Tina Parkes with the work she created for the AIFD assessment Tina Parkes with the work she created for the AIFD assessment

Tina Parkes, of the Academy of Floral Art in Devon, has attained the highest qualification in American floristry.

Tina, who already holds the NDSF and the Dutch Masters Certificate, was awarded the American Insitute of Floral Designers’ Certified Floral Designer designation following successful completion of the Professional Floral Design Evaluation on 1 July.

The award makes Tina the only florist in the world to possess the highest qualifications from the UK, the USA and Holland all together.

Tina’s route to the American qualification started in November last year with a number of online tests, leading to an online theory exam. In July this year Tina was part of a British team that travelled to the AIFD’s Symposium in Boston, where she completed five designs to pass the practical element of the qualification.

In addition to being honored with the CFD designation, Tina’s designs and evaluation marks were considered to be so artistic that she has also been extended an invitation to become an Accredited Member of the AIFD.

“The CFD and AIFD professional designations salutes a floral designer for his or her artistry and provides consumers with a tool to use for selecting quality professional work,” said Bill McKinley AIFD, associate dean at Kishwaukee College in Malta, Illinois and the chairman of AIFD’s CFD Development Committee.