SHOUTOUT SOCAL Podcast Feature | Huntress Florals Evolvement & Life Lessons

Typically a woman of few words, Huntress Owner Jennifer couldn't stop talking during this recent feature on the ShoutOut SoCal podcast!

She shared her background, the evolvement of Huntress and lessons learned along the way. From finding listening to your inner voice, manifesting change, to the perspective that grief brings forth - many topics are covered in this episode!

Please listen, download, share and let us know if any of the life lessons resonate for you! 🏹💐🖤

Thank you to SHOUTOUT SOCAL for featuring inspiring creatives and business owners in San Diego, we’re honored to be included in this recent interview!

Today, I encourage you to go beyond your comfort zone.

Have you ever felt like you weren't ready for something, so you didn't do it? Or wanted to try something new, but opted out because you didn't want to mess up? 

I recently spent a month exploring Maui and there were several times I found myself feeling unsure and afraid. A 10-mile warrior hike - am I even capable? What if I sprain my ankle? What if we get driven off private property?  First time snorkeling (in the ocean I might add) - what if I embarrass myself? What if I panic? Maybe I won't be able to breathe properly. What if I get attacked by a shark? 

Our minds can seriously go THERE, to all the dark places and through all the ‘what if's’…that usually never happen btw.  So why do we allow our minds to crush our dreams? How often has fear stopped you from saying yes? 

A wise person once said, “Feel the fear and do it anyway.”

This became my mantra during the trip. And I have to tell you, completing that hike was EXHILARATING. Snorkeling in the ocean was BREATHTAKING…in the best way possible! Beyond my comfort zone and out of my element, I experienced nature in new ways and got lost in those moments.  I felt the reward of growth on the other side, along with genuine joy, pride, and confidence from moving forward, despite being afraid. Saying yes was BEYOND WORTH IT!

There is something about familiarity that brings humans peace. We like our creature comforts. Yet, as in nature, there are seasons and cycles to be enjoyed and variety that we get to experience in each new day. 

So today, I invite you to try something different. Take a different route to work, pick up a hobby, do something you've always wanted to but haven't, try a food that you've never tasted, walk through fear. Just dip your toe in…even if only for this moment, for this day. Say yes, and see where it leads you.

Take a deep breath and trust that you've GOT THIS!  🖤

Welcome Summer - a seasonal tribute

A season of brightness, energy and motion, Summer is here.

When all living things bask in the sunshine, a time to feel truly alive.

Bees buzzing about, flowers abundant, sun-kissed skin, longer days, later sorbet sunsets.

It is in the heart of summertime where we celebrate the brighter daylight.

The renewed sense of time and making fun memories with friends. All of nature is awake.

Summer, we welcome you. Let's smile and dance and feel it all.

We honor you and celebrate your beauty, light and unique gifts.

What are your favorite ways to spend summer? Any seasonal hobbies, favorite things, or nostalgic memories come to mind? Share yours in the comments, we’d love to hear!

Peonies - A tour of Styer's Flower Farm

During a recent visit home to the east coast, I was lucky enough to attend Styer’s Peony Festival. What a delightful treat right in Chadds Ford, PA! 😍

This is the 3rd year they've opened their flower farm for tours. I strolled endless rows of my favorite flower in all of her glorious colors. The shades, the smells, the number of photos I took… each blossom was prettier and more interesting than the next! The flower farm has 25 acres of more than 55,000 peonies in bloom! It was pure peony heaven 🌸

Not only is the peony flower glorious, simply witnessing her lifecycle from a tight bud to a stunning lush bloom full of petals and personality is awe-inspiring. One of the things I love most about the peony is her short window of availability, which makes this coveted flower even more special.

I even got an insiders peek into the family farm, which was magical. The barn that they use as an event venue and the beautifully overgrown and dilapidated greenhouse was my favorite. This instagram post explains why it was a dream setting for me.🌿

The Styer’s Peony Festival happens in May and I hope you find an opportunity to visit next season! In the meantime, treat yourself to some of their flowers online. For now, also enjoy some of the highlights I captured from this perfect flower-filled day! ✨

A Guide To Fresh Florals (1 of 3)

Here at Huntress Florals, a question we frequently get asked, is how to keep your flowers fresh and long lasting. Well — you’ve asked, and we’ve delivered!

We present to you, a guide to fresh florals, a series all about how to help your florals last a good long while.
This is part one in a three-part blog series.

While at the market, when selecting florals, look for stems and buds that aren’t damaged, moldy or wilting.

Also, tighter blooms mean they're fresher and have more time to fully open.

Be mindful not to hold a bunch of flowers over others. If you see rose petals that have brown spots, it’s usually from water dripping onto them!

Choose blooms in various shapes, sizes, and textures to enhance your design. Select a color palette that blends well together, while keeping in mind your seasonal theme and the area you plan to display them.

And MOST important, follow your heart! Pick the buds that make you smile. Flowers are already beautiful on their own. You really can't go wrong or mess this up!

Stay tuned for parts two and three of this blog series.

Holiday Grounding Practice

Today, we want to guide you in a short, but impactful grounding exercise, a few moments to take just for YOU. Follow the prompts outlined below, and feel free to eventually make them your own. Enjoy!

Make yourself comfortable.

• Maybe that’s a seated position in a chair or on the couch, or laying on the floor or in your bed.

• Find a cozy space to be in, and a comforting position to relax into. Maybe you have a favorite blanket to wrap up in, light a candle or some incense, apply your favorite essential oil

Take a few deep breaths

• These may simply begin as regular breaths at first. Bringing awareness to your breath is enough.

• Eventually try to deepen your inhales and lengthen your exhales with each breath that passes through your lungs.

Soften your gaze.

• As you come to a more relaxed spot, drop your eyelids ever so slightly.

• Begin to journey inward, closing your eyes between reading the prompts, if that feels comfortable to you.

Check in with your senses and the space around you.

• What do you see in your surrounding space?

• What are you feeling around you?

• What sounds do you hear?

• What are you experiencing in the space that you are in right now?

• Simply notice, without judgement.

Take inventory of your body.

• What areas of your body can you extend awareness to?

• Breathe into any areas that you feel tension. Perhaps you can release further into your seat, drop your shoulders, unclench your jaw, relax your forehead.

• Scan your way up and down your body until you feel more at ease.

Be intentional about feeling grounded in the present as your mind journeys.

• Think back to a fond moment or even a place that brings you joy, and imagine yourself there.

• What do you see? Smell? Hear?

• Listen, really listen.

• Feel, really feel. As if you are back in that exact place. That precise moment in time.

• Perhaps you are alone or sharing the experience with someone.

• What about that memory brings you joy?
  

Take a few more deep, slow, continuous breaths. Inhale through your nose and audibly exhale through your mouth. Let it all go.

When you're ready, begin adding slight movement back into your body, gently wiggle your feet and hands, curve your lips into a smile and slowly open your eyes.

And now, go about your day — hopefully feeling more centered, more grounded.

And if the holidays feel chaotic, or a moment becomes overwhelming — be intentional about taking a few minutes out of your day to listen to your needs, to focus on your senses, to check in with your body, and to ground yourself.