June Wedding at Simple Pleasures was Simply Beautiful

 Check out this June Wedding at Simple Pleasures Event Center in Bella Vista, Arkansas.  

Pictures were taken by Lacey Kohl Photography. You can see her blog here.  

Cut flowers and the Temperature: Even they think it is too hot!

As you may (or may not) know, our shop is located in Northwest Arkansas.  Our area, and the southern part of the country, has been in the middle of a drought with some very hot weather conditions for the past month.  It has been hot here-very hot.  The other day the thermometer at my local bank said 114 degrees Fahrenheit!  Forget using the frying pan and stove, the side walk or even the leather seats in my car will work just fine!

All this hot weather made me wonder: How do flowers fair with such harsh conditions?  Answer: they don't.  Let's face it, flowers are delicate and are quite temperamental when it comes to their living conditions.  You have never heard the expression "as durable as a tulip" now have you?

In this post we will address the proper care and keep of cut flowers.  As for the dead ones in your yard, well you might either want to pay an arm and a leg to keep them watered, do a rain dance, or just give up.

Before

After

As I mentioned earlier, flowers do not do well in the heat.  The cooler the temperature that flowers are exposed to, the better.  However, that temperature needs to be above freezing.  (Nobody really wants freeze dried flowers anyway.)  The opening of a flower signals the end of their growth and heat just speeds up the  process.  The warmer the temperature that a flower is exposed to, the quicker they will fade and the more work it is for you.  Allow me to share an equation with you to help understand:

warmer temperature = warmer water = breading ground for more bacteria = water that needs to be changed often.

Now if you like to keep your house the temperature of the desert, don't assume that you can just place a fan or air conditioner right on your flowers.  Fans and air conditioners that are placed with a direct hit to an arrangement causes the flowers to dry out and fade more quickly.

A few more tips for keeping flowers beautiful longer:

-Keep away from fruits and vegetables.  Dying fruit and vegetables emit a gas that is harmful to your flowers.
-Car exhaust is also bad for your flowers so if you were hoping to keep your flowers stored in your garage, don't.

-And finally, don't breathe on your flowers.  Even if you brush your teeth 50 times a day, use mouthwash, and chew gum, a flower doesn't care how good your breath smells.  Human breath is also harmful to flowers. So smell but hold your breath while you do!

So as you are attempting to keep cool this summer, remember to keep your cut flowers cool as well!

Made in the USA. . .Or Not?

As I'm spending a month in Lithuania something crossed my mind.  Are the flowers we receive "made in the USA?"  Well, not really.  Unless we get the flowers from a farmer's market (which we have done before), the flowers we receive have as much international flavor as Northwest Arkansas itself.

Last summer I traveled to Guatemala and I was stunned by the beauty of the flowers there!  They had Bird of Paradise. . that grew wild!  We pay a lot of money for those flowers here in the United States.  Most of the flowers that we receive come from South American from countries such as Ecuador, Colombia, and Chile   However, we also receive flowers from Italy, Holland, and Australia.

In the United States, Florida and California are at the top of the floral growing chain but they struggle to compete with foreign countries.  The number one importer of flowers in the United States is Colombia. "Bogotá", in particular, one of our floral suppliers told me.  Colombia's premier climate makes it possible for us to have flowers such as roses, alstroemeria, baby's breath, and delphinium.

According to aboutflowers.com, 66% of flowers are produced in Colombia, 15% are from Ecuador, and 6% are from the Netherlands.  Mexico, Costa Rica, and Canada all round of the top six list of flower importers at 3% of flowers coming from those countries.

So why don't we use flowers from the United States?  Now, I'm not saying that we never use flowers from the US.  In fact, many tropical come from Hawaii.  One reason that florists search for flowers from outside the US is because of the limited growing season here.  South American countries have warmer weather all year round which makes them perfect for growing some of our favorite flowers.  European countries have a more wet, spring like climate, that make them great for growing Tulips and other US favorites.

So the next time you hold a fresh flower in your hand think to yourself "this flower traveled perhaps thousands of miles to be placed in an arrangement especially for me."

Its Like Building a House

Making a bouquet is similar to building a house.  You must have the right foundation and support or else your arrangement can snap or fall apart all together.  So much more goes into making a strong, long lasting, beautiful bouquet than meets the eye.

This arrangement containing stephanotis and carnations is actually a time consuming arrangement that requires lots of preparation before the bouquet can be assembled.  





The first thing to remember is to keep your fingers wet.  The oils from your hands can damage the petals and make them turn brown.  The flowers come with a green stalk on the end of them.  To begin, I removed the green stem from the flower.





The fuzzy looking sticks that are laying in the water are called stephanotis stems.  On one end they have cotton attached to them, similar to a q-tip, that soaks up water. These are inserted into the flower so that the flower can be used for arrangements and bouquets.






Next, I inserted the stephanotis stem backwards into the flower to remove the rest of the stalk that is left inside the flower.





I then turned the stem around and inserted it into the flower so that the cotton part rest gently into the middle of the flower.  This allows the flower to stay moist as well as provides a place for the pin to be placed in the middle of the flower.

When I was done, I had several nice flowers to be placed in bouquets.  All that is left is placing a pin in the middle of the flower and arranging them into a bouquet like the one above!

Another bouquet that I made on the same day also required much preparation to the flowers before it could be assembled.  This bouquet contains football mums and carnations (see, I told you I like carnations!).

Carnations can have weak stems when they are arranged into a bouquet.  For this reason, it is important to place a wire around the stem in order to add support.




When building a house, you don't want to build your house upon the sand but instead upon a rock, a strong foundation.  When creating a flower arrangement, we don't want to create something that is going to fall apart before it reaches the hands of a bride.  We want an arrangement that will stand strong through the ups. . and stresses. . .of a wedding day!

~Hannah
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I Speak for the Carnations

As Doctor Seuss writes in his book, The Lorax, "I am the Lorax.  I speak for the trees.  I speak for the trees because the trees have no tongues."  (I'm an Early Childhood Education Major in college, even flowers remind me of children's books.)

I know by now that you are probably wondering where I am going with this.  Well, I am Hannah.  I speak for the carnation.  I speak for the carnation because carnations don't have tongues.  Carnations have received a bad reputation for long enough and I am here to speak out for the carnation and its tainted reputation.  Oh the carnation, bless it's heart.

All too often I am sitting in on a consultation for a bride or I overhear Althea talking to a bride and the question "And which flower do you absolutely not want in your wedding?" comes up.  More often than not, the response that follows is the same.  "Carnations".  

Now I must admit, there was a time when I would have responded the same.  When most of us think of carnations our mind instantly takes us back to football homecomings and school dances.  Now if we are truly being fair, we can't blame our bitter relationship with the carnation on some poor, poor fellow who thought that carnations would be wonderful flowers when mixed with five million ribbons and glitter and accented with baby's breath.  However, believe it or not, there is more to a carnation than those memories.  Yes, if given the chance, a carnation can make any wedding, arrangement, or prom beautiful.  

According to proflowers.com, the scientific name for the carnation, dianthus, can be translated into "flower of the gods" and "flower of love."  Carnations date back to ancient Rome and Greece where they were used in art.  In those days, carnations bloomed in primarily pink, peach, and white.  However, now carnations come in a variety of colors and sizes including peach, dark purple, and even a fuzzy green.  Similar to roses, the meaning of the carnation varies with the color.  White carnations symbolize purity while pink carnations show gratitude.  I bet you didn't know that in the early 20th century the carnation became the official flower for Mother's Day.  If carnations were good enough for the Romans, Greeks, and mom, they are good enough for me!

Take for instance this lovely bouquet with peonies, roses, and carnations.  Yes, carnations!  Carnations can add color, fullness, and depth to any arrangement when used correctly.  

Photo by Scott Plauche Photography

These bouquets include a mix of roses and carnations and the bouquet below include stephanotis  and carnations. (Now I know you can admit that nothing about these arrangements yell "1980s homecoming.") Carnations can stand alone or they can be mixed with flowers to create any feel, look, or color scheme that a prospective bride might desire.  

Photo by Scott Plauche Photography

 So the next time you are tempted to say "oh, no carnations for me, no way, no way."  Remember, carnations earned their spot in the floral world and we just need to give them a chance.

~Hannah

Flowers are a Blessing

      If you have ever received flowers, I'm sure you know just how much of a blessing flowers can be.  To the patient in the hospital, the new mom, a birthday wish, or a sympathy arrangement, flowers can brighten, inspire, and even bless.
      On Wednesday, I was able to see first hand how much a bouquet of flowers can brighten the day of an unsuspecting recipient.  Once a month, my church in Siloam Springs does random acts of kindness for people in our community.  We take groceries to families in need, quarters to the laundry mat, and write letters for missionaries overseas.  Ever since we have started this tradition I have felt the need to provide my talent and services to provide hope and a blessing to somebody in need.  After weeks of praying and trying to decide what to do, I was at work on Tuesday when it dawned on me.  I could take flower arrangements to the nursing home!
      So, on Wednesday morning when the floral truck arrived, I had decided the amount of money that I could spend on flowers and that I wanted to make at least 10 small arrangements for the residents of the nursing home.  While I was picking out the leather leaf, daisies, and Alstromeria lilies off the truck, Scotty, the driver, placed more flowers in my pile and told me that I could have them for free.  That's right, the flowers were all donated.  I also had enough flowers to make 24 arrangements, now talk about a blessing.
Two women from church, my mom, and I all arrived at the nursing home around 6:30 pm.  The residents were getting ready for bed for the night so we walked around the halls looking for people who were awake to give flowers to.  Several times I would have to fight back the tears as a sweet elderly lady would reach out her hand to touch mine as tears welled in her eyes because she had received flowers.   One sweet man wanted to keep the flowers to give to his granddaughter who was coming to visit him on Saturday.  Several times the residents would say "oh no thank you, I don't have anything to put them in."  As I looked around their rooms I noticed that all they had was a drinking cup that they used for water.  The lack of vases or other containers that hold flowers showed me that these patients never receive flowers.  They are never or rarely blessed with the beauty that flowers provide.
      I was particularly touched by a sweet lady with an oxygen mask on.  As I walked in to her room I noticed that she was staring at the wall with a look of sadness.  As I knelt down beside her I asked her if she would like an arrangement of roses.  She looked up at me and said in a whisper through her oxygen mask, "but I don't have any money." "Oh ma'am," I say, "these flowers are free, they are for you."  From that moment I noticed her eyes of sadness turned to eyes filled with joy and jubilation. "Oh thank you, thank you" she said to me, at least twenty times.  I held her hand as I helped her open her card as she read "God bless you" and the verse inside.  As I touched her soft, frail, skin all I could think about was how this small arrangement of leather leaf, one red rose, and a few spray roses, all nicely tied in a pink ribbon, was what this woman needed to brighten her day.
      If you have ever looked at flowers as something that you see everyday, perhaps even on the side of the road on your way down the highway, I urge you to think of this.  Think of how just a small bouquet of flowers can brighten a day and bring hope to the most unsuspecting of recipients.

-Hannah

There is so much more to a flower shop than designing arrangements

Hey, this is Althea's "Personal assistant (I like to call myself that),"  Hannah.  The busy wedding season is upon us and the shop has turned into a maze of flower, vases, ribbons, and buckets.  The black and white checkered floors are just a distant memory to us as we weave our way through the items.  From my work at the computer I hear the usual "ugh" as somebody cuts themselves with a wire, or a nice "ooo" as Althea is please with a bouquet that she has prepared for a bride.  As I look up I see hydrangeas, daisies, football mums, and delphinium.  I often wonder if I am in a flower shop or in a wild garden where the flowers are strangely planted in white plastic buckets.  The phone rings, and email blinks in, or I am awaken from my wonderment and realize that I have a ton of work to complete myself.  You see, there is much more to a flower shop than creating flowers.

Four weeks ago I had knee surgery and well, it is hard to carry flowers, stand on your feet for hours, and create arrangements while on crutches.  I have been given the assignment of office assistant.  Until I was "placed" in this position I guess I never realized how much work goes into a floral business besides the lovely arrangements that the clients and public see.  There are hundreds of emails to answers, flowers to order, contracts to write, contracts to rewrite, phone calls to answer, and consultations with prospective glowing brides.  Not to mention the thousands, okay maybe that was an exaggeration, of letters to write!  Every client that orders flowers from us, bride and groom that selects us for their wedding, recipient of our arrangements, and couple with a one year anniversary receives either a handwritten letter or an email thanking them for their service.  I will be going out of the country in five weeks to Lithuania and have been catching up on the letters for the months of May, June, and July.  That's a lot of writing!  There are bills to be paid, invoices to be entered, contact lists to be updated.  Don't even get me started on filing.  I am often reminded of those cartoons that you see where there are people pushing piles of paper all over the office.  Yes, believe it or not, this is a floral shop behind the scenes.

Although it can be stressful at time and very busy for us all, when Austin brings in one of his delicious peanut butter pies or I break into song along with the radio, I am reminded that we are a family and it is this family that makes Rose of Sharon, Event Florist a wonderful place to work.