Debbie Davidson and Lindy Shallvey recently took part in the Flower Growers Group of NSW Scholarship competition at the Sydney Flower Markets.

Ms Davidson and Mrs Shallvey each won a $2,500 scholarship to put towards further training and education, after producing stunning Bollywood-themed mystery box creations that were judged two of the best entries from across the state.

“Surprised is an understatement,” Ms Davidson said of her winfall.

“With so many talented competitors, winning a scholarship was very unexpected.”

Mrs Shallvey said the standard of entries in the competition was high “so I was surprised with the result but stoked all the same”.

Both women said working with flowers was a labour of love, one which they hoped to learn more about with a view to forging successful careers in the industry.

“I absolutely love working with flowers,” Ms Davidson said.

“It can be very complex, depending on what type of flower or foliage that is used.”

“I have always loved working with flowers, learning new techniques and broadening my skillset,” Mrs Shallvey said.

“I’d love to be a florist one day, hopefully this is another step in the right direction.”

Both women hope to use their scholarship funds to study a Certificate IV in Floristry at TAFE NSW when they complete the Certificate III in Floristry mid-2019.

Their teacher, Sarah Cox, said the pair were both talented and hard working, and deserved their success.

“Debbie and Belinda are vastly different in their approach to floristry and have their own unique design styles, but are both very talented and creative,” Mrs Cox said.

“They are very deserving recipients of this scholarship.”

The TAFE mentor said the competition’s elements were far from straightforward.

“When they were competing, they were presented with a unique challenge to create a display with the theme of Bollywood,” she explained.

“To make their performance even more impressive – they used a range of flowers they had never worked with before.”

Mrs Cox said this year was the fourth in a row that at least one TAFE NSW Orange student had won a scholarship.

“This demonstrates that TAFE NSW students are learning skills that are recognised and highly regarded right across the country, which can lead to not only scholarship success, but ultimately exciting career and employment opportunities.”