My Story
A New Englander by birth, a Californian by choice. After graduating with an Art History degree from Wellesley College followed by time working on Wall Street, I relocated to California. It was in my backyard garden in Palo Alto where my love of flowers and plants blossomed and I found my way to flower design.
My passion for floral design has genetic roots. My great grandfather-William E. Doyle - was the leading florist in the City of Boston from 1885 until his death in 1915. He grew flowers and designed arrangements from his Cambridge greenhouses and Boston storefronts for presidents, senators, major colleges and special events of all kinds throughout New England. I humbly follow in his footsteps. I love to teach people how to create fabulous floral designs! I trained with Anne Patrick, of the Constance Spry School in London England. She founded the Home Floral Design Program at Filoli, a National Trust for Historic Preservation site, which I co-led for 8 years. I now teach classes at the Elizabeth F. Gamble Garden Center in Palo Alto, California. Floral design education is important to me and in 2018 I earned my European Master Certification (EMC) in Brugge, Belgium. I hold a Teacher's Diploma in the Sogetsu school of Ikebana and I enjoy incorporating eastern and western design principles into my work. In addition to teaching classes I design floral arrangements for Gamble Garden and I exhibit at the deYoung Museum's Bouquets to Art, and other Bay Area venues. In my designs I prefer to use seasonal and domestically grown material with an emphasis on the beauty of California grown floriculture. Please refer to the Portfolio section of the website to see some of my designs for special events and clients. |