Sending Smiles ~

Today I was skimming through my Floral Management magazine and low and behold I spot an article singing the praises of one of my favorite flowers. The article talked about the variety of colors these wonderful flowers come in from dark, almost black blue-purple to mango hues with gold tips. Solid lime green and a yellow/pink bi color, not to mention dark, magenta purples. Wow, these flowers amaze me. They smell like heaven, they last for weeks in fresh clean water and the colors! How many flower varieties do you know that come in that kind of palate? Well, they are truly heavenly. I guess you are wondering what flower I am speaking of.... I speak of the lowly, misunderstood carnation. That's right, the carnation . Haven't we all be guilty of saying "make me a nice arrangement, but no carnations, please"? Well, perhaps the time has come to cut those words "No Carnations" from our floral vocabulary. Carnations, carnations, I want to sing their praise...

Well, it was another successful event at the Trenton Thunder Ballpark where our staff, family and friends helped to give out 1,200 free roses to attendees. It's always so gratifying to meet the fans, many of whom are our customers. I had no less than 10 people come up to me and tell me about their connection with our flower shops! Our very own driver Allan and his lovely wife Diane. Charlie, the husband of Designer Dianne Legg helps to hand out the roses. There's nothing like putting family to work!! Our Sales Associate Sheryl and Designer Dena along with new driver Kyle and Dena's friend Orla help to hand out roses! It was a great night and fun was had by all!

A quick kudos goes out to my staff for the fabulous work that has been done during the month of July. We've successfully delivered 12 weddings this month. In addition to various vacations being taken, myself included, along with a shipment of faulty glass towers, no major disasters were had that could not be diverted! No easy feat considering that July can be hot and unforgiving for flowers. Numerous thank you notes, e-mails and phone calls have come in and the word is that our brides appreciated our great service and gorgeous product. Exactly as they expected and on time! I continue to meet with new brides almost daily and as of today's count we have 85 weddings booked for 2008. Early bookings into 2009 are also going strong and it is gratifying to hear how brides find us. Between hotels and banquet halls, caterers and word of mouth, weddings appear to be our companies strength. What lies ahead for 2009? A concentration on weddings, of course, but balloon event work appears to...

Everybody knows that plants in the home and office make for a healthy environment so we here at Monday Morning Flowers are doing our part to make plants more affordable. Just about everyone has a plant that is just a bit past it's prime, right? Maybe you forgot to water it or it wasn't the right plant for that sunny window. Well, now is your chance to exchange it in for a fresh, new, lively plant. Announcing our "Plant Exchange" program! Bring in any less than perfect plant for 25% off any new plant in our shops. We have a wide selection of easy to care for plants such as peace lilies, bromeliads, pothos, ferns, crotons, ivy, money trees and even a large assortment of dish gardens. Let us help you "Go Green"! We hope to see you soon!

I'm a firm believer that there are no "wedding flower mistakes" and I'm fond of telling my brides that there is no right or wrong way to go about choosing their wedding flowers. All flowers are beautiful and they are meant to be an expression of you and your special day. Now that being said there is one mistake that I notice couples making and it seems to cause them the most grief during the planning process. I'm sorry to be the bearer of bad news but yes, it's about money, again. Is there anything in life that isn't in one way or the other about money? I don't think that anyone that has ever planned a wedding can honestly say that they did not have to make changes and compromises along the way because of money. That being said... Couples do not always leave enough of their budget for flowers and that in turn causes the biggest mistake in that they do not leave enough money for their floral centerpieces. I usually think of the personal flowers suc...

Hey, you may laugh at the title of this blog but while sitting in the Miami Airport on my way back from vacation, I was thinking about work, more to the point marketing my product. I'm pretty much always thinking, the wheels are always turning, how can I make my business better, what can I do to sell more flowers and it came to me, the true strength of my product is that it's perishable. How can this be a strength? Well, think about it, how many people do you know that "have it all"? I'm sure, if you are like me, you know many of these people that have just about everything they need. I believe that I'm one of those people. Honestly, I have a nice house, food on the table, an adoring husband and two cats in the yard, there isn't anything I truly need. So what does this have to do with flowers? If you are like me, you've seen some of those programs on TV that show people trying to get out from underneath tons of clutter in their houses. They subject the...

Over the last two years we've been doing more flowers for same sex marriages. I have to say that I enjoy doing these weddings, not just because it's another source of revenue for the shop (and it certainly is) but I find working with these couples rewarding. Last night, I had a consultation with a lovely family (bride, sister and mom) and we were talking about the family dynamics that can sometimes rear their ugly heads during flower meetings. I'm sure that most people that either haven't planned a wedding for many years or have never planned one, must think that meetings with the florist must be tranquil and stress free. Unfortunately, I've seen things during consultations that could make your hair curl! I've seen grooms being mean to brides, brides being condescending to their groom. Parents being mean to their children, children acting downright rude to their parents and the list goes on. Sometimes I feel like I'm not just a florist but a therapist too!! ...