A Flower Social at 3 Porch Farm

As growing season wanes in the flower fields of Georgia's 3 Porch Farm, owner Mandy O’Shea and her husband Steve invited friends to cut the last blooms of the season before frost arrived. 3 Porch Farm is also home to Mandy's floral design studio, Moonflower, so the day became a "flower social," where guests arranged their newly-cut blooms then photographed the results. Lucky for us, the guest list included some friends of terrain—Rebecca Wood, Kristen Bach, and Rinne Allen of Beauty Everyday. We caught up with Rinne after the social to hear more about this inspiring day.

Rinne says, "We had great fun at Mandy’s farm! The day was a little drizzly, but that didn’t hold us back. Mandy set up sweet little flower-arranging stations on old bee boxes in one of the farm’s greenhouses. We did lots of arranging, then photographed our creations against backdrops set up by Mandy and our friend Rebecca. Kristen made plaster casts of flowers throughout the day. Afterward, we had a great potluck meal.

“Mandy’s garden was still full of flowers—dahlias, zinnias, mums, coreopsis, and even a few roses. There was also an abundance of fall leaves and pods from blackberries, lilys, echinacea, and cotton. I especially loved the seedpods and cotton—they’re overlooked ingredients that add a lot of texture to fall bouquets. I made two arrangements. The first featured fall shades of cinnamon and coral, with lots of full-bodied dahlias, dark echinacea seedheads, and crinkly fall leaves. For the second, I tried something more sculptural, weaving thin branches with maple leaves and just a few dahlias for a pop of light.

“This is the first time we’ve hosted a flower social with such a large group, and we’d definitely do it again! If you don’t have as many flowers as Mandy, encourage guests to cut some blooms from their gardens or pick up a few stems at the market for a ‘flower potluck.’ We all brought some favorite vases to share, too. Our party included experienced arrangers and novices alike—everyone tried something new! Set up a variety of backdrops to photograph your completed bouquets; we mixed it up with natural wood walls, patterned cloth, and solids. Having a shared meal made for a perfect ending to the day.”

Images courtesy of Rinne Allen. Flowers provided by Moonflower Design.