In the creation myths of some of this country's most celebrated entrepreneurs, the self-starting heroes begin their journey within the humble four walls of the family garage. Rock bands, tech companies, and media conglomerates make claims that their über-success was first fostered among dirty work benches and half-empty oil cans.
For Sarah Winward, a Salt Lake City-based floral designer, a garage is where she took her business to thrive. A year ago, Sarah moved her floral design studio, Honey of a Thousand Flowers, to a garage in downtown Salt Lake City. But instead of toiling away among abandoned cardboard boxes and rusty paint cans, Sarah's made her home base decidedly more welcoming.
Photographs by Britt Chudleigh.
Above: The open studio door.
Before launching her floral design business, Sarah was a student studying the Middle East and worked answering phones and sweeping floors in flower shops, but never a floral designer. After pitching in to help friends design their wedding flowers, Sarah caught the design bug and began arranging with flowers growing in her yard and wherever she could find them. Sarah explains, "Soon friends of friends were asking for me to do flowers for their weddings so I made a blog that I posted my photos on, and then I made a website. And suddenly I started taking clients. It all felt so fast and fluid."
Today, Sarah works in her studio space Thursday through Saturday on the week of a wedding and typically spends another one or two days a week in the space meeting clients, cleaning, and organizing.
Above: Inside the studio, a table and chairs on a plush carpet create a multi-purpose space for client meetings and evening dinners.
After Sarah decided to move her business into the garage studio, she spruced it up with fresh paint and new lights. Together with her husband, Sarah built wooden tables and cabinets for the space. Outside the studio, Sarah planted a cutting garden that she can harvest from for her bouquets.
But aside from these improvements, Sarah's quick to explain that the garage was kept mostly as-is: "Working with flowers is messy and I find it's best for me to just have open space to spread out in; it's pretty utilitarian."
Above: Sarah's cutting garden, where she grows zinnia, lamb's ear, and heuchera for her arrangements.
Above: Back inside, the studio is home to shelf after shelf of props.
As a floral designer who collaborates carefully with clients to design the overall look of their events, props are an essential part of the business. Some of Sarah's props come from wholesale floral suppliers, but many are vintage and have been collected one piece at a time. "I am a hoarder by nature, so I feel that my job is the best and the worst thing for me," she says. "I get my fix by buying new vases and displaying them on my shelves."
Above: More props, organized by material.
Some of Sarah's vintage pieces came from thrift stores or eBay; others were collected on travels in the US, Morocco, and India.
Above: Sarah at work, designing.
Perhaps unsurprisingly, Sarah is inspired by the natural world when she designs an arrangement. "I love the way flowers look out in the gardens and on the mountainside, and I like to try and let the flowers feel natural when arranged."
Above: An arrangement of pear tree foliage, maidenhair fern, peegee hydrangea, Echinacea or (white coneflower), and bunny grass.
Color is another integral part of the design process for Sarah: "I usually start with one flower and build a palette around it." Sarah's not a fan of too much contrast in her arrangements, so she works to blend colors together by finding the right shades to create color bridges.
Above: Sarah at work in the studio.
The overall floral aesthetic for each wedding that Sarah works on is created by thinking about the couple, the season, and the location for their wedding.
Above: Sarah opens the studio to the street.
The studio sits on the edge of Salt Lake City's downtown, across from Pioneer Park, which holds the biggest Salt Lake City farmers' market. During the summer when there are concerts in the park, Sarah opens the front garage door and hosts barbecues with friends.
What does Sarah love most about the studio? "It’s a great space that can transform from a workspace to a nice space where I can host a dinner or a workshop." Sarah even has hosted an actual wedding in the space: "I love that is a space where my friends, family, and associates can come and we all feel welcome and comfortable."
Maybe best of all, Sarah's currently looking for a studio mate. For more information, see Sarah's blog entry about the studio. For more of Sarah's floral designs, see Honey of a Thousand Flowers, and to set up a consultation, head directly to Sarah's Contact Page.