Meet Lauren Fernandez

Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Lauren Fernandez. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Lauren , first a big thank you for taking the time to share your thoughts and insights with us today. I’m sure many of our readers will benefit from your wisdom, and one of the areas where we think your insight might be most helpful is related to imposter syndrome. Imposter syndrome is holding so many people back from reaching their true and highest potential and so we’d love to hear about your journey and how you overcame imposter syndrome.

Ooo the dreaded imposter syndrome, this is something that was really hard to overcome and still gets me from time to time. I taught elementary school for about 10 years before switching careers to become a florist. I definitely had that mindset of needing to do what I went to school for, and having my bachelors and masters in education, I felt that this was my forever path. When I started dipping my toes into the floral world, I started small. I interned, cleaning stems and sweeping floors, then started managing a floral studio, and eventually got some design experience during my down time with leftover flowers. Because I had no formal training, I didn’t have much confidence in my early creations. I tried to copy what I saw other designers do, which was helpful to learn about structure and mechanics, but stifled my creativity. I started going to the flower market and choosing flowers I really loved, funky and quirky ones you don’t see very often. I experimented with creating lots of texture and movement in my designs, taking my time with the flowers and focusing on their natural curves to create unique shapes. I posted a few on instagram and surprisingly got a lot of wonderful feedback. I used these images as the base of my portfolio, sharing them with companies I wanted to freelance for and potential clients. This is when I began to think of myself as a florist, focusing on the product I wanted to use to create something unique. There are so many talented florists out there, so it’s still hard for me not to compare myself. But focusing in on my style always resets my mind and channels creativity.

Appreciate the insights and wisdom. Before we dig deeper and ask you about the skills that matter and more, maybe you can tell our readers about yourself?

I started Yellow Bow Florals in 2017 to just spread love and joy through flowers. I had no idea where it was going to take me, but I really loved the feeling of giving flowers and designing something special for an event. Yellow Bow’s designs were primarily a la carte and corporate in the early years, but after the pandemic, our focus switched to weddings. There was a huge need for wedding florists in NYC in 2021, so we were honored to become a part of so many couple’s love stories. It was during this time I found my niche. I truly love the experience of working with couples to bring their wedding visions to life. I love getting to know them so that I can draw inspiration from their personalities and love stories. I love the energy during planning, the excitement in picking out flowers and vases and creating mood boards to reflect a vibe. I love showing couples their flowers on wedding day, seeing them light up because they are finally seeing the vision spring to life. I take so much pride in the client experience I provide. I focus on every detail while making it fun and easy because wedding planning can feel really overwhelming. I let my couples know I’m there with them every step of the way, giving feedback and advice throughout our planning together. It’s my priority that my clients feel supported and excited about their flowers, and I can proudly say our process fosters that.

If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?

I think the three main qualities that allowed me to succeed are confidence, perseverance, and resiliency. It takes a lot of courage to switch careers, and it absolutely wasn’t an easy task, but I took that leap of faith because I had some level of confidence that I could learn a new skill. Perseverance came in when I had the skills, but I needed to make myself known. I pushed myself to make new connections and get my name out there in the world of florists, as overwhelming as it was. Resiliency surfaced when I started hearing “no” more frequently. After working so many hours on proposals and estimates, getting rejected or ghosted by potential clients was never an easy thing to swallow, but if it’s not meant to be, it’s just not and you have to move on. The best advice I can give is to just keep going, even if you don’t feel like it’s working. The alternative is stopping, and that won’t get you anywhere. All the little baby steps add up to success, so just give yourself some time and grace and keep going with the small successes.

We’ve all got limited resources, time, energy, focus etc – so if you had to choose between going all in on your strengths or working on areas where you aren’t as strong, what would you choose?

While I do think it is important to play to our strengths, I feel that growth comes from digging into areas we’re not so confident in. When you start getting into unfamiliar territory, your brain shifts into new ways of thinking and problem solving, and you inherently learn something about yourself, and maybe even discover a new skill. In florals, there is always a problem solving component with design. Flowers are living things that are somewhat delicate, so that comes with its challenges. Sometimes the same flower can have a different size or resiliency depending on the season, so you have to roll with however they show up. This challenges me to figure out new mechanics, new ways to design, and even alternative flowers to experiment with when a substitution is needed. I remember when I started designing with frog pins, I was so discouraged. I could not get them to look balanced and each one took forever to make. Being that this is a popular look right now, lots of my clients were asking for it. Because it was a new skill for me that I wasn’t confident in, it was holding me back from offering this to clients. So with much practice (and continuing practice), I can now offer that style. I grew my skills as a designer, but also expanded my portfolio for my clients, which is a win win for me.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://yellowbowflorals.com
• Instagram: @yellowbowflorals

Image Credits

Cassandra Daye Photography