Sustainability is a subject that we are not only passionate about at Pinstripes & Peonies, but one we also consider ourselves as a driving force for within the Floristry Industry. Below we are sharing our top tips for ensuring that your event can be environmentally minded, without loosing any of the luxury or scope for creative design.

1. Buy British – It’s not only Holland and South America that grow stunning blooms, we have world-class flower farms right here on British soil. As well as supporting local or UK-based businesses, buying from British flower farms is likely to mean you get a fresher product with a considerably smaller carbon footprint than flowers that have been shipped from overseas. British flower farms usually grow in smaller batches, so you might need to have some flexibility in terms of exact flower types or only having one specific colour, but if you’re happy with a complementing mix of extremely high quality florals, think British.
2. Choose Seasonal – Similarly to the above, thinking seasonal will massively help to reduce your event’s carbon footprint. Source what is locally available at that time of year, rather than requesting something that is out of season, as this would need to be delivered from somewhere further away that has an opposite climate to ours. Beautiful, seasonal flowers are available all year round, even in the darkest depths of winter! Speak to your florist about what would be available and don’t add any unnecessary carbon emissions to your event.
3. Think Outside the Flowers – Florists don’t just provide flowers. Have you considered using potted plants to for your event? From small plants for poseur tables, to long runners of assorted plants in mixed heights, sizes and textures, and clusters of tropical plants or olive trees for room dressing. Potted plants offer a wealth of varying aesthetics to suit your creative vision and could possibly even be hired, rather than purchased outright.
4. Check Your Supply Chain – As florist, working with a natural product on a daily basis, we can easily notice the effects of climate change in a year on year basis. Many florists are now proactively putting practices into place to ensure they are working more sustainably, including using British flower farms, not using floral foam where possible or only the biodegradable version if necessary, using sustainable packaging, putting waste management policies into place, etc. Ask your event florist what they are doing to work more eco-consciously – there are some amazing initiatives already in place!
5. Reuse and Repurpose – Are you having a multi-day event, or using a different space for a wedding ceremony vs a wedding reception? Speak to your florist about whether arrangements can be moved between venues, or repurposed for an event on a following day. Sometimes an arrangement might just need sprucing up with a few fresh flowers to make it look as good as new and ready to create that wow impact for guests all over again. Not only is this great in terms of reducing waste and working eco-consciously, but will help your budget spread further too.
6. Donate – No one likes seeing beautiful flowers go to waste, which is why at Pinstripes & Peonies we have several initiatives in place to ensure that we are sending zero to landfill. All of the flowers that come back from our weddings and events are donated directly to the Floral Angels, a wonderful group of volunteers who work out of our studio twice per week, and repurpose the flowers into smaller posies to take to care homes, hospices, shelters and other outstandingly worthwhile organisations to bring a little sunshine to their day. Any plants that are returned to us are repurposed into our sponsored School Garden to create a joyful space where children are able to learn about nature in an otherwise urbanised area. There are initiatives like these all over the country, and many florists will have similar ventures for making sure the joy spreads a little further.
7. Faux is Not a Faux Pas – High-end faux flowers made using recycled or ethically sourced materials can be an environmentally responsible way to boost your event aesthetic. These can be used in conjunction with real florals to help your budget stretch further and, if sourced from a UK supplier, can bring down your event’s carbon footprint.
8. Table Layout: Round vs. Long – While definitely on trend and impressive in terms of impact, long tables require considerably more flowers to create an impactful tablescape vs a round table. The way we often explain it to our clients is that if you consider a long table, you would need one arrangement spaced at approximately the distance of every other chair along the length of the table to ensure that everyone has flowers in their eyeline. Therefore if you had, for example 80 guests, this would mean 40 arrangements would be required. On a round table however, one arrangement can be placed in the centre and will be within the eyeline of all, perhaps, eight guests on the table. For an event of 80 people on round tables therefore, you could need only 10 arrangements. Round tables are more economical for those with tighter budgets and generally require less flowers on the whole.
9. Considered Design: Lighting the Way – Your florist will likely have a whole warehouse of different props to complement and enhance your floral design. This could include candelabra, candlesticks, wireless lamps, lanterns, tealights – the list goes on! To reference our previous point, candles or lighting options can be a great way to add depth to a long table design, or can just be used to create a warming and ambient space for guests. Most florists will reuse pillar candles, rather than just use them for one event then bin them, as an effort to be more environmentally conscious.
10. Supplier visits – When selecting your florist and suppliers, check how well they know the venue you are using for your event. Likelihood is they will know it inside out and like the back of their hand. If so, try to host pre-planning meetings online as much as possible, rather than having everyone making unnecessary journeys to site, and cut down on travel emissions.

So there we have it, our top tips for making your event more green, considering carbon emissons and designing more eco-consciously!