s happening. 


Mark: It’s weird- it’s, almost as if they have no training in it 


Ria: No, yeah. Or they’ll come in- Oh, I’ve had, in one of the shops I was in, a bride came in, and she had a swatch of material, and she wanted a flower that would match that material exactly. And that’s- 


Mark: God that’s specific 


Ria: -what flower she want- Yeah! And- and we were like:  [groaning] ‘Ooookay, r- right! Well, we’re just gonna sift through every single flower, under that vague colour description. 


Mark: Hey, you know what’s easier than matching exact colour- flowers to colours? Complementary flowers. 


Ria: Yeah. [Laughs] Or you know, [stammers], some people do, they want things exact, like, I’ve had people come in and they want like, pure white flowers, and it- as in white white, 


Mark: Oh God 


Ria: Annnd that is… incredibly difficult. 


Mark: Yeah white is not a, like, very commonly, naturally occurring colour


Ria: No. Like white, in flowers, is typically what you’d consider an offwhite


Mark: Yeah 


Ria: It’s like, w- wanting pure white is a challenge. 


Mark: Do you have to have, like, special genetic breeds to get like, pure white? 


Ria: I’m pretty sure, yeah. 


Mark: Is it- Is it one of those things that ties into the idea of white being the pure colour and they want to symbolise purity for something? 


Ria: Uh, for some people, probably, 


Mark: Mmm 


Ria: I think for others, [stammers] they just, I remember that person saying that if it was offwhite it would clash with her dress? I don’t know how that works, because white doesn’t clash with anything 


Mark: [Laughs] 


Ria: [Laughing] Because it’s not a colour 


Mark: No 


Ria: For those of you listening who don’t know, white and black are not actually colours [chuckles] 


Mark: Yes, white means- Oh, I’m not gonna derail this [laughing] with science of white


Ria: [Laughs] I just thought I’d just like, add that in, in case someone’s listening going: ‘What? What d’ya mean white’s not a colour?’ Uuuum [laughs] 


Mark: Yeah, w- white and black are non-colours. 


Ria: They’re, uh, they’re tints, or shades. Right, where was I? Right! Yeah, so, another challenge with weddings is that people will want, for example, they’ll want- they’ll be like ‘Oh I’m getting married in November, and I want Tulips’ alright, first of all: you want tulips in November? Wh- wh- if you want spring flowers… 


Mark: Spring Wedding 


Ria: Get married in spring. [Chuckles] Like, now I can get you tulips in November, but they’re gonna be expensive. They’re gonna be very expensive, ‘cause they’re gonna have been grown in a greenhouse. And… there’s gonna be less of them being grown, ‘cause they’re out of season. 


Mark: Yeah 


Ria: So they’re gonna be a lot more expensive. Sooo…. 


Mark: A lot of people don’t consider the seasonality of flowers 


Ria: Yeah. LIke, some flowers have a longer seasonality, or are more typically grown in greenhouses. For example, roses are available all year round. 


Mark: Oh yeah 


Ria: ‘Cause- 


Mark: Big industry, Roses. 


Ria: Yeah, roses are a very popular flower 


Mark: ‘Cause what will people do on Valentine’s Day without their roses. C


Ria: No- ooooh, don’t even go there. 


Mark: [Laughs] 


Ria: Valentine’s Day in a florist’s is like- you’ve never seen so many red roses in your life, you almost can’t believe it 


Mark: It’s like that episode of the Simpsons 


Ria: Yeah, I was about to say! That episode of the Simpsons, if anyone’s watched it, when Homer gets dragged through the field of roses, and he lands, covered in thorns, in front of a pile of roses, and he’s like: ‘So many roses!’ It’s like that 


Mark: [laughs] It’s- it’s gotta be- I’m just imagining this combination of just like, such an incredibly busy period with like, almost no variation [chuckling] in what you’re doing. 


Ria: Yeah 


Mark: That’s gotta be wild 


Ria: Valentine’s is soooo busy. It- it is the busiest time of the year, for any florist 


Mark: And they- and they all just want roses. 


Ria: And they all want red rose bouquets. That- half a dozen roses, a dozen roses. Some people want fifty, or a hundred roses. And listen: I know that you think you’re being romantic-


Mark: [Laughs] 


Ria: -and/or, showing off the cash you can splash-


Mark: [Laughs harder] 


Ria: -on roses, cause a rose, on Valentine’s Day goes from being like, a pound, a pound fifty a rose, to being like three pounds a rose,  because of the high demand.. And people will pay it! 


So, like, a hundred rose bouquet will be just three hundred pounds for the roses, and then labour and other materials, you’re looking at- 


Mark: [quietly] Oh god 


Ria: -like, three fifty, to four hundred pounds. 


Mark: And it’s all just roses 


Ria: And it’s all just roses! And also, about four florists had to get together, in an attempt to hold this bouquet together, and, like, try and make it look good. 


Mark: I- I hardly dare ask, but did you have to do any hundred bouquet- 


Ria: Yes, we had to do one. It was a nightmare.


Mark: [laughing] As- As a florist, how would you react if a partner of yours got you one of those- 


Ria: I’d smack them with it


Mark:  [Laughs] ‘How could you do this to a florist?‘ 


 Ria: [Laughing] Firstly, How could you do this to a florist? Would you do this to me?


Mark: [giggling] 


Ria: Secondly- 


Mark: [still giggling] ‘My business is in flowers, how could you not just get me the flowers I like?’ 


Ria: D- D’ya know what I mean? If I had to pick- If- if I had to rank flowers, in order of preference, I’d have a tough time, because I love so many flowers, but red roses would not be anywhere near the top of the list


Mark: [Laughs] My favourites are daffodils, but I don’t often see those in bouquets 


Ria: [quietly] Daffodil bouquet is lovely


Mark: I’ve- I don’t know if I’ve ever seen a daffodil bouquet 


Ria: Yeah, I’d also be like: ‘How dare you spend four hundred pounds on flowers’ 


Mark: [Laughs] 


Ria: For one occasion. D- do you- [laughs] We could have gone out for dinner 


Mark: [Continued laughing] 


Ria: No, no- bett- no, we could have stayed in, for take-awake, 


Mark: [Continued laughing] ah. I’m- It’s a weird way to break up with a person.


Ria: Yeah. ‘Wh- Why did you break up?’ ‘Well he spent four hundred pounds on a one hundred rose bouquet for me’


Mark: [Laughing] ‘I can’t believe you spent-‘


Ria: ’That was the moment I knew he had no actual love for me’ [laughs] 


Mark: [laughing] ‘I can’t believe you spent four hundred pounds just to get me to break up with you’ 


Ria: Heh, ‘I would have done it for free!’ 


Mark: I would have done it for free!


Ria: [Composing herself] But uh, yeah, Valentine’s Day is like, God- I know that a lot of people, like the whole, traditional red roses on Valentine’s Day thing. And if you do, obviously that’s fair enough; whatever you like is fine.  But also, consider… something else. [Chuckles] Y’know, something a bit more unique. 


We do get the occasional white rose bouquet, just to be like, really interesting. And sometimes people want like, roses and lilies? I’m not a fan of roses and lillies- to be honest, I’m not a fan of lillies in bouquets with other things, to be honest? I think lillies are best when they’re, like,  on their own, just lillies, and like, left with quite a long stem, and like- let the lily be the centre. 


Mark: Am I wrong in thinking that lillies are a funeral flower, or…? 


Ria: Traditionally they are, yeah [chuckles] White lillies especially, are traditionally a funeral flower, but- 


Mark: [laughing] What an interesting thing to bring to your partner on Valentine’s Day 


Ria: [Laugh] Well, some people are less, like, concerned with stuff like that? Like, you’ll get people who want a bouquet for a loved one, and they’ll want white and red, and they won’t think about that. And there’ll be other people that- they won’t have white and red, because of the whole ‘blood and bandages’ uh, association? 


Mark: Ah 


Ria: White and red, being like, a war thing, and for funerals. Uh, so honestly it just depends what people- what people like. 


Mark: Yeah 


Ria: And what people think about 


Mark: Yeah, so [laughs] I take it Valentine’s Day is not your favourite flower holiday 


Ria: Uuum, well, it’s- yes and no? Like, I wouldn’t say it’s my favourite anyway, but it’s not all bad. Like, it’s very busy, obviously like I said- 


Mark: yeah 


Ria: Sooo, y’know, If you’re enjoying- if you- if you enjoy being busy at work, then y’know, it’s gonna be a hell of a day, [chuckles] You won’t even have time to think about anything else, so 


Mark: [Laughs]  


Ria: [Chuckles] If there’s anything that’s been plaguing your thoughts, you just- at least for that day you won’t be thinking about it 


Mark: Fair 


Ria: And like I- y’know, if you’re- obviously if you enjoy doing what you do then it- But it’s a bit- it- it is a little bit tedious ma- doing the same thing, over and over again, all day. I say all day-


Mark: yeah 


Ria: -all two days, like- [chuckles] You’ll be doing it all day the day before, as well. 


Mark: [Laughs] ‘cause you gotta get ready for the day! 


Ria: Oh yeah. Um- [laughs] So it’s a little bit like ‘Oh, I wish I was doing… literally anything else, with any other flower’ 


Mark: [Laughs] 


Ria: Also, like I said, it’s very lucrative, so… [laughs] 


Mark: Ah, there is that. 


Ria: yo- You’ll be like ‘ooooh, tedious. But… money’ [laughs] Which sadly, we need in this capitalist society, so- 


Mark: We do 


Ria: We’ll enjoy that 


Mark: Are there any like, very typical bouquets for like, Mother’s Day? Or do people tend to get m- a bit more varied with that? 


Ria: Um, Mother’s Day you’ll- it’ll typically be like, pink and white? 


Mark: Mmm 


Ria: But obviously some people will ask for different colours, if- obviously, more likely they’re more likely to go with, kind of, like, ‘Oh, my mum likes these flowers’, or ‘these colours’. 


Mark: Mmm 


Ria: but, for a more like, typical- ‘Oh, I want a Mother’s Day bouquet’, it will typically be pink and white. Maybe some purples, y’know. Next to Valentine’s Day, Mother’s Day is much- is also like, incredibly busy, but erm… 


Like I said, there is a bit more variety in Mother’s Day. ‘Cause some people come in and be like ‘I want this!’ Specifically, or uh, some people want to get their mothers planted designs. Which I really enjoy, doing planted designs. 


Mark: Yeah 


Ria: uh, so I love doing that. And… Honestly some people want like, just a plant? Which some florists do, y’know, we know how to look after plants. 


Mark: Y- yeah, that’s probably a useful skill to have in floristry [Chuckles] 


Ria: [Laughs] We can keep plants alive! 


Mark: [Laughs] 


Ria: Hurray! 


Ria: So yeah, there is more variety in Mother’s Day, and it’s almost as busy, but not quite. And it’s also much less, uh, grating on the nerves [Chuckles] then Valentine’s Day can be. 


Mark: And very few people want a bouquet of a hundred flowers for their mums. 


Ria: Yeah 


Mark: Okay, so, out of all that, what do you think is, like, the most engaging aspects to work with, when you’re doing a bouquet or an arrangement? 


Ria: Right, well, obviously there’s design- there’s the initial designing of… a design- ‘Initial designing of a design’, that’s a great sentence. 


Mark: [Laughs] 


Ria: Uh, [Laughs] The initial designing of a ra- of an arrangement. Depending on what you’ve been given, sometimes it’ll be as simple as ‘I want… something in this shape, with these flowers, in these colours. So you’ll be given a basic of the materials, and… you’ll need to kind of decide, y’know, ‘How I’m gonna arrange this, what am I gonna put where, how’m I gonna make this look its best’. 


Sometimes you’re given a bit more creativity. If someone says, for example, ‘I wanna spend sixty pounds, and I want it to be purples and whites’, then you’ll end up having a freedom of choice with flowers, so you get to decide ‘Oh, what flowers do I think will really work with what I’m trying to do here’. 


Mark: ‘s a lot of wiggle room 


Ria: Yeah. So the initial, like, designing phase is good, cause it gets your creative juices going, and it makes you think like, ‘Okay, uh, what can I do, what can I put where, and like, how can I make this look its best. 


And… in regards to like, making arrangements, my favourite things to do are like, more like, unique kind of arrangements? Not something that would be like ‘Oh, you know, you’d find this in a typical setting’, uh, kind of things. But like, when- when people wanna get a bit more unique, and have like, an interesting shape, or maybe on of the designs to like, look, say for example, g- like, a bit gardeny, and have a bit more natural, a lot of foliage, or working with, um, other materials, like twigs, and like, woodchips, and making things look quite woodsy. 


Something that’s a bit more… unique, and that you can have a bit of- more of a  personal flare with? Or like, combine, for example, potted and fresh flowers, um, into a design, to make something that is gonna go from and arrangement to a plant, and how is it gonna look once all of the cut flowers are gone? How is what’s left planted gonna look? 


Yeah, so like, more- more um, unique designs that really get you thinking about how you’re gonna do it, and put you’re own, like, creativity in there, and make something that is like, quite unique and that you can look at and be like ‘yeah! I really loved doing this’. 


Mark: Yeah, I do really like the idea of having a bouquet that’ll like- you have the potted plant and you have to consider it looking good at the start and when you get rid of all the other flowers. It’s like a, time bouquet. 


Ria: Yeah. I have done that before. So, we had um, cut flowers, and we also had a lot of succulents? 


Mark: Ah 


Ria: So, we did- Basically we made um, it look like a little garden, with like, we made kind of like fencing, to go around it, and used succulents and moss- I love moss 


Mark: Yeah? 


Both: [laugh] 


Ria: Any florist that doesn’t love moss, I don’t understand you 


Mark: [Laughs] 


Ria: Um, and we d- um, Yeah we mixed like succulents and moss, and we used like, little pine cones and twigs, to make it look like, very woodsy, and beautiful. And then kind of, from that, thought: ‘Okay, how do we incorporate the fresh flowers, in a way that they’re gonna look good, and then when they’re gone we’re gonna have this nice potted scene still left?’ 


Mark: It It- It must be very rewarding, to be able to engage in the really arty side of the craft 


Ria: Yeah, it is. When like- Obviously, y’know, if you’re trying to do something, and you can’t get it quite right, it can be quite frustrating. But when you’re there like ‘How’m I gonna do this?’  And you’re like ‘Hold on a second’ and you try something and it works, you’re like ‘Yes! [Chuckles] I did it! I was able to do what I-’ ‘cause sometimes, as well, where like, you think ‘Am I gonna have to change… what I wanna do here’, and you’ll be like, a bit stubborn and be like ‘No, I wanna try and get it exactly like this’. [chuckles] 


Mark: [Laughs] I- I know that feeling


Ria: Yeah. I think we- we probably all do [laughs] 


Mark: Any- anyone who’s engaged in any kind of art is probably familiar- [chuckles] 


Ria: Yeah, they’re listening to this right now going ‘yeah’ [laughs] 


Mark: [smiling] - With- with the- the practical versus the creative vision


Ria: Yeah. Like, in my head it looks great, I d- I just need to make it happen 


Mark: [Laughing] I just need to bend reality to my whim 


[Both laugh] 


Ria: Snap my fingers [snapping sound]: There we go. But yeah, like for example, uh, one of my favourite things I’ve ever done was when I was in college, and we were doing… a kind of- the idea was that it- like- a decoration for an event or a shop, or something? And we had, like, a theme, and we had to go with that, and the- my group had the theme of “preening”


Mark: Ooh 


Ria: So our idea was basically to have a mannequin, which would have, like, a dress made of flowers, and have a peacock made of flowers, and have them either side of a frame which represented a mirror? 


Mark: Oooh 


Ria: Yeah [laughs] So, that was the basic idea, and we ended up doing, like, the dress- made the dress on the mannequin look like a peacock dress; so we had on one shoulder, we had like a peacock head, and obviously the dress came down like a peacock tail. And we had a flower peacock, on the other side of the frame. 


We had the um, peacock that was made out of chicken wire, and then made with, uh, flowers, and we had the frame in between them that represented the mirror, obviously with flowers as well. And um, we used a lot of dry foliage, for that design? 


Mark: Mmm 


Ria: Just because, you know, dry- uh, foliage dries so well. And by that I mean- by foliage I mean leaves, y’know like- 


Mark: Yes 


Ria: -the greenery of a bouquet- foliage dries super well? A lot of foliage- it still stays green, and will stay looking quite nice for a long time. Even though it’s like, completely dry. And it’s very easy to dry, as well. If you wanna dry flowers, that’s more challenging thing to do, but foliage dries very easily, and looks great, and we liked the way it- it looked. Y’know, it gave that kind of- I mean, I say feathery look, obviously it didn’t look exactly like feathers, ‘cause it’s plants. 


Mark: yeah 


Ria: But it- That kind of illusion to it 


Mark: Yeah, how- how long did it take to bring that piece together? 


Ria: Um, it took- two days. Not two full days, but um- 


Mark: Two of your working day 


Ria: Yeah, [Chuckles] two college days to do. It was, like, the mannequin is obviously, um, human sized. And the dress was… like, ballgown proportions 


Mark: Wow 


Ria: And the peacock was… very big as wel- I don’t know if it was life-sized to a peacock, because- 


Mark: [Laughs] 


Ria: I haven’t seen a peacock, irl, in many years 


Mark: It’s been a while 


Ria: But it was a big peacock [laughs] 


Mark: I think the last time I saw peacocks was at Twin Lakes. Which is a theme park, here in England. 


Ria: Are they big boys? 


Mark: th- they’re pretty big, peacocks. Peahens are slightly smaller. 


Ria: Right. Like I said, I don’t know how, uh, realistically sized it was, but it was- [stammers] It was a big design. And of course the frame was huge 


Mark: [Chuckles] 


Ria: The frame we made, we had kind of um- we had two stands, to serve as the legs, and we made the frame with like, branches? Tied together, onto the legs, and made into a frame. And then of course, all the flowers and stuff on it. And although, like I said, we used a lot of dry ingredients, we did also use, um, a lot of fresh flowers? 


Mark: yeah 


Ria: And a lot of people probably wonder, when they look at things like that, with like, lots of fresh flowers like, where are they getting their water from? Uuum, lots of little water vials. 


Mark: Wow 


Ria: That we need to put the flowers in, and then we need to hide the vials so that you never see it. 


Mark: Wow 


Ria: That’s a big part of floristry, that a lot of people don’t know about. Um, hiding things 


Mark: [laughs] So- So when you see those big floats made from- from, hundreds of flowers- y’know those floats they have in like, some American parades? 


Ria: Yeah 


Mark: Is- are there just like, little water vials [laughing] hidden behind all of those flowers? 


Ria: Um, I’m not sure how they work, but I think, what- what would make sense to me, is there to be a lot of uh, oasis foam 


Mark: Okay 


Ria: And all the flowers to be stuck in the oasis foam, and of course then that’s wet, and they drink from that 


Mark: So oasis foam... is this just like a- a damp foam, or…? 


Ria: Yeah, it’s like a, typically green foam, that absorbs- just so much water. 


Mark: Okay 


Ria: And you make like, arrangements in it, like I sa- like, if it’s not in a vase, then it’s probably in foam 


Mark: yeah 


Ria: And it will drink from the foam. And I- like I said, I’ve never made a parade float, but I imagine that’s probably what they use. 


Mark: Yeah. Man, it’s- it’s- it’s wild to think about how, like, ninety percent of people won’t ever think about the practical side- 


Ria: oh yeah [laughs] 


Mark: [laughing]  -of making these gigantic flower arrangements 


Ria: Yeah. One of the um, one of the big things that you’re marked on, when you’re doing practical work, in- in floristry, in college, is um, if all your [stammering] mechanics are hidden. If you’ve used string, wire, tape, whatever you’ve used, to kind of keep an arrangement together, or looking the way it does, and that you’re obviously gonna need to use: you can’t s- you’re not allowed to see it 


[both laugh] 


Ria: It needs to be hidden. Like, there must be no evidence that anything other than, like  the sheer power of the universe- 


Mark: [Laughs] 


Ria: -is putting these flowers together. 


Mark: Y- Ideally you want people to- to look at a thing and go ‘Ah, this sprang into existence, and I will never think about how’. 


Ria: Yeah, basically 


Mark: aaah 


Ria: [Chuckles] So the- yeah, so with this um, design it was t- for the fresh flowers, they were all in little vials, that we then had to, like, keep hidden, so that no one ever saw it. And we’re like ‘Ah, this is just beautiful’. And it was- obviously this a podcast, so there’s no visuals, so I can’t show you- but, not to toot my own horn or anything, it was a very beautiful installation. It was really lovely. 


Obviously we used like, purples and blues and greens. And we did h- use actually peacock feathers- not too many, because obviously we were alluding to peacocks feathers with flowers and foliage. But we did have a few in there, to just kind of add to it.  And it was all very, very beautiful, [laughing] oh, we were really proud of ourselves, for doing that 


Mark: Floristry is a very interesting art form, because, like, if you were a painter or a sculptor you might spend however many days or weeks working on a piece, whereas you just don’t have that kind of luxury of time in floristry 


Ria: No, like- 

Mark: -working with living things that are dying as you work 


Ria: [laughs] yeah. Also, like, ju- in general, there’s always a time constraint. Like, if someone comes into a shop and is like: ‘I would like a bouquet, please’, you don’t want to leave them standing there for more than like, ten, fifteen minutes [chuckles] 


Mark: yeah, no 


Ria: I mean, in an ideal world, you’ll take all the time you want to make this bouquet.  And like, you’ll really kind of like, take your time, really feel it, and I know that’s what you want to do- 


Mark: [giggles] 


Ria: -but you can’t, because the customer is standing there? And they want their flowers now 


Mark: [laughs] 


Ria: [Chuckles] Like, you need to do it in ten, fifteen minutes 


Mark: Ah, this- this consumerist society [laughs] 


Ria: Yeah, ‘How dare you not wait in my shop for an hour’


Mark: [Laughs] ‘I’m making art for you!’


Ria: Call ahead of time, honestly. We have a phone number just phone us, y’know [chuckles] 


Mark: Is it- is it your preference for people people to call in orders, rather than  come to the counter and say ‘Make this in ten minutes, please’. 


Ria: Oh yeah, definitely 


Mark: Something for listeners to remember 


Ria: ‘Cause they’ll phone in, and they’ll be like ‘Oh, I wanna order this, can I pick it up in about an hour or two?’ and you’ll be like ‘Sure!’, so you can actually, kind of- it’s ‘cause, when they walk in and ask, then- they’re looking at you? As well>? 


Mark: Ah, God, yeah 


Ria: [Laughs] So not only are you like, ‘Okay, I wanna be like, ten minutes doing this’, so you’re gonna have to work very quickly; they’re also there


Mark: Yeah, which- 


Ria: And they’re looking at you, and you’re just like ‘Oooh, God’ 


Mark: Yeah this- this is an autistic podcast, the listeners will know why this is a problem [laughs] 


Ria: Yeah, performance anxiety, like ‘yeah, I’ll do it, um, but could you just like, step outside, and uh-’ 


Mark: ‘God, if you could just [laughing] wait on the stoop for a few minutes, I’ll get it done so much faster’ 


Ria: Yeah, ‘just look at your phone [Laughs] 


Mark: Ideally you’d have, like, a floristry waiting room for people 


Ria: Oh yeah. ‘If you could- step into the waiting room-’ 


Mark: ‘Just sit down here, I’ll get you a tea, just sit down over here for an hour and I’ll bring you your bouquet [laughs] 


Ria: I’ve had people that really- they proper stare at you while you’re doing it 


Mark: God 


Ria: And, on the one hand, like, I get it. If I see someone doing something interesting, I will look [chuckles] And I’ll be like, ‘Oooh, look!’ Also, it’s like, please don’t look at me 


[Both laugh] 


Ria: I’ll mess up, ‘cause you’re looking at me 


Mark: ‘I’m gonna forget everything I know floristry for the next ten minutes.


Ria: Yeah 


Mark: Time to work on autopilot! 


Ria: [Indistinct speech] What do you mean I studied this for two years? 


[both laugh] 


Ria: I don’t even know what a flower is 


Mark: [Laughs] Tell me, what is rose? 


Ria: [Laughs] What is the colour pink? 


Mark: I guess the upside is even though you have so many people on Valentine’s day, you don’t need to put too much conscious thought into it [laughing] while they’re standing there waiting for it   

Ria: Listen, if you come in on Valentine’s day like ‘Can I have some roses please’, and you haven’t ordered them in advance? First of all, if- if it’s after like, midday, the o- like, the odds of you even getting a flower [chuckles] is- is so low. 


Mark: Also, that person has clearly forgotten to get something up to this point [laughs] 


Ria: Yeah. Honestly? Like, I [Stammers] like, I’ve had people like, walk into a shop and [stammers] it’s like, six o’clock in the evening, on Valentine’s Day, they haven’t ordered anything, ‘Can I have some roses?’ 


Mark: [Laughs] 


Ria: No! No you can’t have some roses! There are no more roses! There are no more roses anywhere that someone has not already paid for. 


Mark: England is out of roses, [laughs] we’re done! 


Ria: [laughing] England is out of roses. 


Mark: [still laughing] 


Ria: [Stammering] We have non-red roses, [chuckles] possibly, we have other flowers, we don’t have many of them, because other desperate people came in two hours ago 


Mark: [laughs] 


Ria: We told them the same thing 


Mark: I have, a lily left 


Ria: They’ll get like, annoyed at you! ‘Why don’t you have roses?’ Well you see, everyone else pre-ordered theirs a month ago. We ordered extras, but other people had the sense to come in in the morning 


Mark: [Laughing] Something for listeners to remember 


Ria: Yes, listeners, if you are planning on getting your significant other a bouquet of roses this Valentine’s day, please consider calling in in advance, and ordering your flowers 


Mark: Or please consider, literally any other flower [Laughs] 


Ria: Or consider any other flower! 


Mark: [Giggling] Get- get your significant other some daisies, please. 


Ria: Daisies are lovely 


Mark: Daisies are lovely! 

Ria: It’s in February and, y’know, there are some spring flowers starting 


Mark: [Laughs] is- is there anything in- like, in the field in general, that you feel like isn’t used very much, or you’d like to see more of? 


Ria: Um, Yes. [laughs] 


Mark: Oh cool, next question! 


Ria: That’s it, that’s- [laughs] Next question, great discussion! Ri- li- I mentioned at the um, beginning, of the podcast, that here in the UK we typically use English Garden method of, like, flower arranging 


Mark: Mmm 


Ria: Which, bas- basically, y’know if [chuckles] if you live in the UK, and you’ve seen flowers, like, you know like, what that means. Typical bouquets, rounded work, often symmetrical, but not necessarily, obviously. We work in proportions of one third and two third, which would mean, for example, in a bouquet two thirds of what you’re looking at in height is gonna be the flowers and the other materials, and one third is gonna be the length of the stem? 


Mark: Yeah 


Ria: Just as an example. Erm, so things are nice and balanced. And there’s often, like, uh, very minimal space in between materials, so people want the- the bouquet to look as- as full as possible. 


Something that- you do sometimes, y’know, we learnt in college and- you’ll do it sometimes, in maybe more boutique-y kinds of floristry shops in London, will be uh, European style, which we call form linear? 


Mark: Yeah? 


Ria:  And form linear works with a lot of negative space? So you’ll have like, very few materials, and they’ll be lots of space in the design. And it actually works, oddly enough, with Fibonacci numbers. 


Mark: Ahhh, gotta love the Fibonacci sequence 


Ria: [chuckles] Yeah, you probably wouldn’t think has anything to do with flowers, but, y’know, it’s a natural thing so...  uh, the Fibonacci numbers you work with in floristry will typically be three, five, and eight 


Mark: Yeah 


Ria: But obviously you can go above that, to thirteen, and, [laughingly] I can’t remember what comes next [indistinct audio] 


Mark: Twenty one: thirteen plus eight 


Ria: Zero one and two will be considered “ground”, so anything that doesn’t rise very high, so, for example, moss, or very low leaves; that will be your two. And then you’ll have your three, which will be not very far off of the- the bottom of the design. Uh, your five, which will be a bit higher, and your eight, which will be even higher. And, of course, if you keep going, then it’ll just get higher and higher. 


Mark: Y- you’re getting into some big bouquets at that point 


Ria: [laughing] Yeah. 


Ria: Um, or arrangements. I mean, you can make a form linear bouquet, but let me tell you- 


Mark: [Laughs] 


Ria: It is hard. [chuckles] Because the space is so important, and it’s kind of triangular? Like, you’ll have, for example,  you’ll have your eight, and it will be standing, like, straight up. I’m doing hand gestures, even though no-one can see me 


Mark: [Laughs] 


Ria: Um, your eight will be standing straight up, and your five will be next to it, going outwards. 


Mark: Mmm 


Ria: And then your three will be like, in front of your eight, and going kind of forwards and to the side 


Mark: Yeah, I can see how that would be challenging to arrange in a bouquet 


Ria: Yeah. It’s like- so it’s kind of like, triangular, and the space in between them is really important. Something important with form linear is that the- there be  the space and like, that everything’s not just, like, touching together. 


In a bouquet, obviously, it has to touch at some point 


Mark: [chuckles] 


Ria: Trying to keep as much space as possible in a bouquet- it’s not impossible. I’ve done it. But it’s difficult [chuckles] 


Mark: [laughs] 


Ria: So, if you want form linear, then typically you’ll go for an arrangement.


Mark: Yeah 

Ria: In which case: there will be almost no touching-


Mark: [chuckles] 


Ria: -of the flow[cut off] But um, something that- like I said, it’s not very utilised in England, because it’s almost the opposite of what people in England kind of want? W- where they want like, as much flower as their money can buy, and they want a nice full bouquet, with loads of material if possible. Whereas with form linear, you’re working with very few, uh, materials, and a lot of negative space. 


But, uh, one thing about form linear that I really like, is um, this idea of respecting the stem? So it’s basically appreciating flowers as they are naturally. Like, if a stem is a bit wonky, that’s not a bad thing, that’s a good thing, use that, y’know? You use it to kind of add rhythm to your design so it, y’know- if it- if it wonks a little bit to the left, then that’s great. Have that move to the left, and have that be the movement of the piece, y’know? 


Another, uh, thing is, which, uh, materials you use where is very important, because as they are in nature is how you have to translate it into the design? For example: if you’ve got two flowers, and flower one, in nature, grows taller than flower two, then in the design flower one has to be standing taller than flower two? Because that’s how it grows naturally? 


Mark: Yeah 


Ria: So, whilst on the one hand, it’s a bit like, ‘Oh, numbers, and specific placements, and… stuff’, it’s also a lot of appreciation for nature in there, as well. And how, like, that- just appreciating the beauty of nature, which is why you’ll have a lot less material, and why you’ll see the full stem and not just the flowers on top. Because you’re appreciating every part of the flower, and the beauty that it has, and not just this particular part that you wanna see, and also we’re gonna cram a whole lot of other stuff in it as well. 


So for those reasons, I actually really quite like form linear, and… like I said, it’s not very popular in Britain,  because people want as much flower as they can buy for their money, And… y’know, they- over here, more materials means you spent more money. So people don’t want to spend the sa- probably the same amount of money on something with so much less flowers. And the reason why something form linear will cost, what someone will think is more than, y’know, a typical bouquet, is because… for one thing there’s a lot of materials involved that you’re not necessarily seeing, because it’s part of what’s keeping the design together, and so it’s all hidden materials, and- 


Mark: Mmm 


Ria: -y’know, vases or bowls, things like that. And also, because you’re using so few materials, you’ll tend to use things that are a bit more expensive, and a bit bigger, and- tropical flowers are very popular in form linear. Um, if you’ve ever seen, like, birds of paradise for example, y’know, it’s big, it’s unusually shaped, it’s, y’know, bold, so it’s kind of ideal for something like form linear, because you just put that there and already there on it’s own is something like, really eye-catching, really beautiful to look at. 


So… that’s something that puts people off buying it, because they think: ‘Oh, if I want to spend fifty pounds, then i don’t want there to be just like, seven flowers. In this design. [chuckles] I want like- 


Mark: Which is funny, 


Ria: -more flowers 


Mark: because regardless of how many flowers you put into it, what you’re paying for is the visual element. 


Ria: Yeah 


Mark: So… I feel like it shouldn’t matter? [chuckling] How many materials are used in visual thing you paid for? It’d be like buying a painting and going ‘Oh, but they used less paint in this one’ [laughs] 


Ria: [Laughs] Yeah, but people think, like: ‘Oh, I’m buying the flowers’, like, the flowers are just one thing you’re buying, y’know, you’re buying my time, and my skill 


Mark: Yeah 


Ria: [Chuckles] [stammers] How pretty it looks, at the end of it 


Mark: The flowers are just the medium 


Ria: Yeah [chuckles] Like you sa- with the painting thing, you’re not buying the paint, you’re buying the painting. You’re not buying the flowers, you’re buying the arrangement. But people don’t typically thing like that. Over here, at least. 


And it’s not very popular amongst florists in Britain, to actually do? I was the only one in my class in college who actually enjoyed doing form linear. 


Mark: [Chuckling] It’s a shame. 


Ria: Everyone else hated it 


Mark: It sounds like a neat concept 


Ria: Yeah, it is more challenging to do? I don’t know if, because it was something we didn’t learn until we’d had like, a year of experience under our belts, so that we were quite used to the British garden way of doing it, and then this was something that we were starting from scratch, and made use feel like beginners again. 


Mark: [Chuckle] 


Ria: Or if it actually is more difficult, but, um, it’s definitely a different set of challenges. And a lot of people like: ‘Oooh, I don’t like this. I don’t want to do this.’ [Chuckles] 

Ria: But you will- like I said, you’ll sometimes find it, um, in like, boutique-y places in London 


Mark: Yeah


Ria: Where like, it’s kind of like, ‘Ooh, it’s European!’ y’know. 


[Both laugh] 


Ria: We’ll- We’ll sell it to them by li- ‘Oh, it’s European


Mark: Yes, all the rage in Europe 


Ria: Oh yeah [chuckles] it’s the big thing- I mean, it is but y’know [Chuckles] So yeah, so that’s something that like, we don’t see, or- mm- and use a whole lot, over here, but I quite enjoy, and that I think, it’s a great technique, that i think that- people… underappreciate. And maybe would  appreciate more, if they- both kind of, like, had maybe a different understanding of what, y’know, a flower arrangement should be. 


Mark: Mmm 


Ria: And also maybe, again, that appreciation of the fact that- not paying for flowers, you’re paying for a lot more than that. I mean, y’know, art- [stammering] artists of any kind, you’re gonna have heard at some point in your life: ‘Oh, but the materials cost this’, it’s like, ‘Yeah, but you’re not buying the material [chuckles]. You’re buying my labour 


Mark: Yeah, yeah, 


Ria: You’re buying my skills, [chuckles] you’re buying my creativity [chuckles] 


Mark: Y- you’re paying for the time I spent on this piece 


Ria: Y’know, the years I spent learning how to do this, just for you to come in and disrespect me like this [


[Both chuckle] 


Mark: So- so what have been some of your favourite pieces of floristry, that you’ve seen in your life? 


Ria: Um, so… obviously I spoke earlier, about the erm, peacock installment I did at college. That- is by far my favourite thing that I have ever personally worked on. Because it’s like- 


Mark: Yeah 


Ria: It’s something like, not very typical, something more out there, and unique, and using lot of, like, different materials and techniques, which is something that I really enjoy doing. And like, honestly? If- I- I would say that like, bouquet making is, to me, like, the least interesting part of floristry. That’s something that a lot of people kind of think of immediately, but to me it’s like “Eh. Y’know, put together a bouquet.’ um- 


Mark: Mmm 


Ria: There’s not much great creativity in that that goes into that. Things that take a lot of creativity, a lot of thinking, like ‘How’m I gonna make this work, how am I gonna design this’ are the things that I love the most. 


As far as like, [stammers], things that I’ve seen, there- ‘n’ I ca- I probably should have looked this up, ‘cause I can’t remember the name, but there was this, um, kind of, like, avant-garde, like, event that they do annually? I’m not- again, I’m not sure what it’s called. And uh, something that they do is have a florist design a kind of, head dress? Out of like, flowers and foliage and like, floral material . 


Mark: Hmm 


Ria: And it would- it needs to be something, like I said, very avant-garde, but also it needs to be something that the person can actually wear, will actually, like, stay on their head. Which is- y’know, we were- we were told about it, um, none of use put a design in [chuckling] because that’s something that you need… a lot of experience 


Mark: [Chuckilng] 


Ria: And a lot of confidence under your belt, to do something like that. 


Mark: Yeah


Ria: And um, none of us were there yet, basically. 


Mark: [chuckles] 


Ria: And… y’know, it’s something that’s very unusual, and it’s very elaborate, and kind of amazing, and you look at it and you’re like ‘Oh gosh, how did they do that’, because again. It needs to be all put together, and on somebody’s head, and you’re not allowed to see how that happened {chuckles] If we see one clip- 


Mark: [Laughs] 


Ria: -or wire, or anything, it’s all over. So… essentially, anything that quite, unique, different, like, very kind of artsy, maybe a bit out there. A lot of very natural stuff as well; I love work that’s really heavy in foliage. But I know a lot of people- [stammers] they’re like, focused on the flowers, but I’m like, y’know, you’ve got those beautiful leaves, of- and foliage of like, all these different shapes, and like, colours, and stuff, and like it adds so much, and I think that a lot of- adding a lot of that is- it just gives that really- this really nice, natural, almost like woodsy kind of look. And that’s something that I really enjoy seeing. 


Mark: Yeah. It does sound cool. So we’ve- we’ve sort of touched on this, a few times so far I think, but like, what do you consider the most rewarding work, personally? 


Ria: Um… Right, yeah, so I’ve spoken a bit about, like, the personal… satisfaction that you get from thinking: ‘Okay, here’s what I wanna do, how am I gonna do it?’ And, like, taking that image from your head and making it in reality, and seeing that yeah, you actually did manage to make it work even though maybe it was a bit tricky, and maybe it didn’t go exactly how you had planned, but, y’know, you managed to work it in a way that, ‘Aw, y’know, this looks really good, and I’m really pleased with it. 


So… y’know, there’s that personal satisfaction from- y’know ‘I know I’ve done this well, and I’m- I’m pleased with how it looks. But there’s also, y’know, the satisfaction of the customer, is very rewarding as well, y’know. If you’ve worked hard on a design, and then the customer comes in and is like: ‘Oh, this is beautiful, I really love it’, y’know, it’s like, validation, y’know? 


And, y’know, obviously you’re pleased that the person is pleased. And especially with an event, like, a wedding for example, y’know, people are: ‘Oh, the hall looks beautiful, the flowers are beautiful, the bridal bouquet is beautiful’, y’know. And, they’re like, Aw, people really appreciating like, so much work that I’ve put in, and- and knowing that, y’know, what you’ve done has had a big impact on the day. Like something I said earlier, y’know, the bouquet, in a traditional wedding is, y’know, a very big part of the wedding, y’know, the- typically the bride, but anyone- 


Mark: Mm 


Ria: Will walk down the aisle holding it, um, later at the wedding there’s the whole throwing the bouquet, and someone catching it. Y’know, it’s got a lot of traditions within the wedding, so you know that you’re work is a big part of the day? 


Mark: Yeah 


Ria: And something that, y’know, if- If the- If the person isn’t completely happy with it, it would obviously be quite upsetting, but if they are really happy with it, then you’re like “Aw,  yeah’, y’know, ‘I’ve contributed something to this person’s big day, that has brought them, y’know, happiness’. So that’s obviously a great feeling. 


And on the other side of the spectrum- haha, the spectrum- uh 


[both laugh] 


Ria: Sorry, couldn’t help myself. Um, [laughs], on the other side of the spectrum is, y’know, on occasions like funerals, where, y’know, this is a horrible day, y’know? But people are using flowers and, y’know, the arrangements and designs, to like, express a love that they have for that person that isn’t with them anymore. And, y’know, yeah, it’s like, y’know, they- they’ll- 


Mark: It’s like a way of honouring them 


Ria: They’ll be like ‘Oh, they liked these colours’, or ‘they liked these flowers’, or ‘this was their hobby’, ‘and can we do something that looks like that?’ or, if, for example, if you’re religious, then having a religious symbol will m- probably feel quite important to you. 


And, y’know, just something that, you look at it and think, y’know, ‘Oh, they would really like this’, or th- that brings you comfort to know like, ‘Oh, look at how many people went and got flowers and sent them for this person, because they meant so much to them’. Y’know, and it’s nice to be able to- 


Mark: Yeah 


Ria: Kind of be there for the people on such a difficult day, and know that you’re bringing something with you that- y’know. Obviously it d- it doesn’t like, oh, cheer them up or anything, but it, y’know, it makes them know that, like, the person was loved, and that people were thinking about the person, honouring the person. And even beyond the initial day, y’know, people like- people will buy flowers, put them… y’know, where someone’s been laid to rest, on any day of the year, and typically we associate a grave with flowers on it as the grave of someone who’s loved, and someone who’s, y’know, being visited and thought of. Y’know, so there’s that association as well. 


Mark: It’s cool to be part of working in floristry, because flowers have such an inherent cultural meaning to us of expressing- 


Ria: Yeah, it’s like- 


Mark: -A bond, or affection or love


Ria: You’re there, like, the best and worst moments of peoples’ lives? Which is weird, and sometimes- 


Mark: Yeah 


Ria: -y’know, very sad, of course, uh, but sometimes, quite amazing. So… it’s odd like that. You f- really, like,  feel like you’re part of like, the big moments, whether they be good or bad. You’re like, there for them, y’know? 


Mark: Yeah, And it’s- that’s really cool. 


Ria: ‘Cause obviously that- that doesn’t even bring into account other things like births, children, or birthdays, or big events like, if y- like, if you’re religious, if there’s any kind of religious event that you have, uh, for a person, that you’ll want decorated with flowers. Y’know, you’re part of um, of so many kind of stepping stones in life, and sometimes it’s a really great, happy event, and sometimes it’s a terrible, solemn event, but i- [stammers] you’re always, kind of, a part of that. 


Mark: Yeah, t- it’s a really cool thing to take a step back from and really think about, isn’t it. 


Ria: Yeah. ‘Cause most people probably don’t think about how involved, like, a florist will be in s- in stuff like this, but when you think about it, like, how many big events involve flowers? Of some kind [chuckles] 


Mark: Pretty much all of ‘em 


Ria: Y’know? And, presuming that you haven’t gone and just bought some cheap bouquet at the supermarket- [stage whispers] don’t do that! 


Mark: [Cackles] 


Ria: [stage whsipering] support you- Support your local florist! 


Mark: [continued cackling] 


Ria: [Stage whispering] It costs a bit more, but also, the bouquet’s so much better 


Mark: Or, y’know, you- you could have just won the Great British Bake Off… 


Ria: [Despairing groan] 


Mark: [further delighted cackling] I probably won’t put that in the podcast, I just wanted to bring it up because I know it’s like, one thing that irks you 


Ria: No, put it in the podcast 


Mark: [Laughs] 


Ria: Let the people know. The bouquets the finalists in the Great British Bake Off are terrible 


Mark: [Laughingly] Cool. For- for like, the bonus content, can you tell us what’s so bad about Great British B- Bake Off bouquets? 


Ria: It’s like- They look like they just grabbed every flower they liked and just chucked it together 


Mark: [Giggles] 


Ria: You’ll have like, two flowers just sticking up, like, half a metre higher than the other flowers 


Mark: [Continued laughter] 


Ria: Just looks ridiculous 


Mark: [Continued laughter] 


Ria: I took, literally I took a screenshot and sent it to my college group, and we were all like ‘what is this?’ 


Mark: [Continued laughter] 


Ria: Best bakers in the country, uh, they couldn’t- they- what, they couldn’t be bothered to hire a decent florist?


Mark: [Trying to compose themself] Okay- 


Ria: [Stammers] I know have this- this vision of like, the person who did the flowers [laughing] listening to this and coming for me 


Mark: [failing to compose themself] 


[both laugh] 


Mark: [Succeeding in composing themself] Okay, so, what- what advice would you give to anyone who was interested in learning more about floristry 


Ria: So… obviously, like I said, um, we’re UK based, so any advice I give is gonna be from this perspective, I don’t know how things work where other people are from. Uh- on a like, a more simple note, y’know, th- there’s online tutorials on, y’know, youtube and stuff, that you can look up and like, see people working- flowers, and kind of see, like, things that go into arrangements and stuff, and like, how they work. 


There’s um, online classes on websites like Skillshare that will teach you a few things. So, like, looking into things like that? Obv- obviously it’s either free or, y’know, maybe it’s something that you’re on already, but you just haven’t looked up, specifically classes for floristry. So you can look into that and see if, like, it appeals to you just from like, a theoretical standpoint. 


In the UK, colleges that offer floristry courses will often offer, like short taster courses? Like, so you’ll pay say, I don’t know, a hundred pounds, and you’ll go there for a- a full day. And that’ll cover, y’know, th- the lesson, and all the materials, and they’ll, um, teach you how to make a few, like, simple things. And, um, so you can see, kind of, on a more practical level, like, oh, are you enjoying this? Like, h- how does it feel, like, actually getting engaged with it. 


Also, if you didn’t want to do that, you could even just go to a wholesaler, buy some materials of your own, maybe follow an online tutorial, and, y’know, see like ‘Am I enjoying this?’, like, ‘Can I see myself really getting into this?’ So, you know, there’s a few avenues you can go down to kind of see, y’know, is this something I really wanna pursue. 


As far as like, actually learning, if you’ve decided you do want to do floristry: Typically you will go to college, and do a level two, a level three- You’ll do a level two then you’ll do a level three [chuckles]. BUt very few people skip to level three, it’s quite difficult to do. And most people won’t start with a level one? Unless you’re coming straight out of school. 


Mark: Ah 


Ria: You can also do apprenticeships, but there are very, very few floristry apprenticeships going. So… very unlikely you’ll get one, but it is a possibility that you can pursue. If, like, being in an apprenticeship appeals to you more than going to college. 


Um… Yeah. so the-[Chuckles] That’s just like, basic advice I can think. If you’re just- if you’re thinking about it. But if- if you are thinking about floristry, then I do obviously highly recommend it. Y’know, it’s something that I’m really passionate about, it’s something that I really enjoy. And we- we always could do with more good florists, y’know? 


Mark: Yeah 


Ria: We’ve gotta battle the supermarkets [laughs] 


Mark: -nd just- just replace whoever is making bouquets for the Great British Bake Off. 


Ria: Yeah, and we- yeah, we have to replace that person


Mark: [laughs] 


Ria: Um, and literally everyone in any kind of TV show or film, when someone comes up with a bouquet; nine times out of ten you know that there was no florist involved in that. 


Mark: [Laughs] 


Ria: We need that to be an official job role, y’know, th- th- th- the movie florist. Just like- [chuckles] Just like you have professional make up artists in films, we need a professional florist doing the flowers. Because we know 


Mark: Just- just hire a florist 


Ria:  Hire a florist. 


Mark: Just- if you need a bouquet for a prop just go to the closest florist and get one 


Ria: Yeah [Laughs] Just- [stammers] I beg of you, have a profession behind it. ‘Cause we know, we can see it. Also, if you think that floristry is in any way glamorous, then I suggest [chuckling] that you rethink your stance 


Mark: [chuckles] 


Ria: Because it is not. I have mentioned already- like, I’ve mentioned in this podcast, y’know, there’s a lot of time going- goes into doing a lot of floristry, that- like-  if you’re doing a wedding, and stuff like that. There’s a lot- a lot of time that goes into it. 


There’s a lot of um, like, pipe- basically hiding all your mechanics- it needs to look beautiful, but we can’t see what’s making it look like that. And also, it’s just messy, y’know? You’re working with, like, live materials. You’re gonna get green everywhere, y’know? 


Mark: [Chuckles] 


Ria: There’s gonna be flowers going mouldy in the bucket, and you need to deal with that. And you need to deal with the stinky flower water when you change it. Y’know? And at the end of the day, you’re gonna be dirty. [chuckles] 


Mark: [Laughs] 


Ria: You g- You’re gonna have dirt on your hands, and leaves in your hair, and you’re gonna be scratched up and stabbed by the two million roses on Valentine’s Day. And yeah,the like- the end result is beautiful, but getting there was a bit of a slog 


Mark [continued laughter] 


Ria: You’re working with nature at the end of the day. [chuckles] So if you think it’s like, some really glamorous kind- do you know how much of floristry involves rummaging through a bin? 


You would- I never thought it, before I started, and you’re probably not thinking it either, but sometimes you’re making an arrangement, and you need, like, just like one more leaf, or one more tiny flower head, and you’ve run out of material, and you’re just looking through the bin of your cutoffs, thinking ‘is there a cutoff that I can make work for this? Is there possibly a leaf, that I didn’t think was good enough, but now that I’m desperate is now good enough, that I can use’, and you will go through the bin for it. 


Mark: [laughing] Thank you so much for being here today Ria, it’s been great 


Ria: [laughing] I’ve had a lot of fun, thank you. 


Mark: Just as a final thing to sign off the podcast with, are there any fictional characters that you related to particularly as an autistic person? 


Ria: Uh… the character, I think, that I have personally related to most, I think, is probably Kat, from Ten Things I Hate About You? 


Mark: Remind me which character Pat is? 


Ria: Kat. The main character, the girl 


Mark: Right, Kat. Sorry, I kept hearing Pat 


Ria: No, Kat


Mark Okay- that’s- that’s an interesting take, I’ve never considered that. 


Ria: Yeah. I really see myself in her. Basically, if you’ve watched Ten Things I Hate About You, and you’re wondering what I’m like in general, that’s what I’m like 


[both chuckle] 


Mark: Good to know! 


Ria: Except a florist 


[Both Laugh] 


Ria: And except, LIke, [Stammering] I wouldn’t have, um- basically several character would not have come out the other end unscathed, if it were me 


[Both laugh] 


Ria: But other than that, y’know, she’s a very erm, kind of like, tempestuous character. She’s very much like, ‘Oh, if you carry on like that then you’ll never have a boyfriend’, kind of character, you know what I mean? 


Mark: [laughs] 


Ria: Like, not what people think a- a “lady” should be like. 


Mark: Yeah. I- I understand. 


Ria: Which is not me, because I’m not a lady. 


Mark: [Laughing] Yes, no, it’s been- this has been great! 


Ria: [Laughing] It has been a great episode, I had a lot of fun. 


Mark: And thank you, listeners, for tuning into this first episode! It’s so exciting to finally share the show with you. If you had fun hanging out with Ria today, you can find her tumblr and twitter accounts in the episode description below. And if you’re interested in seeing some of her floristry work, you can find her on instagram as casiaflore. 


You’ll also find links to the contributing artists to the show! Our cover art was designed and drawn by the awesome Eric Monk-Steel, who creates beautiful art on tumblr and instagram. Our intro and outro themes were composed by the phenomenal Maki Yamazaki, who has more incredible music on Bandcamp, and who you can support on Patreon


[Outro music begins to fade in] 


That’s it for now, listeners! Join me next episode when I’ll be talking to Sparky Lurkdragon about Ecco the Dolphin. Until then, stay safe, stay you, and keep sharing. 


[Outro music]