The Flower Press – February
The Flower Press is Elderflower Studio’s monthly newsletter, featuring shop updates, neighborhood events, and flower news. Sign-up for our newsletter here to receive The Flower Press directly in your inbox every month.
The last few years I’ve chosen a word or phrase as my guide, something to ground myself when I’m feeling aimless or discouraged. It’s less a new year’s resolution and more a focus for the year ahead, a way to navigate change and growth one manageable step at a time. This year I chose two: commitment and community. Commit to the work—wherever there is work to be done—and engage more deeply with my community.
It’s been a heavy few weeks (years, really), weighed down with fear and anger and a sense of hopelessness. Some are activated by these feelings, boldly thrust into the streets with megaphones and signs. Others, like myself, freeze; we sit quietly not out of apathy, but out of overwhelm.
In the face of trauma and tragedy, flowers can seem frivolous. And maybe they are, to some extent, but what flowers invite—beauty, joy, community—isn’t frivolous; it’s at the core of our survival. Artist and activist Danielle Coke Balfour (Oh Happy Dani) shared a post on Instagram echoing just that: now is the time to use our gifts to bring beauty and whimsy and empathy and connection to the world.
A few years ago I read a book called Strange Bright Blooms. And while there is too much to say about the book in the little space I have here, one quote in particular has been firmly embedded in my brain ever since: “[Flowers] are surprisingly useful in their apparent uselessness and powerful in their seeming fragility. Despite their ephemerality, they endure.”
My hope is for Elderflower to be a means of connection, that flowers can prove their usefulness in our lives by reminding us of the good, and giving us the moment of we need to recharge and continue showing up for each other.
Thank you for being here.
xx Annamarie
Flower Books
I find my way into many things through books, and flowers are no exception. A growing list of flower books I’ve come across, from gardening and design how-tos, to poetry, scientific writings, histories, and investigative journalism.
Spring Wedding Recap
A look back at this June wedding at the Prospect Park Boathouse. Flowers in shades of blush and pink and peach, and a reminder, in the depths of winter, that soon it will be warmer than 17 degrees.
Floralist
Another way of fostering connection through flowers, Floralist will launch in the spring of 2026, and each week we’ll share interviews with and articles about flower growers, designers, and the florally-inspired. Stay tuned!
Weekly flowers this Spring!
Weekly bouquets and arrangements, designed with local, seasonal flowers to adorn your home or gift to someone else. Coming this spring to upper Manhattan, from Morningside Heights to Inwood.
Stay tuned here and follow along on our Instagram (@elderflower_studio) for shop updates and announcements.