About
The Rarified
is the wider, well organised and professional team behind event designer and creative soul
Joanna Cairns
Designer, artist and lover of all things beautiful
Hello, I’m Joanna - lead designer, embracer of colour and creative
I adore listening to the dreams of my clients and working together closely to take these ideas to a completely new level of beauty and brilliance - with florals and more.
I bring your unique vision to life through great design, unmatched inspiration and seamless planning.
Having worked as a floral designer, a textile designer and with a degree in design, I am brimming with experience and ideas to elevate.
I see working with clients as a glorious collaboration. I love nothing more that adding flair, interest and honesty to create a truly breath taking result.
You should never feel constrained by typical expectations, I want you to feel that you have the freedom to embrace your more out-there ideas, so together we can create the work of art your event deserves to be.
“Jo always takes the time to get to know her clients and fully understands what it is they are looking for, even when they don’t know themselves exactly what this is.”
The Yorkshire Party Company
A degree at Duncan of Jordanstone College of Art in Dundee left me with a lovely BA Hons in Design, specialising in knitting and weaving - there aren’t many of us in the world! I spent my weekends climbing Scottish mountains and fell in love with the landscape and its colours
My career since then has been fabulous. Two years in the Scottish borders working at Crombie cloth found me designing the ladieswear fabric collection, selling at Première Vision in Paris.
A move to Suffolk led to 13 years working on the USA market for men’s silk neckwear with the main client being Polo Ralph Lauren. Many trips to New York took place, with our agents office based in the incredible Empire State Building. I could never get used to the sway! It was like working on an ocean liner.
I moved back to Yorkshire to work at a cashmere weaving mill, and when it was time for a change, I decided I would really like to do something for myself.
I then found flowers…
Being self-employed had always been the dream and so a floral business course in Knightsbridge, London saw me start on this exciting path.
Seventeen years later I have styled hundreds of events.
I feel so passionately about my work and love drawing on all my varied career experiences, bringing something special to everything I create.