Dandy Flora | Vintage inspired Florist | Sydney

SEPTEMBER 11, 2023

Discover Dandy Flora, a unique florist in Sydney. Nurtured by the owner Beth, her fusion of passions, embodies vintage allure, vibrant blooms, and environmental commitment. Through challenges, Beth’s dedication to floristry’s artistry and nature’s beauty intensified, affirming the power of sharing floral language. Sourcing from local growers, Dandy Flora’s arrangements weave devotion and craftsmanship, echoing Beth’s aspiration to share beauty. Enter this realm where history meets innovation, petals convey emotions, and every bloom tells a unique story.

Read our Q&A to know more about this Aussie paradise.

1. How were you introduced to the world of flowers?
About 11 years ago I realised that I wanted to work in a more creative field than the
media job I’d been working in. It was around this time I stumbled upon the Pinterest of New York florist Amy Merrick, which led me down a rabbit hole to her Instagram, and I became completely obsessed with all her work from there! I’d never seen flowers arranged like that before and I was so fascinated and excited by what I’d seen. Shortly after I decided to enrol myself in a course with Pearson’s School of Floristry in Sydney where I got my Certificate III in Floristry.

2. Why do you love working with flowers?
I really love the constant connection to the natural world and having clear markers of the seasons. I love being connected to people via the beauty of flowers – growers, fellow florists, customers. I don’t know anyone who doesn’t enjoy being around flowers and so it’s always a joyful, happy thing to bond with people over. And finally, I love the challenges that working with flowers has given me over the years. Being constantly pushed creatively and even just running a business has really helped me evolve and grow, and I think made me a better person.

3. What is the best advice you have received through your floral arrangement
studies?
Practise, practise, practise. Set aside money every week to play around with flowers that you really love – when there are no restraints placed on you by a client brief your own style can really come out of you. If you can create work in your own original style and share this, clients will start to ask you for it and floristry can be a lot more enjoyable that way! I found that I learned much more on the job than by completing my floristry qualification (but I’m also aware courses these days are quite different and have progressed a lot).

4. How did you manage to turn your passion into a business?
8 years passed between taking my floristry course and officially starting Dandy Flora. I originally worked for other florists until I felt the desire and had the confidence to start working for myself. When covid sent us into lockdown, I began to use the spare time I had doing gift bouquet deliveries, just working from my balcony! Orders were coming mostly from friends and family initially, but when I began sharing on Instagram, things really grew organically and by the time we came out of lockdown I had enough of a social media following and income to keep things going comfortably. Having an income from other sources at the very beginning was incredibly helpful and I would recommend this (or having some money saved) so that you don’t feel pressure to accept every single job to make ends meet – in my experience this isn’t fun and can lead to burnout.

5. Are there any artists who you look up to or inspire you most?
Yes absolutely. I think it’s evolved over the years, and sometimes I’ll get swept up in who is creating the most exciting and latest floristry trends, but I tend to always come back to those that are making really organic, wild and natural looking arrangements. Lately it’s, Ash from Film and Foliage (I joined her Wildflower Academy last year), Molly from Flowers by Ford, the team at JRASIC, the team at This Humid House and Amber Lu.

6. Where do you source your floral materials, vases & tools?

Flowers I source from Sydney Flower Market. Vases I get from all over – a lot of vintage and op shops, if I need a specific shape for a job I will look online at retailers, and most of my basic glass vases I source from floral wholesalers in Sydney like Koch and Co or Apack. Tools I mostly get from Koch and Co or Apack, I just use the OG old school yellow and black floristry scissors or the red and white ones!

7. How would you describe your style of floral art?
Thoughtful, interesting, a little bit wild.

8. Do you have a favourite material or season?
It’s really hard for me to choose a favourite season – there is something that comes
along every season that makes me so excited. I love them all! I do however have a few favourite flowers I love using across the different seasons – Poppies, Flannel flower, Hydrangea paniculata and hanging amaranthus. I also really love Cymbidium orchids but find them sometimes tricky to arrange with other flowers.

9. What is the advice you would give to someone who is studying or wanting to study floral arrangement?
Practise relentlessly. This is the only way that things start to come together naturally. It took me literally years before I felt that I was “good” and confident as a florist.

10. Do you have any good floristry secrets / tips to share?
If the flowers are fresh, almost anything can be revived with a dunk in water or a stem recut. Knowing this helps avoid any panic or drama on wedding mornings when you’ve woken up to some droopy flower heads. Also, for me personally, having a flower fridge is a really great way to take the extra stress out of the warmer months in Sydney when the flowers suffer a bit more, and helps you to plan event work a bit easier as you can buy some stuff in advance and control how quickly things open.

11. What is ahead in your flower future?
I’m expecting my first baby soon, so I am just about to take some maternity leave. I plan on taking plenty of time off to adjust to motherhood and spend time with my daughter and then we’ll just see how things feel from there.

12. For flower lovers – where would you recommend they visit in Sydney in a 24 hour visit?
Sydney Flower Market really is an incredible place to visit, but make sure you go after 6am when the general public are allowed in. It’s loud and it’s got a real buzz about it, and can be really exciting seeing so many different varieties of flowers in the one place. Sydney also has a great Royal Botanic Garden – my favourite area to visit and take photos is the wildflower garden. If you have more time, head out to Dural and the areas around there where there are quite a few nurseries and flower farms open to the public.

If you’re here in November, there’s a street in Kirribilli that’s great for seeing the
Jacarandas in bloom. And then finally, if you’re doing some shopping, pop into Bess in Paddington – a beautiful flower shop that sells Australian natives you don’t see everyday, sourced from the family farm just outside of Sydney.

13. Tell us more about your three loves – vintage, design & flowers – and how they influence your work.
I think my style of floristry and taste in flowers evolves with my exploration of vintage things. For example I’ve just come back from a trip around Europe with so many ideas, a lot of which are inspired by the stores I visited and vintage items I collected along the way. I love taking an odd shape or retro style vase/collection of vases and letting them dictate how the flowers are arranged. Loving second hand and vintage also keeps things a bit more sustainable for me as it means buying fewer things brand new.

Business Details

Website: https://www.dandyflora.com.au/
Instagram: @dandy.flora

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Floristry Club

If you’re interested to practise your flower arrangements weekly, join us for floristry club where you’ll receive weekly challenges to inspire you and keep you motivated on your flower journey. Find out more.