Bunch flower studio specialises in using locally grown flowers and arranging these with natural or reusable techniques. We always consider what is available locally to us before looking at other options. Our work is inspired by nature and the changing seasons and we dry a lot of flowers throughout the growing season so that we can bring colour to our arrangements in the less abundant months.

​During the colder months it is not always obvious what choices there are for locally grown funeral flowers so we thought it would be useful to share some ideas. We start by having a conversation with family and friends to really understand what is important to them and how we can put the person they have lost at the heart of their arrangement. The image above is an example of a visual document we put together to show what's likely to be in season and to help visualise the overall look of the arrangement before we create it.

Winter is a time when our arrangements provide people with the the most re-usable elements for those looking for something to treasure after they have said goodbye. We often incorporate seedheads that can be saved and planted, bulbs that can be enjoyed for years to come and everlasting dried flowers that can bring sentiment to the home.

Foliage is a big part of our funeral arrangements acting as a great base but also selected for the colour, scent and symbolism it brings to an arrangement. In Winter we often turn to herbs such as sage and rosemary, winter box and eucalyptus for scent, catkins and branches for structure and pittosporum, skimmia and eleagnus for tonal colours. We use Winter plants such as snowdrops, winter flowering pansies and cyclamen. Dried flowers bring beautiful colour and texture to an arrangement and can also add scent. We source cut flowers such as chrysanthemums and paper whites from our local flower farmers in Chipping Norton, Wardington and Sibford.

​Our arrangements are a true celebration of the person they are created for, often intertwined with stories from their past. The arrangement in this photo included crab apples that the gentleman loved making jelly with and asparagus fern he would save the seeds from each year. We have found that this sentiment brings great comfort to the people we have worked with when saying goodbye.