Tori Lea has over 25 years’ experience in the floral industry, she exudes a passion for flowers and has an abundance of ideas that are second to none. Building relationships with clients, listening to their needs and ensuring the flowers will exceed expectations, is something Tori, owner and head florist at Frond prides herself on. Tori explains what it is she does at Frond.
When designing for a wedding I meet the bride and sometimes groom, in my cottage, aptly named The Frond Shack and this is where the concept is revealed.
From concept to creation
It’s a challenge to co-ordinate flowers that will complement the brides and bridesmaid’s gowns, the venue and theme. However, it is exciting to see the concept come alive. Flowers simply make me happy and I enjoy adding the finishing touches to the couples’ day.
The process of a wedding can involve many hours, and often a couple of very late nights, or some times ‘all nighters’ as of course the flowers need to be fresh. The flowers come to me straight from the markets, or I collect them from local growers. Fortunately I am lucky to have my Mum’s green fingers so I can also grow a few treats!
The big day
The morning of the wedding is an early start, armed with a cup of tea I go back to the cottage and make up button holes, corsages, hair flowers and cake flowers. The car is then packed often full to the brim, and along with my sister Jane we are off to set up the venue which can take anywhere from 1-2 hours to 5-6 hours depending on the volume of jobs to be done.
It’s so pleasing to stand back and admire the finished venue.
I have always really loved the ‘vintage look’ so I’m really in my element with the relaxed, county loose and pretty flowers that are in vogue right now and also lucky to have many vases, mason jars bottles and all sorts of goodies to use (those years of collecting have at last paid off)!
Most memorable – Winter Wonderland
One of my most memorable weddings is a recent one, actually it was just before Christmas and it was a ‘White Winter Wedding.’
The venue was local and very rustic and the table flowers were set into logs that looked amazing. We spread caster sugar thickly around the flowers to create a ‘just snowed effect’ with a light sprinkle of white glitter, which I was told looked whimsical at night with tea lights glowing.
The barn roof was also decorated with beautiful three tier icicles and hanging pots of pretty white flowers and snow dipped mason jars hanging on different levels from chunky rafters. The outside arch was also decorated with a romantic lace vintage curtain as a back drop and with a wooden swing seat, snow dipped pots and much more, it looked like a winter wonderland… absolutely beautiful!
Fancy some Frond at your wedding?
If you would like to know more please give me a call or get in touch. I’m based in Taupaki so very close to all the best wedding venues out west, like Markovina.
Frond, as fronds do, is growing and we are now proud to offer Trev&Moo. With the aid of my sister we have put together another dimension to Frond Florist and we now offer wedding props to hire which include black boards, signs, table numbers and more.
Also we have Trev&Moo fun bags for kids which are very popular and are designed to keep them entertained during the speeches. It’s a boy or girl themed bag that includes a fun wedding themed book with pictures to color, maze puzzles, tic tac toe, all great things to keep the kids happy and quiet! We have lots more to keep the kids and entertained.
At Frond, we are all about meeting each customer’s unique requirements with a customised design and eye for detail. That means your special day is complemented with a floral design that matches, if not surpasses your desires.
