After She Loves Me owner Holley Simmons closed her Petworth flower shop earlier this year, the florist decided to plant a larger version of the blooms boutique in Eckington. But when Rose’s Luxury and Little Pearl restauranteur Aaron Silverman showed her the vacant area in front of his new Capitol Hill catering kitchen, Simmons opted to open a second, more intimate storefront as well. “We’ll definitely be competing for smells,” says Simmons. The Barracks Row location of She Loves Me opens on Saturday, October 16 with colorful bouquets and curated goods.
Stepping through a triple-arch entryway that reminds Simmons of her travels to Greece, the front vestibule is stocked with leafy houseplants. Shoppers walk through the jungle, transported into an eclectic space decked with checkered floors, Moroccan lamps, and hanging parasols. “The goal is to have you not be able to make sense of it immediately,” says Simmons. “You’re like ‘wait, where am I?'”
Floral offerings include 10 to 15 different types of bouquets. Staff will handwrite “what the pluck” tags with the flora and greenery in each arrangement so that budding horticulturalists can remember their favorite bloom or do more research on a particular flower.
In addition to bouquets, shelves are stocked with goods like jewelry and Aphrodite vases. The shop’s signature candle will also be available for purchase—a jasmine and orange blossom scent made in collaboration with a Petworth resident.
The Capitol Hill storefront is opening on She Loves Me’s annual Dahlia Day where four local farms will supply 1,200 stems of the perennial blooms. A portion of proceeds from the dahlia sales go to Ayuda, an organization that provides legal, language, and social services to immigrants in DC.
The Eckington location is slated to open later this year with a build-your-own bouquet bar and flower-arranging workshops.
She Loves Me. 721 8th St., SE.
Daniella Byck joined Washingtonian in 2022. She was previously with Outside Magazine and lives in Northeast DC.
