“I thought Oslo was an Instagram filter… and now my book is sitting on a shelf here.” – Adrienne Ryser
Today on La Vie Creative, I’m catching up with my dear friend Adrienne Ryser, the florist and creative force behind L’Arrosoir, Paris’s oldest flower shop – now with a stunning new chapter in Oslo, Norway.
Since we last spoke five years ago, Adrienne’s life has completely transformed:
she’s gotten married, become a mother, expanded her flower shop from Paris to Norway, and written a beautiful floral “cookbook” of bouquets that’s already making waves in the flower world.
In this episode (and this post), we dive into:
- How her new book came to life
- What it’s like to expand a Paris flower shop to Oslo
- The differences between French, American, and Norwegian flower culture
- And how motherhood has shifted her creativity and drive
A Five-Year Catch-Up: From Pandemic Guest to Published Author
Adrienne was one of my very first guests when I launched La Vie Creative during the pandemic, so having her back on the show feels like a full-circle moment.
In those five years, so much has changed. As Adrienne laughed:
“You were one of my first podcast interviews, and now I have a husband, a baby, a book, and a shop in Norway!”
Not bad for five years, right?
A Floral “Cookbook”: Inside Adrienne’s New Book
The biggest news? Adrienne’s new book – a lush, visually rich guide to French floral design.
She wrote it while planning a major move to Oslo and opening a new shop. It was, in her words, “a labor of love that probably took years off my life,” but also one of the most rewarding projects she’s ever done.
The book is structured like a cookbook, but with bouquets instead of recipes:
- Each arrangement is a “floral recipe”
- Chapters are organized not by season, but by ambiance
- Romantic ambiance
- Parisian ambiance
- Holiday ambiance
- Indoor garden ambiance, and more
- Each recipe includes:
- “Ingredients” (flowers + foliage)
- Step-by-step instructions
- Inspiration to break the rules
Adrienne is very clear that the goal is not to copy her bouquets exactly:
“You can never make the same bouquet as someone else. I want to give inspiration, not rules. I tell people what the classic ‘rules’ are—and then how to break them.”
The book officially releases April 7th and is available for international pre-order, which was really important to her so that readers in Paris, Norway, and beyond can access it.
French vs American Florals: A Tale of Ritual
Adrienne has a unique perspective:
- She grew up in California
- Worked at a high-end flower shop in LA
- Then moved to Paris and trained under the original owners of L’Arrosoir
That gave her a front-row seat to the subtle but powerful differences in how people relate to flowers:
In France
Flowers are part of everyday life. People come into L’Arrosoir once a week:
- They buy a simple hand-tied bouquet
- Take it home
- Choose a vase
- Trim the stems
- Change the water daily
- Rearrange and reuse flowers as some stems fade and others live on
It’s a ritual of care, beauty, and slowness.
In the U.S.
Flowers are often seen as a special occasion thing:
- You receive them already arranged in a vase
- They’re placed in a corner
- The water doesn’t get changed as often
- And then they’re thrown away once they wilt
As Adrienne puts it, in France people have an ongoing, intimate relationship with their flowers – they interact with them.
A Paris Flower Shop in Oslo: Why Norway?
The Oslo chapter began with what Adrienne describes as a “cold call that changed everything.”
A team working on a new building project in Oslo – “Sørenga Sjøbad” / a mixed-use destination space – reached out. They had French pastry, a French restaurant, and wanted a French flower shop to complete the experience.
At first, Adrienne didn’t even really know where Oslo was.
She jokes:
“I thought Oslo was an Instagram filter.”
But they flew to Paris, met with her in person, and everything clicked.
Now, in Oslo, Adrienne has recreated a little piece of L’Arrosoir:
- Antique furniture and French decorative pieces
- Lush, creative bouquets with soul
- A space that stands out in minimalist, beige Scandinavian surroundings
And people are loving it. Customers are drawn to the warmth and history of the shop, buying not just flowers but also mirrors, tables, plates, and décor she brought from Paris.
That, in turn, means more treasure-hunting trips back to Paris – a perk of expansion she didn’t fully anticipate but totally embraces.
Norwegian Blooms: Learning a New Flower Culture
Opening in Norway has also meant learning a whole new system.
In Paris, Adrienne simply goes to Rungis flower market the day before (or even the morning of) big holidays like Christmas to choose what she needs.
In Oslo, her team was treating Christmas flower orders like a military operation:
“They were ordering Christmas flowers in October, and I was like:
‘What do you mean we’re ordering now?’”
The Norwegian supply chain for flowers is very different, and the selection wasn’t initially what she was used to. So Adrienne did what she always does: she got creative.
She started reaching out directly to local flower farms around Oslo.
Now:
- She collaborates with nearby growers
- They grow specific varieties just for her
- They experiment together with color, texture, and mood
“They told me: next season, if there’s something we didn’t grow that you want, we can plant it for you. So now I’m like, okay… which cosmos colors can we get?”
Of course, winter changes everything in Norway. Once the cold hits, local farms pause production. But even then, Adrienne is out foraging branches, pine, and textural elements, bringing that wild, Nordic touch into her French-inspired arrangements.
Motherhood & Creativity: A New Kind of Bloom
On top of all this, Adrienne became a mother. Her son just turned one, and she absolutely lights up when she talks about him.
“I want a hundred more kids,” she laughs. “I didn’t know it would be this magical.”
Motherhood hasn’t slowed her down — if anything, it’s motivated her even more:
- She wants to build the best possible life for him
- She feels deeply grateful for his health and happiness
- Even on the hard days, that gratitude carries her
“He’s the best. He deserves the best, so I’m out here doing the most.”
Motherhood has also intensified her awareness of time:
“I always hated how fast time goes by. Now it’s even more intense. I try to soak in every single moment, as deep as I can, because it’s all going so fast.”
A Multilingual Little Bloom
As if their story weren’t already charming enough, Adrienne’s son is growing up in the sweetest, most international bubble:
- Adrienne speaks to him in English
- Her partner speaks French
- His nanny, Valentina, speaks Italian
- And he’s starting kindergarten in Norway, where everyone speaks Norwegian
“He’s probably never going to talk,” she jokes,
“and then one day at 10 years old he’ll just open his mouth and speak four languages.”
Honestly? Sounds about right.
The Making of a Book (And a Cover… Three Times)
Behind the scenes, creating the book was its own creative journey.
Adrienne worked with:
- Photographer Katie Donnelly, who helped bring Adrienne’s floral vision to life and rolled with the often chaotic, spontaneous way Adrienne works
- Stylist and florist Myra, a former L’Arrosoir team member who returned to help orchestrate and organize the shoots
One of the funniest stories is about the cover:
- Adrienne and Katie shot what they thought would be the cover
- The publisher came back and said, essentially:
“You don’t just decide the cover – we need to give direction.” - They re-shot. Still not quite right.
- Then, the day before Adrienne moved to Oslo, the publisher asked for yet another version: more colorful, framed differently, shot in front of a door
So in true Adrienne style, she:
- Called Katie: “Can you come to my house right now?”
- Called Myra to run around Paris grabbing flowers
- Whipped up a bouquet in record time
- Ran up Rue des Martyrs with Katie, shooting in front of doors while everything was in boxes
“Flowers flying, I was sweating, the bouquet was barely tied… and in the end, that third cover is the one. And now I love it.”
It’s chaotic, joyful, and perfectly on brand for her.
Where to Find Adrienne’s Book & Follow Her Work
Adrienne’s book is available for pre-order now, with some special perks for early buyers. It’s already hit #1 in Amazon’s flower category for pre-orders in its first week.
You can find it:
- On Amazon and major booksellers (search: Adrienne Ryser + flowers)
- Via L’Arrosoir Paris and L’Arrosoir Oslo websites
- Internationally, so readers in France, Norway, and beyond can all access it
Pre-orders make a huge difference for authors, especially for a debut book like this—so if you love flowers, French aesthetics, and creativity, this one belongs on your coffee table. 🌸
