If happy little bluebirds fly beyond the rainbow, why oh why can't I?

It has been the most beautiful few days and it has affected the spirit of the whole city, there's a spring in everyones step and the parks are full of bodies soaking up every bit of sunshine they can..ok so it's not Rajasthan hot but it's pretty good and it seems it is definitely warm enough for everyone to wear as little as possible, even those who perhaps shouldn't. The Hotel Awards seem a distant memory, the little 'sketch' on my van fashioned by an absolutely hilarious drunk Glaswegian has been scrubbed off and I spent last week preparing for one of the biggest nights of my life... the launch party for Tattie Rose Flowers. A week of greenery cutting and collecting flowers and planning arches commenced with full throttle. On Thursday my friends and family arrived which helped settle some of my uncontrollable nerves. My parents and my wonderful littlest sister Issy came all the way up from Sunny Dorset and seeng them drive down Forth Street towards me immediatly set some of the butterflies in my tummy free. Lorraine arrived fresh from Greece looking tanned and gorgeous and brimming with stories and encouragement, Nabeelah arrived at Waverley from London and her calm aura soothed my angst and excitement. Sometimes I have fleeting moments of feeling very new and very far away from home and as I'm sure all entrepreuners and self employed people know there are times when it can be pretty tough and that it's the people around you and who love you that fire you on and see you through the tricky bits. Having flitted through school paying no attention to teachers or exams and favouring instead adventures, I never felt nervous about the various hurdles and tests they put on the course such as GCSEs and A Levels but I think all those nerves caught up on me last week. This has been my dream for so many years, it has taken a lot of work, a lot of tears and a lot of determination and the launch party marked it's real beginning.
It was held in Archer's Hall which has been used as the Club House for the Royal Company of Archers for 330 years. It is a beautiful old building, steeped in history with wonderful big windows and beautiful paintings. We set to work decorating it

with amazing flowers and as there was no client I was allowed a completely free rein and so I chose all my favourites. The staircase was bound in honeysuckle and beautiful rosa rugosa and scattered through it were ivory spray roses and the palest sweet avalanche and then intricate astrantia and juicy large green hypericum berries. A large arch was constructed over the double doors in the main hall and it was stuffed full of pale pink peonies, white phlox, roses and trailing sweet peas. Through out the buildings there were huge stone urns overflowing with delphiniums, achonitum, white peonies roses and molucella mixed in with delicious spring greenery. At 5 o'clock we stood back and smiled, it looked and smelt beautiful, we had just enough time to try and do the same to ourselves and managed to don our fineries in the cloakroom, slap on a bit of lippy and get a few thorns out of our fingers before the first guests arrived. The whole evening seemed to pass very quickly but it was a great success, all due to the amazing people who helped and were a part of it. Lucie from TLC Scotland made the most mouth watering canapes, they were so good she even managed to tempt a vegetarian away from their strict policies with the sight and smell of her amazing food. Clea played the cello and was joined by the Beeston Arts String Quartet who played the most beautiful music and really made the whole event extra special. Victoria from Victoria's Antiquities made a big impact on the night as usual and I am very grateful for her help throughout the day with the flowers and during the party. I know everyone thinks their family is the best but I really think mine actually are, my Mother's energy and warmth is shared with everyone she meets, she puts people at ease and her wit, humour and sense of fun mean people seem to want to stay talking to her for as long as they can, Isabella my sister has a rare serenity that is so beautiful, she has a vast amount of compassion for people that I have never seen in anyone else and her awareness of others is quite humbling, if there were more people like her the world would surely be a better place. My father is one of the most inspiring and wonderful people I know, I look up to him above anyone and aim one day to be half the person he is and touch half the lives that he has. I will tell of the other two siblings another time, they are equally as brilliant but they unfortunately couldn't make it on Friday. The whole evening was wonderful and everyone had a fantastic night, I am so grateful to everyone who came and each person involved. So now we are officially launched, our wings are spread and we start our ascent to what we hope will be great heights.