Fusion Flowers Magazine

Chelsea meets Ascot!

No matter how often I visit the Chelsea Flower Show, no matter how repetitive it sometimes appears to be, no matter how restrictive the rules and regulations are for all aspects of exhibiting and competing I still always hope that something unusual will turn up.  This year, however, something very different turned up! 

For various reasons, the British Floristry Association (BFA) found itself with a very large area to fill at reasonably short notice.  They already had an allocated position where the RHS Chelsea Florist of the Year and the RHS Chelsea Young Florist of the Year competitions were to be staged but beside this they were also allowed to house a display stand together with a ‘demonstration’ area where various colleges encouraged the public to try out floral ideas.

The main thrust of the competition was to be a ‘floral hat’ the concept of which initially sounded crazy but in fact this turned out to be an act of genius because everyone but everyone wanted to try on the hats.  From celebrities to the general public – it seemed that everyone wanted to be seen with a floral chapeau!  The result was that the BFA had one of the biggest media coups ever seen at the Chelsea Flower Show. 

Of course there were other exciting things to see as well including a ground-breaking stand by NAFAS (National Association of Flower Arranging Societies) who segmented their stand into fabulous room settings.  The end result was gorgeous and, in many ways, far more practical than previous years.  Another highlight was the work of Zita Elze, a young Brazilian florist now based in London.  Zita’s stand was gorgeous, packed with ideas and exciting concepts that had the public and TV crews drooling.