From theater to florals: Event florist Ian Tresselt discusses a big career change and the importance of locally sourced flowers

Story by Cecelia Shilling

Photo was taken at Ian Tresselt’s home in Port Republic, where he puts together a majority of his floral arrangements. Photo by Lara Reisman.

“Design was really where I felt I fit most, what I loved the most,” event florist Ian Tresselt said. “But I also loved working with the growers directly, learning about flowers, learning about how they grow and what is available locally.”

While studying design leadership at a unique master’s program with the Maryland Institute College of Arts and Johns Hopkins University, instructor Jonathan Erwin challenged Tresselt to admit what he was most passionate about. Nervous, Tresselt thought of his lifelong love of nature, first inspired by his grandparents who grew, painted and photographed flowers.

“I’m a little embarrassed to tell you, but I’m passionate about flowers,” Ian Tresselt confessed.

Tresselt spent more than 20 years working as an arts and theater administrator with performing arts organizations in Los Angeles, Pittsburgh, New York and Baltimore. In 2015, he left his role to go back to school and explore design. Now, he runs a floral design studio, called Ian Tresselt Design, from his Port Republic home.

“I started the business in January of 2023 and word of mouth spread quickly,” Tresselt said. “I threw a bunch of spaghetti on the wall, trying different things, and the business model that worked for me is events.”

After deciding to pivot his career from theater to floral event design, Tresselt took time to learn about the industry he was diving into. Noting the environmental impact associated with the flower industry, he wanted to take a more sustainable route and work exclusively with local, seasonal plants.

“I really want someone who understands that we're sourcing locally,” Tresselt said. “That we're supporting local growers and we are living in the season that way. So if you want peonies in December, I am not your person.”

According to the department of horticultural science at the University of Minnesota, over 80% of cut flowers sold in the United States are imported. The process of importing flowers requires large chemical and water inputs and leaves behind a hefty carbon footprint.

Tresselt works with growers mostly local to Southern Maryland as well as on the Eastern Shore, Baltimore and Virginia. Many of his vendors incorporate sustainable practices in their farms, with farms like Red Tree Farmstead and Dahlia & Vine Flower Farm opting to use no-till methods to reduce emissions and maintain soil health.

Though Tresselt avoids importing flowers, there are no limits to his creativity. While designing floral pieces for a recent wedding at Running Hare Vineyard, he encouraged his clients to experiment with seasonal fruits and veggies in their decor.

“The color palette was primarily autumnal; deep purples, deep burgundies with touches of whites and creams,” Tresselt said. “It was really beautiful, but we're at a vineyard, and we're in harvest. Might we explore things like vegetables and fruit amongst the flowers? And we did it.”

Small artichokes and grapes were featured in two floral statement pieces used during the ceremony.

“The importance of incorporating seasonality into design, the beauty that comes from really celebrating what is being grown around you at a particular point in time…It adds movement and beauty and whimsy to designs that you just can't find without incorporating those things,” Tresselt said.

Juliana Venegas, who got married this past spring, said Tresselt helped stay within their budget and thought out of the box with their arrangements.

“I really wanted a Christmas wedding, but that wasn't in the cards for us,” Venegas said. “I wanted to figure out how to incorporate Christmas trees. He worked his magic and got us some evergreen trees in May and brought them all the way to the inner harbor in Fells Point, put them on the pier for us and decorated them with flowers. It was amazing.”

Tresselt prefers working with clients who are open-minded and willing to substitute classic wedding florals with something growing within the region. Replacing baby’s breath with a white lace flower called “Orlaya” is a great example, he said.

“Orlaya does exactly what baby's breath does, but better,” Tresselt said. “It's more beautiful. The flowers are more full. It has more movement to it. It doesn't have that rigidity, but it still has that wonderful softness that adds a sort of bits-and-bobsy moment to a design.”

2022 bride Kim Dade was thrilled with the turnout of her florals after working with Tresselt for her wedding, she said.

“I think he loved me because I gave him complete creative freedom,” Dade said. “We had a backyard wedding right here in our home. I told him, ‘I'm going to have clean white tablecloths and my florals are going to serve as decoration. I want all the color in the world.’ He took my ideas and ran with it.”

Tresselt used fishing line to hang individual stems from the ceiling in the place of string lights, created vibrant bouquets and decorative table arrangements, and a hair piece for Dade. She remembers Tresselt gifting her some flowers during their planning meetings and throwing in an extra arrangement for their sweetheart table, she said.

Tresselt hopes his work can communicate the importance of sourcing locally, but also hopes to help expand the “floral vocabulary” of his clients to better understand what grows around them. He wants his work to help shift their perspective on how often we interact with flowers day-to-day, too. He believes flowers are capable of bringing more joy to our lives and lifting our spirit, he said.

“I find that we, as a nation, we know roses, we know daffodils, we know certain flowers, but we don't live with flowers like our friends in Western Europe or South Asia,” Tresselt said. “They need to see them. We don't do that. It's ‘I’m going to treat myself.’ I would love for us to think a little bit differently about that.”

To learn more about Tresselt’s work, visit iantresselt.com.