A flower arranger from Sarisbury Green has won a top award for her decorative design at the Royal Horticultural Society Chelsea Flower Show.
Pauline Hurran with her exhibit Space Oddity from the Chelsea Flower Show
Pauline Hurran was awarded a silver medal for her flower design called Space Oddity, based on a theme of open space.
The 67-year-old of Holly Hill Lane had worked tirelessly through the night from 8pm to 6.30am crafting an orbit of flowers and said she was “absolutely delighted” to receive the award for her minimalist style floral work at the 100th anniversary show this week.
“For a flower arranger, winning at the Chelsea Flower Show is like being at the Olympics,” she said. “There’s no greater accolade.
“To have the opportunity to compete at the Chelsea Flower Show is an honour and it carries with it a lot of prestige. To actually win a medal is one of the great accolades, to know you’ve been recognised as being a good floral art designer and to be up there with others who are that good is a great feeling.”
She said she took inspiration for her creations in residents’ gardens which she had spotted while running in the Western Wards. Her passion for flora began in 1996 when she and her husband had moved to Hong Kong and she joined a horticultural club to make friends.
“I’ve made a lot of friends through flowers and they have been invaluable,” she added. “Especially those when I moved back to England and helped me fit back in here.”
Pauline is an award-wining designer with the National Association of Flower Arrangers, which has included winning gold at a national competition in Edinburgh in 2008.
Her next challenge will be taking part in floral design at the Winchester Cathedral Flower Festival from June 12 to 16.