Demonstration: Flower Story

Learning the art of floral making with German florist Brigitte Heinrichs.

KARACHI:

To deal with floral art work is a pure craft, and one finds few florists in this part of the world.

Brigitte Heinrichs, a German florist, flew in recently to teach floral art making to the ladies of the Floral Art Society of Pakistan’s Karachi chapter at Pearl Continental Hotel on April 21 and 22, 2011.

While talking about her passion which soon turned into a business, Heinrichs said: “My grandmother was into flowers, and I think I got influenced by her. I wanted to become a gardener but then I started off as a florist. It’s been 25 years since.”

Roohi Feroz, a middle aged lady at the workshop said, “Oh, I am an avid gardener but not a florist, but I am learning new things at the workshop!”

Yasmin Saleh, another lady attending the workshop, said: “I love flowers and that’s why I am part of this interesting workshop.”

“Pakistan has a variety of flowers,” Heinrichs noted. “These are usually outdoor plants. Most of the flowers that Pakistan has, we, in Europe, have indoors. But in Europe we have all four seasons, which have a variety of new flowers coming in and going out of season.”

About her first trip to the Pakistan Heinrichs said: “People back home said, ‘Don’t go, it’s a dangerous place,’ but when my Pakistani friend encouraged me to come, I never thought about it and came here. I find the people here very interesting, nice and helpful.”

Heinrichs does not hold a degree in floral art, but has a degree in craft work, which took her seven years to complete. “It’s craft work. My focus is on flowers and sometimes on other stuff like wool and wire. I am a trendy florist.”

Talking about her deep interest in plants and flowers, Heinrichs said: “I love what nature has to offer in the form of new plants and pretty flowers. We usually don’t need artificial stuff to be creative when it comes to flower-making but one does require stuff like the wire and wool that I mentioned to make it special.”

She followed the footsteps of her grandmother, but who follows her? With a  gleeful expression, Heinrichs said: “My three-year-old niece is a little inspired as I see her getting involved with my stuff back home, but then it’s too early to say.”

Published in The Express Tribune, April 26^th, 2011.