Celadon & Celery workshops for DIY wedding flowers
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Bess Wyrick and Ivie Joy, partners in the New York floral design studio Celadon & Celery, are teaching budget-conscious hostesses and brides how to create their own bouquets and centerpieces. The women have planned a series of hands-on workshops in Los Angeles that include demonstrations of the trends and techniques in the floral industry ‘while also having an eye on the environment,’ Wyrick said. The workshops typically go for $300, but the designers said they will have a $99 special available for 24 hours on livingsocial.com on Tuesday.
‘We’re in the middle of a recession and people can’t afford to do the type of weddings or events they used to,’ said Wyrick, who launched Celadon & Celery in 2009 after designing bridal gowns in San Francisco. The studio buys from local flower farmers, composts greenery and delivers flowers by bicycle or on foot.
In the past year, Wyrick and Joy said they have taught sustainable flower-arranging techniques to thousands of students in their loft-studio in the Chelsea flower district.
‘We want students to know that you can be sustainable and do it yourself,’ Wyrick said. This means eschewing green florists’ foam, which Joy called ‘cancer-on-a-stick, because it has so many toxic ingredients.’ Instead, she teaches students how to stabilize stems with a taped grid over the opening of a vase or with a natural grid of angled flowers inside the vase. It’s an approach that Wyrick and Joy said has won them clients such as the Kardashians, Vera Wang and New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg.
‘The word ‘eco’ has a bad reputation implying something weedy,’ Wyrick said. ‘But we’re using sustainable products, such as recycled vases, and sourcing flowers from local growers to create designs that are sophisticated, chic and tailored.’
The two-hour Los Angeles workshops will be offered at 11 a.m., 3 p.m. and 7 p.m. Mondays through Saturdays, Oct. 24 through Nov. 12, at Opulen Studios, 1309 S. Flower St., near the Los Angeles Flower District. Refreshments, two take-home arrangements, an eco-friendly vase and a tote bag are included in the registration fee.
For more information: email FloralClasses@celadoncelery.com or call (646) 675-3274.
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-- Debra Prinzing