Santa Ynez 2023: Floral Retreat Hosted by FlowerSchool & Lilla Bello’s Toby Kassoy
March 27 @ 10:00 am - March 29 @ 9:00 pm
$1,925.00 – $3,850.00
Santa Ynez Floral Retreat: March 27 – 29, 2023
Led by Tara Sandonato of FlowerSchool and Toby Kassoy of Lilla Bello
WHAT’S INCLUDED
Monday, March 27th:
Students will arrive at 10:00 AM by shuttle* at the Lilla Bello. Here, we will get to meet each other & discuss our itinerary for the next few days, create a design concept to be used in our Dinner Party Centerpiece and Tablescape Design.
After lunch in the garden* our shuttle will take us to Starter Farm, where we will be getting an up close look at how a flower farm runs and cultivate commercially grown flowers that end up in floral designer hands! Here, their trained farmers will cherry pick our flowers for our upcoming Compote Design and Tablescape Design class!
Tuesday, March 28th:
Tuesday morning at 10:00am, a shuttle* van will pick you up from the designated pick up spot(Solvang is a quaint, easily walkable town!) and we will begin our day at the Santa Ynez Ranch.
After a morning of conditioning our flowers we will discuss the importance of creating floral recipes and how to properly budget retail pricing for weddings and events, to ensure efficiency and increase profitability.
Our afternoon will consist of a locally sourced lunch* and a wine tasting* at Santa Ynez Ranch with Max, the property General Manager. He will give a talk on how the Santa Ynez Valley is so uniquely suited for wineries and farms. We will have an opportunity afterwards to walk the grounds and see everything it has to offer!
Wednesday (Day), March 29th:
At 10:00am your shuttle will pick you up and take you to Vega Vineyard and Farm, where we will be spending our design day. Vega Vineyard and Farm is full of history, with a concentration on their estate vineyard and farm to table cuisine setting.
After a tour of this incredible vineyard and farm, we will meet for an onsite light lunch & wine tasting* prepared by Vega Vineyard & Farm before diving into our floral workshop led by Toby Kassoy of Lilla Bello and Tara Sandonato of FlowerSchool Los Angeles. You will learn from both designers, with two different advanced floral design perspectives, using sustainable methods in a compote style vessel. Both a timeless and trending design style will be taught. Each student will then create their own version of a compote centerpiece showcasing their own aesthetic.
Wednesday (Evening), March 29th:
As our finale, will showcase and blend all of our centerpieces to create a lush and elegant tablescape with accents of candles and tableware to complete our Farewell Dinner* setting.
We will then have a 2+ hour break where your shuttle* will bring you back to Solvang and have some free time to get ready. At 6:45 your shuttle* will bring you back to Vega Vineyard and Farm to enjoy a delectable farm to table meal, paired with Vega Vineyard wine, all surrounded by our beautiful floral designs. The perfect way to end this visually stunning, informative and fun retreat!
*Included in the price of the retreat
Recommended Hotel Option for your stay here in the Santa Ynez Valley.
Hotel Corque – Hotel Corque has locked in a rate of $128(+taxes) for us!
To book, Call 1-800-248-6274 and ask for the FLOWERSCHOOL rate. This rate will expire after 3/13.
Options are for two Queen beds or one King Bed.
**Should you select lodging not listed above, we suggest staying in the immediate Solvang area for easy daily shuttle service.
Local Solvang coffee shops and bakeries to check out for breakfast while in town:
Terms and Conditions:
- Sadly we are unable to offer refunds or alternative dates for Santa Ynez 2023 Floral Retreat should you need to cancel your reservation for any reason. We ask that you confirm all of the logistics for attending to avoid needing to cancel for any reason. Lilla Bello/FlowerSchool cannot be held liable to situations beyond our control, including but not limited to inclement weather, federal and local states of emergency, force majeure events, however we will reschedule this event for another date/time should the weather inhibit our retreat(example: road closure, floods, etc). Lilla Bello/FlowerSchool will not be held responsible for any loss of additional expenses such as traveling/lodging should you need to cancel. Check with your airline/booking agent for your refund policy regarding your travel expenses.
- Included in your purchase are all materials necessary for the hands on design portions of the schedule for the duration of the three day retreat. Only meals outlined in the schedule of events are covered in registration investment. If you are unable to attend but want to transfer your registration to a friend/colleague, please email us asap to make us aware of this transfer.
