A FLORIST from Wokingham is set to take her floral artistry skills to the masses as she gets ready to compete in a national competition.
Kate Thomas, who runs Funky Flowers in London Road, is set to represent the Surrey branch of the National Association of Flower Arranging Societies (NAFAS) at their Designer of the Year competition in Blackpool next month.
Kate, who is a member of the Aldershot Floral Design Club, demonstrates her flower arranging skills regularly at events around Wokingham, as well as providing stunning displays for private clients and events.
She told The Wokingham Paper: “This will be the first time I’ve competed in the NAFAS show, I wanted to do it last year but I had so much else going on.
“This year, the Surrey branch asked me to compete for them, and I was honoured to even be asked.
“Floristry and flower arranging are completely different arts. With floristry, you are working with a client, with their designs in mind, and within a budget, whereas with flower arranging you are more free to be creative and have a play.
“I demonstrate around Wokingham, and have judged the Wokingham Horticultural Association’s shows in the past, but taking part in a national competition is a big deal.
“I do it for the enjoyment of arranging and exhibiting, not to win, although that would of course be really lovely. Some of the ladies who will be there are extremely talented at what they do, it will be really exciting to see their designs and what they come up with.”
The three-day event, which takes place between November 9 and 11, will feature representatives from each of the 21 NAFAS branches from across the country, competing in three rounds.
The first round will see every representative design three displays around the theme ‘The World of Pantomime’, including a bouquet for a pantomime character, a welcome design for the theatre foyer, and a hanging design.
Kate said: “I have chosen which pantomime I want to do, but I don’t want to give it away!
“It will be pressured, having a time limit as well as having members of the public watching you work, it will be very different to what I’m used to.”
Everyone gets five hours to create their three pieces, and then the 10 ‘winners’ go through to stage two, and then five will go through to the final stage before the overall champion is announced on the final day.
Kate said: “I’m really looking forward to it, regardless of how I do I am going to have fun and catch up with some friends from other branches.
“With shows like this, you don’t compete to win, you compete because you enjoy arranging and you love flowers, which is what I do!”
To find out more about the NAFAS Designer of the Year competition visit festiveflowerfoodshow.co.uk/nafas-designer-of-the-year.
