Sending Smiles ~

Sending Sympathy This year has held major changes for everyone ~ that include the loss of a loved one. The loss of a family member or friend can be emotional and something we do not take lightly. It's trying to share beautiful floral arrangements during a ti me of loss.  We know that floral pieces help bring family members closure and we wanted share. Arrangements get showcased on Instagram and Facebook  because we know most people are at a loss of what to send and we are here to help.  We work closely with many local funeral homes, J Allen Hooper Funeral Chapel , Mather-Hodge Funeral Home  - to name a few.  Below is a large full casket piece. All white flowers including roses, gardenias, orchids, hydrangea and other flowers: All white floral designs are a popular theme due to their elegance and natural look. This piece below is the matching basket to the above casket piece:   Colored flowers help bring brightness to a somber setting, provide conversation and

It's that time of year. Can you believe it's less than 2 weeks to Christmas ? It's warm outside today as I write this but it's very festive and wintry at the shop. Here's a peek into our world this month! This morning I added a table of gift ideas and stocking stuffers under $10. Candy, nuts and cookies along with ornaments, mugs, figurines and more.   This week's $5 Friday were winter bouquets of carnations, thistle berries and baby's breath.   We still have lots of Christmas signs, boxwood trees and wreaths.   Today we made a star arch for an awards breakfast.  We just got in some new jewelry like this stone necklace for only $9.99  Gold mercury glass is all the rage and we have them in different shapes and sizes.   It's the time of year when Bling is In!   Lots and lots of poinsettia's waiting to be delivered in the drivers ramp.   On December 7th we hosted a holiday centerpiece design class and the ladies ha

Happy Saturday! I sincerely hope everyone out there had a wonderful Thanksgiving. I know I did! For us today really kicks off the season of holiday buying and it's starts with Small Business Saturday . Today has us offering 25% everything in the store and we offered a discount to our online shoppers as well.  Admittedly our holiday season tends to get stronger the closer the holiday comes with our strength being our ability to help our customers send holiday love at the last minute.   It's still fun for us to start decking the halls (although we don't formally decorate our shops until the first week of December) and we have lots of holiday themed house and giftwares available. The winter and Christmas themed holiday wreaths, centerpieces and poinsettia orders will start hot and heavy by Mid Decembe r too.   We've had a few browser in our Princeton and Yardley shops today and truthfully with most folks still shopping at the malls, we often pick up those

It may seem a little "Late" to be talking about 2015 wedding trends and I would agree with you if it weren't for the fact that we still have some last minute Fall and December weddings finalizing with our shop right now. I love these "Late Arrival Brides" because they give me a peek into next years wedding trends. Speaking of last minute weddings, Beautiful Emily shown below was a bride we worked with on her August 20th wedding . First meeting with her Mother (who had no idea what Emily might like to have for her wedding) we had to wait for Emily to finish school to finally dig into her flower wish list. This happened 11 days before her wedding . Yes you heard right, 11 days.  Although this may have added a few gray hairs to my head being I was not sure what Emily might like, plus I had to cost out and propose quickly not to mention I had missed every single deadline for order Farm Direct Flowers (this could be a blog in itself) but we needless to say, we w

Have you started to follow our shop on Instagram ? If not, we would love for you to! Do you love flowers? Then you have to check out our page which is chock full or gorgeous blooms .  In case you are wondering how those pretty pictures get there, then meet Customer Care Coordinator Alanna. Alanna loves Instagram so it was an easy decision when I needed "Social Media" help to have Alanna come to my rescue. She loves breezing around the shop taking pictures to share, creating inspirational quotes and following our clients and business neighbors on this fun application.   First I get a picture of Alanna and her wreath creation to post on Google+ and Facebook and then she's right behind me getting a shot for Instagram .  If you like what's she's posting, we'd love for you to follow our page and like our photos!! 

 Do you like sending wrapped bouquets? Then you will love the new addition to our website of  flower bouquets delivered, ready for arranging. These bouquets will be wrapped in natural kraft paper, tied with twine or raffia with care instructions. If you know someone who loves flowers and loves arranging them on their own, these will be the perfect gift. Look for them to join our other product offerings on our website in Mid April 2015! Stunning Circus Roses  Giant Green Cymbidium Stems!   Simple Lavender Pompon Daisy Tango Pincushion Proteas

Who doesn't love coffee in the morning to get their day started? Like our recently added Wine Gift Selection, we couldn't resist adding these adorable Coffee Related items to the shop. Mugs, signs and even candle holders make great gifts for office mates and friends.  Why not let us create a gourmet basket with a few of these fun items added? Flavored coffee, a few snacks and a mug. The perfect gift for the Coffee Drinker in your life!! 

No, I'm not talking about the movie, I'm talking about flowers (as I've been known to do) and the color purple.  Ah, remember THE DRESS? You know, the one that some said was white and gold, while others said blue and black? That really brought it home how different people see color differently so that got me to thinking about one of the hardest colors to work with and that is the color purple. When you look at the flowers below, do they look purple to you? Some will say yes, while others say no but in the world of flowers, they are all considered purple. Some have more red undertones, while others have blue but if you asked me for purple flowers; any and all would be what we would send. Imagine working with this color when decorating a home or creating wedding flowers? Not easy! What is your favorite purple flower?

One of the best parts of my job is securing flowers to sell at the shop. Whether they are for a special event such as a wedding or just for our everyday offerings, I try to buy American Grown Flowers whenever possible. Truthfully, there aren't many florist grade flowers being grown in PA or New Jersey these days so we look to states such as California for the "locally grown" American product we crave.  Did you know that 80% of the flowers used in America are imported from outside of the US? That's crazy but true! I've personally visited farms in Holland and California and it's fascinating how they grow these amazing beauties. Take for example, the photo below of our tour of the Stock Flower Fields at Ocean View Farms in Lompoc, California We have been known to secure NJ flowers through both our wholesaler and on our own, like these Sunflowers from a past summer! Our designers had fun making little smiley faces on them!  Do you know where the

Caring for Cut Roses Follow these simple steps to get the maximum vase life and enjoyment from your fresh cut roses: Hydration, hydration, hydration!  Whether you receive cut roses from us or buy them yourself, get them into water as soon as possible. Even if you don’t have time to arrange them in the desired vase right away, it's important to place them into some water source until you can get to them. Use warm water.  Prepare the vase first by cleaning it thoroughly. Then, fill it ¾ full with lukewarm water. Warm water can be absorbed by the flower with greater ease than cold water, allowing the water and nutrients to travel up to the bloom as quickly as possible.  Eliminate sources of bacteria in the water.  Before placing the flowers into the water, remove any foliage that would fall below the water line.  Foliage in the water causes bacteria to grow which will shorten the vase life of the flower. How

As a floral shop owner, I love flowers but it's true, as the cobbler has no shoes, often I don't bring flowers home. I probably shouldn't admit that but because I'm surrounded by gorgeous blooms all day long and work 12 hour days, it often doesn't occur to me to grab a bunch when I head out for the evening. Yesterday as the hubby and I closed up for the night, I grabbed a bunch of tulips (one of my all time favorites to bring home) and after cooking and eating dinner, I pulled out a favorite vase to arrange them.  While doing so, I broke a head ~ Oh no! Never fear, look how sweet this single bloom looks in a cute little vase. I posted this picture on my Facebook and within minutes had 20 likes. The power of flowers. Sometimes all it takes is one single flower to brighten a day.  Do you currently follow us on Social Media? We can be found on Facebook for our Princeton Page Here  and for our Yardley Page Here  or on Pinterest Here  or on Instagram Here . 

Believe it or not, January is quite a busy month for our shop with party centerpieces - both flowers and balloons. Although we don't often do January weddings, the types of events that we decorate for early in the year range from social events such as birthday parties and Sweet Sixteens to Corporate events such as post holiday parties and sales kick off events. Here's a peek at just a few of the events we decorated for this week!  Folks love vibrant colors in January.   Created for a 50th birthday party , these centerpieces are sure to amaze the folks who see them at Rho Restaurant in Trenton.   These Asian style centerpieces will be placed 2 on each table with origami birds strung between at Ruth Chris Steakhouse here in Princeton.   A company celebration , these were delivered to north east Philly - both floral centerpieces and balloon floor bouquets . Don't you just love the blue and green combination?   Well, there you have it, just a few of this