Blooming brilliant! Local florist in with a chance of winning national contest

A FLORIST has been picked for the semi-finals of a prestigious competition.

Tracey Griffin is in with a chance to top the ‘Florist of the Year’ contest if she makes it through the next round.

She works for Sandra’s Florist in Holbury, which is her mum’s business, and has been in the profession all her working life.

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Asked why she had entered Florist of the Year, Tracey said, “I love the challenge and the opportunity to push the boundaries that competitive work brings.

“Floristry makes people happy and I love working with nature; I have a great respect for plant material and I think these elements can often be seen in my work.”

Tracy has successfully competed in numerous professional floristry competitions, including winning a gold medal at the RHS Chelsea Flower Show.

The specialist overcame strong competition in this year’s Florist of the Year heats, where she created a hand-tied bouquet, an arrangement and a body adornment under the theme ‘Inspired by Nature’.

She will be in action at RHS Garden Bridgewater on Sunday April 24.

Alongside the other semi-finalists, she will be creating a series of unique and inspiring floral designs within the theme ‘Growing Together.’

She will need to create three floral designs under strict competition conditions, including a Surprise Design that she won’t know the details of until the day.

The five semi-finalists who will go through to the final will be announced on the day.

For the first time ever, the Florist of the Year competition is open to all florists in the UK and Ireland, not just Interflora members.

And in another first, the winner of the competition will represent the UK and Ireland at the Interflora World Cup in 2023, to be held in the UK for the first time in the competition’s history.

For nearly 100 years, Interflora’s network of local florists has delivered hand-crafted artisan bouquets.

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