Florist Friday: Blogging and Facebooking

At the florist shop where I work, we have decided to expand our online presence.  I think this is a great step for us to take, and am very excited about helping out with it.  So now in addition to arranging flowers, I now get to blog about them, and post about them on our new page on facebook.  How fun is that?  So if you've been enjoying my "Florist Friday" posts, be sure to follow our new blog and become a fan of our page on facebook!

Florist Friday: Wedding show pics, part 3

The wedding show pics continue this week with orchids!  Orchids are among my favorite flowers for weddings.  Two of the most popular types of orchids we use are Dendrobiums and Cymbidiums.  Dendrobiums most commonly come in shades of whites, pinks, purples, and greens, and Cymbidiums in whites, pinks, greens, and yellows.

Dendrobiums are perfect for cascading style bouquets, with their linear shape and delicate blossoms.  This bouquet features three shades of Dendrobiums - deep purple, white, and a variegated purple and white.  The orchids are paired with classic white mini calla lilies and loops of variegated lily grass, creating a simple yet elegant look.

A boutonniere of a single white mini calla lily wrapped in variegated lily grass makes a perfect companion to the bouquet:

 

  

 Cymbidium orchids come in both large and mini varieties.  The larger ones make a fantastic focal point to more stylized bouquets.  This crescent bouquet features three large Cymbidium blossoms in vibrant lime green with a touch of deep red in the centers.  The orchids rest against a contrasting bed of black magic roses and green hypericum berries.  Forming the arch of the crescent are exquisite green/burgundy Anthuriums on the left, and burgundy calla lilies on the right.

The smaller Cymbidiums are great for boutonnieres.  In this boutonniere, a single green mini Cymbidium is coupled with a deep red rose bud and accented with green hypericum berries and plumosa fern.  The stems are then wrapped with a rose petal and gold wire.

Florist Friday: Wedding show pics, part 2

Time for more wedding show pics!  The vibrant colors of the bouquets in last week's post were hot, hot, hot!  This week we'll cool down with some soothing shades of blues and purples.

Looking for that "something blue" for your spring wedding?  This bouquet would be perfect!  In this hand-tied bouquet, white peonies and tulips are nestled into a bed of blue hydrangea, and are accented with elegant pearl and rhinestone pins.  The entire bouquet is collared with sprays of pearls dangling down, and it is wrapped with pale blue satin and silver wire accents.

A nice coordinating boutonniere for this bouquet would be a single white rose tucked into a chic little silver holder with accents of the same pearl sprays that were used around the bouquet.

If blue is not your cup of tea, then perhaps this fresh combination of purple and green will be more to your liking.  This bouquet features a cluster of purple anemones surrounded by Picasso calla lilies, which are then surrounded by mini green hydrangeas.  This picture doesn't quite do the Picasso calla lilies justice...in person they are very striking.  The stems are wrapped with purple satin ribbon, which is held in place by lavender pearl pins with green hypericum berries.

Matching boutonniere of a single Picasso calla lily, accented with green hypericum berries and a galax leaf, and wrapped with purple satin ribbon.

 

 

 

 

Up next week:  cascading orchids and calla lilies, and a funky crescent bouquet!

Florist Friday: Wedding show pics, part 1

It's picture time!  As I had mentioned in this post, we did a big wedding show a couple of weeks ago.  I've got lots of pictures to share, which I will be doing over the next couple of weeks. This week I'm going to start with the most vibrant, colorful bouquets and boutonnieres that I made, so get ready for some eye-popping color!

Spring/Summer

Gerber daisy are quite possibly the most cheerful flower.  With their wide array of colors, from soft pastels to super hot pinks and oranges, and their simple yet fun shape, they just seem so happy.  And what more joyous occasion than a wedding!   

 

This bouquet of hot pink and orange mini gerber daisies is accented with green hypericum berries for an extra punch of color.  This is a really fun bouquet, complete with lime green swirled wire in the centers of the orange gerbers, as well as wrapped around the stems.  And of course, there's a matching boutonniere:

Fall

And for those fall weddings, the firey shades of red, orange and yellow are so warm and rich.  It's no wonder that autumn is such a popular time of the year for weddings!

This autumn bouquet features golden sunflowers, bright red gerber daisies and roses, circus roses, and orange ranunculus.  The dried chinese lanterns and lotus pods give it a touch of natural earthiness.  The stems are encased in magnolia leaves, with their soft, velvety back sides exposed, and the gold wire adds a touch of shine.

The coordinating boutonniere features a single miniature sunflower, paired with an orange ranunculus bud.  The two are accented with a dried magnolia leaf, then wrapped in a galax leaf and gold wire.

That's all for this week!  Be sure to come by next week for a more soothing palate of blues, greens, and purples.

Florist Friday: A dozen roses, half a dozen ways

Being a florist, it's hard not to think about roses this time of year. We know all to well that Valentine's Day will be here soon, and we will be creating many, many arrangements of one dozen roses. But Valentine roses need not be red, and they need not be arranged in the traditional way. With so many amazingly beautiful varieties of roses available today, and so many different ways you can arrange them, there are plenty of options for those who want to send roses, but don't want to be stuck with the same old same old. So today I'm going to show you half a dozen ways to give a dozen roses, which is really just the tip of the ice berg. Your options are truly only as limited as your imagination.
Sweet Unique is a medium head pink rose with a lighter pink on the outside and a brighter pink on the inside. Here one dozen Sweet Unique roses are arranged in a topiary, complete with polka dot grosgrain bows. Sweet and unique!


Milva is a large, ruffled petal orange rose. Its combination of vibrant color and subtle tones of orange, peach, and a touch of pink make it one of the most stunning roses. Here one dozen Milva roses are tucked down into a large square vase, and sprouting up out of the top along side pussy willows. A perfect hint of spring!

Gelato is a new variety we've discovered at the shop. It was love at first sight! A warm peachy-pink accented with a splatter stripe of cream in it, this rose simply couldn't be any prettier. Here one dozen Gelato roses are nestled into a a bed of plumosa ferns, accented with white birch branches. Delicious!

Circus is one of the most vibrant roses I have seen. With its bright yellow petals tipped in in a lively orange, it really packs a punch of color! Here one dozen Circus roses are arranged in a low dish, accented with gold wire and feathers. Fanciful and fun!

Black Magic is a luxurious deep red rose. Photographs of this rose never quite do it justice. You really have to see it in person to appreciate the velvety texture and the rich dark red of the petals. Here one dozen Black Magic roses are arranged in an upward spiral, which is echoed with silver aluminum wire. Gypsophila (Babies Breath) is nestled in the center, and a handcrafted wire and rhinestone heart dangles from the top. Simply elegant!

Of course, you can always just do the traditional dozen red roses in vase:

But wouldn't you rather give or receive something a little more interesting? I know I would!

Florist Friday: recovering from the holidays

Working at a florist can get a little crazy at certain times of the year. December is always a busy time for us, making holiday centerpieces, decorating for parties, and delivering poinsettias. Then January is usually pretty quiet and calm, which can be kind of a downer after the holidays, but it does at least give us a chance to rest up before the Valentine's Day rush hits. And it gives my dry, cracked, pitch-covered, holly-scraped hands a chance to heal just in time to be scraped up by all those rose thorns. Maybe this year we'll get lucky and get roses with very few thorns. We shall see.

In any case, this year we have 3 wedding shows to do in January/early February, so that should keep us busy. I love doing wedding shows, as they give me a chance to really be creative. Our first one is this weekend, so I should have some pics to share soon!