May 19, 2021

How a Black-Owned Lynn Design House is holding space for community through floral artistry, intentional design

by joeyphoenix

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Filled with Color is a Black-owned, woman and non-binary owned and operated floral and design house based in Lynn. On the floral side of things, their rich bouquets are luscious and vibrant, calling to mind pink sunset dawns, vintage postcard gardens, and the deep, luminescent sweetness of spring and early summer. 

View their floral design offerings here. 

Additional offerings include event design, digital storytelling, and community focused food design centered around gathering and sharing: an offering which will be a hopeful integration into a post-COVID world. 

Two siblings, Tara (she/they) and Amanda (she/her/hers) started Filled with Color during the COVID-19 pandemic 2020 as a means of supporting survivor healing, economic justice and liberation through beauty, color, plant life, florals, and design.

“We believe in the reclamation of space, time, and modes of expression/creation for healing and our collective liberation,” their website reads, and this mission plays out in a non-traditional way. 

While recognizing that money is an essential component of running a business, they strive to make their offerings accessible to everyone. They also ocassionally offer discounted or complementary bouquets to Lynn residents of color as well as monthly Floral Bundles of Love for Transgender individuals, with priority given to BIPOC individuals, in partnership with the Transgender Emergency Fund of MA

“We’re incredibly grateful for this budding relationship with the Trans Emergency Fund and specifically their director, Chastity Bowick (she/her/hers), who is incredibly gracious and open hearted, and has been a compass for us in all of this,” Tara said. 

Each Floral bundle contains custom bouquet, a small self-care gift, and a surprise delight. Sign up for June delivery on their website. To support this effort, please donate directly to the Transgender Emergency Fund. 

“They planted a seed in our hearts” 

Although Filled With Color’s mission statement may seem radical to some, this intentional small business plan is an essential component of the solidarity, allyship, community, anti-capitalist, and equity-based model they are working to build – something that the women in their family who came before them weren’t able to realize themselves. 

“It was really a seed planted in our hearts by our mother and grandmothers. And we really wanted to nurture that seed that they passed to us and give it a chance to grow,” co-owner Tara said. “They were not able to make their dream of having a business like this a reality.” 

There were many reasons why access to business ownership was blocked for Tara and Amanda’s family, many of them were systematic barriers like racism, income inequality, and misogyny leveled against the Black community and Black women in particular. 

“We find ourselves more able, even though those systems are still in place, to be able to take this on now and really work towards achieving our dreams,” Tara said. 

While, currently, Tara and Amanda work day jobs in addition to running Filled with Color, they are hoping to expand their business to where they can dedicate their time solely to this work.  

“We really hope and we believe that there’s a future where we can spend our days just doing this: looking for beauty, caring for our community,  and sharing healing and love with the people that we are in community with,” Tara said. 

“People in Lynn never give up on Lynn and they never give up on each other.” 

One of the ways in which Filled With Color is implementing their unique mission statement is in being intentional about the kinds of work they do and who they partner with, deliberately choosing partnerships and clients who share their dedication to equity, compassion, and community support. 

“We’re running a business, and we make choices motivated by that, but we’re also trying to be very intentional about who and why we’re partnering with people,” said Tara. “We’re trying to incorporate sustainability and sustainable practices into what we do so that we don’t burden ourselves and the environment, and we don’t strain systems that are already in place.

“We’re definitely still still learning, but I’m very optimistic, and I’m excited for what we’re going to be doing going forward,” they added. 

As long-time residents of Lynn, Filled with Color has made the Lynn community a large part of their focused outreach. They have a deep love for the city, while acknowledging that there are some challenges that have yet to be met. 

“There’s not enough housing, there are few jobs, there’s little transportation – Lynn’s not in a great place economically, and then there’s pollution and over policing. But it’s home,” Tara explained. “And we’re inspired by the way that the community shows up for one another. And we really want to be part of that. 

“People in Lynn never give up on Lynn and they never give up on each other.” 

Strong community isn’t something that just happens, it has to be nurtured, cared for, and connected with. Filled with Color hopes to do their part in contributing to the community in Lynn and on the North Shore, and Tara hopes that this mindset will spread. 

“We aim to build care work and justice into everything we do, and we don’t want to wait until the business is successful or established to be doing that,” they said. “It’s a necessity. When you’re in a community with people, it makes everything easier. 

“You can get through so much by having a strong community.” 

To learn more about Filled With Color and their unique offerings, please visit https://www.filledwithcolor.net or follow them on Instagram @filled.with.color 


Joey Phoenix (they/them) is the Director of Brand Strategy and Innovation at Creative Collective. As the resident storyteller and town crier, they encourage you to send story ideas, inspiration, or pictures of adorable critters to joeyphoenix@creativecollectivema.com.


May is all about May-kers! Follow us on social @creativecollectivema and @creativenorthshore to see member features. If you’re interested in being featured yourself, send Joey Phoenix a note at @joeyphoenix@creativecollectivema.com