Sustainability + Ethics

Caring for the planet is hot! Our Mumma Earth is important to us here at Bee’s Blossoms, and is evident in the way my business is run.  I strive to bring you divine blooms which don't cost our environment.

 

Sustainable Wrapping 

I have carefully curated the packaging I send my beautiful blooms out in, and my packaging is reflective of my love for the Earth! I pride ourselves in using:

- Compostable twine to tie your blooms together 

- An eco-friendly/compostable water bag instead of one use plastic cello 

- Recycled kraft paper to wrap your blooms up 

- Cellulose plant based sticky tape instead of plastic tape

- Recycled paper + eco friendly ink for my business cards & care cards 

- A reusable oh-so-cute tiny peg, rather than a one-use staple to attach the care cards

- A beautiful ribbon to tie around each bunch of florals which is specifically cut long enough so it can be repurposed

 

Conscious Waste Disposal

- I source and buy the flowers for each order after you have made your purchase, to ensure I only provide fresh, high quality blooms with minimal waste

- Any leftover flowers are loved by me and taken home, given to my sweet mum to enjoy, used for petals, or given to a local Palm Beach artist to press & experiment with natural flower dyes for clothing

- Flower petals are collected for confetti 

- My foliage scraps and green waste go into a green waste bin, as well as my organic compost & worm farm, to be made into rich fertiliser for our garden (watch this space, organic worm wee coming soon!)

- My soft plastics are put into a separate tub and returned to a recycling depot to be repurposed (on hold atm :((( ) 

- The extra bits and bobs are donated to a local school’s art department, where the students turn strange things the average person finds purposeless (e.g. bottle lids, twine spools), into amazing art! Rad.

 

Weddings + Events

- Weddings encourage a lot of consumerism, and I am doing my best to be conscious when creating designs: 

- All the confetti I use is made out of rice paper and with quick hose of water *voila* it has disappeared! 

- Chicken wire mechanics for alllll tablecentres, no exceptions! 

- The chicken wire I use in my designs is majority coated, meaning I get to reuse it again and again! Woohoo! 

- I love working with the seasons (just like fruit, flowers have seasons too!) and working with organic, fun + whimsy stems that are exclusive to each month / season, rather than doing a 'copy & paste' design like a lot of bigger flower companies with imported Columbian reflexed roses every week etc. By sourcing local, this means the flowers have travelled less km (fresher), it helps to cut back emissions from overseas transport (better for the environment) and also I get to support local growers & flower farmers at the same time!

- I have invested in a line of ethically made ceramics + candle holders, to ensure they last me many moons!

- Buttonholes are boxed in cardboard boxes not plastic boxes, and the bouquets are wrapped with a little bowl of water, rather than a 1 use plastic cello wrap 

- All the silks to wrap the bouquets are hand dyed

- I do use the big 'O' (oasis foam) very occasionally, however, I am slowly eliminating it completely, and opting for designs which uses it as little as possible! Woohoo! I also dabble in using Agrawool too! You can read more about my efforts & foam use on my Instagram page. 

- All the flowers from each wedding the couple is more than welcome to take home, and also reuse from the ceremony to the reception, meaning less waste

 

Supporting Locals

- I strive to support local Australian growers & suppliers whenever possible, including picking up directly from the growers at their farms and even hand cutting the blooms myself! Can't get fresher than that!  

- This means I also aim to provide flowers which are in season. Lucky for us, Australia has a beautiful variety of incredible and diverse blooms all year round.

- Did you know local flowers are usually more expensive than imports?  But that doesn’t matter to me.  It won’t, ever. 

 

 My Sponsor Children

- I don't have an offical '1% to non-profit charities' like some companies do, however I have something a bit more personal: 

- By supporting my business & buying my beautiful blooms, I am able to pass on my love & gratitude to assisting gorgeous children across the globe currently living in poverty, to live a healthy & fulfilling life. 

- I am currently sponsor Bleydis, the sweetest 6 year old girl who lives in Columbia, with the hope to sponsor more in the future.

- By sponsoring Bleydis, I am able to give her access to life-changing benefits, like medical care, educational support, life skills and job training before graduation. 

 

Donations

I pride myself on being able to donate and support other businesses in our community & close to my heart as I believe flowers really do bring people together.  Recently, I: 

- Donated x4 floral tablecentre arrangements for the 'Children's Memory Day' at the Gold Coast University Hospital.  This is a day for families to gather to honour their child who passed away in the GCUH hospital. I was so honoured to be a part of a day many of these families will always hold close to their heart. 

- Donated a voucher to the Robina Roos Football Club which was raffled in their fundraising efforts, to improve their club facilities & create change rooms which are more accomodating to women.   

- Donated a voucher to Qendo, a not for profit who provide support, education and awareness for anyone affected by endometriosis, adenomyosis, PCOS or infertility across Australia and New Zealand, for their annual gala “Not Another Bloody Fundraiser” to raise awareness and funds for chronic illness sufferers.

 

Various financial donations throughout the year to: 

Women of Colour | 'We exist to champion Australia's women of colour through programs of education, community support initiatives, and advocacy work.' 

Cancer Council Queensland | 'We are dedicated to improving quality of life for people living with cancer, through research, patient care, prevention and early detection.'

As well as a continuous weekly financial donation to:   Amnesty International | 'In Australia and across the globe, we bring torturers to justice, change oppressive laws and free people jailed for voicing their opinion.'

 

I recognise that I may do things a little differently, and it mightn’t be like your standard florist, but I think having strong environmental ethics and a stand for sustainability is more important. This shouldn’t be praised either – it should be standard for businesses to be aware of their footprint.  

I understand that I am still growing and learning, but I hope you appreciate the sustainable choices I am currently making as a business to care for our beautiful Earth. For suggestions, comments or enquiries please let me know!

Thank you for following along on this journey!