‘MY WREATHS ARE INSPIRED BY THE HEDGEROWS AND GLORIOUS COUNTRYSIDE WHERE I LIVE’
It’s not hard to see where Layla Robinson’s creative flair for flowers comes from.
Her home, just off the Offa’s Dyke path on the Radnorshire/herefordshire border is surrounded by an awe-inspiring landscape full of beautiful foliage, which she collects for her creations. ‘It’s where I feel my happiest – walking along the quiet roads or hilltops with my husband Rob and our three girls Matilda, 10, Marigold, eight, and Meredith, three, picking through the hedgerow for interesting grasses, berries and foliage.’
Layla has always loved flowers and nature, even as a child, having been raised in the Golden Valley in Herefordshire, renowned for its stunning landscape. That passion carried through to adulthood when she studied amenity horticulture at Pershore College of Horticulture and also went on to do an apprenticeship in landscape design and management while working as ground staff.
She used these new skills to set up her first business, working as head gardener and designer for a number of country houses in the Herefordshire area, including a 14thcentury farmhouse, Wellbrook Manor, in Peterchurch, and a Georgian property, Winforton House, in Hay-on-wye.
The experience of working for country estates led her to start her first independent business venture, Darling Buds of Hay, a locally-grown floristry enterprise specialising in weddings, events and arrangements to order. With the help of Rob, Layla set up two polytunnels in her garden so she could start growing the flowers for the business. ‘Using homegrown stems meant that the business was dictated by the seasons,’ says Layla. ‘So it thrived in the warmer months and then became quieter and more limiting in the winter months.’
It was when she was asked to do a winter wedding for some friends that the idea of a wreath business developed. ‘I had to think outside of the box as I can’t grow many flowers at that time of year,’ she says. ‘So I had to get creative with the foliage available to me in local hedgerows and fields.’
Layla produced a wild, twiggy garland for the chapel door and a heart-shaped wreath to display inside, which the bride kept as a memento of the wedding. It then dawned »
on Layla that her business could thrive all year round if she diversified to make longlasting natural wreaths using dried flowers and foliage, too. It was just a matter of getting organised and planning ahead to make it a success, so she always had enough dried flowers to last the colder months.
The flowers are sown in the spring, then cut throughout the summer and autumn and stored in a drying cupboard. Willow and birch, which Layla uses for the base of the wreaths, is picked after the leaves drop just before the hedge cutter destroys it. ‘I have been known to be cutting willow whips with the hedge cutter close behind me, working as rapidly as I can before it catches up,’ she says. Other materials found on hilltops and hedgerows are picked depending on how the season has gone, because what’s available, and when, can vary from year to year in the wild.
Layla makes the willow frames first, and then adds layers of foliage and flowers tailored to suit the client’s personality. It’s this bespoke touch that people love most about her work.
The stone barn opposite Layla’s home and the covered veranda in front of the house are where she makes her creations. ‘The light is best here and there’s plenty of space to spread out everything I need,’ she says. During busy months, the walls of her home are covered in her wreaths as she has to keep them dry until they go out for delivery. As each one is unique, the majority of them are bespoke commissions.
‘Probably the most important thing I’ve learnt so far is that the process takes time, and I have to be sure to factor that into the pricing,’ says Layla. She has to prepare a year in advance to plant all the bulbs and sow all the seeds she needs to experiment with new ideas. The longevity of the wreaths is an important factor in her pricing and business model, too. Layla stresses to her customers that they are more like works of art rather than disposable decorations.
A lot of Layla’s custom comes through word of mouth and she promotes her work through her social media channels, too, which are gradually growing and becoming more successful. She also showcases the wreaths in the Majestic Bus, a converted Thirties bus that Layla and Rob rent out to holidaymakers.
Running her own business has made it easier for Layla to bring up her three children alongside her work. ‘It’s such a pleasure working from home and doing something I really enjoy,’ she says. ‘The stages of the process provide plenty of variety and, as each wreath is bespoke,
I am able to try out new ideas and challenge myself in different ways with every one.’