Love is blooming at Shelter Island Flowers

When Kelci McIntosh, who grew up in a small coastal town called Mukilteo 25 miles north of Seattle, met Chris DiOrio who grew up on Shelter Island, they turned out to have a lot in common beyond ferries and small-town coastal life. 

They met at a house show (a band playing in someone’s home) in New Orleans when Kelci, eavesdropping on a conversation Chris was having, heard the word “garden” and interrupted, “You have a garden? Can I come help you in your garden?”

By the time they moved to Shelter Island together in 2017, Kelci had been such a help in the garden that she and Mr. DiOrio were partners in farming and life. In the fall of 2017, they started Island Time Farm, now going into their ninth season.

They started out as a diversified vegetables and flowers farm, and slowly moved to producing mainly flowers and tomatoes, and launching a home garden business. Their latest venture, Shelter Island Flowers at 59 North Ferry Road, is a walk-in floral retail shop that does weddings, events, and celebrations.

“If you need a birthday or a friendship bouquet,” Ms. McIntosh said, “we can do that for you, using the flowers from our farm.”

The florist business is a natural extension of their farming activity, which centers on locally grown produce. And like tomatoes, the ones grown nearby are always the best. “Local flowers are much higher quality,” said Ms. McIntosh.

She’s been imagining the Mother’s Day bouquets she will be arranging for the big day. “I’m seeing Ranunculus, anemones, tulips, daffodils, pussy willows, lilacs, and tulips — voluptuous and colorful.”

Shelter Island Flowers does every bouquet by hand. “We think about every single element that goes into an arrangement, from the vase, to where we source the flowers, how we handle the flowers,” Ms. McIntosh said. “I’m really obsessed with flowers being at that peak freshness. I love colors. I love high quality, beautiful, elegant design.”

Alongside Ms. McIntosh, local artist Lora Lomuscio has brought her eye for beauty to the task of arranging flowers for the business.

They will be open Friday, May 8, and Saturday, May 9, from 10 a.m. to 5p.m.; 9 a.m. to noon on Mother’s Day. You can pre-order through the website shelterislandflowers.com/ or at 631-749-5240. Starting Memorial Day weekend, they’ll be open Thursday, 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Friday to Sunday, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Once Mother’s Day is in the books, they’ll have flowers for the many other events of this blooming year, including birthdays, graduations, parties and nuptials. “We have booked nine weddings for this year,” said Ms. McIntosh. “We’re really excited to be designing for those events.”