Welcome to a world where each petal and leaf weaves a narrative of love and commitment. At Jacqui O, we believe that your wedding flowers are not just decorations but the messengers of your unique love story. In this editorial, delve into the romantic and sustainable journey of how we handpick blooms that not only captivate your heart but also care for our planet.
Handpicked Just for You with Love for Your Wedding: Crafting Unforgettable Moments
Did you know that most of the flowers we use are meticulously handpicked? In the bustling world of flowers, there's a hidden gem that often goes unnoticed—the meticulous process of handpicking each delicate bloom. While we may admire the beauty of a bouquet or the vibrancy of a floral arrangement, few of us stop to consider the labour of love behind each petal's selection.
Imagine a team of skilled floriculturists venturing into fields of blossoming flowers or a greenhouse bursting with fragrance, armed with nothing but their expertise and a keen eye for perfection. Each bloom is inspected with care, evaluated for its size, colour, shape, and overall vitality. Only the finest specimens make the cut, quite literally, as they are gently snipped from the plant with precision.
Our exquisite 'bee-friendly' florals are sourced from the finest British summer growers and dedicated international experts committed to sustainability, ensuring a year-round supply of cut flowers. Each blossom is carefully selected to perfection, ensuring that your special day is nothing short of breathtaking. From the fragrant fields of Cheshire to the vibrant landscape of Africa our blooms reflect the passion and care infused into every stem.
'Bee Friendly, Bee Kind' - A Commitment to Sustainability:
There are some fabulous British growers across the country who offer blooms full of character that are perfect for flower lovers, available from April until October. Our favourite blooms come from our Cheshire artisan grower, Carol, and occasionally from our dedicated flower farmers in Lincolnshire and Cornwall, too extending the season and range.
If you are free and spontaneous and like all things natural, then these flowers are for you! Artisan blooms have an abundance of scent, along with textures that are influenced by the natural rhythms of the seasons. These flowers transport you to a country garden, the wild British woodland and country flower meadows of times gone by, where true love blossomed - just like in a Jane Austen novel.
Couples who cherish the environment choose our sustainable 'bee friendly' flowers. Grown locally and with a minimal carbon footprint as just 10 miles away from our studio. These blooms have already supported local wildlife, including butterflies and bees, making your wedding a celebration of nature.
We often say, "Mother Nature always knows best," and it's a brave decision for couples to trust in her wisdom. When it comes to our 'bee-friendly' flowers, couples choose the colour palette, and then we entrust nature and our growers to select the very best offerings of the season, we embrace all their natural quirks—no straight stems here.
Supporting our Cheshire-grown flowers, we partner with Helen, a British wholesaler specialising in sourcing beautiful blooms from local grower. Helen's business makes British-grown flowers more accessible to florists, emphasising eco-friendly practices with low-carbon, recycled, compostable, or biodegradable packaging to reduce waste. Over 90% of their products are sourced within a forty-mile radius of Spalding, with the rest from across the UK and Ireland. They guarantee the freshest flowers, arriving within a day of harvest.
From Our Back Garden to Your Event:
Here at Jacqui O, we nurture a few of our favourite flowers, foliages and fruit in our very own secret garden. We have fragrant herbs such as rosemary and mint, ‘bunny tail’ meadow grasses and romantic peonies, scented garden roses and hydrangeas, to name a few, adding a personal touch and a little magic to our artistic creations.
These are limited and exclusive to our luxury weddings and events as this is also my sanctuary of tranquillity and relaxation, watching the butterflies, counting the bees and listening to the song of the blackbirds and robins who are welcomed visitors in my little oasis.
'From Around the World' - Ethically sourced globally
Our international selection from places like Kenya, Ecuador, and the Netherlands offers a diverse array of choices to match any wedding style, purchasing these blooms tells a global story of care and community. Yes, they may have travelled via plane, but helping every part of the globe become sustainable is an investment in the future of our planet. The exquisite flowers are grown in large numbers by dedicated specialists in greenhouse, polytunnels and occasionally outdoors. Many of these growers have inherited their green fingers from their family and their business go back generations.
We source from growers committed to the three P’s of sustainability: people, planet, and profit. These growers are passionate about eco-friendly methods and actively support their employees and local communities. Some of our talented growers reuse rainwater to hydrate their flowers, use solar panels to heat the greenhouses and even use natural predators like chickens to capture pests. Yes, you read that right - chickens! Lilies for Life, a Dutch lily grower, adopted rescue chickens to eat the weeds and bugs, and rest assured they love their new home nearly as much as we love their lilies.
The nostalgic garden roses from Alexandra Farms in Colombia are not only our favourite rose growers, but also a testament to cultivating beauty that is kind to both people and the planet. Visitors to Alexandra Farms' greenhouses will notice the tops of the tallest stems covered with mesh mitts. These mitts protect the budding roses from pests without using chemical pesticides. They are hand-sewn at the farm, regularly washed, and reused. They have also introduced desirable bugs to their greenhouses so they can eat unwanted bugs that may cause disease or damage to the flowers.
Earning the Carbon Neutral certification from the UNFCCC speaks volumes about their commitment to minimising environmental impact. The farm practices reforestation, and composts discarded plants, flower waste, and detritus to reintegrate into the soil as fertiliser. Rainwater is stored in on-site reservoirs to hydrate their renowned blooms, and every drop of recycled water in their hydroponic greenhouses is collected in channels surrounding the farms, returning to the reservoirs to repeat the watering process.
Alexandra Farms sends their hand-picked flowers in cardboard sleeves that can be recycled. Each bunch is “signed” with a sticker bearing the name of the employee who packed it with love and care. When you select their roses, such as the popular lavender-scented O'Hara garden rose as shown above in Lauren's bouquet with just a hint of blush, you are not only enjoying exquisite roses but also contributing to a sustainable choice.
Meanwhile, Marginpar, with 17 farms spread across four countries, including four in Africa, cultivates some of our beloved flowers such as Clematis, Eryngium, and Craspedia. Their dedication to sustainability surpasses mere environmental initiatives and certifications; they generate compost from flower trimmings, harness storm and floodwater for reuse in containment lagoons, and employ aqua check units to monitor soil moisture levels, resulting in up to 25% water savings.
Their commitment extends beyond environmental stewardship. Marginpar's ethos, "We grow people, our people grow unique flowers," underscores their investment in human capital. They ensure fresh water for their workers daily and engage in community support initiatives, including building schools and classrooms. Marginpar's holistic approach emphasises both floral and social sustainability, demonstrating an unwavering dedication to continual improvement.
By choosing these blooms, you're not only adding beauty to your wedding but also making the world a better place by fostering global connections, supporting fair trade, and promoting ethical consumption. Every bloom is not just a part of your wedding but a step towards a more sustainable and ethical world.
Behind every flower, there's a story—from the growers who nurture and pick them, to the packers and deliverers, to the floral designers who arrange them and places them in your hands, allowing you to tell your unique story. At Jacqui O, we are committed to making your wedding florals profoundly personal and environmentally conscious. Let us help you express your love story through the timeless language of flowers.
Ready to let your love bloom? Start your journey towards an unforgettable floral experience that’s as unique as your love story. Together, let’s create a wedding day filled with beauty, care, and romance.
HANDPICKED GROWERS THAT HANDPICK THE FLOWERS ESPECIALLY FOR YOU
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