Christine and Michele Rouse are the sisterly team working to make their new shop a place people will flock to find flowers. (Photo by Micheal Rhian Driscoll)
While they’ve been pretty busy showing their “floral flag” at area farmers’ markets and similar events on both sides of the Chesapeake Bay Bridge, sisters Michele Rouse of Pasadena and Christine Rouse of Chester, both avid horticulturalists, officially opened their Grasonville-based flower shop, 50 Shades of Flowers, in April.
The shop, located at 4024 Main Street in a large quonset-hut type structure, holds herbs, tomatoes, and a variety of flowers.
Specialty planters such as milk jugs, food cans, even old shoes, are a particular focus, the sisters said.
The settings are unusual, a quality Christine says “doesn’t really come from the plants that are grown, but rather how they are offered to the public.”
Ultimately the sisters say they hope to expand their efforts from farmers’ markets and other events to more regular hours at the Grasonville location.
The name of the shop is not necessarily intended to evoke thoughts of recent controversial literary endeavors, but to be memorable.
As Christine put it, “a name like Betty’s or Bob’s Flowers might not be remembered, but ’50 Shades of Flowers’ does tend to stick out.”
In fact, Christine adds, people have already spoken to her on the street about the name.
They chose the location, Christine said, because of Grasonville’s location, “just far enough from the Bay Bride to offer serenity without having to go too far into the Shore” to find it.
