Botanica Bird is spicing up Newcastle's love life this Valentine's Day by embracing the sexiness of local, sustainable and irresistibly arranged flowers.

Non-traditional, cheeky and romantic colour palettes featuring blush, pinks and mauve bunches will appear on your doorstep as part of Botanica Bird's  Valentine’s Day collaboration for 2021. 

However, there will be something quite obvious missing this Valentine’s Day – red roses. 

Rather than the cliché (and to be honest, kind of boring) gesture of a dozen red roses Botanica Bird is saying ‘I Love You’ this February through unique floral arrangements that engage local growers and honour the environment. 

When we pictured the perfect Valentine's Day it went beyond red roses. Our perfect day includes pampering, flowers (of course), and orgasms! That's why we have collaborated with fellow Novocastrian Boss Babes from Yū Non Toxic Nail Salon and Pleasure & Peach to complete the V-Day package for your lover, your bestie or yourself. 

Finding the flowers

Botanica Bird are a flower delivery florist. That means we will be delivering flowers all day between 12-14 February! Otherwise, House of Lita, are becoming a Botanica Bird pop-up florist! You can pick up your order from their store in Wickam between:

 

We said NO to imported flowers. Why?  

Botanica Bird shows the complexity, excitement and beauty of expressing love, gratitude and friendship in our flower arrangements - because a dozen red roses in a box is outdated beyond the Rom-Com cliches.

Those Rom-Com roses are most likely imported. More than half of Australia’s flowers come from countries like Kenya, Ecuador and Columbia with over 10 million arriving especially for Valentine’s Day. 

This practice has pushed smaller local growers out of the industry and poses as a high biosecurity hazard. To mitigate the risk of introducing foreign pests into the country, the imported flowers are quarantined and doused with chemicals, sometimes up to three times before they get to the florist.

This is not great for the flowers as they are usually cut over a week before they reach our shores. It reduces their blooming capacity and may be detrimental to our health.

In addition to all of this, the carbon emissions produced to get the imported flowers over to Australia are unnecessary, especially when we have beautifully grown and healthy flowers at home.

Our flower growers are not easily pushed aside. Realising that customers were becoming concerned about where their flowers are coming from, NSW flower farmers stopped waiting for the regulations to change and developed their own ‘Australian Grown Flowers’ label.

The reason why imported flowers are continuing to dominate the industry is simple: supply and demand.

Botanica Bird want to be a part of the change and help educate our clients with our thoughtful and inclusive business ethos. We are constantly learning and striving to do better which is why every flower you see from Botanica Bird has been grown in Australian soil.

You can help us by researching and talking to your local florists. Ask them about their values and how it’s reflected in their work. This is how we decrease the demand for imported flowers and back our 900+ Australian Flower Farmers.

 

Working with nature  

The early morning starts at the Sydney Flower Market, the wholesome chats with the local growers and feeling their passion towards each bloom is what floristry is about at Botanica Bird.

This also means tuning into the beat of the seasons and embracing the beauty it brings. Like our local flower farmers, we too work with nature not against it.

Our mission to be respectful to our environment and to be better for our community doesn’t stop there. Botanica Bird has joined a chorus of Newcastle Florists in saying no to toxic floral foam and chemically preserved, dyed or spray-painted flowers and foliage.

In its place, we use chicken wire for our arrangements and celebrate the beauty of nature and its seasons. By choosing this path we hope to educate our customers, and the wider community, about the industry and how the status quo isn’t always the most sustainable practice in floristry.

What about the wrapping? Do not worry, our flower delivery wrapping is 100% compostable! They are wrapped in kraft paper and bound with Australian Cotton cord – can you tell that we can’t get enough of Aussie products? Even the sleeves and stickers are compostable!

By choosing Botanica Bird this Valentine’s Day you’re not only making someone else feel special, but you can also feel good about being a conscious consumer. You are saying ‘I Love You’ to more people than your significant other with a Botanica Bird flower delivery this Valentine’.

 

Signature Valentine’s Day Bunches 

  

You Make Me Blush

A sugary and tender bunch of white, ivory, pink and blush tones. Made completely of Australian grown blooms, this bunch is a soft kiss on the forehead while the sweet tunes of Vera Blue plays in the background.

 

 

I Ap-peach-iate You

Inspired by the cute and cheeky double meaning of the peach emoji, I-Ap-peach-iate You features shades of peach, latte, magenta and red that showcase local fresh and seasonal flowers. It’s the cheeky wink from across the room or a sly butt grab from your lover in appreciation of that peach. 

 

 

Dinner and a Mauve-ie

Deep, romantic and mysterious blooms in tones of purple, mauve, plumb and burgundy will stand out from the rest. It’s the comforting squeeze of a hand or a stolen kiss at the back of the movie theatre.

 

 

Valentine’s Day Collaboration Packages

We are extra excited about this package because we have teamed up with TWO inspiring Newcastle Businesswomen – Pleasure & Peach and Yū Non Toxic Nail Salon!

If you’re wanting something extra to accompany your Botanica Bird Valentine’s Day bunch, then we highly suggest adding to your basket a selected Pleasure & Peach product (keep scrolling to see what it is!) or a $50 voucher to Yū - or add both!

Together we have thoughtfully created the ultimate Valentine’s Day package, the perfect gift for the important people in your life - including yourself!

On a daily basis, both our collaboration partners motivate us at Botanica Bird with their strong values and ethos. We are all so excited to have put this package together and we hope it brings as much joy to its recipient as it does to us.

 
Our Valentines 

Pleasure & Peach

We knew that after reading the word orgasm earlier, like us, you were hanging to find out more. Light the candles and dim the lights, we are talking about self-love and partner play with Pleasure & Peach’s number one best seller product, Yumi vibrator & Sliquid Organic personal natural lubricant.

Abby, the owner and creator of Pleasure & Peach, is a Newcastle-based sexual health professional and an activist for pleasure positivity. She created Pleasure & Peach to empower women by providing resources for sexual education and to promote self-love. Please go to her website and look through her amazing range of pleasure products and workshops!

Pleasure & Peach is about empowering women. It’s a place where art, education, self-care and sex come together to celebrate love (and orgasms!). If we add Botanica Bird Valentine’s Day bunches to that mix, we have a beautiful picture.

What is the VeDo Yumi vibrator?

It is a rechargeable clitoral finger vibrator with 10 powerful vibration settings while keeping the vibration sounds to a minimum – ideal for a sneaky stress reliver. Its design makes it great for solo or partner play and is waterproof, made from body-safe silicone and comes with a built-in travel lock.

The lube is water-based and designed to replicate your body’s natural lubrication. To help you really settle into the mood, it can be paired with any of your other toys and is completely organic!

BRB - a short ‘break’ to… *meditate*… is needed after writing that!!

Botanica Bird wanted to join Pleasure & Peach in their unashamed celebration of love this Valentine’s Day. Nothing says love like flowers and a vibrator/lube combo.

 

Yū Non-Toxic Nail Salon

Botanica Bird prides itself of being a sustainable and eco-friendly business and therefore we seek out like-minded Newcastle businesses who champion the planet and their community.

Introducing our second Valentine’s Day collaborator, Yū Non Toxic Nail Salon. 

Yū, derived from the Japanese word for Earth, believes that you don’t have to sacrifice for beauty. As a self-described manicure and pedicure heaven, they strive to keep their carbon footprint as low as possible by using non-toxic, vegan products and cutting out disposable equipment, opting for recycling and composting instead.

This is not Yū’s only point of difference. MY GOD their nail art is next level! Their detail and passion combined with their years of experience guarantees the most Instagram-able set of nails in town. 

Continuing the theme of self-care, Yū has created a space that is more than just getting your nails done. It’s a small but powerful way to practice self-care, mind and body. 

Our Valentine’s Day Collaboration Package includes a Yū $50 voucher and we definitely recommend their Classic Manicure option:

 

Includes a luxurious warm lavender and chamomile salt soak, followed by cuticle work, trim and shape, a gentle apricot scrub and finished with a relaxing hand massage and nail varnish of your choice.

 

 
Before we sign off, we have one last shout out. The stunning photoshoot for our Valentine’s Day Collaboration was styled by YWC Productions and photographed by Zoe Lonergan.

YWC Productions is a female-owned Newcastle-based event design studio, specialising in creative design, event design and styling, brand activations and weddings. Their glamorous feel and mindfulness towards sustainability confirm that they are our kind of people. 

Zoe Lonergan, another Newcastle-based creative specialises in food photography (which sometimes feature flowers!) and is passionate about telling a deeper story in her work.

You’re the best

Our job is to help others express their love, but right now we want to express our love to you – the Newcastle community. As we strive support you in our daily efforts, we feel your love in return. 
  
There is nothing we enjoy more than finding creative ways to make and deliver our bundles of eco-happiness. Flowers are our passion and making our world a more beautiful place is our mission. 
  
We are excited to continue sharing more non-traditional love and Australian-made beauty with you throughout 2021.

Image Credits:

Cover Photo. Valentines Day 2021 - Photography by Zoe Lonergan. Styling YWC Productions

1. House of Lita. From House of Lita Website

2.Hunter Hunter "Meet the colourful, energetic, sustainable florist of Newcastle" Article. Photography by Shan Rose.

3. Hunter Hunter "Meet the colourful, energetic, sustainable florist of Newcastle" Article. Photography by Shan Rose.

4.  Valentines Day 2021, You Make Me Blush - Photography by Zoe Lonergan. Styling YWC Productions

5. Valentines Day 2021, I Ap-peach-iate You - Photography by Zoe Lonergan. Styling YWC Productions

6. Valentines Day 2021, Dinner & A Mauve-ie - Photography by Zoe Lonergan. Styling YWC Productions

7. Valentines Day 2021, Collaboration Package with Pleasure & Peach and Yū Non-Toxic Nail Salon, Photography by Zoe Lonergan. Styling YWC Productions

8.Pleasure & Peach - From Pleasure & Peach Website

9. Hunter Hunter "Non-toxic, vegan, sustainable, and cruelty-free nail salon in The Junction" article. Photography by Shan Rose.

10. Valentines Day 2021, Collaboration Package with Pleasure & Peach and Yū Non-Toxic Nail Salon, Photography by Zoe Lonergan. Styling YWC Productions