19-07-2025
- Entertainment
- New York Times
How a Floral Design Master Spends His Day With Roses and Rosé
Calvert Crary, the executive director of FlowerSchool New York, approaches blooms with humility and delight, saying he is 'not a great genius florist.'
'Let's face it, the flowers are doing all the heavy lifting,' he said, adding that he finally considered himself a 'real master' after 20 years of refining his craft. 'To find beautiful product and make it look good is not the hard part. The hard part is really trying to make a business out of the whole thing.'
To that end, Mr. Crary, 48, who has 'severe' dyslexia and began his career as a photographer, created his floral design school's curriculum for someone who 'needs to learn in a different way.'
'I got teased a lot about my dyslexia when I was younger, but I think now it was almost a gift,' he said. 'I'm able to be very flexible, and accept a lot of different learning styles.'
Mr. Crary's former students include Ingrid Carozzi, who designed the flowers for Katie Couric's daughter's wedding, and his school often hosts master classes by world-renowned florists like Christian Tortu and Lewis Miller.
Mr. Crary lives in Boerum Hill, Brooklyn, with his partner, Liz Brown, 44, an artist and part owner of FlowerSchool New York; his two daughters from a prior marriage, Magalie, 15, and Marion, 12; and his and Ms. Brown's son, Calvert Roscoe James, 5. During the summer, Ms. Brown and the children decamp to Westchester County, while Mr. Crary maintains a busy schedule in Brooklyn and Manhattan.
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