Meet Allison Newell of Jefferson Park (West Adams)

Today we’d like to introduce you to Allison Newell.

Hi Allison, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today?
I started my floral studio, The Occupied Vase, about 2.5 years ago while I was working full-time in a brand marketing & creative strategy role. I was speaking to a career coach at the time when I was feeling most burnt out, and she encouraged me to lean more into creatively energizing personal projects. Flowers had always been a part of my life since childhood, whether it was gardening with my mom, creating cute little garden dwellings for the bugs in our yard, drawing flowers in art class (they were my favorite subject), photographing flowers everywhere I went, or making my own arrangements at home using Trader Joe’s flowers or foraged flowers. So I started to make more arrangements for fun, and then photographing and posting them. Overtime, coworkers began asking me to do arrangements for birthdays and special occasions in the office. Friends who were getting married asked me to do their flowers or bridal bouquets, and it organically took off from there!

I committed full-time to floral design about a year ago. I went from doing arrangement and bouquet deliveries and some small pop ups, to doing weddings, private events, workshops, editorial, set decoration, and more.

I came up with the name “The Occupied Vase” because I liked the idea of playing with the vase component rather than the obvious flower element, since I love to collect vintage and one-of-a-kind vases. To me, the vase is sometimes just as important as the flowers. I liked that the name sounded whimsical in nature, to reflect my whimsical design approach.

Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
This journey has had its ups and downs and plenty of challenges along the way, but that’s what makes it exciting to me.

Pivoting from a nine year career in advertising / marketing into something completely different, where I’m starting from ground zero again, has not been easy. There were times I told myself I was absolutely crazy. But that’s what’s been so refreshing and energizing, is starting from a clean slate that feels aligned with who I am, doing something that makes me feel good, and allows for the fullest expression of my creativity.

While I’m in control of my own schedule now, I’ve had to hustle to find new clients and projects and get my name out there. When I first got started, it sometimes meant offering up my services at discounted rates in order to take opportunities that could eventually open bigger doors down the road. It’s scary investing in something that you don’t always know is going to pay off in the long run. I found that by aligning with projects that energized me, it was worthwhile and attracted future clients later down the road. While there’s always that desire to grow fast and scale quickly, it has been a steady, gradual growth for me, allowing me to grow in an intentional way and take on projects that feel aligned with my design ethos.

Now, with more clients, projects, and weddings under my belt, there are a new set of challenges that come with scaling a business. One is balancing my own physical and mental health with the intensity of the job. What a lot of people don’t know about floristry is the amount of behind the scenes work needed to pull off a a big event or wedding, from project management and logistics, to the intense physical labor, to working with a medium that is both fragile and ephemeral. My goal is to stay focussed on the right events and weddings that feel manageable yet exciting to bring to life.

With every wedding or event that I complete, it always opens at least one door to another opportunity – where someone attending sees my work and reaches out, or the client ends up referring me to someone else they know. It really has been beautiful in how things have unfolded!

Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
My speciality is in contemporary sculptural, and whimsical floral design. I love working with clients who want a more unconventional approach to flowers. I’ve always gravitated towards architecture and interior design, which have inspired my own floral work. The Art Nouveau, Art Deco, and Arts & Crafts movements especially have influenced my approach and my brand, informing how I tackle composition, shape, and movement in my work. If the craftsmanship of a floral arrangement moves you or makes you feel something, then I’ve done my job!

What I love about floristry is that you are working with a medium that is inherently beautiful by itself. Every stem, every branch, every petal, is beautiful with its own unique character, shape, and bend. I like to let each flower guide where I go with the arrangement. Sometimes my arrangements are maximalist in approach – bringing unexpected colors, flower types, and textures together. Other times, I love to go the more minimalist approach, using only one or two different flowers and seeing how far I can stretch just a couple ingredients. I love that simplicity and restraint can bring about the coolest results.

My offerings are wide ranging! In addition to arrangement commissions and deliveries, I also do weddings, elopements, courthouse bouquet commissions, private events, brand activations, pop-ups, workshops, editorial projects, and home / restaurant staging.

Do you have any advice for those looking to network or find a mentor?
The florist community is highly supportive of one another- I’ve noticed that everyone is cheering each other on. You start to see the same faces every week at the flower market and build connections from there. Being a natural introvert, I find it hard to cold approach other florists in person, but I’ve been forcing myself to go outside my comfort zone these days. This year, I’ve focussed a lot on outreach to florists I admire to see if they need freelance support on their own projects. That has been a great way to meet more talented people in the industry, but also to learn and grow from those with more wisdom to share.

Pricing:

• Each event is a curated, bespoke design tailored to your needs, and therefore is custom quoted. I do things a-la-carte style in order to fulfill the wishlist of your dreams. There is no cookie-cutter or templated package, as every event is different in regards to flower needs and quantities, concept and complexity of install, types of flowers involved, etc.
• Arrangements for pickup or delivery start at $175, featuring a selection of seasonal and unique blooms

Contact Info:

• Website: https://occupiedvase.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/the.occupied.vase/?hl=en
• Other: https://www.tiktok.com/@theoccupiedvase

Image Credits
These were all taken by me (Allison Newell)