Take Me Out // Toronto Flower Market
Hooray for summer and flower season! It’s finally that time of year when every convenience store and market puts out buckets of fresh cut flowers, and the streets of the city smell heavenly. I don’t know if I’ve ever been to a city that covets flowers quite like Toronto does, and when this season rolls around, I always feel lucky to live here.
Another really special thing about being in Ontario during this time of year is how much can actually be grown locally. Though Toronto is extremely urban and can seem very grey at times, we’re surrounded by amazing farmland, which means we have access to all sorts of local produce, dairy, wine, and flowers! When it comes to food, it’s easy to hunt down what you’re looking for at farmer’s markets, but where do you head to get fresh cut, local blooms? Why the Toronto Flower Market of course!
The Toronto Flower Market started up last summer as a way to bring local plantlife to the flower-hungry people of the city. Now in their second year, the market and its vendors are constantly growing, and the event has become so popular that it was moved to a bigger location for this summer! When I stopped by this past Saturday, it was only an hour into the event, and a massive number of flowers had already sold out. People all over the neighbourhood could be seen with armfuls of blooms wrapped in the market’s signature brown paper, and hoards of people were rushing to snap up a handful of peonies before they sold out.
Of course I couldn’t attend a market filled with flowers without getting my floral print on, so I dressed up in a perfect flowery bright midi-skirt from Bicyclette for the occasion. I paired the skirt with a lacy white crop top, a purple lace bralet, and simple black sandals, and topped everything off with a neon pink Ban.do headband and a Fieldguided tote (a bag practically made to be loaded up with roses, peonies, and greenery!)
The sun was shining, the air smelled sweet, and little orphaned petals lined the bustling walkways between flower stalls. It was the most beautiful Saturday morning, and the armfuls of delicious smelling peonies and tiny pink roses that I took home with me only made it more enchanted. I even found a new favourite flower, a bright coral peony called “Hawaiian Charm”!
I stopped by The Pop Stand on my way out for a lavender london fog ice pop, which is basically a floral earl grey tea latte in popsicle form (aka super delicious!), then slowly made my way home. Each side street I wandered down was full of beautiful greenery and sweet, newly bloomed gardens, and there was a certain feeling of magic in the air. If my day at the Toronto Flower Market taught me anything, it’s to stop and smell the roses!
‘Take Me Out’ is a new blog series collaboration between Toronto blogger Alyssa, of Random Acts of Pastel and Bicyclette, where she takes her favourite Bicyclette pieces on adventures throughout the city, and brings you along!
[photos: Brianne Burnell]