Hi Everyone!

Here is the replay from our August live conversation, thank you so much to all those who turned up and for those watching on the replay I hope you learn something new and perhaps find some tips and have a better understanding into what British Flower growers can offer you.

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Hello Everyone,

Welcome to August in the Secret Garden. This months tutorial feels like a special one. I headed into Anna Browns flower field at the very height of summer to gather some of the seasons most beautiful blooms before turning them into an abundant hand-tied gift bouquet…which in the end, I gifted to myself…what a treat! How often do we actua…

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For the month of August, inside The Secret Garden, we are celebrating the very best of the season with a tutorial exploring some of the varieties and how to create an abundant hand-tied bouquet. Rather than following a set recipe, we will look at how to observe what’s available, choose varieties that work beautifully together and create a bouquet that truly reflects the season.

We are also coming together in our live conversations with Anna from Anna Brown Flowers. In many ways Annas flower field was the inspiration for the name of this community, so it feels especially fitting to welcome her into The Flower Feld. We will be chatting live on the 28th August 8pm BST about the opportunities and challenges facing British growers, how British flowers can elevate your designs, ways to bring a more seasonal and sustainable approach to your floristry as well as looking at how you can build your relationships with growers to transform the flowers you have access to. Here is a little teaser for that conversation…

Here is also a little glimpse of this months bouquet tutorial..

If you would like to take a wander with us through the Flower Field and step into The Secret Garden this month I have extended the 20% Summer Offer . You don’t need to commit to the full year if you simply want a peek behind the gate at what we get up to. You can join for the month and cancel at any time. You will still get access to the full library of webinars and tutorials to date so you can peruse and learn at your own pace throughout the summer.

Whether you are simply enjoying the view from The Flower Field or growing alongside us in the Secret Garden, I am always so grateful that you choose to be here. This community is becoming everything I’d hoped it might be because of the people who make up its story.

I am taking a little break with the family for the next few weeks so snips will be down for a pause. I hope you have a wonderful rest of the Summer, find time to notice the beauty around you and I look forward to being back with you at the end of the month.

Charlie x

Last night some of our Secret Garden members gathered around the “virtual” garden table to catch up and get to know one other. It was an opportunity to meet with like minded people, share and encourage each other with some of the common challenges we face as well as cheer each other on with wins and successes - this is exactly what I had always hoped the Secret Garden would be, a safe place for us to share, support and encourage each other.

Next months live will be a conversation with Anna From Anna Brown Flowers, a British Grower I have worked with for some years now and her flower field was very much the inspiration behind the name for this community. August is the height of the growing season for British Flowers so the tutorial and live conversation will all be about seasonal British flowers and how you can get the most from your relationships with British Growers. We will also discuss some of the challenges growers are facing and how communication is the key to getting the best flowers from your grower. There will be lots of time for Q&A’s so if you haven’t worked with British Growers before or want to know how you can work with them more this is the one to join. The date is 28th August at 8pm and a link will be sent direct to Secret Garden members.

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In this month’s tutorial I’m taking you behind the scenes to show you the exact mechanics I use to create large-scale designs that are not only beautiful, but practical and sustainable too.

Tall centrepieces can completely transform a space. They draw the eye upwards, create a wonderful sense of scale and create impact without preventing guests from seeing and connecting with one another across the table. They’re particularly effective in venues with high ceilings where lower arrangements can sometimes feel lost.

But creating them well isn’t just about the flowers. It’s about the engineering behind the design.

In this 48-minute tutorial I’ll show you how to create a reusable foam-free structure that can be used on a plinth or placed inside a tall glass vase. I’ll explain why I choose this method, how it supports the flowers, and why it has become my preferred approach for weddings and events.

One of the greatest advantages of this mechanic is how practical it is. The structure can be prepared the day (if not days) before, transported safely to the venue, and then finished on site without the stress of moving large, top-heavy arrangements or navigating the challenges of delicate glassware.

If you’ve been enjoying The Flower Field but haven’t yet joined The Secret Garden, this tutorial is a lovely example of the kind of content waiting for you each month.

My aim isn’t simply to teach you how to recreate one design. It’s to help you understand the thinking behind the mechanics, develop confidence in your own work, and build a library of practical techniques that you can return to whenever you need them. Alongside every tutorial you’ll also find the flower recipe, costing, and a growing collection of webinars, resources and demonstrations designed to help you flourish as a florist.

The Secret Garden is becoming a library of techniques, conversations and resources for florists and flower lovers who want to create beautiful work with confidence and intention. If that sounds like the kind of community you'd like to be part of, I'd love to welcome you.

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There is beauty to be found in every season but summer really does have it in abundance!

Summer doesn’t simply give us more beauty; it gives us more opportunities to notice. The beauty is always there, but summer seems to invite us to slow down long enough to see it.

Will you accept the invitation?

Everywhere I turn at the moment is an invitation to pause and notice: spectacular sunsets, the profusion of butterflies, flowers flourishing along the wayside—yarrow, daucus, ragwort and knapweed, all thriving in the summer heat.

The mellow glow of the afternoon light casting dancing shadows across the bench, the light that hits the flowers in the morning lands differently in the evening, it reflects the slower wind down of the day, fresh and alert in the morning, mellow and lingering in the evening as we hold on to the last rays of the day.

Each morning as I wander through the garden with watering can in hand, another flower has opened overnight. Petals unfurled towards the morning sun, fresh-faced and radiant in all their colours, markings and glory.

There is something so joyful about witnessing that moment of arrival.

The arrival – perhaps the pinnacle moment of beauty!

This is what all the quiet months have been leading towards. The watering, the pruning, the waiting, the uncertainty. Every act of care has been preparing for this moment. It is the quiet “ah-ha” moment that makes your eyes widen and your heart leap. (Please tell me I’m not the only one who does a little happy dance.)

These moments are so fleeting, so tender, so sweet as we know they are not here forever. So I am being purposeful to take it all in, to give each one its moment of appreciation and gratitude.

Because the garden has been a labour of love, a journey of creation, it is by no means perfect or complete, but there is a time for rest within it. What if taking in its beauty is a way of rest?

Perhaps this is why I find so much peace wandering the garden. I’m not producing anything. I’m not achieving anything. I’m simply receiving.

I’ve been thinking a lot about rest recently and why we find it so hard to do this simple thing. As the summer holidays approach, I’ve noticed something curious. Before we allow ourselves to rest, we seem determined to earn it. The to-do list grows longer. Work needs finishing. The garden needs tidying. The house needs cleaning.

I was laughing with a friend recently who admitted she can’t leave for holiday until every bed has fresh sheets and every basket of washing has disappeared. Why do we do that? Why do we feel we have to complete everything before we give ourselves permission to stop?

The garden and the flower-filled fields around us show us that we were designed to rest, it’s the rhythm of creation “god made the world and on the 7th day he rested.”

Scripture tells us that on the seventh day God rested. Not because He was weary, but because He delighted in what He had made. Again and again throughout Genesis we read the words, “God saw that it was good.” Rest wasn’t an afterthought; it was woven into creation itself.

We create and we rest.

To take in the beauty of creation, of what we have created in the garden or the field, grown in the flowers - that pause moment to reflect and say this is good - is exactly what God did when he created the world - this is the rhythm of life we are designed to participate in.

Not the hustle of the world, the endless busyness and list of things to do because they will always pull us to keep moving, keep hustling, moving onto the next thing, a continuous wheel of motion, exertion and energy - the world tells us to keep creating, pushing and pulling, even just writing these words brings me to a place of exhaustion. The garden is full of temptations to keep moving, keep doing, more weeds, more deadheading, tweaking, pruning, watering…the list will always be endless.

But God showed us in the very first garden, the garden of Eden, that this is a place he wants to meet us. To walk with us, take in the beauty and be…be in His presence, and this is where we find rest.

It doesn’t surprise me that God meets us in the garden, it reflects so much of who He is and how He cares and provides for us. I see Him in it all from the creatures that thrive there, to delicate and intricate eco systems, in the growth and beauty, the gentle transition and movement through life, the cycles, the seasons, even down to the struggles and challenges a garden brings. His hand is in it all.

And perhaps that’s one of the purposes of beauty: to cause us to pause and notice. To take a deep inhale and a slow exhale. To let our shoulders soften and become present to His glory.

As I ponder on it all and turn from one flower to the next I see that even here in summer there is a flower on the turn, fading as its petals curl and wither, its moment almost passed…but has it?? I watch as it transitions into a new chapter… it moves from full bloom into withering petals that die back into a crumpled form eventually shedding and falling away….what’s left is a new form, structure and texture, a seed head that offers yet another moment of beauty and wonder. New colours, new shapes, slightly darker in tone, almost subdued and wizened, the colours and shapes of maturity.

The garden is always turning, moving through the cycles of life! Even within a season we see a flower journey move quietly into autumn.

There are so many layers to it all, weaving a beautiful tapestry of colour, shapes and textures constantly evolving and reflecting the seasons of life.

The more time I spend in the garden, the more I realise it has never simply been about flowers. It has become a place of encounter. A place that teaches me to notice, to receive, to rest and to trust the gentle rhythm woven into creation from the very beginning.

Perhaps that is why God so often meets people in gardens throughout scripture. In places of beauty, growth and quiet transformation, He reminds us that our lives were never designed for endless striving. We were created to cultivate, to create, to delight and to rest.

And perhaps summer, in all its glorious abundance, is simply God’s annual invitation to slow down long enough to notice.

What has caused you to stop and notice recently? I would love to hear about the moments of beauty summer is showing you.

Snips down for now

Charlie x

Summer is the season so many of us spend the rest of the year working towards.

In the garden, months of planning, sowing, nurturing and waiting suddenly burst into colour and abundance. The flower beds are full, the borders overflowing, and for a few precious weeks everything feels wonderfully alive.

But I wonder...

When the season finally arrives, are we truly in it?

Do we take the time to notice that we are here?

Or are we already thinking about what comes next?

In the busyness of summer, I invite you to take time to stop, pause and soak up all that you have been waiting for, working towards and hoping for.

It’s been a little while since I have had the time to sit down and write. As the summer months have suddenly arrived, I find myself catching my breath and wondering how we got here so quickly.

All of a sudden there is more to do. Family gatherings, social invitations, dates filling the calendar, longer evenings tempting us outside. These are the very things we long for throughout the darker months, yet when layered on top of everyday life and work commitments they can suddenly feel overwhelming.

For so many years, summer to me meant wedding season. It was the moment when months of planning, designing and preparing finally came together. Week after week became a rhythm of prep, delivery, set-up, clear-down... and then doing it all again. Beautiful, creative, deeply rewarding - but relentless. It was all about the hustle and juggling of many plates not just work but the abundance of family commitments too.

Although my work looks very different today, I have noticed that same quickening of pace appearing in new areas of life.

And strangely, it was the garden that gently pointed it out to me.

Once again, the flowers had something to teach me.

Perhaps that’s why, after more than twenty years of working with flowers, I still love them so much. They have an extraordinary way of quietly revealing truths about life, if only we are willing to linger long enough to notice.

This season is one we long for. We wait patiently through winter, celebrate the first signs of spring and dream about the abundance of summer. The longer days. The light. The colour. The beauty. The sense that everything has finally come into bloom.

All the planning, sowing, nurturing and growing was for this moment.

So why is it so easy to miss it?

For me, it’s my own tendency to live in tomorrow instead of today. I find myself thinking about the next thing, the list still waiting to be completed, the gaps that need filling, the weeds that need pulling, the plant that isn’t thriving.

Meanwhile, the very thing I have been waiting for is happening all around me.

This year, the new flower beds in my garden are quite literally bursting with flowers. They are overflowing with colour and abundance. This should be the moment to simply enjoy them after all the work it has taken to get here.

Yet yesterday, a friend who hadn’t visited for several weeks walked into the garden and simply said,

“Wow Charlie... look at your garden.”

My immediate response was to point out everything that wasn’t working.

The plants I wanted to move.

The colours that weren’t quite right.

The areas that still needed filling.

Then I caught myself.

She hadn’t noticed any of those things until I mentioned them.

Why was I so quick to draw attention to the imperfections instead of celebrating what had grown? Why do my morning walks in the garden, with coffee in hand, involve such scrutiny around what’s not happening instead of dwelling on what’s right in front of me!

It reminded me of a coaching session with a wonderful lady, Jo Hargreaves (you can find on Substack as The Faith Filled Therapist). She gently helped me recognise how difficult I find it to celebrate the wins. For so many years, the quiet narrative of “I’m not enough” has stopped me from seeing what has already been accomplished.

Changing that narrative isn’t easy.

But noticing when it begins to speak again is the first step towards renewing our minds.

When I hear it now, I return to these words from Jesus:

“See how the lilies and the wild flowers of the field grow; they do not labour nor do they spin. Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendour was dressed like one of these. If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you?”
Matthew 6:28–30

If God cares so deeply for the grasses of the field that He chooses to clothe them with such breath taking beauty - even though they bloom for only a fleeting moment - how much more does He care for you and for me?

His love, His grace and His beauty are available to us every single day.

If we choose to notice.

If we choose to pause.

If we choose to stop and smell the roses.

Perhaps that’s my invitation to both of us today.

Before moving on to the next task, spend five quiet minutes outside.

Stand beside a flower.

Really look at it.

Notice the colours.

Notice the tiny details.

Marvel at what’s in front of you.

Notice the insects it quietly welcomes.

Notice how fleeting this season is.

And perhaps let it remind you that the season you’ve been praying for may already be here.

This little online flower community reached a milestone this week. There are now over 200 of us here in The Flower Field, and a growing community inside our paying membership, The Secret Garden.

In a world that celebrates rapid growth and viral success, those numbers may seem small. If I’m honest, it’s easy to let comparison whisper that what we’re building here isn’t enough.

But comparison has a habit of making us overlook what is already blooming.

The Flower Field has never really been about numbers. It has always been about learning to see.

To notice beauty.

To slow down.

To learn from the flowers.

To become more creative, more observant and more grateful for the season we are in.

So thank you for walking through this field with me.

Whether you’ve been here from the beginning or have only just found your way here, I’m grateful for every one of you who opens these letters, pauses for a few moments and joins me in noticing what the flowers have to teach us.

If The Flower Field is where we pause and notice together, then The Secret Garden is where we go a little deeper.

It’s where those observations become conversations.

Where curiosity becomes learning.

Where beauty becomes practical creativity.

This month we’ve continued exploring what summer has to teach us.

Through an abundant English garden-inspired bridal bouquet.

Through a conversation about colour and why it has the power to make us feel and communicate so many different emotions and stories.

Through tutorials, reflections and discussions that I hope help us not only become better florists, but people who notice beauty more intentionally.

It’s a small community, and perhaps that’s exactly how gardens are meant to be.

If these reflections resonate with you, and you’d like to continue exploring flowers in this way, I’d love to welcome you into The Secret Garden.

This is where the conversation continues through monthly tutorials, webinars, resources and thoughtful discussion.

To celebrate this little milestone together, I’m offering 20% off annual membership for the next seven days, giving you immediate access to this month’s colour webinar, every previous tutorial and resource, and everything still to come as this garden continues to grow.

A Summer Invitation to The Secret Garden

But whether you decide to join us, or simply continue reading these letters each month, thank you.

You being here matters more than you know.

Until next time...

And don’t forget to stop and smell the roses.

Charlie

For those of you already planted in The Secret Garden, the link to the recording from this weeks webinar “Beyond the Colour wheel” is below

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This is probably the topic I get asked about more than any other, so I’ve created this tutorial to share everything I’ve learned over the years about designing a summer bridal bouquet in my signature style.

Over the course of this hour-long tutorial, I talk through my design process, how I work with colour, the flower varieties I tend to reach for, and some of the considerations that go into creating a bouquet that feels natural, abundant and balanced.

If you'd like to join us inside The Secret Garden and access this tutorial, along with the full library of tutorials, resources and live sessions, you can upgrade your subscription below. I'd love to welcome you in.

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Corsages and buttonholes may be some of the smallest designs we create as florists, but they require a surprising amount of skill and attention to detail.

Over the years there has been a growing trend towards unwired designs, often in pursuit of a more natural aesthetic. Whilst these can be beautiful, understanding traditional wiring techniques remains o…

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When we think about the process of engaging our couples to book us for their wedding flowers, it’s easy to focus on the proposal itself. But often, the client experience begins long before a proposal ever lands in a couple’s inbox.

One of the areas that came up during our recent webinar on proposals and communication was how to create a smoother, more confident journey for clients from the very first enquiry. Reframing the communication process as an experience for our couples to enjoy allows us to enrich each step of the process with elements that not only reflect our brand but also our values, style and personality.

A welcome guide can be a wonderful way to do exactly that.

Not only does it help answer common questions and manage expectations, it also gives couples a sense of who you are, how you work and what they can expect throughout the planning process. Done well, it can reduce back-and-forth emails, build trust and create a more professional experience from the outset.

Inside this resource you’ll find two things:

• A completed example guide, showing how the template could look when fully customised.

• An editable Canva template that you can adapt using your own branding, imagery, pricing, processes and client journey.

The example guide is intended to provide inspiration and demonstrate the structure, flow and content that can be included. It is by no means exhaustive, I encourage you to personalise the template so that it accurately reflects your own business, services and values.

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This webinar came about initially as a request to explore “wedding proposals” but actually when I started to scope it out I realised there have been so many changes and shifts not only in the market place but also in the client needs and expectations, that it felt important to frame what those changes are. This will hopefully put you in a more informed …

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There is something about May that feels beautifully unfinished. Not empty, not lacking, just in between. That cross over of seasons where one ends but we are not quite in the next.

In the flower world, we often call it The May Gap, that space where the exuberance of spring has begun to fade, yet the abundance of summer hasn’t quite arrived. The tulips are mostly gone, the blossom has fallen from the trees, and those overflowing buckets of midsummer flowers are still just a promise to look forward to.

For florists and flower growers, it can feel like a slightly awkward season. A holding moment, a waiting room between the waves of abundance.

And yet, the older I get, the more I think life itself is often lived in these very spaces.

Not in the grand arrivals or in the dramatic endings but in the quiet in-between seasons.

The moments where one thing has finished, but the next hasn’t fully appeared yet.

Perhaps you know that feeling too.

Maybe you’re waiting for clarity.
Waiting for growth.
Waiting for work to pick up.
Waiting for healing.
Waiting for confidence.
Waiting for inspiration to return.

The world teaches us to celebrate full bloom, but nature reminds us that every season has beauty to be enjoyed and appreciated - even the transitional ones, especially the transitional ones.

Because May may not offer us the overflowing abundance of July, but it does give us something, the hope that the promise of Summer is not that far away. The carpets of bluebells may have gone but the woodland floors are sprouting with unfurling ferns, the hedgerows are billowing with frothy clouds of cow parsley and the glimpse of sunshine bounces off the faces of buttercups.

And honestly?
Some of my favourite flowers of the entire year appear during this season.

In waltz the Geum’s - delicate little dancing flowers that seem to float above their stems like tiny flickering lanterns. They bring such movement and looseness to arrangements and pair beautifully with almost everything. They are the perfect chefs kiss to any floral recipe and come in an abundance of warm summer colours and tones, oranges, reds, pinks and yellows. These little beauties stay with us all the way through to October and the more you cut the more they come again.

Digitalis or foxgloves - standing tall and graceful, spires of pink, white and peach, tiny speckled hoods of scent that hide the bees. Their towering stems bring height, elegance and drama to arrangements especially when clustered in mass, while their delicate bell shaped flowers soften that structure with a sense of romance. I love how they draw the eye upwards, adding movement and a natural wildness that feels perfectly suited to this in-between season.

Hesperis or Sweet Rocket - is another May favourite of mine. Airy, frothy, scented and wonderfully wild, it fills arrangements with softness and that unmistakable garden gathered feel that so many of us long for. Mainly grown in white, with pale lilac and blush tones but also available in stronger lilac and purples. It pairs beautifully with the vivid purple and structure of Alliums.

Orlaya Grandiflora - begins to make an appearance too, light, lace-like and ethereal, similar to the hedgerow Cows Parsley but in my humble opinion prettier and subtly more sophisticated. One of those flowers that quietly elevates everything around it.

And then there are the alliums. Architectural, sculptural and completely fascinating.
They bring shape and rhythm into designs at a time when many flowers are still finding their stride. A perfect globe constructed of hundreds of tiny flowers, the closer you get the more intricate details are revealed – mind blown!

Last but not least are the fluffy, ruffled peonies – most peoples favourite. They really do carry with them all the anticipation of early summer. There is something about seeing those tightly closed buds unfurl for the first time each year that never loses its magic, that is of course when they do decide to play and bloom. Often the nemesis of any florist, because who can control the opening of a peony?!

Alongside them come the beautiful supporting players of May:

• frothy aquilegia nodding gently on delicate stems

• clouds of nepeta spilling with soft lilac, blue tones

• sweet williams with their rich velvety colours

• fresh tree foliage’s in the brightest greens of the year, beech, birch, hornbeam, privet and white leaf. The staples for large whimsical installations.

• the very first garden roses beginning to open

• and perhaps most exciting of all… the first of the sweet peas.

Oh, sweet peas.

Few flowers carry nostalgia quite like them. Their scent alone can transport you somewhere else entirely. They feel hopeful to me, like the first whisper that summer is truly on its way.

And perhaps that is what The May Gap really offers us if we are willing to slow down enough to notice it.

Not scarcity, or frustration, not disappointment or lack but anticipation of what’s to come.

An invitation to appreciate what is here now instead of rushing ahead to what comes next.

Because transitional seasons teach us things abundant seasons often cannot.

They teach patience.
Presence.
Expectation.
Trust and Hope

They remind us that growth is still happening even when life doesn’t yet look full. But perhaps most importantly they remind us that there are always reasons to celebrate, snippets of beauty and joy can still be found amidst the waiting.

And when we stop to notice we find more than we expect. Writing this list of what’s in season made me see there is actually a lot more than I first thought and I am sure there is many I have forgotten or not even aware of!

So if you find yourself in a “May Gap” of your own right now, creatively, emotionally, spiritually or professionally, perhaps this is your reminder not to rush through it.

There is beauty here too.

Not loud beauty, not overflowing beauty.

But a tender, quiet beauty. The kind that goes unannounced but still asks us to pay attention.

And just like the garden or the field, perhaps we do not need to force ourselves into full bloom before it is time.

The summer will come.

For now, we gather what this season is offering:
the movement and the small steps forward
the freshness of new beginnings
the softness and light in not carrying all that appears with abundance
the promise of what is still to come.

And honestly?
That feels rather lovely too.

If you have favourites that are in season now and I haven’t mentioned them please do drop the varieties in the comments below, I’m sure many would love to see what else is available to be enjoyed in this transition season.

Snips down for now

Charlie x

Over the coming months we’ll be exploring everything from bridal bouquets and foam-free mechanics to seasonality, your signature style and conversations with British flower growers.

My hope is always to create something that feels both inspiring and genuinely useful — a place where florists & flower lovers alike can grow in confidence, creativity and community.

I’d love you to join us

Charlie x

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Hello everyone! If you couldn’t make the live webinar yesterday afternoon (or if you would like to revisit it more slowly) you can watch the full replay below.

You might like to watch it with a cup of tea, your notebook nearby or even just listen while you potter.

A few things we explored:

• Why pricing feels hard

• The emotional layer

• A walk through the pricing template

• Key challenges we face - seasonal pricing, wholesale vs fixed client pricing, the confidence gap, when bookings aren’t coming in & visibility

• Bringing it all together

• Practical actions

• Questions & conversations

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Not because you don’t care.
And not because you’re not capable.

But because it sits in that uncomfortable space between, confidence, value and experience.

How often do you ask yourself questions like:
Am I charging too much?
What if they don’t book?
Is this actually sustainable?

They don’t just disappear and if we don’t address them, they shape how we price our work, which often means we are pricing from emotion rather than sound business practice.

This month inside The Secret Garden, I’ve created something to support you with that.

A Pricing Guide & a practical excel workbook that gives you a Pricing Template designed to help you:
– understand what you’re really pricing
– build a clear, repeatable pricing approach
– feel more confident in the numbers you’re putting forward

Alongside the guide the spreadsheet template (completely adaptable) will help you:
– price individual pieces
– build full wedding/event quotes
– and collate your flower orders as well as budgets with more clarity

But I also know this isn’t just about a guide.

Pricing is something that often needs to be talked through because this subject often comes up in my mentoring - the sticking points, the doubts, the “what ifs”.

So this month’s live webinar will go deeper into this topic:

• exploring the real challenges around pricing

• answering your questions

• helping you build confidence in your own approach

The webinar is Thursday 30th April at 2pm. All Secret Garden members will be emailed a link to join and it will be posted in the chat too. If you can’t make that time, it will be recorded for replay but I really hope you can join live as I think there are so many questions to explore with this topic.

If pricing is something you’ve been second guessing, worrying about, or even avoiding, this is for you. If you haven’t become a Secret Garden member yet, you can do so just for a month if this is the topic you most need support with. You simply sign up to pay monthly and cancel your subscription at any time.

The guide and template are available to paid subscribers inside The Secret Garden

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noticing my body, my breath, the quiet, unspoken language within…

and I realise just how much has changed.

Hello everyone,

I hope you all had a lovely Easter and perhaps enjoyed a bit of a break. I have certainly enjoyed taking some time out for family and for myself, and it was in that space that the thoughts for this post began to form.

When the initial idea came to me about creating The Flower Field, writing about wellness was something I always knew I wanted to include, not only because it has become such a big part of my own journey, but because I believe it is fundamental to all of our journeys.

As a creative business owner and mother, looking after myself always seemed to sit at the bottom of a long list of things - or people - I needed to take care of first.

So when I hit a season of burnout, with some pretty extreme physical effects, I had no choice but to stop.

To be still.

And to finally listen to my body.

I’m sure many of you are familiar with the saying,
“Love your neighbour…”

But for a long time, I missed the ending:

“…as yourself.”

Whether I overlooked it, misunderstood it, or simply chose to ignore it, I don’t know, but loving others became my focus, my priority.

What God gently showed me during that burnout season…was that the verse was never meant to exclude me.

Matthew 22:39 “Love your neighbour as yourself.”
Mark 12:31 “The second is this “Love your neighbour as yourself. There is no commandment greater than these.”

If I couldn’t show kindness, compassion and grace to myself…how could I continue to offer that to those around me?

All of a sudden, I was forced to prioritise myself. Because if I didn’t, I could no longer care for my family, and I certainly couldn’t serve my clients.

I realised something I had never fully acknowledged before:

I was the most important one on the list that required tending.

And my hope in sharing what I have learnt is that I can gently encourage you to do the same, to carve out time for yourself, so that you are strengthened for whatever your life is calling you towards.

Looking back, I can see more clearly why I reached burnout.

I always pushed through.

Perfectionism, being the “good girl”, the high achiever, the people pleaser…often meant I chose to hustle over being still.

The never-ending to-do lists, the “if I just do this, everything will be okay” narrative,
kept me on a treadmill of busyness - always doing more, rarely being.

And even when I stopped… I didn’t really rest.

My body was tense.
My mind was racing.
And my breath?

I don’t think I noticed it at all.

Alongside this, I wore what I now recognise as a “focus on the positive” lens.

Which sounds good… but for me, it meant pushing down anything that felt heavy.

Frustration.
Anger.
Anxiety.

Because who has time to feel those things?

I tried to ignore them.

I didn’t realise then… that they were meant to be felt.

And at the time, I thought looking after myself looked like:

Going for a run.
Having a long bath.
Booking the occasional massage.

Or, at its worst… collapsing on the sofa after a wedding with a large G&T and a massive bag of crisps…my “reward” for back-breaking, exhausting work.

I also believed that being a joy seeker, a peace maker, always looking on the bright side…was the most valuable way to be.

But I’ve come to understand something different.

In ignoring frustration, anger, and anxiety…

they don’t disappear.

They simply show up in the body, in a much louder way that can no longer be ignored.

These emotions are not problems to fix.

They are invitations to feel, to acknowledge and to release.

Just like joy, love, peace and compassion…they are meant to move through us.

This Easter break my husband and I took a few days away.

To feel some sun on our faces, to step away from the rhythm of daily life and simply be.

I used to think a holiday was enough to refresh and restore me.

But I’ve learnt that while new scenery is wonderful…it doesn’t allow me to escape what I’m carrying.

I have to create space for that too.

It is often in those quieter moments away that I find the headspace to process what’s been building.

And I’m reminded again…

just how much I need to give myself that time.

One of the things I’ve come to understand about my body is that it has developed its own way of communicating with me.

When emotions are stuck, they often show up as physical pain.

For me, that looks like sciatica, tension in my glutes, and at its worst - crippling back pain.

And what fascinates me…is how long it will nudge me before I finally listen.

That pathway of pushing through is still more familiar, more well-trodden, than the healing one I’m learning to walk.

I am very much still on this journey.

So when we arrived on holiday, and that familiar pain flared again, I knew what I needed to do first.

Not ignore it.

Not push through.

But give myself space to feel whatever I had been holding onto.

This is where the connection between mind, body and soul has become so important for me.

Sometimes I know exactly what I’m holding.

Sometimes I don’t.

But over time, I’ve learnt to trust that God will gently bring it to the surface when I create the space.

There are many tools I’ve discovered over the past few years that have helped me understand, process, release and renew.

And I would love to share more of them with you over the coming months.

But today, I want to begin with one of the practices I return to most often:

Breathwork and Somatic exercises.

Over time, I’ve been learning to listen in a different way - not just through my thoughts, or what is on my heart…but through my body.

Somatic simply means “of the body.”

It is the practice of listening to the quiet language of our body, the sensations, the tension, the breath and allowing what we’re holding, emotionally and physically,
to gently move through us.

At the heart of this practice are gentle invitations:

• To take care of yourself and your needs

• To listen to the feedback your body is giving you

• To approach it all with curiosity, kindness and self-compassion

What does this look like in practice?

A little time lapse of a 20min practice I did on holiday - I came across Manuela Mitevova on YouTube and she has loads of small practices specifically for releasing certain emotions - you can explore them here

Sometimes it is as simple as placing a hand on my heart.

Or gently stroking the tops of my arms.

Or holding myself in a quiet, reassuring hug.

Or wrapping myself in a blanket and having a nurturing cup of tea, quietly taking a moment to be.

Or sometimes it’s a more active release, I need to move and dance or shake it out.

These small actions gently signal to my brain that I am safe, activating the body’s natural calming response and allowing my nervous system to settle.

What I didn’t realise before is that emotions carry physical energy.

And when they are not released, that energy stays stored in the body - even though it was never designed to stay there.

Somatic practices allow the mind to connect with the emotion, and the body to feel it at the same time…creating space for it to move through.

If you watch animals after a stressful situation, they instinctively shake, releasing excess energy.

I’ve come to believe our bodies are designed to do the same.

And sometimes, when I’ve practiced these exercises, my body has done exactly that.

Other times, it has shown up as tears.

Tears I used to hold back.

Tears I thought made me weak.

But now I understand them differently.

As release.
As movement.
As something deeply needed.

Like a waterfall energy flowing out of the body.

It never ceases to amaze me how thoughtfully we have been designed. That God knew our bodies would need an inbuilt physical release - tears - and then promise us that through that release joy will follow.

That even in our overwhelm, there is a way through.

Psalm 126 — “Those who sow with tears will reap with songs of joy.”

Breath is a big part of this for me.

It connects me back to the present moment.

It anchors me.

Our breath is so fundamental to our existence, yet it happens so naturally we rarely notice it.

And yet, without it, we don’t exist.

When I feel anxious or overwhelmed, I return to something simple.

A hand on my heart, or my stomach, where I often feel the tension.

A slow inhale for four.

A longer exhale for six.

Sometimes accompanied by a sigh… or even an “arrrrggghhhh” especially when I’m alone in the car!

I breathe into the place I feel the tension.

And I breathe out whatever I’m holding.

At times, I take this a step further with what I’ve learnt as a breath prayer.

Inhaling God’s peace…
His love…
His protection…

And exhaling the fear, the worry, the heaviness.

For me, this is a very real act of handing over what I’m carrying.

This is by no means a quick fix.

Just gentle practices that have helped me:

To create space
To be present
To find peace
To meet myself with compassion
To begin, slowly, to love myself

I am still learning this.

Still unlearning the habit of pushing through.

Still choosing to tend to myself.

And perhaps that’s where this begins…

Not in getting it right.

But in simply noticing.

And making a little space.

Over the coming weeks, I would love to share more of what I’ve been learning, the practices, the rhythms, the small moments that have helped me come back to myself.

My hope is not that you do all of it.

But that you find one small thing…that helps you begin to tend to yourself too.

Snips down for now

Charlie x

If you feel drawn to explore this work more deeply, I have learnt so much from others along my journey, some in person and some from afar. I’ve shared a few of those below in case it’s helpful for you too.

Finding Balance with Jasmine Instagram link

Nurture & Shine - Suzannah Instagram Link

The Faith Filled Therapist - Jo Instagram link she also has a great Substack called The Faith Filled Collective

Manuela Mitevova - Instagram link

Hello everyone! If you couldn’t make the live webinar last night (or if you would like to revisit it more slowly) you can watch the full replay below. This area will become our webinar replay library

You might like to watch it with a cup of tea, your notebook nearby or even just listen while you potter.

A few things we explored:

• Visibility

• Trust

• Clarity

• Consi…

Read more

Easter is one of those occasions where family and friends gather around a table, share a meal, and celebrate new beginnings.

There is something about this season that always draws me in, perhaps it’s the colours, the first spring flowers beginning to appear, or simply the freshness in the air that speaks of hope and joy.

Recently, I watched season five of The Chosen (a historical drama based on the life of Jesus and those who knew Him), and I found myself completely captivated by the way the table was prepared for the Last Supper.

It wasn’t just a ritual or a ceremony, it was an expression of love.

That really stayed with me.

Because for me, creating a table is never just about how it looks. It’s about how it feels to gather around it. It’s about creating a space that quietly tells people: you are welcome here, you are loved.

(My husband, on the other hand, is all about the food — so between us, we make quite the hosting team 😊 Now if only we could recruit children who enjoy clearing up, we’d have the full package…)

This year, I decided to lay my Easter table ahead of time so I could share it with you, and perhaps offer a little inspiration as you prepare for your own gatherings over the coming weekend.

I’ve used a mixture of fresh cut flowers, mostly gathered from the garden with a few additions, alongside potted bulbs, and those bright, zingy green touches of early spring foliage.

My garden isn’t overflowing just yet, but it’s amazing how much you can find when you slow down and really go looking.

For me, a beautiful table-scape is all about layers.

Not just within the flowers themselves, but in the details, candles, napkins, placemats, those small elements that soften the space and bring everything together.

I don’t switch out my crockery or cutlery with the seasons, but I do love introducing seasonal touches through more affordable pieces like linens and candles. It’s often these small changes that make the biggest difference and can really bring a colour scheme together.

When it comes to the flowers, I approach them in much the same way.

I like to layer arrangements with different shapes, heights, and textures so the eye can move gently across the table. One thing I’m always mindful of is keeping arrangements low enough so guests can still see and connect with one another easily, because that, after all, is the whole point.

For this table-scape, I’ve used a combination of mechanics, pin frogs, chicken wire, and small vessels filled with potted bulbs and moss.

Simple terracotta pots work beautifully, but you could just as easily use vintage teacups, or even wrap bulbs in moss and tie them with string to place on small saucers.

I’ve carefully emptied some eggshells, each holding a tiny Muscari bulb. I have then used some small muffin cases I had filled with moss to hold the egg shells. It’s often these smaller details that bring everything together and make the table feel considered and special.

For the main arrangements, I’ve used small ceramic bowls and vintage coupe glasses, supported with chicken wire and pin frogs.

These aren’t the easiest arrangements to create, they require a little more intention and thought, but there are some simple techniques that make them feel much more approachable once you understand the basics.

I’ve created a couple of 10 minute, step-by-step video tutorials to guide you through this part of the design and show you exactly how I bring everything together.

These are available inside The Secret Garden

There’s something really special about understanding how a table comes together, not just placing the elements, but knowing why they work.

In the Secret Garden, I’ll walk you through the exact techniques I’ve used to create these arrangements, step by step, so you can recreate them in your own way at home. If you feel drawn to go a little deeper and learn the techniques behind the table, you’re so welcome to join us there. Membership is £15 a month, and you are free to sign up for just the month to have a peek into what is growing there. Explore at your own pace no pressure, just gentle encouragement and learning.

Read more

The flowers themselves…
your style…
pricing…
how to actually get bookings…
and underneath it all, the quiet question of “am I doing this right?”

I remember that feeling so well.

And if I’m honest, many of the things that now feel natural to me took years to really understand, not because they were complicated, but because no one had gently laid them out in a simple, clear way.

So I wanted to create something for you that does exactly that.

Read more

We created some new beds in our garden in the autumn last year. The garden is no longer a football pitch or somewhere I needed to keep low maintenance so the children wouldn’t ruin it. Because all the planting was done at the end of last year, we didn’t really get to see what they would become, there was no colour, no fullness, nothing yet to appreciate in terms of how it would eventually look.

To say that I have been eagerly awaiting spring and signs of growth is an understatement.

And now, each morning as I wander with my coffee, I can’t quite believe how quickly things are sprouting and shooting. I find myself crouching down, looking closely, noticing every tiny sign of life. I almost can’t wait to see it all in full bloom.

But at the same time, I notice something else rising in me.

I find myself not only wanting to get to the end point, but also questioning…
Do we need more plants?
There are big gaps, should I be filling them?
Have we done enough to create the garden I see in my mind’s eye?

And the funny thing is, from a distance, these beds still look quite bare. You wouldn’t necessarily stop and admire them yet. But up close, there is so much happening - tiny shoots, new life, roots establishing themselves beneath the surface where no one can see.

And isn’t that so often the case in our life too?

The most important growth is happening quietly, beneath the surface, long before it ever looks impressive on the outside.

Because here’s the thing, I have found myself asking the exact same questions about my work.

I am in a season of starting something new, and I have felt that pull to rush ahead…
to set expectations based on what I can see it becoming, rather than what it actually is right now.

I see this so often in the people I mentor too - those starting new ventures, carrying very real worries and frustrations around bookings, clients, followers. All such valid concerns, especially when profitability sits right at the forefront of any business.

But here’s what landed as I stood watching the garden grow…

These early days, these small beginnings, are not a time to be frustrated, or full of worry or doubt.

They are to be enjoyed just as much as the end result.

Do not despise these small beginnings, for the LORD rejoices to see the work begin. Zech 4:10

There is something about the preparation and the learning we move through in these early days - whether it’s a new business, a new project, a new garden, a new baby, a new venture - that actually sets us up for what is to come.

And yet, we so often try to rush past this part.

I am having to gently remind myself not to fill every gap too quickly.
To trust what I’ve already planted.
To give it space to grow into what it’s meant to become.

Because sometimes, when we overfill too soon, we don’t leave room for what was planted with intention to truly flourish.

It’s also the stage where comparison can creep in so easily - looking at other gardens already in full bloom, other businesses that seem established and abundant.

But they didn’t skip this part.
They just stayed long enough in their own season of small beginnings to see it through.

What if, instead of asking “is this enough yet?”, we asked “am I tending well to what I already have?”

The few clients.
The handful of followers.
The first small opportunities.

Because how we care for the small often determines what we’re trusted with next.

There is also a pace to growth that simply can’t be rushed. No amount of checking, digging or second-guessing will make those shoots grow faster.

And perhaps the same is true for us.

This slower pace isn’t something to fix, it’s something to honour.

Maybe it’s not that there isn’t enough yet…
Maybe it’s simply that this is the very beginning.

And beginnings are meant to feel like this, a little sparse, a little uncertain, but full of quiet potential.

These are the days where we are filled with the most passion, fire, enthusiasm and energy - and that should be embraced. Use that energy to nurture the few well, because this is what lays the foundation for what will grow.

These are the days, the moments, where we sow into the dream.

And part of that sowing involves patience. Waiting. Trusting.

Because as with anything we have to wait for, the appreciation and value we receive when it finally comes is so much greater than if we got it all straight away.

So if you find yourself in a season that feels small…

With more questions than answers.
More space than fullness.
More hope than evidence.

Don’t rush past it.

Tend it.
Notice it.
Trust what you’ve planted.

Because one day, you will look back and realise, this is where it all began.

If this is the season you find yourself in…
The small beginnings, the questions, the quiet tending.

I’ve created a space for you.

The Secret Garden is where we nurture these early stages together, with gentle guidance, creative support and honest conversations about what it really looks like to grow something from the ground up. I share monthly tutorials & webinars, answer your questions and support you not just creatively but in the reality of growing a business too.

A place to be encouraged, guided and reminded that you’re not behind - you are just beginning.

You don’t have to rush it on your own.

You can join us here

Subscribe now

Snips down for now

Charlie x