Summer's End

Summer is winding down and we've experiecned earthquakes and hurricanes in the span of just a few days. But in the end I'll remember moments like this with juicy peaches and sandy toes.

Weekly Design: Pokeweed

 

I love the easy look of this arrangement. I used a combo of Pokeweed, hydrangea, local lisianthus and dahlias.

How-To Tuesday: Step by step for creating an arrangement with dahlias

I love this black lustre ribbed glass vase, is has approximately a 5" opening.

Local blush pink dahlias and blushing bride (a type of protea).

Green mini hosta leaves, pink spray roses and white veronica.

Succulent - love!

Clean off any of the under petals of the dahlias that may be bruised or browning.

Cut stems so that the flower is about 1 1/2 times the height of the container.

Continue to cross stems over each other as you build arrangement.

Be sure to clean any foliage off the stems that will go below the water level.

As you add different elements continue layering the stems so that you can build a foundation.

As with all hard and woody stems you want to make sure that the stem is cut on an angle to optimize the amount of water the flower can drink.

I added the hosta leaves in groups of 2 or 3 stems as a additional accent.

The succulent is secured on wooden stakes and added to the arrangement.

Of course I didn't take pictures of some of the steps - mid way through the arrangement I forgot that I was trying to document step by step and I got carried away with the design. Once you get your base elements in place you can continue to add each type of flower. I added the spray roses last and didn't use too many but wanted the additional pops of color.

 

 

The final product was lush and full but still had a loose gardeny feel. I loved all the texture in the design!

New York Botonical Garden

We visited the garden this past Sunday. It was pouring when we got there but it was still beautiful. I love these shots from the lily pond especially the shot of the lotus pod and the leaves in the pond. They had captured all of the rain water and minutes after the storm with the sun beginning to shine the leaves almost seemed to pour the water from their leaves. It was beautiful.

Union Square Greenmarket: River Garden Farms

I have a dirty little secret. I can sometimes be a flower snob. I don't mean to do it and I truly do love all flowers but sometimes the presentation is so lacking makes me shake my head. Until I took a quick stroll through the green market last week.
Local flowers are abundant right now and if you're in nyc you need to head to the USQ green market...let me rephrase that, you need to RUN, run to River Garden Farms.
River Garden Farms (which unfortuantely doesn't have a website that I can find) has THE most beautiful display. I had no intentions of looking but I stopped in my tracks and couldn't stop looking. SO BEAUTIFUL! So many options and the flowers were in pristine condition and the ready made bouquets were lovely. Luke from River Garden told me that they actually had already sold so much that I should check them out on Saturday when they would have a ton more. I couldn't make it back there on Saturday but I plan to very soon! And if I'm lucky I may try and schedule a visit to the farm if they will have me :)

A Family Affair Part II

I'm the youngest of 5 children. Yes, that's right five. As a relatively new mom I almost can't fathom it and my mom had the first 3 in less than 3 years. I mean seriously, what were they thinking? Three girls, two boys that's the breakdown.

I love them all the same but I do have a really close relationship with my two sisters. We can't help it, if we don't speak for a few days it's just not normal. Okay, sometimes it's a few hours. We compete for each others favorite sister spot and often lie about how much fun we have when only two of us are together. My brother can't believe how quickly the news travels and gets a bit miffed sometimes when he can't be the first to break the news.

So when sister #1 found out that sister #2 was mentioned here she said something along the lines of  "What?!? How come you didn't mention me? Womp wah, I'm not creative..." We're really mature as you can see.

Then she sent me this.

I love it...it remind us both of the tiger lilies that used to grow on the side of the driveway at our childhood home. Not far from the garden roses.

So you see my lovely sister Mary, you are creative and captured the beauty of this lily and a memory with one click.

Oh, but I have some bad news for you...Jean tried to outdo you and sent me this,

but I think she had an unfair advantage from a pro.

This competition may never end...

Weekly Design: Dahlias

I already drooled over these dahlias but wanted to show you the finished design used for my weekly. Combined with green sedum and dusty pink andromeda the arrangement looked beautiful.

The Big Enough Company

I mostly talk about the creative part of my days but there are many other aspects of running a small business that fill my days. Admittedly I would much rather "play with flowers" all day but other areas need my attention to keep growing and building my business.

Early on when I was in the beginning stages of launching Blade I went to a Ladies Who Launch event where I was lucky enough to meet Amy Abrams & Adelaide Lancaster of In Good Company. We started chatting and I was immediately interested in their business and the services they provided, they were interested in having weekly flowers in their office. A perfect combination.

As a new business owner I often struggled with finding the right place to meet with clients - a coffee shop didn't really do the trick. Enter In Good Company, the answer to my "space" needs. Little did I know at the time that there was much more to IGC than just workspace. It is a community of women business owners and entrepreneurs from all areas of business working together, sharing ideas and all the while fostering a true sense of community.

Adelaide and Amy have created something great and continue to share their knowledge and experiences to help the members of IGC and many other entrepreneurs. Their most recent venture, The Big Enough Company, is intended to help aspiring and current entrepreneurs create the business that is right for them, success the way they see it and not to be defined by another person's version of success. They interview over 100 entrepreneurs and use their stories to help illustrate these ideas.

I anxiously await my copy and you can pre-order your own here.

In business as in life you need to feel part of a community, something bigger than yourself. It is often hard not to feel isolated as a small business owner. In Good Company is one way, a BIG way, to feel a little more connected.

*** Don't forget to enter their contest to win 8 hours of EXPERT help.

A Family Affair

I love when I get a text like this from my sister...



Her garden is lovely and was originally planted in part by our brother who knows EV.E.RY.TH.IN.G about plants. I mean everything. It's actually quite annoying sometimes since I think I should know a little more about things when they are still growing in the ground but once he starts speaking Latin (literally) I'm done, I can't compete.

Anyway, I love that she would send me a picture of something she did with flowers since I'm constantly boring her with all the things that I do with flowers. And if that's not enough, her mother-in-law is a floral designer and so is her next door neighbor Jeri and I'm pretty sure I'm forgetting someone.



I love this arrangement. Simple and sweet, what flowers really should be in your home.

Thanks for sharing sistah. xo

Find & Recycle your wedding decor

I love the thrill of the hunt and never tire of the feeling I get when I find just what I'm looking for! I often do at 100 Layer Cake marketplace and the recycle your wedding section on Ruffled. Both sites are great resources for everything related to your wedding but particularly for finding used wedding items. I tend to browse mostly the decor section but I have seen some other fantastic finds in other categories. Before you go out and buy something new check them out. And when you are finished, post your items for sale.

Now go and score some great finds!

**While you are there be sure to check out the vendor resource guides. Here for 100 Layer Cake and here for Ruffled.

Flower Market Finds: Dinner Plate Dahlias

These dahlias are BRILLiant...there is no way not to love them and awe at the size of them, they are literally the size of my face! I couldn't resist them this morning as I rubbed the sleep from my eyes during my early morning visit to the market. I told you how I love these days of local flower finds!

Flower Market Finds: Local Flowers

Late July through the fall brings about a great local flower season. It's always a treat to visit the market and see the many bundles of flowers wrapped in brown paper lining the sidewalks outside some of my favorite vendors. When you see these bundles you know you are in for a great find. Today we had hydrangea, cocks comb (celosia), lady's mantle, asclepia, zinnias and dahlias. The dahlias start slowly but once they are in full swing they are readily available in amazing tones (that lend themselves to fall and jewel toned color palettes). It's great to be able to use local flowers when it's the right season to do so...and now it is.


Zinnias


Asclepia

Cocks Comb (Celosia)


Lady's Mantle, Hydrangea, Millet


Dahlias

Real Wedding: Sandi and Rich

It's been a busy month and all of the July weddings are now finished. The last one this past weekend was beautiful. Sandi is the sweetest, most easy going bride and really left so much of the design up to me - she changed her color palette slightly midway through the planning but as I tell most brides it's okay to change the color as long as we have enough time to make any adjustments.

Sandi went with a simple mix of soft pinks and greens. She opted for low, lush, multiple arrangements and on the long oval tables at The Woodlands in Woodbury, NY.

We don't have the professional shots yet but here is a glimpse of some of the details.

HUGE thank you to my friend and fellow designer Jenn of Fiore for letting me take over her studio for the day and for helping me out with the wedding. She's the best!

We created the design for the place cards on the piano and covered the entire surface with moss, fern and accents of calla lilies and cymbidium orchids. The cards didn't rest completely even on the moss but I actually like the slightly imperfect look of the table. It was the perfect welcome as guests made their way to the main ballroom.

Different levels and the addition of moss pebbles and spheres created dimension to our little moss forest.