Living Out a Dream in New Providence

Dec 8

This week we’re featuring the town of New Providence, Iowa and sharing some of the stories of rural revival happening here! Today’s guest blog post is from Ali Steiner, local floral designer, artist, and garden lover, and owner of The Rustic Rose. Welcome, Ali!

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Hi all, I am Ali Steiner. I live in rural New Providence, Iowa, with my husband Jason. I am a farm wife, and do a little part time farming myself! I’m also a florist and an animal lover with cows, calves, and pigs on our farm. Oh wait, how could I forget, my dog Hank and my two adorable cats Felix and Marley.

I opened The Rustic Rose in February of 2017 in New Providence - a small flower shop with fresh flowers, gifts, decor, plants, and more! I have a bit of an interesting career path before opening the flower shop almost two years ago. I went to Iowa State University destined for the ag industry (I mean, we are in Iowa, right?!), most recently achieving my Master’s Degree in Animal Science and working in the swine industry for about 12 years. The pigs brought me to Hardin County, where I planted my roots in rural New Providence.

During some of those years, I worked part time in a flower shop, helping a good friend of mine in Eastern Iowa. But the majority of the “experience” I have in the floral trade came during my younger years, as my mother worked at a flower shop and loved decorating and crafting on the side. It was always a dream of ours to open a flower, plant, and gift shop, and now I am living out our dream! This experience has been amazing.

I opened my business with the intention of providing fresh flowers, plants and a few gifts. I have branched out since opening and now have some classes at the shop, with the biggest being fresh Christmas wreaths! I also have teamed up with other local small businesses to have patio events three times per year! The town of New Providence is an absolutely awesome place to have my business. It’s a quaint town with some of the best people around! I couldn’t be more happy with my choice.