Fabric and flowers have more in common than you think. For Susan Ramsey, a textile design background smoothed the transition to florist several years ago.
Her new flower store, Ramsey and Ramsey Flower Merchants, at the corner of Oak Bay Avenue and Foul Bay Road, features dramatic displays in its large windows.
Ramsey, of Victoria, sees similarities between textiles and flowers, saying "you're working with colour, shape and form." Susan Ramsey says customer response at her new Oak Bay Avenue shop has been "amazing.
After earning a bachelor's degree in home economics, majoring in textile design, at the University of Manitoba in her home town of Winnipeg, Ramsey taught textile design in Abbotsford and Port Moody. In 1985, opened the "The Flower Show," the first of three florist shops in Vancouver.
Just four months after opening, Ramsey won the floral contract for the B.C. pavilion at Expo 86. That meant months of changing flowers daily at the pavilion between 4 and 6 a.m. Arrangements varied, depending on the visitor, which could be Diana, Princess of Wales, one day and the leader of a country the next.
"It was absolutely brutal," Ramsey says. "But it basically launched my career."
Nine years ago, Ramsey sold her stores in Vancouver and, with husband Dennis, moved to Victoria where four generations of family live in their Rockland home and studio.
Ramsey has been giving workshops and carrying out floral work contracts, including eight years with The Empress hotel. She also writes a column for the Times Colonist.
"I would have stayed doing the contract work but I just started getting so much pressure to expand it, to have a retail location," she said. "It all just came together at one point."
When the high-traffic location on Oak Bay Avenue became available, she thought, "Let's just go ahead and do it."
The store originally opened under the name Twigs on the Avenue but Ramsey recently changed it to avoid confusion with other companies with similar names.
Store displays are set on carrera marble. Huge tropical pods are for sale or used in displays. Buckets hold white lilies, blue hydrangeas, anthurium lilies, roses, and dahlias.
Ramsey is particularly pleased with her walk-in cooler, which was used by its previous owner to keep beer cold but now keeps her flowers fresh.
Customer response has been "amazing" since the firm replaced an antique store and opened in early August, Ramsey said. "We already had repeat customers after one week."
Orders can range from $20 for a small bedside arrangement to $600 with a one-of-a-kind vase created by an artist and filled with exotic orchids. Most orders are between $45 and $50, she said. Hours are 9:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. from Tuesday to Saturday.
Ramsey is pleased to see new stores opening that draw more people to the area. She's across the street from Elizabeth Cull's Dig This garden store, and near artist Ted Harrison's new store and studio.
Ramsey's head designer is Rekha, who uses just one name at work. "Everything she does is art," Ramsey said.
The last few years has seen a change in popular floral designs, said Rekha, who trained in Germany and England and owned florist stores in Vancouver. "It's a fusion between contemporary and traditional," along with some ikebana (Japanese flower arranging).
Ramsey points to a row of three arrangements in black pots sitting on a mantle, saying that in the past one large display or maybe two at each end would have been the norm. Botanicals such as twisty branches of mountain ash with bright orange berries, and marionberries, are just as valuable in a design as exotic cymbidium orchids, she said.
The store has a particular style, Ramsey said. "It always has a little twist to it ... Every piece that you see in here is a piece of art and it is all one-off."
When talking to customers, Ramsey and her staff appreciate information to help design an arrangement. "You have to be able to translate what you are hearing on the phone or in person," she said, For example, is the setting for a living room, bedroom, or desk? What are the person's favourite colours and flowers? Do they like fragrance? What's the occasion?
For a gala with a rock 'n' roll theme, Ramsey created table centres of giant martini glasses filled with coloured water, with gerbera daisies floating on top, with olives on branch skewers.
Another occasion saw artists drawing pictures of conference guests. Ramsey mounted flowers inside a frame to complement the event.
Empress manager Roger Soane said the hotel is known for its gardens and its tea. "I've found in the time that we have used Susan, she has always come up with arrangements that are a little bit different ... suitable for our hotel but not as traditional as the building," said Soane. "People walk past them and you want them to look, not just take them for granted."
Carla Wilson, Times Colonist
Published: Saturday, September 23, 2006
Her new flower store, Ramsey and Ramsey Flower Merchants, at the corner of Oak Bay Avenue and Foul Bay Road, features dramatic displays in its large windows.
Ramsey, of Victoria, sees similarities between textiles and flowers, saying "you're working with colour, shape and form." Susan Ramsey says customer response at her new Oak Bay Avenue shop has been "amazing.
After earning a bachelor's degree in home economics, majoring in textile design, at the University of Manitoba in her home town of Winnipeg, Ramsey taught textile design in Abbotsford and Port Moody. In 1985, opened the "The Flower Show," the first of three florist shops in Vancouver.
Just four months after opening, Ramsey won the floral contract for the B.C. pavilion at Expo 86. That meant months of changing flowers daily at the pavilion between 4 and 6 a.m. Arrangements varied, depending on the visitor, which could be Diana, Princess of Wales, one day and the leader of a country the next.
"It was absolutely brutal," Ramsey says. "But it basically launched my career."
Nine years ago, Ramsey sold her stores in Vancouver and, with husband Dennis, moved to Victoria where four generations of family live in their Rockland home and studio.
Ramsey has been giving workshops and carrying out floral work contracts, including eight years with The Empress hotel. She also writes a column for the Times Colonist.
"I would have stayed doing the contract work but I just started getting so much pressure to expand it, to have a retail location," she said. "It all just came together at one point."
When the high-traffic location on Oak Bay Avenue became available, she thought, "Let's just go ahead and do it."
The store originally opened under the name Twigs on the Avenue but Ramsey recently changed it to avoid confusion with other companies with similar names.
Store displays are set on carrera marble. Huge tropical pods are for sale or used in displays. Buckets hold white lilies, blue hydrangeas, anthurium lilies, roses, and dahlias.
Ramsey is particularly pleased with her walk-in cooler, which was used by its previous owner to keep beer cold but now keeps her flowers fresh.
Customer response has been "amazing" since the firm replaced an antique store and opened in early August, Ramsey said. "We already had repeat customers after one week."
Orders can range from $20 for a small bedside arrangement to $600 with a one-of-a-kind vase created by an artist and filled with exotic orchids. Most orders are between $45 and $50, she said. Hours are 9:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. from Tuesday to Saturday.
Ramsey is pleased to see new stores opening that draw more people to the area. She's across the street from Elizabeth Cull's Dig This garden store, and near artist Ted Harrison's new store and studio.
Ramsey's head designer is Rekha, who uses just one name at work. "Everything she does is art," Ramsey said.
The last few years has seen a change in popular floral designs, said Rekha, who trained in Germany and England and owned florist stores in Vancouver. "It's a fusion between contemporary and traditional," along with some ikebana (Japanese flower arranging).
Ramsey points to a row of three arrangements in black pots sitting on a mantle, saying that in the past one large display or maybe two at each end would have been the norm. Botanicals such as twisty branches of mountain ash with bright orange berries, and marionberries, are just as valuable in a design as exotic cymbidium orchids, she said.
The store has a particular style, Ramsey said. "It always has a little twist to it ... Every piece that you see in here is a piece of art and it is all one-off."
When talking to customers, Ramsey and her staff appreciate information to help design an arrangement. "You have to be able to translate what you are hearing on the phone or in person," she said, For example, is the setting for a living room, bedroom, or desk? What are the person's favourite colours and flowers? Do they like fragrance? What's the occasion?
For a gala with a rock 'n' roll theme, Ramsey created table centres of giant martini glasses filled with coloured water, with gerbera daisies floating on top, with olives on branch skewers.
Another occasion saw artists drawing pictures of conference guests. Ramsey mounted flowers inside a frame to complement the event.
Empress manager Roger Soane said the hotel is known for its gardens and its tea. "I've found in the time that we have used Susan, she has always come up with arrangements that are a little bit different ... suitable for our hotel but not as traditional as the building," said Soane. "People walk past them and you want them to look, not just take them for granted."
Carla Wilson, Times Colonist
Published: Saturday, September 23, 2006
 |
© 2008 Copyright Ramsey & Ramsey Flower Merchants, British Columbia, Canada - All Rights Reserved. |
