OUR STORY
Ardice + Co. began as a tiny seed of an idea, planted and lying dormant for some time. Much like a flower grows, my idea required just the right conditions to flourish, coming to full blossom at precisely the moment I truly believe it was meant to be.
As a child, I spent many happy hours tinkering away in the dirt and plants alongside my mother. Like most children, I learned by watching, mimicking all the gentle ways my mother tended to her beloved garden. When I became a mother myself, I longed to share my own love of gardening with my girls. Imagine my heart bursting upon hearing my girls' own excitement after discovering spring's first blooms! As my girls grew, I began including them more and more in my gardening, and cherished every moment we spent being surrounded by and caring for nature together. The days spent gardening with my children were purposeful and filled with joy. The seed to share such a fulfilling activity, this generational gardening, started to grow and I felt deeply drawn to share this gift with others.
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As most parents will tell you, the days pass quickly and my tiny seed of sharing generational gardening with others got buried in...well, life. While I continued to garden with my children, I put my idea aside and focused on all other things we busy ourselves with as parents and spouses.
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In early 2021, my mother, Louise, passed away, following a lengthy battle with breast cancer. Spring followed shortly after and I found myself spending all my extra time in my garden. I realized that being surrounded by Earth's natural beauty was where I felt the most peace after experiencing such a profound loss. Digging my hands into the soil and lovingly tending to the flowers and trees filled me with so many joyful memories of the time I had spent gardening with my mother. It was precisely the motivation I needed to keep pushing toward my big dreams.
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A week before my mother passed away, she gifted me with a special piece of jewelry of hers that I had adored as a young girl. It's a very unique ring, made of diamonds and beaded gold shaped to form four intersecting flowers. This ring became so symbolic to me - not just the love of gardening we shared, but how beautifully connected and intertwined we all are, much like the petals on the ring.
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My mother had always been the biggest supporter of my dreams. I had shared with her, often, about my tiny seed of an idea to share gardening with others, but it wasn't until she passed that I truly realized the impact that gardening had on my healing process and how it could help others. To me, the healing properties of carefully nurturing something as it grows and the symbolism of my mother's special ring just made it feel like the time had arrived for my tiny seed to grow and flourish by bringing the joy and healing of generational gardening to others. I had finally felt that Ardice + Co. was ready to blossom.
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What we grow in our gardens is truly more than just plants. My dream is to inspire others to use gardening as a tool of connection - to connect with others and with ourselves, learning and growing, and to pass that love and fulfillment on to generations to come.
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All of this led to a garden space beyond my wildest dreams, and it is still continuing. Nestled in the foothills of Alpine, I have lovingly dedicated, planned, and tended to a parcel of land to provide a space of connection and a venue for so many opportunities to come.