In case you hadn't noticed, summer has officially arrived. And it's not just the sunflowers, lavender and rose bushes that have popped up all over the country – our Insta feeds are also in bloom thanks to a luxury London-based florist beloved by the city's fashion elite. The florist in question? Blooming Haus, of course.
Any event planner worth their salt has BH at the top of their list whenever it comes to floral arrangements, from galas and dinners to award ceremonies and red carpet premieres.
Think Billie Piper sitting front row at Erdem’s SS24 London Fashion Week Show holding a hand-tied bouquet of seasonal British flowers, Winnie Harlow in front of a sea of white roses and gypsophila and white rose lilies at the Vogue Fashion & Film BAFTAs after-party – plus who could forget Sienna Miller's baby bump debuted in front of a wall of red roses and ivy foliage at Vogue World?
Fashion and flowers have long been intertwined, with floral motifs reoccurring in art, interiors, and textiles throughout the ages. Artists have historically used florals – from Vincent Van Gogh's sunflowers to Monet's waterlilies – to convey deep meanings about life, love and hope.
And we shouldn't ignore the feminine symbolism imbued within flowers. Indeed, women's history is practically brimming with them. As historian Ann B. Shtei wrote in 1997: “During the later 18th century, women had more culturally sanctioned access to botany than any other science: they collected plants, drew them, studied them, named them, taught their children about plants, and wrote popularising books on botany.”
In recent years, designers and stylists alike have harnessed horticultural imagery to make fashion statements. Look no further than this year's Met Gala Theme, ‘The Garden of Time’, which saw florals dominate the green carpet. Zendaya, impeccably styled by Law Roach, wore a dramatic headpiece adorned with roses to match her archival Givenchy gown; Gigi Hadid perfected the ‘3D floral’ trend with a corset dress featuring yellow roses; and Cynthia Erivo opted for a Loewe gown, drenched in pale pink petals.
As Blooming Haus note on their website, the relationship between fashion and flowers is “symbiotic and ever-evolving”.
And they should know; the florist was responsible for the floral runway creations at both Erdem and Roksanda's SS24 LFW shows. “As luxury florists crafting avant-garde floral masterpieces for the globe's most renowned fashion houses,” the site reads, “we're privy to the profound intertwining of these two realms.”
For Michal Kowalski, Master Florist at Blooming Haus, “Foraging for rare flowers and unusual plants, discovering new varieties and exploring the beauty of the natural habitat," is one of his greatest joys.
He notes, “So much of my childhood was shaped by endless days spent tending to Grandma’s colourful garden, soaking up the sunset, sipping home-grown mint tea, eating crumble cake with homegrown plums, cherries or rhubarb.
“Her garden was always in bloom, a shock of stunning colours with different type of roses, dahlias, zinnias, forget-me-nots, clematis, or sweet peas climbing on a lamp post.”
Kowalski studied Master Floristry in Switzerland and Austria, a course that “combined art and floristry – so that meant studying architectural styles, understanding colour, psychology of colour, principles of design, understanding forms and shapes to trend forecasting, botanics, expansive plant and flower knowledge, as well as gaining invaluable insight into different materials, fabrics, textures to visual merchandising.”
“My overriding pleasure in creating floral art is the subtle juxtaposition of artistry and design to produce something of intrinsic beauty, so people can indulge in the sheer delight.”
Michael Dariane, Kowalski's business partner, also attributes his love affair with florals to his childhood.
He says, “I grew up in the Lebanese Mediterranean mountains in swelteringly hot summers and freezing winters, where the extreme mountain climate created the perfect conditions for all flora to thrive.
“This set the seed of my unwavering interest in planting vegetables and growing flowers, which I would always overwater as a child, fearing they would dry up.”
“I just close my eyes for a second, and I can still visualise the delightful colours and smell those magical flowering aromas…”
Dariane continues, "I loved the beautiful palette of colours in different seasons - of irises, anemones, poppies, wild thyme, hyacinths or crocuses covering fields."
My overriding childhood memories are filled with apple-picking at my grandma’s, and the enormous rose bush that still grows next to her wisteria-covered pagoda. After all these years, it still continues to bloom every spring and summer. Even today, Grandma’s pagoda is the central point for every family meet up on Sunday afternoons”.
“I just close my eyes for a second, and I can still visualise the delightful colours and smell those magical flowering aromas. My obsession with planting, not surprisingly over the years, developed into a deeper interest in the environment and creating green living spaces.”
Given their childhood nostalgia for flowers, it's not surprising that Kowalski and Dariane are determined to incorporate sustainable practices within Blooming Haus. This includes tree planting partnerships with the likes of the National Forest, Woodland Trust, and Trees for Cities; composting all organic waste (not sending to landfill); and powering the studio through 100% green energy.
“Success means nothing to our team if it's detrimental to our communities, environment, and workplace,” says Kowalski. “By actively minimising our environmental footprint, we've fostered a culture of sustainability at Blooming Haus that's mindful of both people and the planet.”
Blooming Haus was recently awarded a B-Corp certificate, which means the business is recognised for meeting high standards of “social and environmental performance, transparency, and legal accountability to balance profit and purpose.”
Bloomin' lovely, we reckon.
For more from Glamour UK's Lucy Morgan, follow her on Instagram @lucyalexxandra.
