ABOUT
The Wildflower School
Our story
Vicki launched Wildflower on Waiheke Island back in 2000. Then in 2016 she officially combined her botanical talents with her skills as a school teacher to create New Zealand’s first contemporary floristry school and workshop space- THE WILDFLOWER SCHOOL. More than 20 years on, you will find her still doing what she does best- working with flora and teaching other creatives.
Vicki also loves to dabble in floral watercolours…. so painting - and also pottery and other artisanal and floral related crafts- often feature in her workshops and courses
You will often find Vicki wearing Mina, Marle or Mahsa Label, her drink of choice is an aperol spritz- and if she wasn’t so attached to our little island paradise, she would move to Italy in a heartbeat…
After moving to lovely Waiheke Island with my little family I decided I wanted a career change from teaching. I loved flowers and art, fashion and interior design…. A friend suggested I started making bouquets as there was no florist on the island back then… and so I experimented with botanical styling- and Wildflower was born. I immersed myself in all things bridal for over 20 years as Wildflower blossomed into a bespoke design company specialising in beautiful florals for about 100 weddings and gatherings each season.
Now I am combining my teaching and floristry skills and long experience in the wedding flower industry by offering unique workshops in botanical styling at THE WILDFLOWER SCHOOL… from an intensive professional career course in wedding flower design to dream floral workshops on Waiheke Island- and across the world.
I would love to have you join me- and our lovely and highly talented School team of tutors- at the Workroom, our beautiful workshop, perched above stunning Woodside Bay on Waiheke Island. Or maybe join us on one of our once in a lifetime dream floral workshops overseas… in Italy, France, or Greece…
Vicki x
Our Floral Philosophy
Undone …
flowers and foliage have an inherent beauty of their own- so our feeling is work with this natural beauty and don’t try to create something which looks too “arranged”.
We like to go with the arch and angle of the chosen branch and the direction the bloom wants to face. We like to create movement in our bouquets and place flowers in clusters and at different heights- haphazardly as they grow in a field. We love the ephemeral beauty and scent of garden grown blooms rather than “long-lasting” hothouse varieties- and we embrace imperfection- even the occasional bug or beetle!
As well as being inspired by the way flowers grow in a garden when we are creating arrangements, the worlds of art, fashion and interior design also inform our botanical styling choices. And of course we love working alongside clients to create their dream blooms.
At The Wildflower School we want to pass on to you our passion for flowers, along with contemporary floral design and business skills, and to encourage you to grow and develop your own personal floral philosophy and style…
“Taking the Undone Floristry course was one of the best choices I made professionally. I started off as self-taught, and wanted to make the leap to more creatively-interesting work, so I researched floristry courses extensively. Vicki’s course seemed to be the most thorough and relevant, and I was right! Lessons covered not just mechanical skills, but theory and history to help inform your designs. Vicki led students through an incredible variety of skills that all meshed together to prepare us for high-level work — from consultations and budgeting to creating bouquets and large installations. It gave me the confidence to seek out the jobs I wanted, and I am now the lead florist at Faux Floral in Vancouver, Canada. I plan to start a floral business of my own, and I am confident that I will be well-equipped when I do!”
- Laurel O, Florals 1 & 2 Student