Floral Design

Program Outline

Your Floral Design program consists of courses designed to take you step-by-step toward the techniques and skills you’ll need as a professional florist.

Here's how it works
Your first course will be sent to you as soon as your enrollment has been accepted. Other courses will follow as you complete your exams, so that you will always have the study materials and software needed for your coursework.

Computer Specifications
As you know this is an online academic program. This means you will need access to high-speed internet to begin your program. In addition, you will need access to a Microsoft® Windows® based computer running Windows 10® or later or an Apple® Mac® computer running macOS® or later, and an email account to complete this program.

Here is an overview of what you'll learn and the order in which you'll access your lessons:

Program Goal and Outcomes

Program Goal: The program goal for Penn Foster's Floral Design program is to gain the knowledge and skills to work as a professional florist or start a floral business.

Program Outcomes:
Upon completion of the program, students will be able to:

  • Recognize a long tradition of design styles, and understand how to use design techniques, including the principles of design, the elements of line, form, space, texture, and color, in addition to observing how these design elements and principles work in actual floral arrangements
  • Differentiate between major styles of floral design and identify the mechanics and techniques involved in designing arrangements in these styles
  • Understand the extensive tradition of design styles and the aspects of design styles in others' interpretive arrangements, and familiarize yourself in how to adapt each design style within your own interpretive work
  • Recognize the floral consultant's role in helping brides prepare for their weddings, including pricing techniques, coordinating the attendants with the bride, decorating of the wedding ceremony and reception, and creating bridal bouquets, corsages, hair wreaths, and lapel boutonnieres using various design techniques
  • Comprehend the use of traditional and innovative funeral arrangement techniques to fulfill clients' requests for personalized casket sprays and wreaths
  • Identify how to successfully create designs in remembrance of the deceased, while presenting appropriate expressions of the feelings of the bereaved, and working within the client's budgets.
  • Recognize the bride's wishes, her budget, and your own ideas of what's appropriate, tasteful, and eye-catching
  • Comprehend plants varieties for different environments, including designing for commercial and home environments, indoor gardens, care and treatment of potted plants, and the diagnosis and treatment of plant infestation in order to suit clients' requests
  • Identify care techniques and uses for artificial flowers, dried flowers, and plants, including using recycling containers in the construction of designs and proper displays, and the benefits of using artificial flowers, dried flowers, and plants in arrangements and wreaths, along with the relationship of floral design to the interior-decorating industry
  • Understand the techniques to care for and use artificial flowers, dried flowers, and plants, and their relationship to decorating
  • Identifying how to prepare for Christmas traditions by combining fresh and artificial materials, flowers, Christmas plants, and Christmas trees, in addition to using floral wire services
  • Identifying how to prepare for the major holidays of Valentine's Day, Easter, Mother's day, Thanksgiving, New Year's Eve, and special occasions, including how to make flowers a part of any festivity, and how to prepare and price gift baskets
  • Comprehend different ways to promote flowers during the quieter times of the year by focusing on pleasing smaller groups of customers with gifts and decorations for special events
  • Understand how to create customer orders for gifts and decorations at holiday times or special occasions
  • Recognize the value of and techniques involved in providing good customer service in a floral design business, including finding the best location, targeting your customers, analyzing your competition, funding sources, insurance, licensing, equipment, supplies, staffing your shop, establishing a business identity, and designing your shop's interior
  • Identify common considerations of owning a floral design business, including understanding the roles of growers, suppliers, and wholesalers while having basic business skills that include hiring temporary and contracted help for seasonal fluctuations
  • Recognize how effective public relations, advertising, merchandising, location, and shop design can boost the sales of a floral design business
  • Understand the basic steps to establish and manage a floral business
  • Demonstrate the skills to create floral arrangements for Weddings, Solemn Occasions, and Holidays using fresh flowers, artificial flowers, and plants

Starting Your Program

In this course, you’ll learn tips for how to be a good Penn Foster student.

Objectives:

  • Understand how to use your student portal
  • Identify skills needed to be a confident and independent online learner
  • Connect with Penn Foster on various social media sites

Introduction to Floral Design

This course serves as an introduction to the floral design profession. Topics include historical floral design concepts and their impact on modern design, employment opportunities for floral designers, characteristics of professional designers, individual flowers and their characteristics, design categories, and foliage varieties.

Design Tools and Basics

Design Tools and Basics discusses the procedures for creating arrangements using various tools and techniques. Topics include flower care and handling procedures, tools and wiring techniques, seasonal flower availability, creating bows, and designing appropriate arrangements for hospitals, funerals, and table centerpieces.

Learning Aid: Bow Package 1

Design Techniques

This course will introduce the principles and elements of design that guide floral designers in their work. Topics include scale and proportion, balance, lines, positive and negative space, color theory, and traditional and contemporary designs.

Learning Aid: Color wheel

Design Styles

This course serves as an introduction to the major floral design styles. Topics include a discussion of Ikebana, Western line, Hogarth, formal linear, crescent, Mille de fleur, Biedermeier, parallel systems, vegetative, landscape, abstract, waterfall, and hand-tied styles.

Learning Aid: Floral designer’s kit

Weddings and Solemn Occasions

This course explains how to design appropriate arrangements for weddings and funerals. Topics include an explanation of the floral designer’s role in weddings and funerals, wedding budgets and pricing, color themes and design styles for weddings, coordinating wedding flowers and fabrics, bouquet styles, wedding ceremony and reception arrangements, corsages, and funeral sprays and arrangements.

Learning Aids:
Boutonniere and corsage kit
Bow Package 2
Wedding order forms

Plants and Artificial Flowers

This course discusses both the increasing popularity of growing indoor plants and using artificial and dried flowers and foliage in your arrangements. Topics include the proper care of potted plants, decorating commercial interiors, terrariums, bottle gardens, dish gardens, bulb gardens, plant baskets, cacti and other succulents, plant infestations, types of artificial flowers and foliage, storing artificial and dried materials, and necessary tools and supplies for artificial and dried arrangements.

Holidays

This course will prepare you to create fresh and artificial arrangements for major and minor holidays, including Christmas, Valentine’s Day, Easter, Mother’s Day, Thanksgiving, New Year’s Day, Halloween, and Independence Day.

Learning Aid: Christmas wreath kit

The Business of Floral Design

The final course in the program explains how to establish, manage, market, and merchandise your floral design business. Topics include selecting a good location, analyzing competitors, securing funds, managing everyday expenses, establishing good employer-employee relations, working with floral suppliers, using delivery services, establishing excellent customer service and product standards, and common merchandizing methods.

 

Online Library and Librarian
Students in Penn Foster Career School have access to an online library for use during their studies. Students can use this library to do the required research in the courses they complete or can use it for general reference and links to valuable resources. The library contains helpful research assistance, articles, databases, books, and Web links. A librarian is available to answer questions on general research-related topics via email and to assist students in research activities during their studies with Penn Foster Career School International.

We reserve the right to change program content and materials when it becomes necessary.

Microsoft and Windows are trademarks of Microsoft Corporation registered in the United States of America and/or other jurisdictions.

Apple, Mac, and macOS are trademarks of Apple, Inc. registered in the United States of America and/or other jurisdictions.