ROCKINGHAM — Hillside Florist hosted its inaugural Ladies Night Out event Sunday evening to an enthusiastic crowd of 15 attendees. The event, held at Hillside, lasted from approximately 3 until 5 p.m. and was a first for the Hillside team.
Ladies Night Out began with an opportunity to mix and mingle with the other guests while perusing the showroom and consuming a selection of hors d’oeuvres and beverages.
A short while later the eager ladies were instructed to take their spots at their work stations where event organizer Will Wright provided an overview of the session’s process. A round of introductions was then held, revealing that the skillsets possessed by the attendees ranged from first-timers to experienced arrangers.
“I love flowers and I’ve always wanted to know how to arrange them,” said novice attendee April Ford. “Hillside Florist always has pretty bouquets and I’ve always wanted to know how they did it.”
Participants began by picking the specific vase they would like to utilize for their creation, and filling it with the necessary water or oasis that it called for. Wright then began by demonstrating how to create the necessary base of greenery for an arrangement, focusing on the size, shape and structural integrity this step adds to the whole arrangement.
Several minutes and snips of greenery later, the energetic ladies were ready to begin adding the large, vibrant flowers that would set the tone of the rest of their arrangement. In an effort to allow participants maximum opportunities to personalize their creations, a large selection of sunflowers, roses and lilies was available.
From there, Wright shared an insight and advice into how to complete each arrangement through the addition of several smaller flowers such as snaps, stocks, berries, daisies, eucalyptus and delphinium, amongst others.
As each arrangement began to take on its own identity, members of the Hillside team were there to assist attendees every step of the way, sharing their knowledge and expertise with every participant when needed.
“Hillside was very helpful and everyone there left with an arrangement that they could be happy with, especially with the Thanksgiving holiday coming up,” Ford said. “There’s going to be a lot of fabulous centerpieces this Thursday.”
“At Hillside, we focus on success. That’s why our team of designers was constantly there for our participants,” explained Hillside Florist owner, Chuck Wright. “Our hands-on approach to this event allowed little room for frustration. It was important to us that each attendee left with a feeling of accomplishment and an arrangement they are proud to display. Being a family owned company, this personalized level of service and attention to detail is what we aim to provide to our customers in every capacity”
Participant Cathey Collins was certainly appreciative of this level of service, commenting, “They were extremely helpful! They helped me perfect my arrangement and showed me what I needed to do to make the whole thing come together.”
Regardless though of the amount of help each participant received from the Hillside team throughout the event, each attendee left with a stunning, custom arrangement that will be sure to capture the attention of all of their guests this Thanksgiving.
“Hillside did an amazing job with this event. Everyone was so helpful and I learned so much about floral arrangements, and realized that there is so much more to it than putting flowers in a vase,” commented attendee Jordyn Pillar. “The arrangements will look fabulous in the middle of our Thanksgiving dinner tables. I can’t wait for the next class already!”
“We are extremely please with our turn out,” concluded Wright. “With our limited amount of space, we can ideally serve a class of fifteen adults, and we happily met that goal this evening. We hope to continue to grow this program and aspire to grow our list of offerings to additional day and time slots to better serve our community. However, such classes will depend on the level of interest and participation from the community.”
To stay informed on all upcoming Ladies Night Out events, as well as all other Hillside Florist happenings, follow their event page on Facebook, Hillside Florist.
