Not only do fresh flowers bring joy and delight into a home, they’re also a symbol of important moments in life: they are the decoration of choice at weddings and funerals, and also the ultimate gift of love on Valentine’s Day. Their delicate nature, however, can make it tricky to get them right; think extreme changes in temperature and variability in when and how buds will open, and cost is an important factor, too. So we’ve created a directory of the most imaginative, masterful Australian florists we know of.
These designers often have wildly different styles, ranging from understated to experimental – we’ve tried to offer a range of ‘classic’, ‘earthy’ and ‘unusual’ offerings. But if these florists’ aesthetics are diverse – informed by everything from old master paintings to modern dance – they all bring a singular vision to the centuries-old art they practise. Many are united in rejecting the globalised flower trade, embracing sustainable techniques, championing local growers and avoiding harmful substances like floral foam. Here then are the go-to florists we can’t live without, and the best blooms used by leading designers, PRs and stylists. Among them are the names whose signature looks and influence have been monumental in our homes.
In a land where unique species thrive, local florists are developing a gloriously twisted aesthetic all their own.
Melissa’s apartment in Sydney’s east is filled with fresh globes of Queen Anne’s Lace from local Southern Highland grower, Oxley Hill Farm. Photo: Abbie Melle.
SYDNEY
BESS
The flowers here are the closest we’ve found to those from a wild meadow. Florist Bess Scott grew up around flowers: both her father and grandfather are growers and her Paddington store is filled with native wildflowers straight from her NSW Central Coast family farm. In a world climate crisis, Bess responds to what’s in the field, with wild, wind-tossed flannel flowers, lichen, moss or yellow bells. That mixed-medium ethos gives Bess a signature, wild, unexpected style in an organic palette. besspaddington.com
The company’s lovely website has a helpful section on what’s in season each month.
COLOURBLIND
Benjamin Avery’s colour blindness is what, paradoxically, makes his work so vibrant and irreverent. His Sydney-based studio crafts gravity-defying arrangements, from hydrangea and phylica twisted into thick cords, meandering like alien coral, to volleyball-sized globes of alliums, ferns and grasses, which seem as though they might float away. colourblindflorist.com
DR COOPER STUDIO
Dr Lisa Cooper holds a doctorate in philosophy and fine arts, often turning the very idea of a bouquet on its head with her otherworldly arrangements. Her work is where art, nature and culture fuse. She might group tomatoes with cumquats or craft white lilies into an abstract mountain. Lisa sources the most unusual specimens she can, often visiting local farms to select and cut them herself. doctorcooper.com.au
Fresh and pretty foraged flowers elevate a simple desk. Photo: Sean Anthony Pritchard
GLASSHAUS
Paul Hyland opened the rainforest-like sustainable flower shop, Glasshaus, in Melbourne’s Richmond back in 2011, that has evolved to include an indoor-plant nursery and events space – in neighbouring locations. His arrangements have featured at some of the city’s best restaurants and cafes, but Glasshaus still has a great mix of special blooms made for gifting to loved ones. glasshausfloristonline.com
GRANDIFLORA
The queen of blooms, Saskia Havekes, and her statement branches, succulents and fab flowers have inspired books, exhibitions and many a copycat stylist. And her illustrious client list reads like a who’s who of the fashion world. Think Cate Blanchett, Toni Colette, Hugh Jackman, Sarah Photograph of Bess, Paddington, by Alana Landsberry. Murdoch, Sass & Bide and Kylie Kwong. Ordering from Grandiflora is virtually frictionless: I (Isabella) love to send my mum (Melissa) three big bunches of tulips on her birthday. grandiflora.net
The arrangements are in a different class altogether with modern, expertly composed blooms that easily transfer into vases.
HATTIE
Clients include Aesop, Chanel, COS, Mecca, Louis Vuitton and Valentino. Hattie Molloy often makes impressionistic, sculptural arrangements that highlight local flora’s otherworldliness, including a cluster of scarlet umbels from the firewheel tree, which evoke spirographic renderings, and a spray of golden wattle cascading over tiny orange squashes like a bunch of grapes. “I very much want to transport people, to make it a bit surreal,” she says. “Like, is this even planet Earth?” hattiemolloy.com.au
Colour is among the defining feature of flowers. Photo: Sean Anthony Pritchard
HARRIS FARM MARKETS
Good pricing for full, lush bunches, but there are trade-offs. Deliveries aren’t daily. The flowers aren’t as modern or stylish as those from top florists, but they’re fresh and pretty. We’re often amazed by the value and impressed by the freshness and choice, such as alstroemeria, lisianthus, daffodils and gum leaves. Also, affordable pots of mint, rosemary, lavender, hydrangea and cyclamen. harrisfarm.com.au
HERMETICA
Long revered by magazine stylists, this hotspot located in Darlinghurst is as modern as the name suggests. Inside the crisp layout and wall of hundreds of coloured roses is Jai Winnell’s signature informal style. Simplicity and freshness are key. hermeticaflowers.com.au
IF THE FLORIST
Hot PR company, Whispr, is a fan of the Maroubra-based florist, for its fresh natural approach. They’re not necessarily trying to mimic how things look in nature, and yet the abundance of huge, towering arrangements highlights perhaps the most beautiful thing about flowers – their ephemerality. iftheflorist.com.au
KIKO DESIGN
Armani, Bulgari, Chopard, Garnier, Guess, Miu Miu, Penfolds, Skoda, Ralph Lauren, Rolls Royce, Zimmermann and Snapchat have all collaborated with Kiko Design on a wide range of events. It was founded in 2017 by creative duo Kowsh and Josh Rawson, who create striking focal pieces – for every kind of occasion, activation or gift. kikodesign.com.au
MANDALAY
The kind of flowers that look good anywhere. Fresh-cut, relaxed but dramatic enough. A fave with well-heeled Eastern Suburbs’ types. Unusual specimens, too, such as smoke bush that you can’t find anywhere else. Top designer Kate Nixon’s choice. mandalayflowers.com.au
The bunches are generous, the flowers will last, and there’s always an abundance of fresh offerings.
MY FLOWER MAN
Kieran Birchall’s oversized, dramatic bunches often combine classic flowers with mod foliage and natives, so expect to see English roses mixed in with showier leaves and blooms. Instead of combining flowers evenly, he often keeps each type distinct in the bunch, so there are pockets of light and dark. Same-day delivery around inner Sydney. Online only. myflowerman.com.au
A reminder that floristry at its most sublime and imaginative is ultimately the art of escape. Photo: Sean Anthony Pritchard
MY VIOLET
One of Sydney’s go-to flower shops for homegrown flowers arranged in owner Myra Perez’s signature informal vintagemod style. A fave with the fashion crowd for weddings and events. Myra believes that Australia has until recently been hampered by local growers’ reluctance to bring less common offerings to market. Their reticence in turn created a generation of clients who were never exposed to avant-garde possibilities So Myra decided to explore the potential of the unexpected, using vegetables and fruit, and turning to foraging. Think lichen-covered branches, rosehips, wild cosmos and fragrant mock orange. She also got to know her growers, convincing them over time to reconsider what they’d dismissed – passionfruit vines, frilly gerberas and begonia leaves. myviolet.com.au
SAMAMBAIA
Seasonality is key for this sustainable Bronte-based floral studio that has removed plastics from its wrapping and believes bouquets can be more than pretty – they can convey deep feeling. Any offcuts and greenery are composted; chicken wire, glass or ceramic containers are used instead of floral foam; and the shop reuses the rubber bands that flower bunches come bundled in, or donates them to neighbouring Iggy’s, which uses them to secure egg cartons. From 2022, the Samambaia team has moved from selling individual bunches to focusing on events, floral sculptures and large-scale installations. samambaiaflowers.com
SEED FLORA
This Glebe florist was responsible for many years for the annual epic David Jones Spring Flower Shows. Seed can make magic happen with just a few magnolia or cherry blossom branches and orchids. Its distinctive aesthetic is sculptural, playful and fiercely modern works that are also often defined by their height or their width. In their stretch, there is optimism. @seedflora
Rigour and clarity are the focus with a mix of modern and more orderly classic blooms.
Fresh cosmos at Melissa’s apartment in Sydney’s East, sourced from local grower, Oxley Hill Farm. Photo: Abbie Melle
SEPTEMBER STUDIO
September Studio opened in a sunny corner spot in Rushcutters Bay in 2021, and its creative director, Bryce Heyworth, has quickly gained more than 1.5 million Instagram followers who can’t get enough of his entertaining, colourful arrangement dance videos. Bryce is one of the rising stars on the local floral scene, pushing the art of flower arrangement in exciting directions by experimenting with forgotten varieties and unconventional colour combinations, shapes and forms. septemberstudio.com
Melissa’s choice for the dramatically simple flowers and foliage that feature in the Australian houses in her new book, Natural Living by Design (Vendome Press).
SOPHIA KAPLAN
If you’re looking for something out of the ordinary, Sophia Kaplan could be your first port of call. She is an artist who likes her bouquets to look as natural as possible. Working from a shared studio space in Alexandria, she textures each arrangement with unexpectedly shaped foliage. Nothing too stylised. Minimal plumes, such as a few stems of celosia and allium or magical iris. Online only. sophia-kaplan.com
Wild flannel flowers, ferns and grasses, which seem as though they might float away. Photo: September Studio.
MELBOURNE
ALCHEMY ORANGE
Aboriginal-owned and operated botanical design studio run by proud Yorta Yorta woman Shahn Stewart, whose custom botanical sculptures, floral arrangements and activations feature extraordinary natives. You might recognise her past work from Strawberry Fields festivals, the Australian Open or events by Ralph Lauren and more. Custom designs that elevate events and spaces, including homes, galleries, performances, set design and more. alchemyorange.au
AZALEA FLOWERS
Founder Michael Pavlou wrote the book on using Australian bush flowers expressively, Bush Flowers, in 2023. Find him at the Coventry Street side of South Melbourne Market. He’s not trying to mimic how things look in nature – just putting an emphasis on his love of natives with a studied approach to botany, colour and scale. azaleaflowers.com.au BUSH This Carlton North-based florist is highlighting overlooked forms of natural species or revealing something ordinary in a new way. It also takes sustainability seriously, with a strict reuse and recycle policy and no floral foam in sight. Plus, the focus on Australian natives helps support biodiversity in farms around the country. bushflowers.com.au
Bush works with independent growers to source small batches of rare and diverse flowers across Australia.
FLOWERS VASETTE
Since opening in 1989, Flowers Vasette has taught us that flowers don’t need to be grand to be striking. Whether it’s the scent of spring blooms or autumn’s vivid palette, there’s inspiration year-round. If you’re excited by nature, you will love the ever-changing jungle of house plants and fresh blooms on offer. Its elevated arrangements highlight natural presentation over unnecessary frills. flowersvasette.com.au
Photo: Sean Anthony Pritchard
GEORGIE BOY
Georgie Boy’s Gina Lasker is part of the new wave of rebel florists finding a new language in flowers and fresh ways to engage with nature. A firm favourite in Melbourne’s creative floristry scene … a spray of golden wattle cascading over tiny orange squashes like a bunch of grapes. hattiemolloy.com.au
“I very much want to transport people, to make it a bit surreal,” she says. “Like, is this even planet Earth?”
POLLON FLOWERS
Renowned for its window installations, this colourful shop on Flinders Lane is hard to miss. Vibrant, tightly packed arrangements and densely grouped blooms spill out onto the laneway from the heritage-listed Chapter House building in the St Paul Cathedral precinct. Nicholas Minton-Connell first opened shop in the late 1990s, and has since gained a loyal following for his signature style of classic arrangements that blend old and new. pollonflowers.melbourne
THE BEAUTIFUL BUNCH
The not-for-profit believes in the basic human need for natural beauty and in the importance of the emotional connection that a bunch of fresh flowers offers. Sourced daily from local growers, The Beautiful Bunch is a social enterprise that trains young women who are experiencing barriers to employment in the art of floristry. Go for elegant bouquets and all the classics, such as hydrangeas, peonies and lilies, all packaged in biodegradable paper. thebeautifulbunch.com
Wild flowers are in demand. Even species that florists have traditionally overlooked or dismissed as too unremarkable are now trending. Photo: Sean Anthony Pritchard
ADELAIDE
ADELAIDE FARMERS’ MARKET
Every Sunday, locals raid the showgrounds, according to our friend Tim Bowring, owner of Living By Design in Adelaide. They all come for the same thing: fresh, native flowers from Kidman Flower Co, direct from the Adelaide Hills. Peter Day and Alison Wallis run the 40-year-old company, which caters primarily to the trade. A great place to come to fill your vases with all kinds of scarlet umbels from the firewheel tree, which evoke spirographic renderings, and a spray of golden wattle cascading over tiny orange squashes like a bunch of grapes. “I very much want to transport people, to make it a bit surreal,” she says. “Like, is this even planet Earth?” adelaideflowerhouse.com.au
FLOWER HOUSE
Adelaide Flower House is the go-to place for those seeking beautiful bouquets and statement arrangements. It’s Living By Design’s longtime choice for events, photo shoots, specials occasions, birthdays and table settings. A quick visit to its lovely website will convince you. The owner has an impeccable eye. Check out the ‘Ladies Who Lunch’, ‘Classic New York’ and ‘Miss Connie’ posies. adelaideflowerhouse.com.au
BRISBANE AVALON FLORALS
Anna Spiro says this is one of the florists of the moment in Brisbane. The New Farm-based floral studio is known for its field-to-vase bouquets, event and wedding florals, set design and everything in between. Works with everything from classic roses, delphiniums and hollyhocks, to wild foliage and smoke bush for nature-lovers who want an elegantly undone style. avalonflorals.com
The art of the silk flower via Apartment387.com
HACIENDA FLOWERS
Anna Spiro’s choice; top-drawer flowers for every occasion. Choose from a selection of seasonal bouquets that favour generous, soft-petalled blooms such as orchids, roses and tree peonies, mixed with textural flourishes such as puffs of Queen Anne lace, smoke bush or bottlebrush. haciendaflowers.com.au
THE STONE WILLOW STUDIO
After studying at The London Flower School in 2018, Ani Wilson moved to Brisbane and set up The Stone Willow Studio. With an emphasis on using Australian-grown flowers or materials that are foraged, everything is seasonal, unexpected and often unconventional. Ani draws inspiration from the natural world and ikebana’s core aims to express the impermanence of beauty and to showcase beauty that might otherwise have gone unnoticed. thestonewillow.com
Something as simple as banksia and tree needles is regarded as great material by Ani.
Magic happens with just a few branches, via Apartment387.com
BYRON BAY BRAER
One of our most forward-thinking florists, used by Aesop, Loewe, MCM House, Bassike, Raes on Wategoes, Tigmi, Tamsin Johnson and Whispr. ‘Braer’ loosely translates for a tangle of wild roses where stems and leaves are sometimes emphasised over leaves. Look at its arrangements and you can almost see the whole universe, contained within a single flower or plant. Precisely the point of ikebana (the Japanese art of floral arrangement), which is the guiding principle. “Flowers become human in ikebana,” according to Braer. Lovingly and brazenly revives everything from persimmon to palm fronds, flannel flowers to fennel and wild grasses. braerstudio.com
STAIN
Donna Stain likes to think of her flowers as performance events, paying the kind of attention to detail that evokes an emotional reaction. By featuring unusual varieties and unusual combinations, Donna is casting flowers in new ways with her striking ‘botanical art’ arrangements. You might find a bed of sprawling orange marigolds carpeting the ground. A stylised tree of mandarins espaliered against a wall. Or floral arrangements that reach new heights with drama in tall, statuesque obelisk compositions and columns of hanging Gloriosa lilies. Anna Spiro is a big fan. stain.design
HOBART JARDINE BOTANIC
If you like your flowers to look as natural as possible, not as if they’ve come out of a glasshouse, Jardine Hansen’s loose, freeform arrangements will strike a chord. The emphasis is on botanical varieties and the look of haphazard, wildly spontaneous arrangements. Jardine offers floral stylings for weddings, events, corporate spaces and private homes acrossTasmania, Sydney and the NSW Blue Mountains. jardinebotanic.com.au
Think like an artist – look for the beauty and possibilities at hand. Photo: Sean Anthony Pritchard
STYLING TIPS & TRICKS
The vase is vital. The best have a belly and a neck, but build up your own collection of shapes: jars, jugs, low bowls, sugar basins, shells, tureens, glass goblets, high urns and old teapots. Match flowers to the receptacle Flowers don’t stand straight in nature, so they need a vessel that allows them to tilt and cross over. You want your flowers to look as natural as possible, not as if they have come from a glasshouse. Pick what’s in season Be confident and imaginative with what’s available locally. Choose seasonal blooms with a scent to add sensory delight to a room. Use low, pretty milk jugs and place the blooms on a desk or a side table where they can fill the whole room with their scent. Play with colours and textures. Think like an artist – look for the beauty and possibilities at hand. You can stick to one or two hues for maximum impact. (The more elaborate the arrangement, the less you look at the individual flowers.) Allow space for each bloom If flowers are too bunched up, their form is lost. Use a variety of flower shapes to prevent heads from banging against each other. Extend flower life
Keep vase water clean, change at least every two days and keep foliage out of it.
You don’t have to fill a vase to the brim. It often looks more elegant half or a quarter full. Magic happens with just a few magnolia or cherry blossom branches and orchids. Its distinctive aesthetic is sculptural, playful and fiercely modern works that are also often defined by their height or their width. In their stretch there is optimism.
TIPS
How to arrange flowers & get proportions right • Unbalanced arrangements can distract from the overall beauty. Place larger flowerheads low and in the centre of an arrangement. • Flowers should be roughly one-and-a-half times the height of their vase if the arrangement is tall, and one-and-a-half times the width, if it’s low. • Always arrange your flowers in the room they will be placed to see the exact size and shape of the space you have to fill. • Don’t put large flowers one above the other, nor side-by-side. Allow some air through your arrangements – tight little topiaries are a no-no! • Uneven numbers of flowers make the best arrangements. Even numbers look too geometric.
Our favourite flowers – We love anything fresh and in season. Favourites include roses, tulips, hydrangeas, anemones, ranunculus, hellebores, daffodils, freesias, cosmos, chamomile, violets, hyacinths, lily of the valley, daphne, viburnum, magnolia and blossoms (preferably white). Smoke bush and copper beech are our current go-to choices to fill big spaces. Pinning down these choices to one season is tricky as availability fluctuates due to weather, climate and other factors.
Choose seasonal blooms with a scent to add sensory delight to a room such as the Boscobel roses via Sean Anthony Pritchard.
