Super Mama - Every Hat Has a Story - Arizona
After seventeen years of being the quintessential Stay-at-home ‘Super Mama,’ Dani Christakos decided it was time to find a place for her talent, drive & expertise to bloom. With her new lifestyle company, ‘The Flower Garage’, Dani is teaching & collaborating with her clients to help make their spaces and events more beautiful with floral decoration. Photo by @jasonmyersphoto
ARIZONA SINCE 2005
Dani Christakos and her family have called Scottsdale home for the past 15 years. Along with her husband, George, who is a dentist in the Valley, they’ve raised three children: Tommy (18), Paige (15), and Chloe (21). They’re a family that appears to be plucked straight out of Hallmark movie...one of the good ones that makes you cry happy tears and call your Mom afterwards. Dani and George are high school sweethearts, and he still brings her fresh flowers home every Sunday. “Staying home is fabulous,” says Dani, “It’s the best job in the world. But I’ve always wanted to do something more.”
For seventeen years, Dani was a stay-at-home mom and raised her three kids, which is a job she says she always wanted to do. But the urge to get out and create her own path has always been right there beneath the surface. “As the kids get older and they need you less and less, you feel like you have a lot of time on your hands,” explains Dani. “For me, that’s not sitting at home, going to lunch or playing tennis everyday. That all gets old after a while. I really wanted to go back to work, but I didn’t know exactly what that could be.”
Growing up in Maryland, Dani says there were always flowers around the house. “My Dad was from Holland and always had fresh floral décor around. I remember clipping fresh hydrangeas in my front yard.” She set out to learn more about the floral industry and how she could forge her own path. “I decided I was going to do something with flowers,” she says. “They make me happy, and everybody loves them. You need flowers in your life!”
The Flower Garage (formerly-known-as The Mobile Flower Bar) is a floral-lifestyle company that, according to its website, “brings the art of all things pretty to you.” Whether she’s doing a baby or bridal shower or teaching a class to a dozen girlfriends, Dani uses her expertise to make her clients feel like professional florists. “It’s not necessarily about the flowers at some point,” she says. “It’s something fun to do with girlfriends and it’s evolved into a fun way to meet & interact with people. The fun part for me is that everyone leaves happy. That’s the best part about my job.” Dani recently purchased a property that has an old woodworking shop on its premises. The new location served as a catalyst for a name change from ‘The Mobile Flower Bar’ to ‘The Flower Garage.’ “It’s the perfect spot for me to hold classes and create,” she says. “It was an old garage, so the name worked and felt right!”
In recent weeks as the COVID-19 pandemic has slowed her regular flow of business, Dani has changed her focus to ‘making people feel good.’ She spent one day creating 25 arrangements that she gave away to her customers because, as Dani puts it, “We all need a little unexpected cheer.” She’s holding online sessions, as well. “This Friday, I’m holding my first Facebook Live class. I’m looking forward to teaching everyone virtually!” At home, George’s practice is temporarily only seeing emergency patients and the kids are all home from school so she’s enjoying the extra time she’s getting with them. Although Dani is thriving in her new role as an entrepreneur, she’s still first-and-foremost (as her custom hat will tell you) a Super Mama. She’s had to be there for her oldest son, Tommy, a senior at Chaparral High School who is missing out on all the activities he’s waited four years for. “It’s been hard for all of us,” Dani says, “but flowers help me take my mind off of how hard the times are right now!”
Dani has chosen Chrysalis, an organization dedicated to developing broad-based solutions to prevent domestic abuse, as her beneficiary in the Every Hat Has a Story: Arizona project. Each year, Chrysalis helps over 1400 victims of abuse receive assistance, comfort and liberation through emergency shelters, transitional housing, treatment & counseling, and community education. 100% of the proceeds from the sale of her ‘SUPER MAMA’ trucker hats will be donated to the Phoenix-based organization.
For more information about The Flower Garage and their complete list of services & events, visit www.theAZflowergarage.com.
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Learn more about how to get involved or donate to Chrysalis at their website www.NoAbuse.org, and follow them onInstagram and Facebook.