Who is behind Tulipina and what has her career in the floral industry been like? You're about to submerge in all the juicy flower deets on Kiana Underwood, the founder of Tulipina, an internationally renowned floral design studio creating bespoke floral experiences for ultra-luxury weddings and events. She's taking over the florist special this week, don't miss out!
Tulipina by Kiana Underwood - An Inspiring Floral Design Studio
Born in Tehran, Iran, and greatly inspired by her grandfather's garden there, Kiana Underwood founded Tulipina in 2011, and since then has built a solid reputation as one of the most sought-after floral designers in the United States. Her use of unique color combinations and floral varieties draws admirers and floral designers from all over the world to her sold-out workshops in exotic locations including Chile, China, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Korea, Mexico, Russia, Ukraine, and Singapore.
Underwood resides in New York’s beautiful Hudson Valley area, with her husband and business partner, Nathan, their three children, and three dogs. Kiana’s work can be seen in prestigious magazines such as Vogue, Traditional Home, Harper’s Bazaar, NY Times, Brides, Elle Décor, Elle Spose, Country Living, Marie Claire, Flower Magazine, Couture Flowers, French Country Style, California Homes, Town and Country, and more, making her a supreme superstar in the floral design world.
Nowadays, she has swelled and risen rapidly in the flower industry with a jet-set clientele and hundreds of thousands of followers on Instagram, enabling her to engage with a global audience. Most of her work is based in NYC and Como, Italy, where she focuses and emphasizes her floral work around wedding and event decor.
What Makes Her Floral Designs So Attractive and Unique?
Underwood's compositions are particularly bloom-rich: flowers are the stars, whether she is seeking out the very best seasonal stems from a neighborhood nursery or flower market, or cutting geraniums or magnolia branches from her garden. Her mother, who loves aromatic flowers such as tuberose, hyacinth, and narcissus, instilled her love for flowers in her from a very early age.
Alongside these flowers, Kiana usually incorporates unexpected elements such as dates, strawberries, and citrus fruits. In three words, Kiana was able to express more of her style and trends when it came to flowers. Abundant, colorful, lush, organic, and complex are five words she uses to describe her style in the flower world.
Underwood states:
"I think that my style has become increasingly free-flowing over time, and my use of color and texture in arrangements is what wins people’s admiration."
Alongside, her favorite flower is the ranunculus given the fact this special flower represents her personality because of its variation and resilience, the core values of Tulipina.
How Has Tulipina Shaped the Flower Industry?
Kiana Underwood travels the world, giving courses centered on her elaborate old-world arrangements, which she posts on her Instagram account for people to seek floral inspiration. And the truth is, Tulipina is quite an inspirational platform for everyone looking to dive deep into the flower world. Along with her courses, she focused a great part of her career on creating seasonal, monochromatic designs which resulted in being the centerpiece of her debut book, 'Color Me Floral', giving us a peek at her personality and world.
Many in the industry have been greatly inspired by Kiana and her book where thousands have been able to learn the secrets to designing show-stopping monochromatic arrangements in this spectacular guide. Kiana shares her techniques for creating dazzling single-color displays using inspired ingredients, dramatic textures, and vibrant colors.
Organized by season, the book includes how-tos for forty arrangements — including a lush green display for spring, an astonishing black bouquet for summer, a striking magenta design for fall, and an unexpected, oh-so-pretty pink arrangement for winter. Featuring hundreds of eye-catching images and easy-to-follow tips throughout — such as suggestions for substituting flowers and options for both the beginner and advanced designer — this book is as useful as it is gorgeous.
Besides being one of the most talented floral designers in the world, she has gained incredible momentum and has been featured as one of America's best floral designers. Read the article 'Meet the Top and Best Wedding Florists in America' to know more.
Inspirational Figures of Kiana Underwood
When it comes to people who inspire Kiana besides her grandfather and mother who have inspired her since she was a child, there are three figures by which she is also greatly inspired at the time of creating with flowers. To start with, Kiana is inspired by Johann Sebastian Bach — she loves his music and the enormous complexity that comes through as rather effortless. Bach’s music is a work of genius.
Secondly, Oprah Winfrey also inspires her because she is strong and has achieved so much in her lifetime despite a very challenging childhood. Last on the list of people who inspire the floral designer is Julia Child because she started her career at a later stage of life yet still made an amazing impact and a lasting legacy and that is what I am to do with Tulipina.
If You Love Flowers You Can Learn With Tulipina
Teaching takes her all over the world – Jakarta, Seoul, Moscow, Kyiv, Santiago, and Rome – where she holds master classes that offer a generous insight into the technicalities behind her oral designs. Online, she provides themed classes on the art of Tulipina-style flower arranging, covering everything from vessel selection to advice on color schemes.
When you feel a lack of floral inspiration, Tulipina's Instagram along with Kiana's creative assets will be there to help you along the way.
Photos by Tulipina.
