SEATTLE — Fleurs de Villes, an international presenter of flower shows, found Sid Anna Sherwood — and her lavish Sequim-grown bouquets — on her social media pages.
The next thing Sherwood knew, she was designing a goddess: “Flora,” bringer of springtime and a slender mannequin covered with fresh flowers.
Never mind that Sherwood had been invited to participate in “Noël,” the big Christmas-time show at Seattle’s Pacific Place mall. The owner of Annie’s Flower Farm in Dungeness works from her own inspirations, which are as abundant as the peonies and roses that clothe her latest creation.
“Noël” has 18 installations on the shopping center’s five levels on display beginning Dec. 17 and through this coming Monday. It’s a public-access pop-up like others Fleurs de Villes has mounted in cities around the world, said cofounder Tina Barkley of Vancouver, B.C.
“Of course, this is the holiday show, with lots of red and green,” Barkley said — yet the pink and mauve in Sherwood’s “Flora” are fine with her.
“Sid brought the spring and summer, along with the emotional joy and cheer flowers bring to people,” Barkley said.
“She did that in spades. I think everybody was stopped in their tracks,” looking up at the leafy goddess.
December might have been a relatively slow time for Sherwood, 68, who does flowers for destination weddings at places such as Lake Crescent. She started her business 10 years ago when she heard The Cutting Garden was closing.
“I hadn’t really planned to become a flower farmer,” she said.
But somebody must do something to save that garden, Sherwood thought. She did a yearlong apprenticeship, bought most of the perennials and inventory of the you-cut business, and then dug it up and moved it to her own place nearby.
Cutting Garden owner Catherine Mix had done the groundwork to give her a strong start, Sherwood said, and the “slow flowers” movement, highlighting locally grown blooms, gained momentum.
“I thought it would be a good retirement business,” Sherwood said, adding she started out selling bouquets to grocery stores, from the Port Townsend Food Co-op to Poulsbo’s Central Market.
That grocery business kept her going when the pandemic arrived and big weddings halted. Sherwood, having caught the attention of publications such as Seattle Bride, did only a few elopements.
Suddenly, last summer, couples started contacting her, eager to book. They’re getting married in 2022, and not just in June, July and August.
Next year’s wedding season starts in early spring, since those who are ready to tie the knot have had to wait, and now the venues are filling up.
Through it all, Sherwood sticks close to the source of it all.
“I still find a lot of joy in growing beautiful flowers from seeds, and just how amazing that is,” she said.
“I love how people are moved by flowers, because their scent and familiarity transport us.
“I still really love doing weddings. Each one is so unique, and it’s a little sociological thing. When groups of people and family from all over the country converge at a place like Lake Crescent and Nature Bridge, it’s just so fun,” she added.
Being asked to join the Fleurs de Villes show was an unexpected thrill, Sherwood said.
“Doing this really pushed me creatively. I feel really honored to be part of using flowers to create something special that people can enjoy,” she said.
Her design in the Pacific Place display is also a promotion for the Northwest Flower and Garden Festival at Seattle’s Washington State Convention Center Feb. 9-13.
“I don’t really anticipate slowing down any time soon,” Sherwood added.
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Jefferson County senior reporter Diane Urbani de la Paz can be reached at 360-417-3509 or durbanidelapaz@peninsuladailynews.com.
