“Depending on the season and occasion, Tommy carefully chooses the flowers and how to arrange them, paying close attention to every little detail.”
Petals, People, Pantego: A Look Inside a Local Flower Shop
ABOUT MY ONE MINUTE DOCUMENTARY
By Shelby Carter
Since 2018, Urban Country Flower Co. has provided Pantego with a place for people to
shop for flowers. But it isn’t just about selling flowers, it’s about building a colorful
arrangement with them to fully represent life’s special moments.
Tommy Teasdale and his husband David run the shop, with Tommy handling the floral
arrangements and David handling the day-to-day business side of things. From a young
age, Tommy has moved around the world because of his parents’ military careers. After
receiving a dyslexia diagnosis in high school, Tommy soon discovered a work study
program at a flower shop. Through the years, his arrangements have helped him get
through college, work a store layout job at Ashley Furniture and eventually open Urban
Country Flower Co.
After relocating to 2414 W Park Row Drive, the store had a warehouse sale to clear out
some inventory from the old location. David’s cousin Tina, who’s also a veteran, helped
sell items to customers. In the back of the shop, tucked adjacent to the cooler where
flowers are kept preventing aging, stacks of vases, gardening tools and clipped stems
are scattered on work benches and the floor.
People pay to have Tommy arrange flowers from scratch, choosing flowers from
different vendors in Dallas and Ecuador. Depending on the season and occasion,
Tommy carefully chooses the flowers and how to arrange them, paying close attention
to every little detail.
Urban Country Flower Co. also delivers flower arrangements personally to certain
places in Pantego, Arlington, Grand Prairie and other parts of Tarrant County.
Meet Shelby Carter
Shelby Carter is a student pursuing a bachelor’s degree in journalism at the University of Texas at Arlington, where she also works as a news reporter for The Shorthorn, a student-run newspaper.
Raised in Arlington, Shelby graduated from James Martin High School in 2021. In her spare time, she likes to watch movies, play video games, read books, watch hockey and play with her four dogs.
About AMA+UTA CreateCollab
Throughout the Fall 2024 semester, the Arlington Museum of Art is partnering with The University of Texas at Arlington and a senior-level digital storytelling class to explore a wide variety of contemporary themes inspired by the museum’s mission, values, and exhibitions.
Class projects include photo essays, one-minute documentaries, and one-minute podcasts about themes as broad as creating detailed flower arrangements, a life saving cat cafe, everyday heroes, and environmental art.
Associate Professor of Communication Erika Pribanic-Smith, who teaches the class, values opportunities to bring real-world experiences to her students.
“My goal is to give my students real-world experience in all of my classes, creating real stories using real sources,” said Dr. Pribanic-Smith. “Creating stories that will be published for the public to see, not just submitted for a grade, gives students extra incentive to put forth their best effort. Furthermore, working with professionals gives the students another layer of feedback to reinforce what they’re learning in the classroom. I prefer to work with organizations like the Arlington Museum of Art who will benefit in some way from the students’ content so that we are providing a service to the community.”
