Our Story
Bell and Trunk Flowers was the brainchild of nine-year-old Elise, the daughter of owner Vanessa Blyth Marlin.
In 2008 Vanessa was looking for a career change when she and Elise walked past a little flower shop with a sign in the window with a sign that read “going out of business”. Elise suggested to her mother that she take it over. After all, being a business owner appealed to all of Vanessa’s ideals: being her own boss, participating in a thriving merchant community, connecting with neighbors and most importantly making people happy through flowers.
Although Vanessa has a journalism background, working with flowers was a natural progression after spending much of her childhood helping her mother and grandmother tend their extensive flower gardens in Pennsylvania and Minnesota.
Today the little flower shop has bloomed into a hearty business that is sought out by people all over the world who come to the Bay Area to have their destination weddings and events.
Bell and Trunk also has long standing relationships with various companies, home owners, event planners, fellow merchants, neighbors, and other flower aficionados and provides regular service to these clients.
Our Design Philosophy
In designing for events, weddings, homes and businesses, Vanessa believes that flowers should reflect the nature of the client. She takes the time to understand not only the clients’ desires but all the style and vibe they are going for. Every floral arrangement is as original and unique as our clients.
When creating arrangements for online orders, our style is inspired by the seasons and whatever looks fresh and hardy at the flower market. We aren’t afraid to combine warm tones and cool tones and love working with a variety of interesting textures while creating a lot of movement.