Sending Smiles ~

Right off the bat, I'm going to say that I don't remember who shared the concept of Wiggle Words with me (so I can't give them credit) but this term changed my life! Dramatic? Yes but it truly changed how I communicate. What is a Wiggle Word? A wiggle word is any word that fails to describe. Still confused? In the flower business we hear wiggle words all the time. Customer: "Hello, I'd like to send flowers. Can you make me nice arrangement ?" What does nice mean? What is nice to one person could be not nice to another. Nice, beautiful, pretty ~ all are wiggle words that don't really tell us what you'd like. We love when our customer express themselves! Now taking this from the other side "Yes, we'd be happy to create a nice arrangement for you, how about if we create a very colorful mixture of Spring Flowers "? They might have something else in mind but at least I'm responding with a response that is a bit more descriptive. ...

Do you get confused when it comes to ordering flowers for your Holiday Table? Well, it's not hard and here my 5 quick tips for Ordering the Perfect Holiday Centerpiece . Answer these simple questions and it will all fall together for you and don't forget to let your local florist help you! What is the shape of the table you will be using for Thanksgiving Dinner? Is is round , oval or rectangular? The shape of the table will give your florist some idea of what shape the centerpiece should be. If you have more than one table, remember to order a centerpiece appropriate for each table.  How many people will be seated at the table for Thanksgiving Dinner? The number of people to be seated gives your florist the overall size the table will be. If you have 10 people at a rectangular table, chances are you will have 4 on each side and 2 on the ends, making the table about 8-10 feet long (at least 2 feet per person). If the table is this size and you want a centerpiece that i...

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...

It's fascinating being in business. It's amazing how fast the world is changing and how hard it can be to keep up. Have you seen that Staples ad on TV with "Dave" the business owner? As the commercial progresses, it's clear that poor "Dave" pretty much does everything at his company, from fixing the copier, to making coffee, opening the mail... There might be 19 other employees working here with me but sometimes I feel like Dave, trying to keep up with it all. My job is to be the creative compass here at the shops. I set the tone for how we will be seen in the market place and I do this in many ways, with many goals in mind. It's been important to me to make ordering easy for our customers. People live fast, stressful lives. They are working hard with much on their professional plate. Add a hectic home life and the stress can be overwhelming. Although I work long days too, part of my job is to take the stress out of how customers place their o...

With Valentine's Day just around the corner and spring beyond that (yes, I'm thinking towards spring) it's always nice to freshen up our website and add new floral offerings. Starting off 2012 right mean adding some fun, colorful arrangements to our product mix.  Below are just a few of what we added to our website this week - www.sendingsmiles.com .   Oh and don't forget to order your Valentine's Day flowers early!! Save $5 anytime by using promotion code SMILE2  Sweet Love Bright Smiles  Island Elegance  Citrus Crush  Loves Rush  Party Girl  Sunflower Fantasy  Seashore Centerpiece Birthday Float!

We would be less than truthful if we said that the last 2 years or so have not been a hard time for our company. The recession took it's toll and with other flower shops closing around us, we are grateful to not only be surviving but thriving. This week we brought together almost our whole team (driver Joe and sales associate Kristine we unable to attend) for a business celebration event! We had a great time and thank you to Salt Creek Grille here in the Princeton Forretal Village for doing a fantastic hosting our meeting!  It's always fun getting a group shot as we are rarely in the same place at the same time! Mom and Dad Vinicombe even made an appearance (Arlene works in our office part time assisting Kevin) and they even brought the grandkids - our niece and nephew Mary Ann and Markie!    Shop Coordinator Sheryl, Driver Jeff, Sales Associate Melissa and holiday driver Kyle pose for me!  Driver Allan, who has been with our company for ...