Kara Krapfl puts on boots in front of the house she lived at when she was a child, which is still owned by her mother, Sharon Dooley, since 1992. With her passion for nature and hopes of spending more time with her family, Kara started Lovely Bunches, her flower business in Sharon’s backyard in 2020.
Kara works from sometimes sunup to sundown watering plants, planting seeds, picking weeds, and working on other tasks to ensure a colorful garden for community members full of flowers ranging from vibrant cosmos to radiant sunflowers. “It’s really important for me to take care of my wildlife,” Kara said. She said she really enjoys being around animals, and loves the calamity of a flower business in rural Iowa.
Kara said there is something special about going out to the garden and picking flowers rather than buying them. “It’s such a great place,” customer Mikaela Pyrch, 28, said while observing each detailed placement of the white, purple, and orange flowers.
Living in a rural area, Kara said her children have a lot of fun and enjoy the freedom to be as loud as they want. “I don't have to worry about them going outside and making noise. They can kind of just do whatever they want,” Kara said.
Every night at the Krapfl family home, Dustin, Kara’s husband, and her three kids — Rose, Oscar, and Violet — take their chickens inside the coop so their boisterous goat can roam free. The family has over 20 chickens, including a couple of roosters.
Before working full-time on her flower business, she used to bartend at The Brass Fountain, a restaurant in Solon, Iowa. She now comes to the restaurant almost every week since last summer to decorate the place with her flowers in charming blue vases.
Kara worked late nights in numerous restaurants before planting her attention on her flower business and her family. Her children didn’t want their mom to leave them, and Kara said she sometimes said goodbye to them over five times before she left for work. “[They] would sometimes chase after the car when I was leaving,” Kara said. “As if it’s like the last time they’re going to see me in a week or so.”
Kara said she’s now with her children all the time during her business off-season in the winter, but the children miss their mom when the warmer seasons roll around and she gets back to work. “I get the question several times a day, ‘Dad, where's mom? When’s she coming back?’” Dustin said.
Along with her flower business, Kara assists in her mom’s two businesses: dog and horse boarding, which can sometimes bring in over eight dogs and four horses daily. The farm, which sits at over 100 acres, has a large area of tall grass where the family lets the dogs roam around and chase each other.
Sharon also assists with Lovely Bunches. Sharon said being assistants to each other’s businesses works well, as it gives the mother and daughter duo last say on decisions for their own businesses. “It's great because we are very able to be honest with each other,” Kara said. “I can't even remember the last time we had a fight, even. We have disagreements, but that's as far as it goes, which is nice.”
Both Dustin and Kara enjoy reading or listening to their children read before they go to bed. “My youngest — she's learning to read, and she's doing amazing,” Kara said.
“This is a full-time job,” Kara said. Despite the progression to where Kara’s business is now, she is still thoughtfully working to advance the picturesque garden even more, including the decision to not use pesticides on her plants. “I'm always changing certain methods to be more Earth conscious and aesthetically pleasing,” Kara said.
“If I’m taking care of the kids so she can get more accomplished, I’ll do those kinds of things,” Dustin said. In his childhood, Dustin had always wanted to live on a farm. Now, he gets to live out that dream with his family.
Kara has been attending the Coralville Farmers Market in Coralville, Iowa, for a few weeks to gain exposure for the business, not necessarily to sell her flowers. “I’m a firm believer that everyone has to start somewhere,” Kara said.
The family said they cherish every moment together, and they feel lucky to be able to do so. “I feel fortunate and every day I know how lucky I am,” Sharon said. “I don't take it for granted.”