Today we’d like to introduce you to Angelyn Tipton
Hi Angelyn, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers?
Angelyn was literally raised in her Mother’s flower shop. At the age of 16 she went to work for her mom as a designer/ delivery girl to have some “play” money. Angelyn was lucky enough to attend many Georgia State Florist Conventions, FTD and Teleflora National Conventions. With nearly 40 years in the industry, she shares her passion for flowers with everyone. She has continued her floral education to keep up with new floral trends. She has served on the Georgia State and Florida State Association for many years and is a Certified Evaluator for GSFA. Angelyn also had the privilege of being able to decorate floats at the Rose Bowl Parade working for Fiesta Floats. Some of these include, Miracle Grow, City of Torrance, Kaiser Permanente, and Chinese American Heritage Foundation.
Angelyn is the Education Manager at Floriology Institute and one of the instructors. Angelyn uses her many years in the industry to guide new and nurture floral designers in continuing their education within the industry. She is an active member of the American Institute of Floral Design. She was elected to its Southern Board and serves as the President. As president Angelyn works with a group of dedicated board members to bring educational opportunities to the Southern Region.
Angelyn has worked as a freelance designer around the country. She has won awards for her wedding work as well as in floral design competitions. She just wrapped up working on several television and movie projects. Her work can also be seen in several industry magazines and was recently published in AIFD’s Artistic Floral Design Book and the AIFD Guide to Floral Design Vol. III. She is a contributing writer for Floriology Magazine.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
As with anything worth doing, change in inevitable . Change in the floral industry can be rapid. Keeping up with floral design trends is a must. New products are being developed and our sourcing markets are ever expanding. When I first started in the industry, the only flowers that were available were grown within the United States. Today’s market is truly global with the Netherlands being the #1 exporter of commercially grown flowers. But with all of the markets opening up to the floral industry, we have our struggles as well. The Pandemic caused a huge disruption in our industry. Flower farms were plowed under and shipping containers were stuck at sea. With all of these adversities, our industry blossomed. We changed our way of doing business, sought out local floral farms, and focused on sustainability .
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
I started my career in the industry as a “Bench Designer” Many people start here or as a delivery driver and learn that they love the floral industry. I began my transition as a floral educator by speaking at many garden clubs and state associations. In the early 2000’s I earned my GMF ( Georgia Master Florist) In 2015, I decided to pursue my desire to continue my floral education and test for AIFD. This test is both a written and design test over everything floral in our industry. I achieved CFD ( Certified Floral Designer) that year and was inducted in to AIFD ( American Institute of Floral Designers) in 2016. If you have never attended an AIFD National Symposium it is floral creativity beyond imagination . I was hooked and wanted to know how each piece was created. I endeavored to continue my education by both taking classes, assisting my peers with their class, finding mentors, and generally looking on the internet finding a new design style, technique, or mechanic that I was intrigued by and figuring it out. In my quest for floral education, I discovered I had a knack for weddings and floral jewelry. I have been blessed to work on weddings across the country and my floral jewelry can be seen in several books and magazines.
Can you tell us more about what you were like growing up?
Growing up in rural Georgia, I enjoyed the quiet life. I was the typical Tom Boy as I enjoyed climbing trees, fishing and riding horses but I was also a quiet and reserved person. I told everyone I would never be a florist and as soon as I turned 16 I started working in this industry.
Pricing:
- Flower prices fluctuate just like gas prices
- The more delicate the flower the more expensive it is.
- Shop for flowers in season
- Focus on color instead of a flower
- Wabi-sabi Flowers are perfectly imperfect
Contact Info:
- Website: www.AIFD.org and www.Floriologyinstitute.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/angelyn_tipton/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/angelyn.tipton/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@FloriologyInstitute
