Gabriela Salazar

Heartfelt Floristry

Nearly a decade ago Gabriela Salazar began designing with flowers that she fell in love with while studying architectural interiors in London. When Gabriela moved back to Mexico, she sought these flowers that captivated her, yet she could not find them in Mexico City. She moved from the city to the mountains to be surrounded by nature. It is here in Valle de Bravo, that she has grown an intentional, breathtaking garden, that inspires her design work.

Gabriela is known for her romantic, lush floral design style. She attributes this effortless style to nature and growing her own flowers. While in the garden, she observes the contour of the plants and trees - taking note of their effortless movement and soft, graceful forms. She translates these garden observations into her floral design work. 

By being fully present in her work, both in the garden and in the studio,  Gabriela has developed something she calls ‘flowers from the heart’ where the flowers continuously guide her. With the flowers in mind, she creates rivers of color and textures, layering in movement with delicate florals to add softness and grace to all her arrangements.

Gabriela accredits her garden for redefining herself. She created a garden and in turn, the garden helped her find her path and place in the world. Gabriela feels that flowers are not just beautiful to arrange but working with them also teaches you how to be patient, kind, resilient, and graceful - offering immeasurable life lessons.

An appreciation for flowers is something that was taught to Gabriela at a young age by her mother and grandmother. Now, she is passionate about teaching others how to grow and design with flowers, which is why she founded Heartfelt Floristry, a floral design school where students from all over the world join together to learn her intentional, sustainable floral design style. 

If she is not teaching, she can be found in some of the most beautiful corners of the world designing for couples and events.

Show Notes

1. The closer you become to nature and flowers, the more excited you become about working with them.

2. Every florist should have an experience growing flowers. Create your own garden space no matter the size and visit flower farms as much as possible.

3. Grow something difficult for you to find in your area.

4. Floristry is a career people sometimes jump into  after a loss or challenging time in their life.

5. Step back and let nature guide you while arranging flowers.

6. Classes are always about hearing your own voice.

7. There is a transformation that happens when we work with flowers.

8. Flowers have a way of connecting people through their beauty

9. Slow down, spend more time with family, flowers, and of course….in your garden.