Floral designer Sierra Steifman learned her trade on the job. New to New York City, the New Hampshire native worked for an event planner and saw a business opportunity. With a florist friend, she launched Poppies & Posies, a firm that not only plans events but also provides all the styling, flowers included.
That was 111 years ago, and Steifman, now fully immersed in the floral world—and known for her unbuttoned, neo-Dutch-still-life-style arrangements—recently saw a new opportunity: Last April, she introduced a collection of basic tools, seeds, accessories, and kits designed to demystify floral arranging for the home enthusiast. Known as The Floral Society, the line was created in collaboration with design house Aesthetic Movement and the gear is not only useful but beautiful.
Above: A cross between a gardening apron and a shoe pocket, The Floral Society Canvas Wall Organizer, $145.50, is a catchall that keeps tools tidy and within arm’s reach. Steifman, who is a new mother, points out that it also works well in kids’ rooms, as well as kitchens and offices.
Above: TFS offers its own non-GMO, American-grown seed collection for creating your own cutting garden and growing herbs. Individual Seed Packets are $5 apiece.
An Edible Flower Kit, $38, contains nasturtium, bachelor’s button, calendula, and marigold seeds, and four zinc plant markers.
Floral How-To Kits
Above: Containing clippers, wire netting, waterproof tape, and instructions, the Arrangement Workshop, $86, gives starting floral designers the essentials. Companion online videos offer guidance in making “striking and dynamic modern arrangements that are on par with professional florists.”
The elements in the kit are also available à la carte, including the made-in-Japan Floral Clippers, $66, with coated handles that Steifman says are far more comfortable than their all-metal counterparts, and likely to last a lifetime.
Above: A centerpiece made using Arrangement Workshop components, plus the Floral Society’s footed Copper Vase, $62 (scroll down to see the vase on its own).
Above: The Wreath Workshop, $86, contains, among other things, a copper wreath form, wire, and instructions for making inventive seasonal wreaths. Online wreath-making tutorials are also available to kit owners.
Above: A ribbon-hung wreath in progress. The Floral Society’s 3/4-inch Blush Silk Ribbon with fringed edges comes on wooden spools for $25.50.
The Floral Society goods are made by “workshops and suppliers in the US, Japan, India, and Sri Lanka: places where we can get the highest quality products at a living wage and a fair price.”
Above: A Copper Vase[/product in large, $95 (shown), works well on an entryway console.
Admiring the setting for these photos? They were taken at the 1790s upstate New York, home of Aesthetic Movement’s Renata Bokalo and her husband, Roman Luba whose apartment we featured on Remodelista: See 17 Affordable Small-Space Solutions from a NYC Creative Couple.
