Check out one of our summer weddings from the past. This is a perfect example of how flowers can truly make a wedding! These colorful florals really pop and are the focal point of the reception. Sherry told me to have “fun with it” so thats what I did. Hands down a great wedding with a select group of friends that I was lucky enough to be a part of.
Stephen and Sherry’s wedding was photographed by Joe Elario Photography.
Buttercup is one of my very favorite terms of endearment. Underused, in my opinion. Especially when you consider how many perfectly adorable flowers fall into this flower family. Buttercups, Larkspur, Clematis, Columbine, Anemones, & Monkshood! All members of one big happy family. I came across this great website which details the some wildflower members of the buttercup family tree.
I am sure some of you might like to trade of a Mother In Law or Uncle for one of these sweet babies! I could make a couple trades, if pressed…
My husband likes to tell people crazy fictional stories about us going on walks and how he has to physically restrain me from stealing columbine seeds from other people’s front yards. He likes to make me sound like a nutty flower lady. I rebut with the flawless logic that at least I don’t hoard cats. Its not like the Columbine was any old color. It was the perfect shade of dark purple, the one that I have been wanting for several years now!! If they really didn’t want to share those seeds with others it seems like they would have planted those plants a little further back on their yard. Right??
By now, some fellow flower lovers may be concerned that I have not yet mentioned the blessed queen of the buttercup family. Fear not:
RANUNCULUS. 
Floral Perfection.
Quick tip: for readers who always go with roses because (they are perfect) they are classic and they are a known quantity (you husbands know who you are) here is an awesome opportunity to surprise the world. Next time you order flowers, ask for a few ranunculuses in your arrangement. They will look great with your roses *wink* (what doesn’t!?)
–Lily, blogging for Fleurtacious (they don’t look like little frogs to me!)
Last night I started some seeds.
My husband and I went a little crazy at the greenhouses and bought about 50 Cow Pots, 7 or 8 envelopes of seeds (which is good because the 7 or 8 we had got lost in the shuffle when we moved) and 5 mini peat pellet greenhouses. We got out all the instructions and studied them meticulously and then buried those precious little seeds in the peat pellets and set in a warm place to germinate. To look at these little babies, these tiny dots, makes me think of “Horton Hears a Hoo.” A teeny tiny universe exists in each seed awaiting release and all it takes is a little dirt, water, and sunshine to make it happen!
What is it about flowers that makes people feel so good?
It can’t just be the smell. Or that they are pretty. Lots of things are pretty.
Flowers are pretty in a way that compels us to decorate every major event of our lives with them. Pretty in a way that demands their inclusion into our most important moments. Can you imagine a wedding without flowers? Or a funeral? Can you imagine if a really important event came up in your daughter’s life, or your mother’s, or your friend’s and there was no flower shop to call, no flowers to send? No birthday flowers? No anniversary corsages? It makes my heart hurt just thinking about that.
I read somewhere recently, that what is so amazing about life in general, is that it is the only part of the universe which defies entropy. Let that sink in for a second. While everything else in the universe is headed for decay, disorder, randomization, and falling to pieces in general, LIFE soldiers on! And it does so in a fascinating, coherent, eyes-on-the-prize kind of way.
After planting those seeds I looked at all the trees in the backyard and thought about the humble beginnings of each one. It gave me some hope that some of my seeds may actually grow and thrive, decorating our entire summer. Morning Glories, Sweet Peas, Bachelor Buttons, Candy Tuft, Zinnias, Sweet William…so many beautiful flowers to fill our yard and our memories.
So maybe, what makes these little beauties so irresistible, is that by day they are gorgeous while by night they are little entropy prize-fighters, existing for delight as much as for any other reason.
Did you catch the 2011 Garden and Flower Show at Hudson Valley Community College? In the past I have attended this event with friends or family members and have had quiet a bit of fun taking photos and looking things over carefully.
Two years ago there was this gorgeous rose arrangement in pastel oranges, pastel pinks, and ivory. Isn’t it beautiful? I have no idea who is responsible for this gorgeous arrangement (I am hoping it is someone from our shop, LOL) but this perfectly encapsulates why I clear my schedule to attend every year! (Note: if this is yours, please email us and I will happily give you a floral credit here)
There was also the coolest contest to make a floral arrangement look like some type of food. My favorite one was the sushi arrangement. I am pretty sure someone near and dear to Fleurtacious Designs made this one:
Adorable Floral Sushi
Yes, I could confuse these for actual food
I have to say, that since I started working at the flower shop, I got a different perspective on this event which I make it a point to attend annually. This year, I got the behind the scenes action. Our floral apprentice/designer-in-training made this 1st place award-winning entry:
Lindsay's Blue Ribbon Arrangement
And how cool is this lamp, created by the head boss lady herself!! It is soooooo Pottery Barn!
Kris Ann's Floral Masterpiece!
There were many fun competitions, categories and challenges not the least of which was a very entertaining florists’ challenge. In this event, leading local designers competed against each other in a timed show down to create the prettiest arrangement in a short period of time. The flowers they were given were identical and they did not know how long they had to complete the task. The whole spectacle was narrated by one of our own.
This is ample evidence of how cool the flower show is, right? If not, I will leave you with this one last visual. During his afternoon presentation, floral rockstar, Christopher Grigas among other floral feats, actually made tulips stand sideways in a beautiful glass tray. It was magnificent.
