Flower design and herbs

( et de fleurs! )

By Julia Freemantle

Julia Lynn Floral Design and Flower School

As I sat at my newly acquired allotment with the sun on my skin an overwhelming feeling of going full circle and returning to my roots hit me. Why had it taken so long to follow my passion for nature and creativity?

My younger years were spent in rural Oxfordshire living on a smallholding with my parents and four siblings. My parents ran the plant nursery and farm shop alongside my father’s landscape gardening business. With pigs, chickens, cows, dogs, rabbits and my horses, my childhood was idyllic. My memories of these times are so vivid, not only for the joy but of the hard work and dedication my parents gave to everything they did. Long after we moved my father continued to be a landscape gardener and he did so for the rest of his life; this was a true inspiration to work hard. My love for being outdoors and nature has always been part of me, yet it was my passion for teaching and empowering others to flourish and reach their full potential that took me on another career path working in early years settings, schools and specialist provisions for children with special educational needs and/or disabilities.

Content with my career choice I worked hard and strived to progress. I went on to become an HMI Ofsted Inspector for Central Government and a Childcare Development and Business Officer for the Local Authority Children’s Services department. Having become a single parent 12 years ago, the guaranteed salary that employment provides was appreciated.

By the end of 2018, I had one child at university and one child in the last year of school. It was then that I wondered if I could follow my dreams to work with nature and reignite that smouldering fire inside of me as there was now time for me.

Having turned 50 in January that year I had not consciously felt any desire to change my life because I had reached this milestone birthday, however, looking back subconsciously those embers had definitely started to glow a little brighter.

Almost daily I would think about what an absolute joy it would be to combine my knowledge and passion for teaching, for nature, for gardening, for flowers and for the creativity of floral design all encompassed with the well-being of the whole person that had always meant so much to me. Being outdoors, nature, gardening and flowers touch all of our senses and benefit our mental, physical and emotional health and well-being.

Five major gynaecological surgeries, two with serious life-threatening complications, both times I required lifesaving surgery, and viral meningitis all within a few years were a harsh reminder of how life is precious and how life can easily be taken. Looking back, it was gardening and flowers that got me through these challenging times.

The first stages of planning to develop my own business as a side hustle to my employment began with the hope that one day this would be my main income. Then

unexpectedly came three months’redundancy notice from my job that I had done for over 10 years. The sensible thing was to look for another employed position with that guaranteed salary. I searched, however, Brexit meant that senior managementpositions were being cut. Every position I applied for had over 60 applicants!

In October 2019 in a studio situated in the grounds of White Lion Antiques in North Hampshire, Julia Lynn Floral Design and Flower School opened. Offering a range of classes and courses for home flower arrangers, wanna be flower arrangers, aspiring florists, those wishing to change career and florists wishing to develop their skills. Children’s classes, intergenerational family groups and bespoke classes in people’s homes are on offer too.

With over 13 years of business mentoring and coaching, I offer support for the business side of floristry for new businesses and for those who are established.

Flowers are a powerful way to communicate at times when we do not know what to say. Flowers express our love, compassion and thoughtfulness. Flowers bring joy to our homes and our life events in both our times of happiness and of our sorrow. Flowers are therapeutic due to their colour and smell and due to the act of giving or receiving flowers.

It is because of this that working is no longer a job but a passion and a joy. Creating gift flowers, flowers for farewells, weddings, civil partnerships and events is magical. My lifelong love of vintage, upcycling and repurposing has seen the development of Julia Lynn Vintage; sourcing and selling vintage vases, jugs, bowls, pots and bottles for flower arranging, plants and home styling.

Changing your path can bring challenges. Believe in yourself, follow your dreams, and connect with nature as your mind, body and soul will love you for it. How to make your own summer centre-piece

Turn over for a flower tutorial to design this vintage vase by Julia