Inside the Floral Fashion Party

Energy was high in the all-white rooms of the Milwaukee Art Museum on the night of National Flower Day. Guests were dressed up in their best floral, spring outfits, socializing and taking photos with each other, while staff passed around complimentary champagne and hors d’oeuvres.

DJ Jai played “Flowers” by Miley Cyrus as platinum VIP ticketholders found their seats along the runway, while Heather Schelander got ready backstage.

Schelander is friends with a local florist who owns The Red Petal. Dressed in an all-pink Bridgeton-inspired floral gown, she was preparing to model in the Floral Fashion Party for the fifth time.

“I feel amazing about the dress I have on right now,” Schelander said. “It felt so good walking through those curtains. I could feel the energy of the crowd and I felt that people really loved the dress, seeing it for the first time.”

The Floral Fashion Party was held at the Milwaukee Art Museum on April 21, featuring 16 different looks created out of blooms by local fashion designers and florists. The gown Schelander wore, designed by The Red Petal, won first place in the people’s choice award.

“I love flowers and I invited my friend to attend the event with me,” said Jessy Mesick, a guest attending the event. “It was amazing, I can’t believe they are fresh flowers. They won’t last very long so it’s really cool.”

The Floral Fashion Party was part of the Art in Bloom celebration at MAM. From April 20-23, a floral gallery created by nearly 30 of the region’s designers was on display. The installations were interpretations of well-known artworks from the Museum’s collection.

Guests attending the party had the chance to browse the floral galleries, get drinks from the bar and take photos with models after the show.

Maria Olsson, fashion designer for her brand Mishka, created two harmonious pieces for the show with Locker’s Florist.

“I took my inspiration from the orchid flower,” Olsson said. “I really wanted to play with the layering, shaping and pedals that give it that unique shape. So, what I did was add a lot of structure and boning in my pieces to enhance that.”

Jordan Dechambre, the marketing and communications director of Milwaukee’s Historic Third Ward, hosted the fashion show. After the models left the runway, she instructed the crowd to scan a bar code on their brochures to vote for the people’s choice award.

Following The Red Pedal in first place, The Bank of Flowers came in second and Belle Fiori came in third for the florist category. In the Fashion Designer / Floral Designer category, Andre Purdy and Roundy’s came in first place.

Designers Aaron Glanz and Nichollis Wall of Unordinary Omen Floristry looked to garments from Iris van Herpen, a Dutch fashion designer, for inspiration when creating their designs.

“We used a play on color to represent trans pride because that is a big issue in the world right now and we really wanted to represent that through fashion,” Wall said.

Zinndahlia Designs came in first place for the floral installation Judges Choice award, followed by Bank of Flowers in second and Belle Fiori in third.

Emily Byers, florist for Belle Fiori, put the fresh flowers on her dress the day of the event, while the headpiece, shoes and accessories were done the day before and kept in a cooler.

“We went for a mother nature vibe, moss with flowers growing out of the moss,” Byers said. “We wanted to keep it very organic and alive.”

The sponsors of Art in Bloom include Milwaukee Mitchell International Airport, The PNC Financial Services Group and the media sponsor, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.