The Hands Behind Your Floral Arrangement, Free-spirited Scotti Wells Finds Power in Flowers

Scotti Wells loves beauty in any form. But most of all, she loves the natural splendor the planet Earth provides. It’s part of the reason she spent the last 25 years arranging flowers at Growing Wild in Downtown Manhattan Beach. Her creations exemplify her story, every placed stem revealing her current joy, emotion and vision.

“Her talent as a floral designer goes without saying,” says Rebecca Perry, lifelong friend and owner of Lily Pad Floral Design in Hermosa Beach. “One thing that stands out to me is, ever since high school, she has had her fingers on the pulse of the music and dance scene in Los Angeles and worldwide. She’s always been such a wild and free spirit.”

A bit of a spitfire, this blond-haired, blue-eyed beauty reaches 5’6” on a good day and stands out with her bright red lipstick and infectious smile and laugh. She believes that there is grace in humility and lives a modest and humble lifestyle that allows her to travel the world and not be tied down.

“Sometimes when you feel like everything is dark remember that there is always a light that will shine once again.”

I remember seeing Scotti for the first time when she was 14 years old, dancing at an underage club in Hollywood called The Odyssey. Opting to dance in a less crowded foyer of the club rather than the actual dance floor, she moved as if she was the only person there. Her body swayed with the music as if they were one. Confidence was nothing Scotti struggled with, and she inarguably didn’t care what anyone thought.

She’s also an avid beach volleyball player, known to play in most of the 4-Man beach volleyball tournaments and engage with a group of women players whenever she is home. Born from strong athletic genes, her dad, Billy Wells, played in the NFL with the Washington Redskins (known today as the Washington Football Team) as a halfback from 1954 to 1957.

Scotti experienced life-changing violent trauma while attending El Camino Community College—an event that monumentally reshaped her attitude toward life. Owning and acknowledging that she should have died, she is keenly aware that every day is a blessing and lives her life to the fullest.

A self-starter, she earned her master’s degree in French at California State University, Long Beach and also taught herself Spanish and Portuguese. Now, in addition to a passion for traveling, she tutors others in foreign languages.

While she considers the South Bay her home base, she’s a proud nomad. Arranging flowers offers her a great career without being tied down. She can travel, tutor and, most importantly, not get bored with any one thing.

Like one of her floral arrangements, put together with her own brand of joy and optimism, a moment of beauty can arrive when we least expect it. “Sometimes when you feel like everything is dark,” she shares, “remember that there is always a light that will shine once again.”