As festive as mince pies, a welcoming wreath hung on the front door is one of the signs of the season. We talk to Izzi Hudson, one of the florists from Flower & Press, about how to make your own.

“I think blocking out some dedicated time and a clear space where you can fully enjoy the process of making your wreath is a great place to start. As with anything creative, I find being in the right environment helps to bring you fully into a creative state of mind – and the result is always better for it. Make sure you have everything you need before you start: wreath base, foliage, moss, dried materials and additional essentials, such as ribbon, floristry scissors and reel wire.”

“For wreaths that will be hanging on your door or anywhere outside, there are lots of fresh foliage options that you’ll be able to find in your garden or local woods, that will last – even when cut – for a good three to four weeks. Also, check with where you buy your Christmas tree, they may have off-cuts that can work well.
   
Some of our favourite hardy foliage to use is pine, spruce, English ivy, Highclere holly, japonica and Buxus, but be mindful of little people or pets as some English foliage can be poisonous so it’s always worth checking it’s all safe to use before including it in your wreath.
   
For ones that will be hung indoors, you can use fresh foliage which will usually dry nicely in place. For a more long-lasting design, you can use dried materials. We love willow that can be formed into the base of your wreath and materials such as pinecones, bracken, dried fruits, seed heads, dried flowers, grasses and herbs. We love making these ever-lasting wreaths that can be brought out year after year.”

Method:

1. Attach your reel wire on to the frame.
2. Start where your reel wire is and add the moss in abundance.
3. Bind the moss tightly to your frame.
4. Continue this method until the whole base is covered.
5. Keep your reel wire attached when you reach the end so that you can then go again with your foliage/pine layers.”

“It depends on the style you’re making, but we love a big velvet bow with long tails. For a very natural and wild style, try longer pieces of foliage or dried grasses that extend out of the main body of the wreath and give it a more dramatic, modern style.”

“For table designs, you can use collected vessels, such as jam jars, tumblers, candle jars and cosmetic bottles as stem vases that you can arrange your foliage and dried materials into. There is no strict rule about how to arrange these and we think the wilder, the better. They look great grouped en masse in the centre of a round table, or spread the length of a long table with tapered candles in varying heights.
   
For a more advanced table design, you can use floristry trays with deep sides and chicken wire to create one long ‘hedgerow’ design to run the full length of the table. We always finish off our designs with twinkly tea lights in votives. Again, you can use jam jars as vessels for these.”

“Don’t buy anything that can be foraged or found around the house. Once you start looking, it’s amazing what you can use as a vessel, and what can be found around the garden or in other outdoor areas.”

“Flower & Press was set up in 2016. We create luxurious floral designs for all occasions, both within the UK and further afield. We work on a wide range of briefs across weddings, events and installations, as well as regular contracts for both corporate and private clients.

Our studio is based in an old stable block in Harringay, London. We are a small but mighty team of three (Izzi, Veronique and Jemimah) who pride ourselves on our rich experience, creativity, and our passion for creating show-stopping designs for our clients.”

“When I was 16, I did work experience at Paula Pryke’s flower stand at Liberty London. It was amazing, and I absolutely loved it. After that summer, floristry was always a job that I had wanted to pursue and after studying anthropology at university I set out to achieve this. For me, the best way of learning was on the job, and I was incredibly lucky that I met Ming from Veevers Carter. We went for a coffee; she offered me two weeks’ work experience and then there was an opening at the company, so I got a job as a junior florist. I worked for Ming for four years – learning on the job, creating flowers for events in historic venues. I was shown how to make designs in a traditional way, while learning how to work out the flower counts and costings at the flower market at New Covent Garden.
   
After four years I was keen to be more client facing so that I could run every aspect of an event, so I moved to Philippa Craddock. Jemimah and I go back to these days. We set up the wedding and events team in London (I feel incredibly lucky to have Jemimah by my side again at Flower & Press). We had an amazing time running high-profile events, including the wedding of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex. Flower & Press was running in the background throughout my time working for other florists and, in 2019, it became my full-time endeavour.”

“We’re very much guided by the seasons with our work and I love reacting to the flowers and foliage that is available month by month, creating designs with these materials as our inspiration. We work with the most wonderful suppliers, and I get so much enjoyment planning and discussing our designs with them.”