For whatever reason and whenever you need flowers, Stem and Style, a student-run business operated by seniors Leah Frydman and Alex Arey, provides hand-crafted floral arrangements.

Arey and Frydman’s business sells a variety of floral arrangements year-round in different shapes, sizes, and color palettes. This includes corsages and boutonnieres primarily for school dances, Frydman said. After a customer places an order, Arey and Frydman select, prepare, and transform the flowers into a product, Arey said. They hold themselves to high standards, Frydman said, since their aim is to make products that are beyond satisfactory, but there can be a lot of pressure.

“Sometimes I’m in my head, like, ‘You don’t know how to make anything; it’s going to look ugly,’” Frydman said. “But then I’ll make a good one and feel confident again.”

Frydman’s love for all things flowers started when she was young, making  her own floral arrangements as a kid.

“I would go to a grocery store and take a premade bouquet and completely rearrange it to how I felt looked better,” Frydman said.

After both Frydman and Arey took Horticulture and Plant Science 1, albeit in different semesters, in their junior year, their teacher, science teacher Erin McBride, gave them the idea to start a business to sell the arrangements that they were passionate about making, Frydman said.

“We thought, ‘What if we solely did florals and made an outside of school business, where we could make our own money?’” Arey explained.

Frydman had started off that spring making boutonnieres and corsages for friends who were going to prom, Frydman said. This school year, the two had over 30 orders for homecoming, Arey said. 

Aside from wearables, they make florals for other occasions, too. Natalia Szczur, Social Studies Teacher, ordered a bouquet of flowers for her mom’s birthday.

“It was so beautiful and there were so many different types of flowers,” Szczur said. “[There] was also a really nice note to my mom and then directions on how to care [for the flowers]. 

Orders can be placed via a Google Form on Stem and Style’s Instagram. The form includes what kind of arrangement you would like to order, prices, and an optional inspiration photo if you already had an idea in mind, according to the Stem and Style Instagram page.

Arey and Frydman co-manage the business, and they balance the workload well, Arey said. Frydman wants to stick with the business in her future, and Arey is happy to help when needed, Arey said. Arey and Frydman said they love working together and being able to provide customers with flowers.

“I like the feeling of people wanting to get a piece of something we create,” Arey said. “I’m honored that someone wants that.”

To order from Stem and Style, click here.