The Seasonal Box

I wanted to take a deep dive into our Seasonal Box, mainly because I think it's one of the coolest things out there right now for flower obsessives. Those of you that have probably day-dreamed of being a florist, seek out flowers at any given opportunity and have a floral arrangement board on Pinterest or Instagram for the day you get the chance to arrange. They are designed for you.

FIG.I XL Seasonal Box from Spring 02 Edit arranged for my desk

For a number of years before I took the plunge and started Sow Society, I was boarder-line flower obsessed (still am). Each weekend I’d head to either Columbia Road flower market, my local florist, farm shop, local deli - you name it. I was always seeking out some kind of flowers for my week. When Covid hit, this amplified because I was living in a flat with no garden. I felt pretty suffocated and the only thing that could get me through were flower delivery services. You likely know the ones, well - I tried all of them.

The problem I kept coming up against was that the variety of flowers was not what I wanted - you could say along with my obsession came higher expectations. Nothing felt seasonal, it was generally the same week after week with a few alterations here and there. And if I was being honest, there’s only so many times a girl can receive Stocks and feel creatively fulfilled. Was I being picky? Probably. But I couldn’t help but feel a bit underwhelmed, when I wanted to be the opposite.

FIG. II XL Seasonal Box from our Summer 01 Edit

You might say starting my own floristry business was the extreme version of this and to that I say…. fair point. But sometimes you have creative itch that needs to be scratched.

I knew that flower delivery boxes existed, people were creating them in various forms. But I felt like they were all over-looking one key element, the curation of stems. Sure, lots of flowers go well together, they’re all pretty easy on the eye and whatever you receive generally fills your cup to a certain degree.

But I wanted a box that when you opened it, you gasp. Floral design level curated stems, all seasonal - meaning peak condition and in a market-style bundle that allows you to set the brief. The box needed to be luxurious.

I trialled the box a hundred times in my head, then on paper, in spreadsheets and then a few physical versions that I sent to friends for honest feedback. I researched the packaging, the boxes themselves, the paper work. Everything I wanted to have received 3/4 years ago in creative lockdown, needed to be in it.

FIG. III Arranging using the Seasonal Box from Spring 01 Edit

It’s a completely selfish product admittedly. I’m totally aware that the vast majority of people much prefer the arranged bunch, and honestly - sometimes I do too, especially when I’m just too busy. But for those of us who want to take it a little further, who want an afternoon of undisturbed arranging, who want to actually condition stems, who have looked at supermarket bunches with a quite disappointment. Why should we be left out?

I’m not sure about you, but arranging flowers is the one time everything else in my head switches off. I love the whole process, picking the vase, washing it, getting my stems ready, thinking about what I’m going to create. It’s intuitive, and having a selection of interesting, seasonal and unexpected flowers to do it with makes it a 1000x more enjoyable. Because now the end result looks like that floral design Pinterest board and not that old fashioned, appeal to the masses bunch of convenience you’ve tried to salvage.

FIG. IV Checking over the foliage selection from a Seasonal Box

So let me run through what you’ll find in a Seasonal Box. I’ve broken it down into what I think are the 3 most important factors. Box size, stem amounts and potential.

FIG. V We developed bespoke boxes to ensure all the flowers fit and stems can stay long, along with a handwritten sticker for every order

Box Sizes

I created two different sizes, Standard and XL. There is a specific reason for this and that’s because of the intention of this box. It’s designed for you to set the brief and create, so the boxes needed to hold a fairly substational amount of flowers. There’s nothing worse than receiving too few stems and the end result being a bit…..meh. Our Standard is pretty perfect for creating an amazing display or two. The XL is exactly that, extra-large. It ups the ante, meaning you’re looking at least 2-3 vases if you so wish.

In terms of the actual box itself, they’ve been designed and bespoke made to fit longer stems. The boxes are 70cm long, meaning we can get 75-80cm length stems in them. Height adds so much impact to a design, so this was also a crucial part in ensuring there was also this freedom to cut your stems at whatever height you wanted.

FIG. VI Focal flowers come wrapped to protect their petals

Stem Amounts

This is not a huge box of foliage and a few flowers. All the amounts are broken down in a way that a florist would break things down from a supplier. For example, focal flowers - the main stems you might want for some bud vases, generally in a Standard Box you’ll get 3-5, in a XL Box you’d get 5-7. You need to be able to create options, and this is catered to suit your needs.

The different types of flowers and foliage are tied together into groups, so you can clearly see your materials when you unpack. More delicate flowers are wrapped to help protect them more, and stop their petals being damaged.

FIG. VII Multiple vases for whatever your brief might be

Potential

What do we usually buy flowers for? To put in our homes? Because we’ve got guests? Holding a dinner party? Maybe you want a few arrangements around the house for the weekend. Maybe you’re holding a dinner party and want to create some vases for the table. This box covers you for every eventuality, it also covers you for having a bad week and just wanting to spend some time doing something you enjoy away from screens.

FIG. VIII Conditioning stems and getting ready to arrange

My favourite example to date of the Seasonal Box is customer and friend Emma, who ordered Spring 03 in XL for a baby shower she was hosting for a friend.

From the box she created 5 stem vases for the dining table and a big arrangement for the main table where the food was laid out.

“The XL Seasonal Box was absolutely gorgeous, and it felt even more special creating the arrangements myself. Someone actually asked who the florist was - so I had to admit! I’m by no means a pro - but thanks to the right selection of flowers it just came together really easily and I enjoyed it so much.” - Emma

This kind of review fills me with joy.

So there you have it, honestly my pride and joy. The box of dreams, filling my cup, and hopefully filling yours too. If you search ‘flower delivery service' today, you’ll be met with a sea of lilac and pink. Big subscription services that pull you in with a free vase and then never leave you alone. Sow Society is not about that, we’re slower, more intentional. Our drops are limited because our flowers are more considered, the whole experience is worth waiting for and hopefully worth being a part of.

Our pre-order for Summer 01 is now closed, but the next Edit will be live on the 6th of August. If you’re not already signed up, you can via the website and you’ll be informed of when the next drop goes live and a receive a discount too.

Thank you for supporting Sow!

Jessica x