Meet Lezlie Clay | Owner | Farmer | Florist

We had the good fortune of connecting with Lezlie Clay and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Lezlie, is your business focused on helping the community? If so, how?
Everyone can use a little encouragement, everyone needs some hope, and everyone wants to know that they are seen, known, and loved. Terra Cotta Blooms is all about meeting those needs through locally grown and thoughtfully arranged flowers. Every flower purchased from Terra Cotta Blooms is sustainably grown and chemical-free. We use only flowers from our farm and supplement with flowers from other local growers as needed.

Terra Cotta Blooms is committed to donating 10% of gross sales to local organizations that help families. So every time you purchase our flowers, you are also helping great local organizations strengthen, encourage, and uplift our community.

We also love giving away flowers to brighten people’s day and our goal for 2021 was to give away 25 arrangements to others in our community. We are currently at 50 and counting.

Can you give our readers an introduction to your business? Maybe you can share a bit about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
Terra Cotta Blooms was born out of one of the most difficult seasons of my life. After retiring from my professional dance career in Houston, my husband and I had our daughter. Then, our family moved to DFW, I gave birth to our son, the pandemic hit, we bought a house, and then moved to Plano. In the midst of all of these changes, I was struggling with ongoing postpartum depression and suffering with a deep sense of loneliness. All I wanted was for someone to truly notice me and acknowledge how my life could be difficult. But instead I felt invisible. Over time, through counseling, and because of the faithful prayers of a mentor/Bible study leader, I began to feel the fog lifting. But I knew there was more to life than just survival. I needed to have purpose and creativity outside of being a mom, but I wasn’t sure what that looked like or if it was even possible. At the right time, God helped me discover Erin Benzakein of Floret Flower in Washington. The breathtaking beauty of her flowers and her honest story of searching for purpose and finding it in flowers inspired me to learn more. I purchased her books and spent every afternoon nap time devouring them as they fed my mind and inspired my soul. That’s when I knew I found something special and I had to give this flower thing a shot even though I had never grown anything in my life. Thanks to a partial scholarship and the generosity of my parents, I was able to take the Floret Online Workshop where I learned from some of the best in the business how to actually grow flowers and make a life out of it.

Since then, I’ve run into many roadblocks along the way with the two biggest being limited space and time. We live in a beautiful neighborhood in Plano, but the majority of our backyard is taken up by a pool, so I constantly have to get creative. I started by tearing out some bushes along the fence and then my dad helped me build three raised beds to get me started. Since then, I’ve dug up the grass behind our fence in the alley, pulled out some more backyard bushes, claimed the tiny strip of land between our driveway and fence, and added another raised bed in the small side yard. I’m still growing in an area totaling less than 250 square feet, but I’ve packed a lot of life into that small space.
In addition to this limitation, I’m also a stay-at-home mom of two kids (two and four years old). The majority of my work happens before I get them up, during their afternoon nap, or after they go to bed. These limiting factors have been frustrating, but they have also forced me to become very specific in my intentions and focused on the purpose of growing these flowers in the first place.

My life has been transformed by the process of growing and caring for flowers and time in the garden brings me such life and peace. I have also been pleasantly surprised by how refreshing and exciting it’s been to arrange flowers specifically for each recipient. Each and every arrangement gets prayed over as I ask God to use these flowers to encourage, heal, and inspire.

I think some of the biggest lessons I’ve learned from this endeavor have been to listen to God’s voice and follow His leading even if it seems foolish or irresponsible to others. Something as foolish as growing flowers, putting them in a jar, and giving them away really is powerful. I’ve also grown in my trust in the Lord as He’s shown me that the right flowers will bloom at the right time, and there will be enough for everyone that He places in my path. It seems like every day I’m learning something new that applies to everyday life and I’ll often share these snippets on my Instagram stories. We all need each other, so let’s open our eyes, our hearts, and our homes to those around us.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
I honestly haven’t done much exploring in DFW since moving here in 2019. Between getting settled, having our second child, the pandemic, buying a house, moving to Plano, and starting Terra Cotta Blooms, there is still a lot for me to discover. But if my best friend was visiting the area, we would definitely go to Chick-fil-A at least once (a regular part of life with two young kids). We would also order carry-out from Lupe Tortilla to remind us of the delicious Tex Mex we had while living in Houston. They have hands-down the best tortillas I’ve ever tasted! I would love to browse the beautiful plants at Shades of Green Nursery and Garden Center, shop for local produce at the Coppell Farmers Market, and play at the playground at Windhaven Meadows Park. We would also do regular life things together like take my dog for a walk, talk to people in our neighborhood, make waffles and drink coffee while catching up on life, attend Sunday worship at Citizen’s Church, and spend evenings in the front yard while my kids draw with chalk and blow bubbles. The best week ever for me right now isn’t about the places I go or things I do, but being with the people I love.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
I want to dedicate this shoutout to my husband Will for his constant support, belief in my dreams, and willingness to pick up the slack as I pursue this dream. We’re in it to win it. I also want to recognize my parents as they have encouraged me all along the way, paid for online courses, helped build garden beds, hauled truckloads of soil, compost, and mulch, and spent extra time with my family.

I’m thankful for Erin Benzakein of Floret Flower because of her honesty and willingness to share what she has learned.

And a special shoutout to my kids as they have adapted to my new endeavor. Their honest and over-the-top joy about flowers makes me realize how lucky we truly are to be living this life. I love you two always and always, no matter what.

Website: www.terracottablooms.com

Instagram: @terracottablooms

Image Credits
Will Clay