The goddess photographer Nancy Beale of Studio This Is dropped by last summer to shoot the flowers from our Chicago flower farm. Nancy is like the John Singer Sargent of wedding photography, an alchemist of light. In an effort to get myself off of my phone this winter, I signed up for every flower …
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Foam-Free Pandemic Wedding
Last year, when the Covid-19 pandemic swept all of our events away, just this one backyard wedding remained. There is a magnitude to micro-weddings that is indescribably romantic. Love, moving forward humbly in the midst of so much uncertainty, conquers all. We are grateful to our beautiful clients for persevering in having their wedding and …
Pandemic as a Portal
This past summer in Chicago was the hottest summer on record, but how does a Chicago flower farmer even begin to talk about climate change without sounding like a pious pollyanna or a doomsday Debbie Downer on someone’s wedding day? I believe flowers have regenerative powers, and that the decision to limit the importation of …
Prairie Chic Wedding
As a proper Chicago girl, I’ve been raised to revere Jens Jensen, the Scandinavian landscape architect who designed so many of the city’s treasures- Garfield Park, Columbus Park, the fern room at the Garfield Park Conservatory. His ethos of celebrating the prairie’s own native loveliness, working with the native landscape rather than against it, was …
Eau de lime basil
Our farm’s theme this year is fragrance, we are growing lime basil, chocolate and pineapple mint, lavender and the like. I like to bring old fashions back in floral design whenever possible, and these days people rarely encounter scented flowers. There is no aromatic luxury quite like working out there after a heavy rain, …
Foxgloves and thistle
We are a bit late planting at Five Row Farm this year, but I say you are only late planting your first flower farm! And, we have the most fantastic PH balanced soil and meticulously tilled beds courtesy of our farmer friend John Tong. However, our seedlings are already bearing many blooms, see foxgloves, dahlias …
Carnation, Lily, Lily, Rose
Sometimes it seems that my true occupation is to listen to people describe their distaste for carnations, lilies and even roses. Now, with heavily petaled garden roses being all they rage, even the rose, a classic symbol of romantic perfection, has also been shunned. You probably can’t imagine my joy when I was asked to …
Flowering at the Thompson
This week we had the pleasure of flowering with the lovely Molly Guy, creative director of Stone Fox Bride on the inaugural party for Guest of a Guest at the Thompson. We designed a Stone Fox flower crown bar replete with antique baskets of calendula and chamomile from our farm. The event was packed with genius …
Sweet Pea Madness
Spring has arrived in Chicago, as have some exquisite projects for our studio! Gilding foliage, waves of gift arrangements for fashion editors, and samples for some brilliant clients whose taste and vision have yielded really lavish and original results. Oh, and just incase you ever wondered what 170 stems of “Misty Apricot” sweet pea looks …