Garden Studio
As the place for floral design and our workshops, the Garden Studio establishes space for the intentions I set for FloraWood in its foundation—growth, beauty, abundance, creativity, friends and joy.
For more details on the Garden Studio building process, please scroll down and enjoy.
With a blooming business, I found myself in a unique predicament of needing to upgrade my work space from my driveway and basement.
As the pandemic hit its peak during 2021, it was time for something with more utility; thus began my vision of creating an inviting home studio where artistry meets creativity—one that is both functional and beautiful.
I found myself at home during a cold and rainy Portland lockdown on Instagram and Pinterest captivated by picturesque garden sheds in England and greenhouses in Scandinavia and spent countless hours going down this rabbit hole to figure out what I really needed for FloraWood that also fit within my budget.
I ended up buying a shed from Better Built Barns and using their online tool to completely design and customize the structure. Then I hired a local contractor, Joel from Clean Line Carpentry, to finish the interior. I designed the space to have storage and plenty of flexibility as a work space and one where I could host workshops. The day after it was installed, I immediately set up a table inside and started working.
Even though this was a new factory made structure, I really wanted it to feel old and charming. We insulated and covered the interior walls with recycled shiplap from old Portland homes. I loved the rough look of the wood so much, we ended up keeping the tallest wall in its original scuffed up form. Joel designed and built the main counter from recycled fir and then taking the design I had roughly drawn, we figured out the layout of the cabinets.
The Build Process
I used live edge wood for the shelving to hold my garden books and special vases. I chose my favorite “eucalyptus” green color for the doors (it’s actually called Eucalyptus by Miller Paint!) and a similar darker color called Silverado Sage from Magnolia Home for the cabinets, Floral White by Benjamin Moore (how perfect is the name for that paint?) for the walls and a dark gray color, Pipeline by Miller for the exterior to match our home and then Gerson from A Classic Touch Painting completed the painting. I wanted lots of natural light and included three sets of glass doors and nine small windows for just under 200 square feet of space!
I included an overhang off the back in my design for coverage from the Oregon rain and a place for my potting bench and to shelter workshop participants. Our friend Kurt offered to make me a sign and he used a piece of live edge wood similar to the shelving to create something really special.
Our cat Theo has become my studio cat and comes around to visit often, eating some of the catnip that is hanging to dry from our summer harvest. There is a garden bed right outside the door which has become my experimental garden. Two summers ago I grew a variety of heirloom pumpkins for my succulent pumpkin workshops. This past summer I grew ranunculus and anemone in the spring and then cosmos, zinnias, and dahlias in the summer. I planted 600 tulip bulbs this past fall and plan to host a spring floral workshop where participants can select and cut their own tulips.
I set my intention for FloraWood when I built the studio and wrote it on the foundation.
Growth, Beauty, Abundance, Creativity, Community, Friends, Joy.
All of these things have manifested through my design work and workshops.
Visit the Garden Studio
Check out our upcoming workshops, hosted at the FloraWood Garden Studio!