Meet Liz Arbios, Leen Bernardo, Leah Tadena | Poppies N Petals Flower Bar

We had the good fortune of connecting with Liz Arbios, Leen Bernardo, Leah Tadena and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Liz Arbios, Leen Bernardo, Leah Tadena, what was your thought process behind starting your own business?
Poppies N Petals flower bar bloomed out of a high school friendship in need of rekindling. Life is perpetually busy and as the three of us, Liz, Leah, and Leen moved to different cities and the years flew by, we saw each other less and less. When a recent milestone brought on a rare get together, we realized that too much time has gone by and too many stories have gone unshared. We needed an excuse to spend more time together. That day sprouted an idea to start a business doing something we all loved – sharing the joy felt among friends with others in the community – what better way than with flowers at celebrations.

Alright, so for those in our community who might not be familiar with your business, can you tell us more?
Poppies N Petals are Liz, Leen and Leah, three friends with diverse backgrounds. Liz has a financial background, Leen is in the medical field and Leah has a design background. Our passion for flowers was born out of a desire to share the joy of friendship with others in our community.

Poppies N Petals’ goal is to assist people in celebrating and connecting in a most unique way. We are here to elevate events by adding an element of nature with a super fun do-it-yourself bloom bar, where guests can tap into their creativity by choosing their own flowers, greens, floral fillers and assembling a unique take home souvenir. We provide our clients a flower bar filled with a beautiful array of fresh flowers and greeneries that support their event’s theme, as well as custom signage, bouquet holders or handmade vases, ribbons, and floral accessories. We set up and take down and provide a knowledgeable floral attendant (if needed) in order to provide an easy, convenient and worry free experience for our clients and their guests. We believe that when people get together to share their creativity it sets the stage for lasting memories.

What is unique about our business is that we offer an Experience, not just for our client, but a creative adventure for their guests. It’s the client’s way of saying thank you to their guests for sharing this moment and take home a little something as a remembrance of this special time. Anyone can buy a bouquet of flowers for someone but a flower bar creates an enjoyable moment that encourages interaction, communication and creativity between people.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
Since there are three of us, we decided to each do a day’s itinerary.

Liz’ “Historical Los Angeles”

Spending a day in LA start with a stroll through Descanso Gardens in La Cañada. There are so many different gardens to see but my fave is the Camellia Collection. Next stop is San Antonio Winery in downtown Los Angeles, for some wine tasting and brunch. This is a great place to purchase gifts to take back home! Then off to Chinatown for some shopping and a visit to Phoenix Bakery where they sell these amazing sticky Sugar Butterflies. A short distance from there is Union Station. This landmark is a must see!! There are always events happening such as art exhibits, performances and live music. Allow enough time to visit Olvera Street just across the street. There are lots of shops, food, and rare finds such as Mexican jumping beans. Our fun filled day will end at the famous Phillippe’s for a french dipped beef sandwich and a slice of New York cheesecake. What a day!!

Leen’s “A Day in a Life”

Breakfast at Eggs and Things in Simi Valley for their delicious Swedish Pancakes
Followed by a lavender latte at Makenna Koffee in Simi Valley
A drive along PCH
Beach Volleyball at Zuma Beach
Surfing at Malibu
Lunch at Malibu Farm on the pier
Shopping at Malibu Country Mart
Dinner watching beach sunset at The Sunset Restaurant

Leah’s “Perfect Pasadena Day”

A perfect day in LA-adjacent Pasadena starts with shopping at any of the local outdoor flea markets: PCC Flea Market (1st Sundays), South Pasadena Flea Market (3rd Saturdays), or the legendary Rose Bowl Flea market (2nd Sundays). Followed by lunch at the classic 53 year old diner Pie N’ Burger or an afternoon tea and stroll at Huntington Library and Gardens to enjoy the season’s blooms. Alternately, spend an afternoon filled with Van Goghs, Picassos and Rembrandts at Pasadena’s little gem of a museum – Norton Simon. Finish off your fabulous day sampling San Gabriel Valley’s renowned Chinese food including juicy pork dumplings at Mama Lu’s or jian bing Chinese crepes at Me + Crepe in historic Old Town Pasadena.

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?
We would like to dedicate this shoutout to our families who enable us to do what we do. For being the sounding board to all of our wacky ideas and for their constant support, patience and encouragement in every step that we have taken. Also a very special shoutout to our parents, who are a continuous source of inspiration, we are forever grateful.

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Other: poppiesnpetals@gmail.com, poppiesnpetals@myyahoo.com

Image Credits
Main photo (photographer Izzy Cortez)