Portraits in Bloom
A two-day retreat in flowers, photography, design and nature
with Nadine Brown & Honey Atkinson
Imagine...
Two beautiful days immersed in flowers, design, photography and nature that feel like they've been created just for you. A space where you can finally feel completely at ease in front of the camera, discover and learn to trust your own creative voice, and connect with other ‘floral obsessed’ women. Return home with a one-of-a-kind stunning and professional self-portrait, shot by Honey, you'll actually love, renewed creative confidence, and practical design and photography skills that will stay with you long after the flowers have faded.
You've always wanted beautiful portraits of yourself, but never quite felt comfortable enough to have them taken
Does this sound familiar?
You feel awkward in front of the camera and wish you looked more natural in photographs.
You'd love to trust your own creative instincts instead of second-guessing every decision
You're craving time away to slow down, reconnect and fill your creative cup.
You'd love to learn how to photograph both yourself and your creations beautifully.
You'd love to spend a weekend with women who get just as giddy over flowers, light & beautiful imagery as much as you do.
If that sounds a little like you, we'd love to welcome you to Portraits in Bloom.
And if you're already ….
talking yourself out of it, telling yourself it's not the right time, that you should spend the money on something more practical, or that two days away just for you feels a little indulgent... we see you. That story is one almost every woman we know tells herself. But here's what we've learned: the women who give themselves permission to do something purely creative, something that feeds who they are rather than what they produce, come back different. More themselves. And that energy? It flows into everything else.
Why we created Portraits in Bloom
Over the years, working with women in very different ways, we kept hearing the same things.
"I hate having my photo taken."
"I never know what to do in front of a camera."
"I wish I trusted my own creative instincts more."
It made us wonder...
What if flowers could change that?
Not simply as something beautiful to arrange, but as a way to help us feel more present, more at ease in front of the camera & design in a way thats in partnership with nature.
When we created our very first floral portrait session together in the Ivy Greenhouse, something unexpected happened.
Surrounded by flowers, soft natural light and birdsong, we both felt ourselves relax. The self-consciousness faded. Instead of worrying about how we looked, we became immersed in the flowers, creating and simply enjoying the moment - the blooms became the most natural hero.
That's when we realised...
Flowers don't just inspire creativity. They create a sense of calm, helping us trust ourselves, let go of perfection, and simply be.
That's the heart of Portraits in Bloom.
A two-day retreat where flowers, photography and nature come together to help you feel at home in front of the camera, trust your own creative voice, and reconnect with the joy of creating.
Day One — Portrait in Bloom
Arrive in clothing and makeup you feel comfortable being photographed in. The day begins gently and builds into something really alive.
✦9:00 am - Arrive
Welcome tea, a short mindfulness practice with Nadine to settle in.
✦9:30 am - Create
Nadine leads the group through building all three immersive floral portrait installations. Everyone works alongside her on each one.
✦12:30 pm - Nourish
Seasonal picnic lunch in the gardens. No rush. If you're still photographing, that's completely fine.
✦1:30 pm - Be Seen
Your floral portrait session with Honey. She photographs you in the installation of your choosing, with careful attention to light and how you're positioned. This is the portrait that will be printed and posted to you.
✦3:00 pm - Learn & Play
Honey teaches the group how to photograph within the scenes. Light, framing, how to photograph yourself and each other. Then open time to move through all three installations and really play.
✦5:00 pm - Gather
Drinks and connection to close the day. Optional dinner at the property or the local pub for those staying overnight.
Your fine art portrait
The portrait Honey takes of you on Day One will be professionally printed on beautiful textural archival paper at a specialist Australian lab and posted to you after the retreat. This is included in your ticket price.
For many women, it's the first photograph of themselves they've genuinely loved.
Day Two — Gather, Create, Capture
A slower, more spacious day. You'll make something with your hands, photograph it properly, and sit down to eat together underneath the thing you've all built.
✦8:30 am - Open
Morning mindfulness with Nadine to start the day.
✦9:00 am - Gather
Pick your own flowers from Nadine's field. Seasonal, local, growing right here. Add to anything left over from Day One.
✦10:00 am - Create
Design and arrange your own floral piece in a commissioned artisan vessel. Nadine guides the process, but the choices are yours.
✦11:30 am - Create Together
Work alongside Nadine to build a large-scale immersive installation for the long lunch table. You'll learn the techniques behind statement designs as you go.
✦1:30 pm - Long Lunch
Gather underneath the installation you've just made. A relaxed, seasonal lunch together.
✦2:30 pm - Capture
Photograph your own vessel, the installation, and each other. Honey guides light, styling and composition.
✦4:30 pm - Take Home
Pack up your vessel and arrangement, a soft farewell, and head off with a full creative cup & beautiful new friendships.
What's included
Two full days of creative immersion with Nadine Brown and Honey Atkinson in an intimate small-group setting
All flowers, botanical materials and floral ingredients
Your own commissioned artisan vessel to keep
A professional floral portrait session with Honey
One fine art archival portrait print, professionally printed and posted to you after the retreat
Morning tea, seasonal picnic lunch and long table lunch across both days
Your own floral arrangement in your vessel to take home
New skills in both photography and floral design you can use immediately
What you'll actually walk away with
A gallery of images from the two days
Between Honey's camera and what you capture on your own phone, you'll leave with a genuine suite of imagery from the retreat. Honey and Nadine will capture you throughout both days, working with the flowers, building the installations, being in the space. Around 15 to 20 images in total, ready to use on your website, socials, and portfolio. If you have a creative business, this is content. If you don't, it's just a beautiful record of two days that were entirely yours.
Your floral portrait gallery
The portrait session on Day One gives you more than one image. You'll receive a gallery to choose your favourite for printing, plus four additional edited portraits from the session. Five images of you, in flowers, made just for you.
A fine art archival print, made by hand
Your chosen portrait is printed at Atkins Lab, a family-run specialist lab in South Australia. Printed by hand on beautiful textural archival paper, 8x10, wrapped carefully and posted to you after the retreat. This is not a Big W or Kmart print! It's the kind of thing you frame, or mount in an album.
Two days alongside two people who've built creative businesses they love
Lunch isn't just lunch. Over those two days, sitting around a table with Honey and Nadine and a small group of women, there is real space to talk. About business, creativity, how to make money doing what you love without losing what you love about it. About balancing life and work, tools and practices, ideas you've been sitting on. You can float something you've been mulling over and get honest input from people who get it. That kind of conversation, in that kind of setting, is rare.
Meet Nadine & Honey
Nadine Brown - Florist, Mentor, Educator
Nadine Brown is a floral designer, educator and mentor, and the founder of The Ivy Institute. For more than three decades she's been guiding emerging & established florists to see flowers differently—not simply as something to arrange, but with a focus on respecting nature & embracing the seasons.
Known for her gentle, nature-led approach, Nadine creates experiences that invite people to slow down, trust their instincts and create with greater confidence by learning professional skills. From her century-old Ivy Greenhouse in the Southern Highlands of NSW, she teaches workshops, retreats and mentoring that blend floral artistry with a deep appreciation for the natural world alongside intentional business.
Portraits in Bloom is a natural extension of that philosophy, bringing together flowers, photography and creativity to help women reconnect with themselves through the quiet beauty of nature.
Honey Atkinson - Photographer, Educator
Honey Atkinson is a photographer, videographer and photography educator with two decades of commercial experience. Based on the Sapphire Coast of NSW, she works primarily with women in business through her brand Honey Photo + Film, and has been published by Meta, Airbnb, The Design Files and Murdock Books, among others.
Outside of client work, Honey's personal photography is rooted in the natural world. She's an avid gardener and has spent years photographing flowers, drawn to the way light moves through petals and the quiet drama of things in bloom. Portraits in Bloom grew directly out of that obsession, and the conviction that being surrounded by flowers changes the way a woman feels about having her photograph taken.
INVESTMENT
payment plans available at checkout
Accommodation is not included in the ticket price and is available separately. Nadine has Airbnb accommodation on the property, SEE OPTIONS BELOW Breakfast is included for guests staying on site.
A payment plan is available AT CHECKOUT
FRI 24TH & SAT 25TH OCTOBER
Need Accommodation?
We have 2 short stay accomodation spaces here at Cedar Creek Homestead
The Hut, our Off-grid tiny home with a ‘get back to nature’ feel nestled in the bush by the creek.
Jay Bird Cottage, 1920’s cottage lovingly restored, closer to the homestead under the giant mulberry trees & part of our harvest garden & glasshouse.
The Homestead, We have 2 beautiful rooms in the main Homestead with luxurious shared bathroom, clawfoot bath & sauna along with a reading room/kitchenette.
contact Nadine directly to book
How to get here
Held in Nadine’s personal studio
The Ivy Greenhouse - Thirlmere NSW [ approx 1 hour Sydney, 30 min Bowral & Wollongong] - 10 min from Picton train station.
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A. No. Your phone is completely enough for everything we'll be doing. Honey's teaching is designed around what you actually have in your hand. If you do shoot with a professional camera and want to bring it along, you're very welcome to, but please don't let not having one stop you.
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A. None at all. Both days are designed to meet you where you are. You'll be guided through everything, and the focus is on creativity and experience as much as skill-building.
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A. Honestly, this is probably most for you. Honey has been photographing women for over 20 years, and almost every single one of them has said the same thing before a shoot: I hate having my photo taken, I don't like ‘x’ about myself, I don't know what to do. You are not alone in that feeling, and you are not the exception. What most women find is that surrounded by flowers, in a small group, with someone who understands that anxiety deeply, it ends up being nowhere near as uncomfortable as they imagined. Almost always it's fun.
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Your portrait from Day One is printed at Atkins Lab, a family-run specialist lab in South Australia, on beautiful textural archival paper at 8x10 size. It's hand printed, wrapped carefully, and posted to you after the retreat. You'll also receive a gallery to choose your favourite image from, plus four additional edited portraits from your session -these will be high resolution digital files you can print from.
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Come in something you feel comfortable and like yourself in. You'll be moving around, working with flowers, and being photographed, so think about what makes you feel good rather than what looks "right." Nadine will share some more specific guidance closer to the date. And bring a few outfits if you feel unsure, we can work it out together.
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A. The Early Bloom deposit option is $300 to secure your spot, followed by two equal payments of $975, with the final payment not due until October 10th. Payment plan options are also available at checkout for general release tickets.tem description
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A. Accommodation is not included in the ticket price but is available separately on Nadine's property. Breakfast is included for guests staying on site. See the accommodation section above for options and contact Nadine directly to book.
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A. The retreat is held at The Ivy Greenhouse on Nadine's property in Thirlmere, NSW, approximately one hour from Sydney, 30 minutes from Bowral and Wollongong, and 10 minutes from Picton train station.