Parent Profile: Jayme Floyd

Tell us a little about yourself.

I was born and raised in Henderson, KY. After finishing high school, I went on to graduate from University of Kentucky—Go Big Blue! A large portion of my family resides in Henderson or close to this area. My husband is Jeff Jones, and I have a stepdaughter, Lily. We just celebrated our 1st anniversary together! As far as pets, with our busy schedules, we don’t have any at the house but do have Dixie (lab) and Biscuit, my nieces. 😉

What do you do for a living? 

I’m an interior/floral designer. I worked for Sugar Bakers as a designer before opening up J’Petals in 2007. In April, I will be celebrating 17 years in business in downtown Henderson! 

What do you enjoy most about being a local florist in a small town? What are some challenges? 

I love the smiles on people’s faces when they receive an arrangement I created or a special curated gift for them. It’s great being a hometown florist because if someone calls from out of town to make an order a lot of the time we know the individuals and can create something more to their liking! A few challenges would be having to turn people away if I’m already booked and can’t add anything else to my plate. Another is that people will text or run into me when we aren’t open and want me to create at the last minute for something—small town, it’s hard to say no.

Has floral design and arrangements always been a passion of yours?

I have always loved to design and create—whether it be painting, drawing, designing for homes, or creating florals. I have an artistic eye, and can visualize easily, and remember colors/tones if I see it once. 

Outside of work, what hobbies do you and your family enjoy? 

We love to travel when get the chance! We enjoy getting together with friends and family at pools, watching UK games, playing cards, even just grilling out or meeting at one of the local spots!

Describe what a day in the life of a florist looks like as Valentine’s Day and wedding season approaches. 

It is madness! I’m just winding down from my crazy holiday season, but that is a season. We only have one day for Valentine’s Day! Behind the scenes I try to prep the best I can prior to the day. I’m pre-ordering flowers the first of January for Valentine’s Day—crazy right? It’s a gamble! We never know what the weather will be. I have had normal to icy/snowy Valentine’s Days. So—there is a lot going on behind the scenes besides just getting the flowers here and looking good. It also depends on if weather or flights around the world are off! We start prepping all the flowers that come in a few days before the 14th, and then try to get all of the routing figured out. Then we start poking away the day before because even though it is always the 14th, our phones are non-stop on the day of Valentine’s Day! 

As for weddings, I start meeting all my 2024 brides in January, even some for 2025. We have several in May/June but the fall has become the hot ticket. Most weekends I have 2-3 booked. But first—we will have proms in April and May!

How do you find balance between work and family?

I’d say I’m getting better after 16 years, but I still work crazy hours a lot of the time depending what all is going on.  A lot of sleepless nights on wedding weekends, but I do try to take more time to spend with family/friends and for myself (my health and sanity).

What advice would you give someone who is interested in floral design?

If you don’t want to work weekends, long hours, holidays, be on your toes ready to whip up on the spot or quick turnover time, etc. then this is not the job for you. You’ve got to love it and have a passion for it.