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3 By CHERYL ELLIOT Special to the North News This foray into teaching proved to be a great success and before long, Whitmell was receiving more requests from individuals and groups to share her knowâ€"how. Whitmell is a natural for this type of business. She has an easy manner Whitmell‘s business also develâ€" oped like her designs. First, she was making colorful arrangements to decâ€" orate her River Oaks home. Next, she was making arrangements for friends and family, but the turning point was when a someone approached her to teach floral design to a small group. Whitmell, and her friends, soon discovered she had the knack of takâ€" ing a simple idea and designing excitâ€" ing flower arrangements. "My designs are my designs," she said. "I may get an idea somewhere, but I put on my own touch to even better it." * Four years ago, Whitmell decided to stay at home after the birth of her first child. She previously worked in graphics design for five years with a Scarborough company and during that time took a couple of basic flower design courses. "From those courses, I expanded on my own," she said. Whitmell‘s passion is silk and dried flower arrangements. What started as a hobby, became a fullâ€" fledged business â€" Sonya‘s Designs â€" at the beginning of this year. Some people are slaves to Mother Nature, and wait yearly for her seaâ€" sonal offerings, no matter how late or how puny. Don‘t count on Sonya Whitmell as one of those people. If she wants flowers in the middle of winter, she‘ll have them. And what Mother Nature discards in the fall, Whitmell gladly takes and brings alive in her own creations. ‘ SE : t 6 E M{\n\ s § A 3 DAY SALE fl- â€"eâ€"2"% AUGUST 5, 6 *" .«6 I L4 B m mb on se n o l ”" / win w9 3P "lest 9““‘“35‘ s* t _ a it nAÂ¥ _ 3 DAY SALE _â€"=1 _ AUGUST5,6,7 »â€"â€""sam© \ powvtmiss our on »2 of e \ _ THE BARGAINS! o omm . % 7 \i Â¥ a 3 s * ag M with even® pu( rou( 9"‘“‘ $ ’P She has now joined the ranks of a growing number of women doing double duty at home. She is taking care of her two children, ages three and four, during the day, and running with people, enjoys and is comfortâ€" able in the knowledge of her craft, has established her contacts and suppliers, and refuses to expand too quickly. Sonya Whitmell with one of her dried flower arrangements. V e\_()P\\“G xoX s .90 QA exp: a9 e*p Whitmell has carefully developed workshops which she runs at home. With her guidance, a customer can leave a class with a finished product in two to three hours. The set price for each item includes supplies and a glue gun. Class sizes range from six to 10 a thriving business on evenings and weekends. ga0) _ e Head office Waterdown * _ Ontario, LOR 2HO0 Phone Fax 1-519-658-6857 aaaaaaa .............. Customers produce their own 2â€" 1/2 foot wide eucalyptus wall that sways with paper ribbon and dried flowers, crescent swags with dried flowers and herbs, and door baskets full of silk spring or summer flowers. people, depending on the complexxty of the project. One popular item is an 18â€"inch (Photo by Peter McCusker) "I love to meet people," said Whiiinell, "and I especially like to see clients beaming as they leave with a product they have made themselves." ~She has just completed a series of spring workshops and is already planâ€" ning her fall and winter schedule. In early September, she will have an open house at her studio, 329 Oakridge Court. Whitmell can be reached at 257â€"0093. "A word of warning. There is a birdbrain in this home that occasionâ€" ally makes catcalls at the clients. The Whitmells are having a tough time teaching their pet parrot, Spanky, socially correct behavior for business! Whitmell is getting custom orders for business offices and is displaying her designs at craft shows. Her husband, Mike, though wary of her venture at first, soon got on board, and recently built her a studio in their home. There she creates a relaxing and therapeutic atmosphere by piping in soothing music into her studio and providing light refreshments. Whitmell always encourages customers to bring swatches of mateâ€" rial or wallpaper to the workshops, if they are trying to color coâ€"ordinate their finished product to their home decor. Another popular item is the pod wreath. It is a grape vine covered with an assortment of dried flowers, lotus pods, eucalyptus, pepper berries, thyme, and lavender. ""We do everything in steps and I make it as simple as possible," said Whitmell. "It looks very ugly in the beginning until we add a bit of color and it progresses and turns into a The topiary tree costs $45 at a workshop, but according to Whitmell, usually retails for over $100. topiary, or ornamental tree made with cinnamon sticks.