Confessions of a Florist: Autumn Is Where Flowers Get Interesting

I bloody love autumn.

There. Said it.

It is, without question, my favourite time of year for flowers.

People tend to think of autumn flowers as oranges, yellows, reds and rusty tones — and to be fair, they are gorgeous. There’s something about those warm colours together that instantly feels like autumn, and they can make an absolutely beautiful bouquet without having to spend a fortune.

But autumn is so much more interesting than that.

When you really look at what’s happening in nature at this time of year, there are burgundies, deep purples, cerise pinks, lime greens, dusky shades and all sorts of colours you perhaps wouldn’t immediately think of as “autumn”.

And that is the bit I love.

We’re only in the middle of September as I’m writing this and, in true British fashion, it’s still ridiculously warm outside. It doesn’t necessarily feel very autumnal yet.

But in the flower world, you can feel it changing.

The colours get warmer. The textures get more interesting. Things start appearing at the flower auctions that make me stop scrolling and go, “Ooh. I love that.”

And occasionally, “That’s banging.” 😂

That’s generally a good sign.

Some of my favourite autumn bouquets are the ones that don’t necessarily look like what a customer would imagine when they hear the word autumn.

Our Autumn Celebration and Hocus Pocus bouquets are perfect examples. Put some of those colours down separately and you might wonder what on earth I’m doing. Put them all together properly and suddenly it just works.

It feels rich. Warm. Slightly wild. Full of texture.

It screams autumn — just not always in the obvious way.

That doesn’t mean there’s anything wrong with the classic oranges, yellows and rusty shades. Far from it. I absolutely love those too, and they can be a brilliant option when somebody wants that traditional autumn feel or needs us to work within a tighter budget.

Flowers should never be about making somebody feel that the more they spend, the more beautiful their bouquet gets.

Our job is to take the budget we’re given and make the best possible thing with it.

Sometimes that means beautiful seasonal chrysanthemums, carnations and warm-toned foliage. Sometimes it means unusual roses, hydrangeas, berries, grasses and whatever else has caught my eye that week.

And sometimes it means a combination that I probably couldn’t explain to you over the phone without sounding slightly unhinged.

But give me five minutes at the bench and it makes perfect sense. 😂

That’s also one of the reasons I love Florist Choice, particularly at this time of year. It gives us a little freedom to use what is genuinely looking beautiful rather than forcing ourselves into a rigid recipe.

I’ll save the full rant about Florist Choice for another Lou’s Note because, trust me, I have opinions. 😂

For now, I’ll just say this:

If you love the traditional side of autumn, we’ve got you.

If you want something a little darker, moodier, brighter, pinker, greener or completely unexpected, we’ve got you too.

Autumn doesn’t really have one colour palette.

And I think that’s exactly why I love it so much.

Lou 💚
Townend Florist, Sheffield

P.S. If you ever look at one of our more unusual colour combinations and think, “I’d never have put those together…” — honestly, neither would most people.

That’s why you employ a florist. 😂