Moving In The Right Direction Is More Important Than Arriving.

Earlier this spring, our mutual friend Nicole Kreuz from Bente Vintage connected Hilary Atamian and I. It was not until late May of this year though when we actually met in person for the first time. Grace Garden held its farm party where Rodina Botanicals participated as one of the local vendors. Since then, Hilary and I discovered that we have a number of things in common, including love of flowers, gardening, herbs, nature, healthy and sustainable living, bees, and our families.

It was only natural that we decided to partner up this summer. We are thrilled to share that Grace Gardens is now one of our local suppliers of herbs for our herb infused skincare.

Anita: What is Grace Gardens floral? Is there a special meaning behind the name of your company?

As a recovering perfectionist, grace is a word I use as a reminder to “give myself grace”, to treat myself with kindness, understanding, and forgiveness, especially when I don’t meet my own expectations. If I was to start a new business and learn new skills I knew I would need “grace” to be at the forefront of my mind. I would need the reminder that it’s okay to make mistakes, it’s human nature. When I remember to give myself grace, I choose to learn from my mistakes and keep moving forward.

Anita: How, and why did you start Grace Gardens floral? And also why did you decide to become a flower farmer?

Hilary: When we moved to Barrington Hills in 2020, we fell in love with the land and nature surrounding our home. I knew right away that we had a perfect space for growing the garden of my dreams. Gardening has always been a passion of mine and I was inspired by the growing number of small-scale flower farmers popping up across the country. For example, Floret out of Washington state. I absolutely love what they are up to and they helped me come to the realization that flower farming was something that I could actually be successful at. That vision coupled with my experience creating flower bars sparked our interest in creating Grace Gardens.

Anita: I absolutely love your fun mint green vintage flower truck that is an essential part of Grace Gardens floral as it enables you to bring your beautiful organically grown flowers to the community whether it be bridal showers, baby showers, corporate events and parties.

What I also enjoy and had a pleasure to experience is your flower bar. What a great idea where everyone can express their creativity and individuality and create their own unique floral creation!

How did these come about?

Hilary: Actually, my husband found our 1962 Ford Econoline truck and knew it needed to be a part of our business plan. It was so incredibly thoughtful of him to see what I was building, see my vision, then come to me with the idea of a flower truck to add to our business concept.

Shortly after we purchased the truck I worked with Belknap Auto Body and Hunzinger Williams Awning and Canopy to create the custom back end made to hold our flowers and protect them while in transit. It was truly a dream come true! The truck is so much fun to take to events. It adds a unique flair and puts a smile on everyone's face. It’s also the perfect backdrop for photos!

Pulling a “flower bar” together as a way to teach people how to make arrangements was something I had been doing off and on for quite some time. My first “flower bar” was for our wedding. Because we committed to a DIY wedding, I grew and ordered all the flowers for the tablescapes, bridal bouquets and boutonnieres. The day before our wedding we gathered our friends and family, with my instruction and their willingness to get creative, they helped us put everything together. The time spent in collaboration before our big day was magical. Everyone had a great time and got to know each other a little better while working on a common goal. Less than a year later I did the same process for my sister-in-law and then it just caught on. The flower bar experience was born. (Well I didn’t invent it but it has become a thing!)

Anita: What type of flowers do you usually grow? And what is your typical growing season?

Hilary: All the flowers I grow are specifically grown for cut flowers. Meaning they are meant to be displayed in arrangements and enjoyed in one's home or for special events. All of these varieties are grown from seed in our basement or from bulbs planted in the Fall.

We also have a wide variety of native plants and ornamental perennials on our property which I love to include in our flower bars.

I am constantly learning about which varieties grow well in our area, which flowers I like working with, and which stems last nicely as cut flowers. So our list is ever changing- within each season too! Our growing season usually starts around April with the last frost and ends in October with the first frost. It’s quite a short growing window but there are many ways to get a head start and I have ideas about continuing my work even after the weather turns cold.

People often ask me what my favorite flower is and I always have a hard time answering that question. It’s hard to choose because it seems like I have a new favorite every week! If pressed, I might say that Dahlias, Snapdragons, Cosmos, and Amaranthus are a few of my favorites right now. I’m also newly in love with Gladiolus and was infatuated with the Tulips I grew in the Spring.

Anita: If someone is interested in getting fresh bouquets of flowers on regular basis, do you offer flower subscription?

Hilary: We offer a weekly bouquet subscription for the summer and for the fall each one is six weeks long.

Each season’s subscription offers a weekly bouquet cut fresh from our flower farm, hand tied, and wrapped, perfect for displaying in your home or gifting. Folks can check out our Shopify page for more information or send me a DM message on Instagram.

Anita: I know that you strive to grow your flowers following organic practices as much as possible. What does that mean exactly and how is it different from conventionally grown flowers?

Hilary: I can’t say that our flowers are Organic. To make an organic claim on our flowers and plants, would mean going through an intense organic certification process which we have not yet done and aren’t even sure it would be worth it. However, we can say that we do our absolute best to follow organic growing practices. For example, we utilize our own compost and buy organic soil mixes when possible. We never use pesticides or chemicals on our flowers. Instead we use beneficial insects and physical barriers or hand pick pests off our plants. We also work on rotating our plant families each year which helps break the cycle of infestation or plant disease.

Most people probably are not aware of the amount of chemicals used for conventionally grown flowers. Pesticides, herbicides, fungicides and floral preservatives can all be found on store bought flowers. You probably don’t have to think very hard about why choosing flowers from a local small scale flower farm is the better option. This could be the topic of a whole other blog post!

I have to admit though, just like it’s not always possible to buy organic produce for my family, I find it difficult to only use our organically grown flowers. Sometimes I need to supplement with wholesale products. Our growing season is short and there are so many more varieties of cut flowers found at the wholesale market. So, I just try to give myself grace and do my best! AND I ask that your readers do the same. If you have the option of supporting a small scale flower farmer, please do so. Support local when you can. Our flowers often last much longer than store bought ones and you can limit the amount of chemicals you bring into your home.

For those of you who already support us- thank you! It means the world to us.

Anita: From your experience, if there was one misconception related to flower farming that you would like to debunk, what would it be?

Hilary: Hmmm… I can't say for sure if it’s a misconception but, I think it’s important to note that flower farming is hard work. Hard work physically and mentally.

Anita: On a totally different note, your skin looks amazing! As far as the condition of our skin, genetics plays a certain role but we as individuals, including our lifestyle, eating habits, skincare routine etc., play a very critical role in the overall wellness of our body, including skin on our face.
**Can you share your skincare secret with us?**

Hilary: Thank you so much for saying that! I am a tad bit obsessed with skin care and beauty products. Getting facials and visiting my favorite esthetician regularly does wonders too.
But, sunscreen is probably the most used and most important item in my medicine cabinet. I am so lucky to spend most of my time outside every day so a mineral based sunscreen and my oversized floppy hat are a must.

Anita: What book(s) are on your nightstand right now? And currently, what is your favorite one?

Hilary: My nightstand is pretty small, fitting only a glass of water and a couple books, but I love to read. My favorite book I’m reading right now is Beyond that, the Sea by Laura Spence - Ash. I’m also reading a book about beekeeping. We have a couple hives at our farm and I’m doing whatever I can to keep them alive! Audio books are a new obsession of mine. When I’m outside working, I have to have a book to listen to. It keeps me focused and the time flys by no matter what task I have to complete. Right now I’m listening to Outlander by Diana Gabaldon. It has a great historical setting, lots of adventure and wonderful characters - if you know what I mean ;)

Anita: What is the best life advice you have ever received?

Hilary: I remember one of my teachers in high school saying “Don’t worry about having everything figured out, because you never will.” Being the young perfectionist that I was, I had a hard time with that statement and thought that I had it all figured out already and knew exactly what I was going to do with my life. Later, I understood what she meant and now I take it to heart.

While I still like to have a strong sense of direction, I know for a fact that life doesn’t always turn out the way that you think it’s going to, which is wonderful! I have had three different incredible careers in my adult life, two of which I could have never imagined for myself when I was in high school.

I think the best thing we can all do is try to make progress, keep challenging ourselves, keep moving forward. Moving in the right direction is more important than arriving.
—Hilary Atamian

Anita: We at Rodina Botanicals are about overall wellness, and especially organic, plant-based, natural skincare. In your daily skincare routine, are you camp facial oil or camp moisturizer and which do you prefer, liquid lotions, lotion bars, or whipped body butters? And do you have a favorite Rodina Botanicals product? If so, what is it?

`Hilary: Oh, I’m camp moisturizer for sure.`
`Your “My Lotion Bar - Floral Bouquet” is the best! I especially love the adorable bee imprint and that it comes in a metal tin.`
`It’s not easy to find products that come in sustainable packaging and I really love that your company makes it a priority to use eco-friendly containers.`

`Hilary: I love what Rodina Botanicals stands for and your mission to use only clean organic and natural ingredients is so important.`
`I am obsessed with your Post Mosquito Bite Salve! I use it every day and so does my daughter. It's become a necessity at our house because there are so many mosquitoes in our flower field and around our yard.`
`(We don’t treat our property for mosquitoes as you could imagine ;)`

Anita: What’s next for Grace Gardens floral?

Hilary: I am a true believer in the magic of goal setting. We have short-term goals and long-term goals for Grace Gardens which all have detailed action plans. None of it is set in stone of course, but I do have a clear direction for our business and some of it is already in the works!

Anita: Thank you for your time and sharing with us about Grace Gardens floral, Hilary!

Note: You can check out Grace Gardens Floral online at Grace Gardens floral and make sure to visit their Instagram page.

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