Catherine's Gardens Gearing Up For Full Bloom Through Fall, Winter

The scent that greets visitors to  is a mix of aromatic flowers and fragrant candles, smells that may typically remind the guest of the bloom of summer.

But though flowers ordered for summer weddings, proms and graduations may slow down as the days get shorter and temperatures cool, fall and winter is just as busy for the cozy shop.

"As soon as fall and winter picks up, it's crazy between Halloween and Thanksgiving," said owner Julie Markert, a native of nearby Alsip. "We've come up with some really fun stuff."

That fun stuff includes flower arrangements made to look like dogs, witch hats and brooms and Christmas-themed bulbs as well, Markert said. Not to mention the fall mums with "phenomenal bright colors" and circus roses that come in yellow, red and orange.

"We want to make sue that we really hear what the customer is saying and offer creative things for them," she added.

Top-notch customer service is priority for Markert, who has been operating Catherine's Gardens in Oak Forest for six years. The shop was christened with a family name, which was supposed to go to Markert's daughter, but "the shop came before the child so the shop got the name," Markert said with a laugh.

Markert's first job in high school was at a flower shop and she got a job in a family-owned store while in college at Illinois State University as well. That's where she fell in love with the community atmosphere of selling flowers—an atmosphere she has recreated in her own shop in Oak Forest.

"The best part of the day is when someone comes to pick up an order, how excited they are," Markert said. "That's the best feeling in the world because you're not only part of someone's day, you're part of someone's life, because those flowers are in those pictures forever."

Catherine's Gardens is also family-owned, with Markert's nieces and nephews helping out in the shop, as well as local high school students.

"We're happy in Oak Forest," she said. "It's a fantastic community."

The shop also sees plenty of repeat customers, such as a bride who ordered flowers for her wedding, then baby shower, then first communion and family parties and so on, Markert described.

 "You aren't just a florist, you're part of a community, part of people's families," she said, "and that's really the best thing in the world."