As one half of Melbourne’s power couple of botanicals, Wona Bae, and her partner Charlie, started Loose Leaf as a way to express the deep passion for flowers and plants imbued in both of them and to cultivate their obsessions with creativity and botanical experimentation.

Inspired by her cultural heritage and extensive studies in floristry, as well as her love of working with local materials, Wona’s understated yet striking studio space in Melbourne is truly an urban oasis that drives her creative spirit.

Wona has worked with MIMCO on two previous campaigns as well as window displays and most recently created bundles of botanical beauties for our Creatives Collide Dinner at Cutler and Co.

MIMCO visited Wona’s beautiful studio and store recently which slots seamlessly into the creative and culinary hub that is Collingwood.

Firstly, this is such a beautiful space, how long has it been home to Loose Leaf?

We have been here just over one year, but we’ve had the business for around 2 years. Before this I had a studio and Charlie had his own where we were doing various projects, but then we decided to come together to open this space. We were searching for nearly two years before we finally found this place through a friend. It ended up being a case of perfect timing.

Both you and your partner, Charlie, are obviously deeply passionate about nature, but what led you to Melbourne, and to opening in this space in Collingwood?

This space is where we do a lot of experimenting. I’m a teacher of both Japanese and German floristry, and my passion is really in that - flowers and teaching, so this was something that brought the two together. I knew I wanted to open a school sometime in the future but I knew it was important to establish a space first. I also love to do sculptures and experimenting with local materials. Charlie loves plants though, that’s his passion and is a big part of the shop.

I LOVE EXPERIMENTING WITH LOCAL MATERIALS

What kind of experience do you hope to offer those who visit your shop?

When people come in they ask a lot of questions about the space, and also obviously about our plants. We like to tell people that owning a plant is like owning a pet. You have to show all plants love, but some need a bit more than others, so teaching our customers about this is something we love doing.

Is it true your started studying fashion before moving into your horticulture degree – and then to Germany to study floristry?

That was a long time ago [laughs]. In 1994 I went to university in Korea, and I studied a degree [in fashion design]. I studied for four years, but never ended up working in the industry. I wanted to be a painter, but my father was worried I wouldn’t be able to survive, so [fashion] was somewhere in between. I had always been drawn to flowers though, so I went on to study floristry in Korea and my teacher had studied in Japan. Japanese floristry has a big influence on Korean styles, and I studied that for 7 years before then studying in Germany, which is where I met Charlie.

Like MIMCO, you’re based in Melbourne Australia, what do you love most about working and living here?

I love being in Melbourne, but I’m really happy anywhere I’m working - I loved living in Europe also. There are some amazing restaurants in Melbourne, especially around here in Collingwood; we live just around the corner which is great. I also love Australian flowers; they are so great to work with, especially in sculptures.

You mentioned you love doing sculptural arrangements, but you’re also always working on such a variety of projects. What are your favourites?

Well, I love flowers, so creating bouquets and arrangements is one of my favourite things to do. I love reading about how the trends in bouquets, for weddings for example, change - it’s a lot like being in the fashion industry in that sense.

- We highly suggest following Loose Leaf (@_looseleaf) on Instagram to see just how talented Wona really is when it comes to bouquets and sculptures.

One of the biggest sculptures I’ve done in Melbourne has been in the Heidelberg Gallery, until recently, and I think it measured over 3m by 3m. It took up my entire house and yard while I was making it.

I have also loved working with MIMCO over the years. I’ve created a window displays, sculptures and also the floral displays for one of your campaign films (Paradise Battalion), which I really loved working on.

You recently joined us for our Creatives Collide dinner, at Cutler and Co. Can you tell us about your night?

It was an amazing night. I talked so much, at the end of the night I could hardly talk, my voice had gone. It was so inspiring to be a part of. It was an amazing group of women.

Given that MIMCO, and the Creatives Collide concept celebrates influential and creative women, do you have any women that have had a major influence on you and your career?

I think that two of my floristry teachers have especially. I feel very lucky to have met some of the best teachers, the ones that give you the encouragement to find your own way of doing things. Sometimes people we learn from have no interest in letting you find your way, which is important.

My Korean teacher wants to visit this year, she hasn’t been to this space yet. But I will see her this September, as Charlie and I are having our wedding in Korea.

Congratulations! Are you planning on doing any floral arrangements for your own wedding?

No. We having a very traditional Korean ceremony, so there actually won’t be any flowers involved. My entire family is in Korea and also a lot of our Australian friends are coming too, which will be great.

Does being surrounded by so much vibrancy every day influence your own personal style at all?

I love to wear colour in scarves and accessories, but I do normally dress in black. When I’m teaching especially, I like the beauty and colours of the flowers to be the main thing people are looking at. I do have a friend with a school in The Netherlands and she will always wear something that matches the flowers she’s demonstrating with on the day.

Do you like to wear jewellery?

I love to wear jewellery yes. I always wear earrings, but in the last couple of years, I’ve been enjoying smaller, finer pieces of jewellery. When I dress for parties or events though, I love to wear big statement necklaces. I like wearing a big necklace but everything else is very simple.

Being on your feet all day, albeit brining to life some stunning floral arrangements, you must be an advocate for the humble flat?

When I’m working a lot in the studio, or if I’m going to the flower market in the mornings I’ll wear gumboots, but mostly I will be in conformable flats or flat boots. I don’t wear high heels much now, but when I was studying fashion, I never wore shoes that had a heel less than 7cm, but things have changed now [laughed].

I know that you’re very passionate about seasonality, can you tell us your favourite collection of winter botanicals?

I love all flowers, but actually in winter I love working with the native twigs and stick the most, they create such a natural effect for sculptures. When I create arrangements, our customers will usually tell us the tones that they are looking for and I will use the best seasonal materials that are available.

You also run workshops throughout the year; do you have any workshops coming up this year?

We do, we run seasonal workshops to showcase the plants and materials that are available at the time, everybody gets so creative, and it’s amazing to see how many different types of people come to our events. We create anything from table arrangements to bouquets’ to flower crowns. Our autumn class has been, but our winter classes will be announced soon, probably in July. We usually announce our classes Instagram.

Loose Leaf Florist

31 Sackville Street, Collingwood

Melbourne

Follow Loose Leaf on Instagram here