About a month ago, I decided to cut my hair off. I put it in a ponytail and cut above the elastic, and over three days, it became progressively shorter and looked better and better. Chris helped me a lot with the back of my head. And by help, I mean he stood there and reassuringly said that it looked just fine as I continued using the clippers to take more off.
I've wanted to try short hair for awhile now. Last year I was growing my hair as long as possible for our wedding, just because I presumed if I had more hair, there was a better chance that I'd have more hairstyle options for the day. But I feel like my hair just kind of stops growing at a certain point. Or just really slows down.
That's the opposite with short hair. I have to trim it every week right now because it grows so fast and starts looking a bit too much like a mullet. We're still refining the style I suppose. But I really like it.
The above photo was taken about a week and a half ago at a wedding on Long Beach Island that I was fortunate to freelance on. Amy at Leaves of Grass Floral Design is a sweet soul that I met just under a year ago, and she hired me to freelance for the event. Working a gigantic event with her and the rest of the team was a wonderful experience - just think branches upon branches upon branches. And the most beautiful local flowers as well. There's a lot to be said for sourcing flowers locally - the overall quality is truly unparalleled. That might be a discussion for another post. But for now, just trust me.
It's funny because my cousin actually was married five years ago at the same venue. Luckily, instead of the over-hundred-degree temperatures that I experienced before, the week was mostly overcast and cold. Perfect weather to arrange flowers at a beach house. We didn't even use the air conditioning, just opened the windows. It was perfect.
Freelancing has been so educational for me in the past year. Luckily, I've been able to work for some amazing florists while also working at the flower shop that I'm at full time. We're in the middle of a busy wedding season at the shop already, and we're not slowing down until mid-July. Sometimes I wonder about the sustainability and heart behind the back to back to back weddings that we produce. I especially wonder how I'd like to run things once I'm on my own.
I think that I'm also benefitting from seeing other florists in action because then I'm able to analyze how they work. Not only how they design, but how they interact with others, and how they run their show. The back end of business, the numbers and logistics, are really fascinating to me. I want to write about those things, but I'm not sure if it's worth it, or who will read it. Sometimes having the thoughts in my head is enough, but then when I'm ready to talk, few people actually are comfortable talking about those things. Perhaps I'm just trying to share a ton of industry "secrets" and steal information from others. If you're paranoid and insecure, that sounds about right.
If there's one thing that I've learned recently, it's that there is more than enough business to go around. This is evidenced by the amount of inquiries for weddings at the shop that I have to refer elsewhere. Some weekends, we are booked completely solid and just cannot take another wedding. And no, not even the inquiries that insist they "don't need much...just a bride's bouquet, 4 bridesmaids, boutonnieres, and ten centerpieces plus delivery to (insert location 30+ miles away)."
Hopefully soon, I'll be launching a new website with a new blog for myself. It's almost ready - maybe by Friday if I feel ambitious. We've also been apartment hunting, and I'll be telling the horror stories of that soon as well.
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