22 Sep The Fonthill Creative – Tattie Rose Flowers
Interview with Tattie Isles
Tattie Rose Flowers is made up of a small and highly skilled team of makers, florists, welders, botanists, organisers and artists who all share the values of its founder Tattie Isles and her husband Fred. Pushing boundaries with their designs, and transforming ordinary spaces into the extraordinary, with out of this world designs. Tattie and her team have worked for royalty and big names such as Ellie Goulding, as well as producing outstanding displays here at Fonthill.
F: I see your Mum is here today and I noticed from your Instagram feed that your family play a huge role in your business. Who makes up your team?
T: We are a family team which is amazing, and it works very well. My husband and I run Tattie Rose Flowers and my sisters, mother and Aunt freelance for us as florists at events and sometimes my father can be spotted cutting greenery or playing the bagpipes. The rest of our team have become like family and we are so lucky to have them.
F: Have you always wanted to work with plants and flowers?
T: I don’t think I consciously thought about it until it happened but my heart belongs in the woods and I was only ever good at making stuff at school so I suppose I have ended up with the perfect job.
F: This isn’t what anyone would call flower arranging, the scale you work to is amazing. Is it ever daunting the size of the spaces you are filling with your wonderful installations?
T: I actually find small spaces more daunting than large, I love working to a large scale and it seems the bigger the canvas the more we come alive.
F: Where do your flowers come from?
T: I use a combination of Dutch and British flowers. Some grown as close as five miles from our house and some, when needs be, from much further afield.
F: Do your clients have an idea of what they want or do you see the space and advise on what would work best?
T: Usually our clients have a loose idea of what they would like, perhaps a colour palette or theme (although I hate that word) but to be honest, because of our organic ingredients, a commission always turns out the best when we are trusted to make it as beautiful as we can on the day. I am lucky now at this stage in my career this is starting to happen more often.
F: Do you work with event planners? How do you manage that collaboration?
T: Yes, I predominately work with events planners which I love because of the professionalism and attention to detail. I also enjoy working with private clients as it is often a more personal experience.
F: You seem totally at ease when you’re working, have you already planned the entire display or does it grow organically during the set up?
T: I always have an initial idea and it usually grows and twists and turns when we start building it. When I have flowers in my hands its the only time I feel really confident.
F: The wedding industry has been hit hard by the lock-down. How has this affected you and your business?
T: It has had a monumental effect on our business in both a positive and negative way. Once we came to terms with the financial impact, we have used the time to improve on all the vital parts that go on behind the scenes and we will bounce back stronger and better than ever.
F: Under ‘normal’ circumstances when would be your busiest time?
T: We are busy all year round because when we are not on site building events we have an enormous amount of planning to do. We spend most weekends from May to November on site.
F: Do you travel a lot or is the majority of your work based in the UK?
T: The majority of our events are in the UK but from time to time we get the pleasure of going abroad which is a great challenge and hugely fun.
F: Working on the Estate we are surrounded by beautiful woodland where we see changes throughout the seasons. Do you have a favourite time of year?
T: My favourite time of year is from 1st September until 1st June.
F: I know you have three gorgeous sons. How do you juggle work and family life?
T: My three boys are my motivation, inspiration and drive. I try to be completely present in whichever role I am doing. It is a challenge but I have an amazing team supporting me and I couldn’t do it without my husband Fred.
Interview and photos from our Bake Barn venue in early September.
