Sending Smiles ~

 Looking for centerpiece ideas with a rustic flair? How about this idea from last weekends wedding at an elegant winery? The bride provided to us these cool boxes and we lined them with burlap to cover the mason jars that housed the loose and airy wildflowers that filled the boxes. Affordable and quite large, these floral arrangements took advantage of seasonal flowers and really looked full and lush.  The Escort Card table display used river pebbles and wheat grass with wine corks as the escort card holders.  Wine boxes held the grasses for a little more visual appeal and once the table was fully dressed with branched arrangements and floating candle holders, it truly was a show piece that greeted Rebecca and Patrick guests to the Vineyard. No two centerpieces matched which allowed us to use some expensive flowers like the Dutch Astilbe and Hydrangeas in this piece along with the more modestly priced Margarite daises and thistle. To see these and more of centerpiece designs

Flowers like this make me dreamy. I can imagine rolling up between the petals and falling off to dreamland in a fluffy cloud as soft as heaven. Ah, but I can fly away from myself into the world of floral fantasy. How gorgeous is this deep purple lisianthus? A flower often confused with a rose, each long stem has multiple bloomed flowers and "yet to open" buds. The stem is rather narrow and weak but is surprising strong giving how much weight is positioned at the tippy top. With multiple blooms and buds, the stem tends to arch and drape rather than stand straight up, again, part of it's subtle beauty that says "take me as I am, I'm not perfect but I'm lovely. I'm not weak but resilient."  Yes, yes, I know, you are wondering, "what the heck is Georgianne on today" but truly, when I look at flowers as gorgeous as this one, it's how I talk to myself. Soft mind full whispers of joy bounce around my head reminding me of why I love flowers,

We had great fun creating the floral designs for George and Kelly's wedding for May 12th at the Shadowbrook.  What a fun couple, especially Kelly who is quick with a joke and smile. Luckily for us, they chose bright colored flowers not necessarily popular for moms being their wedding was the same weekend as Mother's Day. Hand tied bouquets of bi-colored Circus roses, sunny Asiatic lilies, mango mini calla lilies and loops of lily grass were the basis for the bouquets while Kelly's bouquet also had delicate white stephanotis dotted in among the bright yellow and orange blooms. It was a bright sunny day and the tiny accents of roses and ribbons on the ends of chairs were a perfect touch for the outdoor ceremony. Orange mokara orchids decorated the 3 tiered wedding cake. To see these and other wedding flower designs be sure to visit our wedding website at www.perfectweddingflowers.com  or our facebook page at www.facebook.com/localflorist .

 We love Mondays here at the shop and with a name like Monday Morning Flowers that's a good thing. Although flowers arrive 3 to 5 times a week, Mondays is the day we get lots of our dutch flowers. Take the hydrangea above. We'll bet you don't see those everyday and certainly not in the flower department of the Supermarket! Called Expression they have a star design to their petals and each head is huge! $19.95 per stem.  We have fallen in love with the variety of mini callas. Called Paco they have the dreamiest lavender coloring you'll ever find on a flower. Long lasting and elegant, we use them in weddings and our everyday floral designs. $5.95 per stem.  These Starfighter lilies are spectacular! Each stems has 3 flowers that will bloom in succession. Long lasting with an amazing touch of fragrance, only a few stems in a vase will give you 2 weeks of floral pleasure. $6.95 per stems.  Alstroemeria is one of our staple flowers around here and we love all the

  We all love fresh cut flowers! Well, you do, don't you? I love talking about flowers, writing about flowers, educating folks about flowers - all things floral - yup that's me. This week, we were excited when one of our photos was used in a National Floral Blog written by Flower Shop Network. To see that blog follow this LINK and thanks to them, I'm sharing a tidbit of information on how best to care for your fresh cut flowers.  Tips for Extending The Life of Your Flowers Avoid Extremes. Keep fresh flowers away from drafts and extreme temperatures, which can quickly dry out the flowers and cause wilting. Avoid The Sun. Avoid placing flower arrangements in windowsills and other areas with full sun where flowers can wilt due to overheating. Keep Cool. Most flowers will last longer under cool conditions. Keep it Filled. All flower and foliage stems should be submerged. Flowers stay fresher, longer when they can get a drink! Remove Wilted Flowers. Immediat

Guest Blog: Urns and Flowers, Comfort in Times of Sorrow - by Helen at Urns.com In our business we meet all kinds of folks who service customers, just like ours. It's always great to partner and learn from them. Sympathy floral designs are such a big part of what we do, when we became "online" friends with Urns.com, it was logical that we take an opportunity to share with each other.  We wrote a guest blog from them and them for us. Cremations are a huge trend right now and their urns are gorgeous. I hope you don't ever need them but if you do, their information just might be what you need. Take it away Helen!! Here at www.urns.com we understand how difficult it can be when we experience loss. It is during these times when you must rely upon friends and loved ones to help move through the transition period and to help when planning a funeral service. Many times when people are preparing for a funeral service, they find themselves shopping for both fun

How fun is this photo of the before and after of mother's day? We had a great holiday with over 730 floral arrangements , plants, goodie baskets and balloon bouquets being delivered in a 3 days span. Our staff of designers, drivers and sales associates all worked hard to bring smiles to Mothers all over our area and we could not be more proud of them. To see this and other pictures of our shop during the holiday visit our Facebook page at www.facebook.com/localflorist or our website at ww w.sendingsmiles.com

I know what people think... "It must be fun to play with flowers all day long". hahaha, those of us in the Flower Biz always laugh at that because yes, we do enjoy our jobs and let's face it, who wouldn't want to be surrounded with gorgeous flowers day in and day out. The part that most folks find surprising is how truly hard it is to perform at 100% day in and day out. Being creative yes, but also detailed. There are so many important details that one miss and you just might ruin someones birthday, wedding or make them even more sad at a loved ones funeral.  This photo below shows how we plan ahead and advise our clients to do the same. This floral arrangement was designed to fit no matter what the wedding day weather was. In this case, it rained and these flowers fit this nook above a huge fireplace to help decorate the ceremony site. If the sun was out, this piece was made in two pieces and would have been placed on each side of the bride and groom on a ledge t

We love Mother's day here at the shop. Did you know that Mother's Day is the largest floral holiday here at our shop next to Valentine's Day? We'll sell over 2,000 carnations and just as many roses during the week along with other popular spring flowers like gerber daisies, hydrangeas, lilacs and more. What better time than Mother's Day to show mom how much you appreciate everything she has done for you? What better way than by sending her a gorgeous floral bouquet!! Ok, if you are looking for gift ideas for mom, can you really go wrong by sending her flowers? We think not! The variety of flowers available during spring are spectacular and there a so many unique ways to arrange them. What about French Tulips  submerged in a tall glass cylinder vase or a topiary of all Yellow Lilies? Does mom really love plants? What about a sweet Pink Azalea plant in an elegant ceramic pot? A gift like this lasts all summer long out in the yard and can be planted in the

We rarely do any print advertising and truth be told, we get most of our weddings via word of mouth and referrals from other Wedding Vendors and Venues. Every now and then it's fun to advertise in a local magazine such as Princeton Magazine or this one, Accent which is produced by Hamilton Jewelers. We super love this ad created for the latest issue and thank you to Al Ojeda Photography for the great photo of bouquets we created last year for a wedding last year at the Somerset Palace . Simple hand tied bouquets of Garden Roses look anything but simple when paired off with navy blue brides maids dresses. To see these bouquets and more of our wedding flower designs from the Princeton area, visit our wedding website at www.perfectweddingflowers.com or visit our Facebook page at www.facebook.com/localflorist

It's always hard helping a friend with family funeral flowers. My buddy Danny from High School lost his brother this week and it really hits home how the years are moving along and dragging us with them. When he wanted us to send something from him and and his family, I was honored that he thought of me and my flower shop to create the flowers for him. Once again, Designer Norman created a great display, the perfect tribute to a fantastic brother who happened to be a Yankee fan. Norman created this standing spray using blue dyed dendrobium orchids and lush open cut red tea roses. A Yankee logo in the center completes the design. We sincerely hope this helps the family to celebrate the life, love and passion of the man this tribute inspired.  To see this and more of our sympathy designs, visit our website at www.sendingsmiles.com or our facebook page at www.facebook.com/localflorist