So many things come to mind when I think of roses, sorta like smelling one. You know, just shoving your nose into the world’s most recognizable flower, breathing in deeply. I cringed writing that because it sounds so corny, but why’s it gotta be like that? I was 96% honest, doesn’t that count for something anymore? Why do roses have such a bad rep? And don’t even try to blame the Outkast song. Seriously, I’ve had multiple girlfriends call them generic and witness girl(friends) roll their eyes while saying “Eh … he got me roses … again.”
Thing is, it’s not the flower, it’s usually the gift giver, sorry guys—and sometimes the recipient. To boil things down to a quick fashion comparison: The same people that say, animal print is back are also the one’s that mislabel roses. Yeah, leopard comes and goes, but it’s never new, and just like the rose, it’s forever iconic. And to note, no judgements here if you make an animal print mishap—If you know us, we’re true fashion geeks which means we aim to educate. And this February we’re doing just that with a reintroduction to the rose.
Thankfully, when it comes to a lil’ floral 101 we know one of the best florist around and he happens to be taking over our LA store this weekend for a v special Valentine's pop-up. Meet Maurice Harris, owner of Bloom & Plume. Known for his extroverted personality almost as much as his floral arrangements, Maurice is a go-to for Chrissy Teigen and Rosie Huntington-Whiteley, directed Eve’s Lip Lock tour, and designed the flowers that congratulated Emma Stone on her first Oscar nom, the list goes on. Bloom & Plume’s motto says it all “Optimistic, sprightly and takes an artisanal approach to flowers. We work with clients who are interested in having their environment express understated opulence and beauty, using flowers, objects and environments to make this a lovelier world to live in.” I just breathed better reading that. Anyone else notice the name is a rhyming opposite of the idiom gloom & doom?
Maurice is about as hard to lock down as his high profile arrangements are to obtain, which is why we’re so excited to announce this weekend’s pop-up...This Saturday, February 11th from 11am to 7pm PST Maurice will be selling one-of-a-kind hand-tied bouquets for your sweetheart, special someone, or the ol’FWB at Opening Ceremony Los Angeles. So add that to your calendar or call 310.652.1120 for more details. And FYI: Maurice’s bouquets are no joke: cut, pruned, and meticulously sourced meaning if you aren’t making a weekend out of love’s holiday, they’ll be beyond fresh ‘til Tuesday and beyond. Below, we talk to Maurice who explains why you should never ever underestimate the rose.
What makes the rose so romantic?
Historically roses are a complicated flower to grow. You can grow wildflowers, you can grow daisies, but not everybody can grow a rose. Roses tend to be romantic because they were viewed as exotic at the time and very hard to acquire. There’s an attractiveness in the way that they open and smell, making the flower extremely romantic. Roses are very structural flowers, they are soft, they are feminine, they’re strong.
Can you elaborate on the cuts/types of roses that make them special and unique to each person?
I feel like roses are for everybody, because they come in so many different varieties. With my customers, women tend to gravitate towards the garden rose, because it feels romantic, natural, easy, with an exotic sophistication. People are drawn to the color palette of the roses I use which are usually soft pinks, nudes, greens, kind of blushie tones or sophisticated neutrals seem to be really popular amongst people. Which makes sense because these palettes work with the natural colors of people’s homes, lip stick colors of the time period, things of that nature. Red is very strong and powerful color, which can sometimes be intimidating and overwhelming for some people. I think softer color roses are a little easier to digest, there’s a way to do them interesting, while simultaneously giving off the feeling of not playing it safe. With roses, I think there is something for everybody.
