Sending Smiles ~

FUNERAL FLOWERS TREND CONTINUES AT OUR SHOP IN NJ Funeral Flowers Trend Continues with many family funeral flowers being created and delivered by our shop in Princeton NJ this week ~ well, it's been a super busy week in the shop and it's not over. With 2 bridal meetings tomorrow, 2 large school functions needing flowers and balloons, a small wedding and another wedding on Sunday, we will be happy to be closed on Monday for Memorial Day. In addition to all that, we had 3 rather large family funeral orders come in. We consider them "Family Funerals" when the immediate family of the person who has passed orders the larger floral displays from us. These include the casket displays and larger designs such as wreath, sprays and hearts.  This design above was created to stand on a wooden easel in the shape of a heart constructed out of over 60 white Playa Blanca Roses. Aren't the gorgeous? This design below was created for a young man who passed that was very, very...

MEMORIAL LUNCHEON AND DINNER FLOWERS ~ A TREND IN FUNERALS Memorial luncheon and dinner flowers are the latest trend in funerals allowing people a chance to grieve and celebrate a life well lived.  How like the flower business to go from one blog post that talks about wedding trends to sympathy trends. Although honoring the life of a loved one during wakes and viewings is important, many families are opting to host larger events such as luncheons and dinners. For example, the pieces below are for a luncheon being held in honor or a wonderful man who spent many years of his life as an artist. The family believes he really would have enjoyed both the vibrant tones and the unique blooms. 4 of these designs shown below will be for small cocktail tables and include exotic flowers such as bird of paradise, protea and orchids. The host venue is going to be Grounds for Sculpture out in Hamilton/Trenton. If you have never been there, it's an amazing setting and these flowers will re...

Imagine walking in a funeral home or church. You are there to pay your last respects to a friend, colleague or even family member. As you enter, folks are sitting there, quietly talking but not mingling around. Well, it is a funeral so why would anyone mingle, right? As you enter and decide where to stand, sit or who to talk to you notice that the room is completely devoid of flowers. There's no plants either. Nothing. There's the memorial table or casket with the family sitting in the front but that is it. When you explore this vision, how do you feel about it? How do you feel about the environment? If it makes you feel empty or sad, imagine how the immediate family feel. No one sent flowers? Yes, they may have made donations if they could not attend but the room looks rather dark, sad and quite honestly, dull. That's not to say that churches and funeral homes are not nicely appointed but nothing is as uplifting in a space as fresh flowers. Have you noticed how when th...

It's summer and the weather outside is hot (with a storm brewing as I type this). In addition to lots of wedding and party flowers being designed, we've had multiple family funerals this week, including this piece for delivery tomorrow. Designing funeral pieces can be both rewarding and sad but we sincerely hope that the flowers we create bring comfort to the families who receive them. This wreath is being delivered to Fire Company for a memorial service. The sender requested a blue, yellow and white theme and Designer Alanna used an assortment of cremone mums, hydrangea, daisies, sunflowers and baby's breath. Measuring 28" wide on an elegant white wooden stand, this piece should look lovely among the other flowers at the memorial.

It might sound very strange but some of our best read blogs are about Sympathy Flowers  probably because folks don't know what is appropriate to send.  Whether it's for an immediate family member, friend or business associate, there are "rules" that dictate what type of arrangement you should be sending. This first blog post in a series I'm going to write deal with ordering flowers for placement on the casket. Let me say that flowers are always appropriate, even if you are asking for donation in honor of your loved one. Link here to read our blog about what "In Lieu of Flowers" Means . Is there going to be a casket? If so then you will  need something for the top of the casket . These can be tricky to order but this is a good place to let your florist confer with your funeral director. If the casket is full open or fully closed, these require similar floral designs but need to be styled differently. Is the casket going to be only half open? The ...

In Lieu of Flowers  - What Does It Mean The death of a family member or close friend is one of life's most painful experiences. Those in mourning need support and most of us are anxious to find some way to comfort them. One of the most appreciated and accepted ways to express sympathy is by sending flowers. Occasionally, the obituary announcement includes the phrase " In lieu of flowers , contributions may be made to...". Often times, this terminology is used to encourage charitable gifts but not necessarily to discourage other expressions. Most families sincerely appreciate all personal expressions and may later regret having too few flowers at the funeral . It is important that each giver make their own choice and many people are choosing to send a floral remembrance to the service or family home as well as a donation to the charity indicated. While a monetary donation is a worthy tribute, there is really no substitute for beautiful flowers at a sympathy se...

In the floral industry we hear all kinds of stories; some joyous, some somber. A few weeks ago I received a call from a man who worked at another flower shop .  He needed to send a personal floral gift and he needed it in a hurry. Through the conversation he told me that the recipient of the gift was on her death bed… terminal cancer and did not have much longer to live. He wanted to send a few mixed orchid plants in a large glass or ceramic container and said it needed to arrive the next day as early as possible. As promised, we delivered the orchid arrangement just before noon. I called him back to let him know the delivery had been made so that he would not worry.  He thanked me for taking care of this so quickly and I thanked him in return for trusting this important personal order to our shop to fill. I told him that I hoped the gift helped her to know that she was thought of in a special way.  I hung up and went on about my day, as usual.... A week la...

Creating custom floral designs is time consuming but very gratifying. Here Designer Norman makes a police officer shield for a memorial service. First he creates the shape out of foam board then adds color, ribbon and fresh flowers.  Custom designs like this are a very respectful way to show your sympathy while incorporating elements to the day that truly represent the person who has passed.   Norman shows off his latest design.  To see this and more of our funeral and sympathy designs, be sure to visit our sympathy specific website at www.sendingsympathy.com  

Here at the shop one of the hardest elements to give advise on is funeral flowers . Whenever I have written a blog about the subject, I notices that it seems to draw many readers and I think it's because folks find it so intimidating.  Not only is it something that you don't have to do every day (thank goodness) but flowers can express so many sentiments, that knowing what to send can be difficult to determine. This blog will break it down in understandable part so read on!  This is a Casket Spray . Usually sent by the family, the Casket Spray can sit on or above the casket and is most often sent by immediate family. The Casket Spray can be a wonderful way of representing the person who has passed. As in this example of a loving wife and mother, her favorite color was purple and she loved daisies. This piece really represented who she was and what she loved.  Another piece often sent by immediate family or the spouse in particular is the Broken or Bleeding Hea...

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...

It's a fact of life that every now and then we have to send flowers for a funeral. Imagine a funeral without flowers... it's a depressing thought. Flowers are such a lovely way of express our grief and support for the family and there are so many flowers options to choose from. One of my favorites is to send a wreath of beautiful blooms. They come in different shapes such as squares (yes, squares), ovals, rounds and even hearts, like this one. Elegant and tasteful, a wreath arrangement really stands out and gets noticed. Choose a solid color of mixed flowers or a sunny color theme like this yellow and white heart wreath pictured below. The next time you need to send flowers, perhaps this blog will have you considering a wreath. It's always our greatest pleasure to guide our customers in their floral selections . To see these and other sympathy flowers options visit our sympathy site at www.sendingsympathy.com or visit our Facebook Fan Page at www.facebook.com/lo...

"Hi, I need a floral sympathy piece shaped like an Ice Cream Cone to send to a woman who used to own an Ice Cream Store, can you do that"? Yes we can! How cute is this arrangement that Designer Norman made for a recent viewing. Funerals are no laughing matter but how sweet (not pun intended) was it for someone to remember this woman by having this created. Not only is it thoughtful to come up with the idea of sending these particular flowers but the card read "She made the best ice cream in town".  I'd imagine her family will remember this tribute for many years to come.  Our designers always take pride in what they do but you can imagine that pieces like this are the ones that really make us proud. Great job Designer Norman!! To see this and other samples of our sympathy designs, visit our website at www.sendingsmiles.com or our facebook back at www.facebook.com/localflorist

What is it about the holiday season? Mixed among the poinsettias deliveries, boxwood trees and holiday party decorations, we always seem to have more than our share of family funerals to create flower tributes for. As if the holidays are not stressful enough, imagine loosing a loved one at this time.  Actually, I don't have to imagine it, I lost my own father on Christmas Eve 19 years ago. The flowers above were delivered today for a very good customer who was having a memorial service for her mother. Soft pinks, seasonal but feminine made for a striking display at church and the pink marble poinsettias could be given away to family members after the service as a remembrance. There is no substitution for the personal touch needed to create flowers like these. Meeting with the family and discussing their wishes is both an honor and duty that we take very seriously. Above is an arrangement we created a few years back for man who had a sp...

I took a quick photo as Designer Norman was working on this arrangement before it was finished but I still had to share. This piece was created for a man who adored Star Trek and everything it stands for. I could really relate to why he was so crazy about a TV show like Star Trek, being a fan myself. His niece and nephew phoned our shop and sheepishly mentioned that they would love for us to work in the Star Trek theme and if we could include the Enterprise. I jumped at the idea to create something special for them and became giddy when I found this amazing photo to use. Bold colors for a bold theme, this square wreath of flowers really showcases the Starship and I'm going to guess that this tribute will not soon be forgotten. I think Designer Norman did a fantastic job on this very special floral design. To see more of our funeral and sympathy designs, visit our website at www.sendingsympathy.com

Well, our shop is most definately not located in the tropics but look how fun it is to make an arrangement like this. Tropical bird of paradise, protea, anthirium, dendrobium orchids and other elements such as croton leaves, liatris and river cane combine to make a spectacular arrangement with a touch of the islands!

Did you know that we have a sympathy specific website just for choosing and sending funeral flowers? About 4 years ago we developed this site to make it easier on folks needing to plan a family service, not to mention others who needed to show their sympathy through flowers. We thought by having a site just for these kinds of flowers and other gifts it would be more considerate of their feelings during a stressful and sad time. This past week we were able to redo the site completely with many new and updates styles of arrangements. I sincerely hope you won't need this website, but if you do we hope it makes it easier on you. To visit our site you can go to http://www.sendingsympathy.com/ and to  read more about the importance of sending flowers for funerals, visit our re posted blog on the subject.

Have you ever noticed how many birthdays there are in December? In our business, we certainly see the ebbs and flows of life events such as birthdays, weddings, anniversaries and sympathies. In addition to Christmas and Hanukkah, December is always busy for us with folks needing to send thoughts of comfort and sympathy. What a terrible time of year to loose a loved one. We take great pride in providing beautiful floral arrangements for viewings and services, just like Holly is doing for this recent service. A spring like mixture of flowers in shades of pinks and creams using roses, gerber, snaps and orchids. To see more of our sympathy work visit our sympathy website at http://www.sendingsympathy.com/ and for happier occasions shop us at http://www.sendingsmiles.com/

When you think about flowers at a funeral do they make you feel sad? Think again about attending a funeral and not seeing any flowers? Now to me, that would be really sad. Flowers are such a caring and thoughtful way to not only pay your respects but help to celebrate the life of the person who has died. This sympathy piece was delivered this morning for the service of a wonderful man sent by his Niece. I love this piece because not only is it very beautiful, it also shows the person in life, the way he should be remembered. The family said he was a religious man and what a wonderful way to celebrate his life and his faith. Colorful and expressive, the flowers really showcase the photo and I'm sure this piece will not only be admired by everyone in attendance but will be remembered by the family for years to come. Not sure what to send to a service? How about all white flowers in a clear glass vase? Another option that is a bit different is sending a plant or dishgarden. The...

Below is a repost from one of my very first blogs . I wanted to re-post it because as it was relivant in March of 2008, so it is today, especially after the holiday. In honor of my dad, who died on Christmas Eve 17 years ago and because of the season, I thought it was especially timely to remind people how important flowers are to families who are grieving. Recently a customer and I got to talking about sympathy flowers . This started me thinking about the floral industry and what an important role we play during the grieving process. I remember when my father passed away I asked my mother if she wanted me to inform friends and family to make a donation instead of sending flowers. My mother's response was something I've never forgotten, even 15 years later. She looked completely grief stricken and told me that her greatest fear was that she would walk into the wake and not find any flowers there. Being in the floral business , I've always known that flowers are sent a...