From lush florals to minimalist air plants, Olive’s Bloombox in Ferndale is all about the greenery.
“Olive is my grandma,” explains Owner Laurie Bolach. “Her motto was it doesn’t have to be perfect to be fabulous, and so I love that.”
Bolach always loved to create things and started doing florals as a side hustle. She worked in a corporate job for many years, and after spending a year helping her father recover from an illness, she was ready to pursue her passion.
In 2017, she opened her first store on Livernois in Ferndale. The building itself was on the small side, but it had a large outdoor area for a garden center. As her business bloomed, taking on more and more events, she outgrew the inside space. After looking around the area for another spot, she found a large space on Nine Mile Rd. in downtown Ferndale.
The second location carries a lot more than just plants and flowers, though they have a large selection of those as well. When you first walk in you will see a slew of seasonal decor, currently featuring tiny Christmas Trees, reindeer and Santa Clauses. On the wall, you will find a selection of purses next to other home goods, candles, and small gifts. There is a whole section for air plants with tiny holders for them, and along the other wall you will see their large collection of pots and houseplants you can put inside.
In the back of the store, you will see large tables for their workshops.
“We have floral workshops, succulent mosaics, I mean really, we try to change it all the time,” says Bolach.
Throughout the year they have a variety of different public workshops you can find on their website. Currently, they have two holiday-themed workshops in December where you can learn to make holiday centerpieces or a beautiful modern wreath. Michelle Oliver got a chance to practice her creativity and make the modern holiday wreath. It involved making bundles of greenery and fixing them to a slim gold hoop. To see all that it involves, watch the video above.
If you have a group of 10 or more, you can sign up for your own private workshop you can either host at Olive’s or a place of your choosing.
Olive’s Bloombox’s new location is at 262 W Nine Mile Road in Ferndale.