Sending Smiles ~

I laugh at myself as I write that title but it's funny how every time I have a "grand" revelation (and I use that term loosely) I think - "Wow! I have to write a blog about that"! I'm sitting here wondering when did my life turn into a blog? And the bigger question is, does anyone care what I think? I'm not so sure but boy, I really do love putting down my thoughts knowing that someone just might read it. Last week, one of my employees commented on my writing because she really loves my blogs. She innocently asked me if I got good grades in school for my writing skills. I nearly laughed out loud but, of course, that would not be very Presidential of me. I very nicely told her no, I was never good at English or writing. I was completely honest and told her that I had to take Junior English twice, as I failed with a big fat F! I don't know the difference between a verb and a noun and thank goodness for spell check! I'm a florist for heaven sake, no

Welcome back for Part 2 of "Inside the Design Bench" at Monday Morning Flowers. Part 1 explored all the work that goes into beginning to design wedding flowers. Our team works hard to make sure that everything is perfect for that special day. I know that sounds corny but it's true!! This part explores the actual delivery and set up of all the wedding flowers. By the time our set up team is back in the truck and heading for home base, 9 or 10 employees have helped to make it all happen! Now, back to bride Erin's wedding....Below is her bouquet. Depending on what our bride has chosen and if it's a unique looking bouquet, we try to get a quick picture before it leaves the shop. Future brides appreciate our ability to show them different styles and colors of bouquets we have created. Although the actual day of the wedding can be hectic, especially if we have more than one to set up that day, remembering to take a few pictures is top on our list of wedding details! Er

I guess most people would think that all the flowers for a wedding come in on Friday and get delivered on Saturday. There could be nothing further from the truth. Luckily for us, flowers take time to hydrate and open but also the process of designing is a much longer and labor intense one than most people would realize. The flowers above have just arrived for our bride Erin, who gets married this Saturday. Stock, delphinium, roses, hypericum berries and hydrangea will all be masterfully arranged into her bouquets and centerpieces! A team effort is definitely necessary and most weddings take about 2 or 3 days to create from start to finish! With three or four weddings each weekend, it's necessary to plan our time efficiently! Designer Rocio is doing the next step to the centerpieces which is adding the lovely assortment of greens such as seeded euc, geranium, ruscus and mint. These centerpieces are already gorgeous before even on single flower gets added! Working in assembly line

I hear that all the time! "Someday, when I retire, I want to work in a flower shop and be a floral designer". Well, you won't hear anything bad come from me because I love my career and my heart goes out to anyone who does not truly love what they do for a living. That being said, right now we are have two floral design interns at the shop. Both are learning the art of floral design for different, personal reasons but both appear to be learning because of their love of the flowers. I hope they continue to feel that way as their journey of the industry progresses. Our internship is a 4 week program that runs one day per week for 4 weeks. Each week covers the basics: how to prep flowers, correct greening, creative floral insertion and touches on aspects of being a designer, from a business point of view. I'm very excited to be hosting these interns because I feel that it's a vital part of keeping interest in our industry. Going to college for Floral Design is time

Friday night some friends invited us to a restaurant for a Clam Bake followed by a concert. All took place at Rats and Grounds for Sculpture, two of my favorite places. The food was fantastic and we got to make some new friends. We even got to see Christopher who recommends our shop to brides and party planners. After dinner we all walked thru the Sculpture Gardens to the Concert and right away, I heard the group and loved them! They are called the "Alice Project" and their lead singer is, of course, Alice! Our friend Dave told us she was originally from Princeton and when he was a radio DJ, he played her often on his station. Anyway, I absolutely loved the music, her voice, her song writing. So to the title of this blog - Invisible Man. One of her songs was inspired by a visit to a restaurant where she sat and noticed that ever single person around her was quickly served except for her. Talk about feeling invisible! We've all had this experience, and I'm sure, some

As I've said before, I'm a Jersey girl. This coming from a flower shop owner who has a fish named Bruce at one shop and Springsteen in the other. Kevin and I live in Hopewell, NJ and have our shops in Princeton and Yardley Pa but we both grew up closer to the Jersey Shore. We both have very fond memories of Asbury Park, especially Kevin who used to drive the "circuit" in his old Chevelle! Over the years time has been hard on Asbury Park but those of us who love the city have always had faith that the people would come back and so it seems they have! Today were able to drive the coast and ended up at Asbury. We were so happy to see all the new business including the kiddie water park, the many restaurants and gift shops not to mention the gorgeous beach and ocean. If you live anywhere near the Jersey Shore, show your support by walking their lovely boardwalk and spending a few dollars in Asbury!! A view of an un-restored building lovingly known as the Casino. Is t

Congratulations to the Trenton Thunder Ball Team who hosted the All-Star Games yesterday! Our very capable balloon team of David and Kevin created this huge balloon arch to welcome patrons to the ballpark! Over 100 feet in length, it officially the largest balloon arch we have ever created! Great job boys!! To learn more about the Trenton Thunder Ball Team visit their website at http://www.trentonthunder.com/