Sending Smiles ~

Jump on board the classes at Monday Morning Flowers!   We have been having such a blast at our in-store events, we have to update everyone on what’s to come.   Recently, we had Summer Fun Floral Design on June 12 th , and Laughter and Flowers on June 27 th .   Both classes were great fun with people designing their own arrangements, sipping on margaritas, and learning ways to lighten up and laugh a little more in general.                          On July 24 th , join us for an exciting night of photography paired with a wine tasting.   Enjoy delicious and refreshing local wines, and learn a little about your favorite taste.   We will be joined by Jay Bryant of Jay Bryant Photography , who will be teaching tricks to take great photos with your camera or smart phone.   This class is only $55 per person, and includes $15 of Monday Mo...

We are so excited about our new line of Votivo Candles and Fragrances~  Votivo(voh-tee-voh): Expressing a vow, wish, or desire. Since its inception in 1994, Votivo has built a reputation for its quality fragrances and distinctive packaging. Each Votivo product is a culmination of care and commitment to detail. Each candle is hand-wrapped and each seal is hand-pressed making each product special. At the heart of every Votivo candle is a unique fragrance meticulously formulated and layered to reflect depth, richness, and complexity. As one of the very first domestically made luxury candle lines, Votivo passionately pursues excellence in the art of candle making. We are so happy to now carrying their Lock Your Love Line!  If you have never smelled a Votivo Candle, you are really in for a treat.   

Folks are loving blue flowers and at the top of their " Wish List " are these amazing blue dyed dendrobium orchids. Last weekends wedding was a mix of common flowers (baby's breath) and unique blooms (these amazing stem dyed beauties) and what a display they presented for Marisa's wedding at the The Palace in Somerset.  The first element that guests would see when they arrived was the silver archway and golden chairs that were decorated both baby's breath and blue orchids. As the bride walked down the aisle, she carried a cascade bouquet of baby and tea white roses, stephanotis and baby's breath, which her maids carried hand tied bouquets of just baby's breath.  As the guests entered they ballroom they were greeted with elegant crystal trees adorned with cascades of blue orchids. Sprinkled crystals around the base helped catch the light from the votive candles while pin lighting from above helped the tree sparkle. For anyone bride looking for ...

  With summer officially here, and the awareness for more eco-friendly products on the rise... I thought it might be a good idea to write this weeks blog on natural insect repellents that are easy to make and environmentally conscience.    Natural insect repellent for skin Get rid of those chemical and synthetic based insect repellents that I'm sure are chock full of parabens. Things you need: An essential oil (eucalyptus, lemon eucalyptus, or rose geranium) A carrier oil (olive, vegetable, or sunflower) or alcohol How to prepare: Mix one part of essential oil with fifteen parts of carrier oil or alcohol. The natural insect repellent for the skin is ready. I prefer using carrier oils instead of the alcohol because the alcohol tends to make my skin dry. Olive oil is always a good choice if your skin tends to be sensitive to alcohol.  Please note: test a small patch of your skin to make sure you do not have an allergic reaction before spraying full parts...

Last weeks $5 Flower Friday was a huge hit and we sold just over 50 bouquets of fresh roses. Today's special flower deal are these vibrant and colorful Asiatic Lilies and they are sure to be a hit with our local customers as well. Did you know that Asiatic Lilies mostly have no fragrance and many have 3 to 5 big blooms. As one bloom dies off, the next one opens continuing all the way up the stem. What we love about them is they come in such vibrant colors - yellow, pink, orange and white and can give 2 weeks of viewing pleasure. To buy one of these beauties today, visit our shop at the Princeton Forrestal Village in Princeton/Plainsboro, NJ or at 45 E. Afton Avenue, Yardley, PA. Have a great weekend all! 

Are you tired of seeing the basket of petals or small bouquets that are typically given to flower girls ?  Why not give her a cute pomander instead with some playful ribbons to enhance her innocence.  Or even better... why not give the entire bridal party pomanders rather than bouquets? Pomanders can really make a wedding and they are so versatile.  Try using them as pew decorations or hang them from chairs or shepherds hooks down an aisle for an outdoor wedding .  Place different sized pomanders on the ground at the top of the aisle for added floral and overall texture elements to your wedding.  You can even place them in the center of a table and use them as your centerpiece or as an enhancement to your larger centerpiece. With so many flowers available to make pomanders with, your pomander wedding won't be anything short of a success, and certainly one that your guests will be talking about for years to come. 

What do Flowers and Margarita's have in common? Apparently at Monday Morning Flowers they have quite a bit. Our Summer Floral Design Class appears to have been a big hit with the ladies who attended. Even my Mother in Law got into the act and had a blast.  As will all our classes, we start off with food and drinks, giving the attendees a little time to mingle, network and shop.   This class included $15 worth of Monday Morning Money for the ladies to spend however they wanted. Candles, hand bags and plants seemed to be the best sellers that night.  Next comes the design part the program . This class had us learning how to design using colored floral foam in a margarita glass. The students really had fun and Designer Nicole did a great job leading them through with tips and tricks.   As you can see, even the young girls had fun! Future designers perhaps?  Who wouldn't laugh during a class with such bright colored flowers. Well, the marga...

Another Fun Blog Post by Designer Nicole ~ Enjoy and send us photos of your Trees!  If you're anything like me, seeing the circle of life play out in gardening is absolutely astonishing.  Follow these easy steps and please let us know if you have results! Step one: Obtain a pineapple with firm green leaves (not yellow or brown).  Make sure it's not over ripe by tugging gently on the leaves.  If they pop off, your fruit is too ripe for this project.  Make sure there are no scale insects ( these look like small gray spots at the base of the leaves). Step two: Cut off the crown and strip some of the lower leaves so that some of the stem is exposed.  Trim any fruit flesh without cutting the stem.  The flesh could later rot your plant. Step three: Turn the crown upside down and let it dry out for about a week so that the cut end and the leaf scars harden. Step four: Float the crown in a glass of water until the roots grow out.  Be sure to change the...

We love doing floral decor for events, especially baby shower, like this one from last weekend. The Mother of the Mother to Be did not want the typical baby decor and so this "Story Book" Themed event was elegant and whimsical. Floral centerpieces in creams and green using hydrangea, roses, veronica, ivy, mosses and fresh mint smelled heavenly in the room.  Working with Mary from Mary Bradley Events is always wonderful. She is dedicated, detailed and a dream come true as far as event planners go. I could not have done this event without her!  Loved these mini centerpieces that went onto the cocktail tables.    This story book tree graced the gift table at the Westin Hotel in Princeton. This party is a perfect example of how to blend natural elements with great success! 

Back in 2009 I was asked to write a blog for Flower Shop Network called "Bloomin' Blog" and I really had fun writing it. Fast forward 4 years to 2013 and nothing has really changed so I thought it might be fun to re-post. Hope you enjoy!  Me ~ oh how I have changed in the last 4 years I've  noticed over the years that what I love most about my job is something that an average person usually hates. What is that, you wonder? It’s diversity, change, constant evolution and sometimes even chaos. The day in the life of a florist is anything but boring or mundane. I’ll bet if you asked someone what they thought it would be like to be a florist for the day, most would answer with cliche. The most common ones  I've  heard over the years is “It must be fun to play with flowers all day”. Play? Who said anything about playing. Last time I looked it was my job to be a florist, not my hobby. Another personal favorite is “It must be so calm and relaxing being surro...

Succulent Plants ~ what are they and how do you care for them by Alanna  Drzyzga Summer is approaching which makes me think about succulent plants. When they became popular last year we even held a terrarium making class featuring these easy to care for plants!  The plants that seem to be growing in popularity around the shop seem to be succulents; mostly because they are unique and virtually indestructible. We've blogged about them before and I’ll do it again. Hopefully this time with a little more insight. Succulents are categorized as any plant with a unique water storage organ. They store ingest water through their leaves, stems and roots. No matter what variety of succulents you are growing, including cacti, the general rules remain the same. Light : Succulents do enjoy the sun and being outdoors, especially this time of year. The leaves will tell you what you need to know about the amount of light the plant is getting. If the plant is getting too much sun, it...

Peonies  and Garden Roses     By Nicole Foy Peonies are one of the most requested flowers for bridal bouquets but few people realize just how limited of a time frame they are available.  If you live in the Northeast, you have already seen them come and go in a matter of a week or two.  In terms of wholesale availability, they are available from about mid May to mid June.  They have been known to be available year round but the prices tend to differ dramatically from Spring to the other three seasons a year.  And with Peonies already being an expensive flower even when the are in season, many have asked if an appropriate visual, as well as more economic, substitution is available...   I have always suggested the garden rose, which differs from a traditional rose.  Garden roses are much more delicate and have fluffier petals much like the look of the peony.  They are also equally as fragrant which is one of the m...

I just had to share. In honor of Quaker Bridge Mall's remodel they just posted a photo of their old sign. How fun is this that on that day ~ October 19th, 1996, we were not only there to see that Giant Cookie in Center Court but to also build a 70' foot balloon arch over it. I know it might not look big in this picture but it took almost 500 helium filled balloons to create and had so much "pull" from all that helium that it dragged me across the floor while creating it! It's still the largest spiral balloon arch that Kevin and I have even created together.  Not only was it great wonderful to see every one's expressions as they saw this cookie and our arch, it was also our wedding anniversary. The couple that create arches together, stays together! 

Everyone knows we have flowers and plants but not everyone knows we have fun gift items. Is someone you know crazy about Music? These mugs are fun, don't you think?  Cute gifts for women and girls ~ mugs, banks, picture frames, wine glasses, coasters and candle holders in bright and vibrant colors!    Love these new towers of treats. They make fun gift and we deliver them too. They are not available via our website .    TJewels jewelry is our latest addition and we've had to restock already. Who says you can't buy something for yourself? This affordable line of jewelry has something for everyone!   Just in a new line of handbags for Spring and Summer. Prices start at just $40!    Don't forget that June 16th if Father's Day . We have lots of fun gift ideas for dad in addition to plants, goodies and flowers. 

Here at the shop, we rarely do silk flowers for wedding ; not because we don't want to but it's just not what we are known for but every now and then using quality silks really make sense.  While looking through some older wedding photos, I came across this photo of a wedding bouquet we created requiring Lily of the Valley. In the case of this wedding, the flower type meant a lot to the bride and the flowers were both very expensive and out of season in to the rescue ~ good quality silks.  We have been known to include silk blooms in with fresh ones and believe it or not, this can work very well when the real thing is just not going to work. An example would be a bride who wants Cherry Blossoms out of season. There are so really lovely permanent flowering branches that when added among fresh flowers, really look real. Trusting your florist to make good suggestions and being open minded is always a great idea. 

Every year leading up to Princeton University Reunion Weekend, I'm sure to bring into the shop lots of Tiger Head Balloons and Orange Flowers of all kinds. Between Graduation and the folks coming in to town to party with their past classmates, we are called upon to create arrangement after arrangement in these colors.  Take this centerpiece above, we are creating many of them for a graduation party being hosted by a very proud mom at one of the local Princeton restaurants.    Grab and Go - Folks will want to grab a bouquet and dash off to Graduation when the time comes.    A Princeton University Themed bridal bouquet ? Not on purpose, this bride chose some of our cool orange blooms such as mini gerbera daisy, protea, berries and succulent plants for her Civil service on Saturday morning.    All hotels dress up their lobbies to welcome the alums and families coming into town for Commencement .    The University Departmen...