Events » Michael's Flower Girl

Fruit and Flowers – The Perfect Combo for Summer!

Events, Flower Info, Hanukkah, San Diego, Seasonal, Summer, Weddings, What's New at Michael's Flower Girl Comments Off

Apr 182013

A stunning floral arrangement is complemented by a great vase and the number of options available is limited only by one’s imagination. Popular in summer and fall, fruit incorporated into the vase adds an element of surprise and pop of color! Things to keep in mind when using fruit include price (fruit can be very expensive), availability (cranberries are a winter only fruit) and potential for spoilage.

To keep costs in check, be sure to use fruit that is “in season”. Oranges in summer will be expensive since they need to be imported from Down Under. Limes and lemons are a bit more available in summer and don’t have the same potential to break the budget. Apples, while beautiful and available in many colors, will discolor when cut so using them whole is a better option to ensure long-lasting beauty. Of course, Fall weddings are the perfect fit for incorporating apples a vase!

The photos above show just a few ways fruit can be incorporated into a floral arrangement – all in the green color palette. In the first photo, whole limes are placed in the vase allowing for the limes to be re-purposed – perhaps to make margaritas at the after party! The center photo shows the fruit sliced. Although it is not obvious, there is a block of floral foam taking up the majority of volume in the vase allowing for fewer limes to be used. The block of foam allows the slices to be presented flat against the glass for this style. Finally, fruit can be incorporated into the arrangement itself, in this case by using green apples. Grapes are beautiful arranged among the flowers also and are a perfect option for a winery wedding.

D.I.Y. Wedding Flowers – Good or Bad Idea?

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Apr 112013

The economic challenges of the past few years and the phenomenon that is Pinterest have created the perfect storm for encouraging “Do it Yourself” aka DIY. When considering DIY for wedding related items, careful consideration is of the utmost importance to ensure stress is not the end result of the choice. At the top of the list for wedding DIY – wedding flowers. After all, flowers can be purchased in nearly every store and are affordable when purchased from “big box” stores like Costco and internet based stores like fiftyflowers.com Of course, purchasing the flowers is the easy part. The hard part comes after they are brought home. Proper processing, storage and artful arranging are all required as are specific tools and supplies.

Truthfully, a minimum skill level is required for processing the flowers – it just takes time. Storage takes no skill at all, just the proper conditions. If it is too hot, flowers will wilt and die. Too cold? Lilies and roses won’t open and orchids will brown, wilt and be rendered un-usable. Artful arrangement is more important to some than others and could be in a DIYers wheelhouse, or not. Again, this takes lots of time and considering that this must be done within a day of the event, could result in undesired stress as the wedding day approaches.

A better bet for DIY wedding projects are creating items like non-floral decor, party favors, photo collages and candy buffets. These can be done long in advance and allow the opportunity to let the couple’s personalities to shine.

Before making a decision about whether to DIY wedding flower bouquets, bouts and arrangements, meet with a few florists to determine if the value of the service provided by a professional will be the choice for you. If costs are a big concern, a good florist will work with you to stay within your budget.

Celebrate Spring with Flowers for Easter and Passover Dinners

Easter Flowers, Events, Flower Info, holiday, Seasonal, Specials, Spring, What's New at Michael's Flower Girl Comments Off

Mar 272013

Spring promises great weather, family gatherings and lots of delicious food! Whether hosting a group for Easter or Passover or attending a celebration at someone’s home, make sure flowers are there to brighten everyone’s day. A living, blooming lily plant is a great gift for the holiday and symbolizes the joy of Easter and celebration of new beginnings. There are different varieties of lilies available at this time of year, the most traditional being the oriental lily in white.

For something a bit more elegant and formal, a hand-arranged bouquet of Easter lilies is a nice option. A bouquet can be delivered to a home or business (or church) and will offer fragrance and lasting beauty throughout the holiday.

For Passover celebrations, a bouquet of spring flowers is a lovely option. Tulips, daffodils, Freesia and rananuculus are in their peak blooming season during this holiday. Fragrance and beauty will be enjoyed by guests around the Seder table and make a lovely hostess gift. If you are the family member that cannot attend the celebration, make your presence known by having a beautiful, Spring flower bouquet delivered.

Wedding Guest List – Kids or No Kids?

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Mar 222013

Couples concerned about having children at their wedding often exclude them from the guest list thinking (in their naive, child-free minds) this will make the problem go away. Unfortunately, this approach has the potential to magnify the “problem” exponentially. Parents are easily insulted when it comes to their precious babies and often take it personally when their children are excluded. If the couple are having a flower girl and ringbearer (who by default will attend the wedding) the hornets nest if further stirred because if they get to attend, then why shouldn’t every other niece, nephew and 3rd cousin be welcome?

On the other hand, exhausted parents often welcome the opportunity to leave their children behind and jump at the chance to hire a sitter for the evening. Finding a sitter is a pain in the a$$, as any parent knows and failure to find one could result in missing out on celebrating with loved ones on their big day.

An option largely unknown in the wedding planning community is on-site, event childcare which could, believe it or not, keep everyone happy! Insured, experienced professional entertain the tikes in one area of the venue while the adults imbibe in cocktails and adult conversation in another area. At the end of the evening, parents and children come together for an enjoyable, relaxing ride home.

Wedding Cake Flowers – Sugar, Natural or None?!

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Mar 162013

Wedding cake design has reached a pinnacle, making the wedding cake much more than dessert. Often placed smack, dab in the middle of the reception space, a wedding cake becomes a work of art to be admired during the hours between cocktails and the cake cutting ceremony. When budget is not a concern, flower blossoms made with sugar are a great option ensuring that your wedding cake will be a true work of art. The flowers will be beautiful, delicious and memorable. If sugar flowers are selected, the choice of baker becomes even more important. Not only will the cake need to be delicious but the decoration will require talent of a whole ‘nother sort. Be sure to ask potential bakers lots of questions, see samples and taste everything. This gorgeous sugar rose and hydrangea cascade is an example of how to decorate a cake with sugar flowers beautifully. The colors are natural, the proportions of the flowers are accurate and the placement is artful. An additional bonus – hydrangea flowers themselves do not hold up when placed on a cake (not enough water in the fondant!) so the edible variety is a great option.

Occasionally, couples are concerned with the safety of using natural (i.e. real) flowers to decorate their wedding cake. While the risks of food poisoning or poisoning of any kind, are minimal when flowers are place on the fondant or buttercream frosting, placing the flowers in a space between the layers of cake will alleviate and worries! For this application, natural flowers are a better choice since they are not actually part of the cake and are more economical. Check out the two photos below – can you tell which are natural and which are sugar flowers?

Valentine’s Day Engagement!?

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Mar 102013

Your sweet, hunky guy finally proposed on Valentine’s Day and now that you’ve had a few days to bask in the glory of being a “soon-to-be-Mrs”, it is time to ask yourself – what now?! Wedding planning is probably at the top of your list of things to do, which can be fun or frazzling depending on how it is approached. Magazines are fabulous for getting ideas and provide a tactile, hands on format for dipping one’s toe in the water. However, after lugging around magazines for a week or two, they will likely be abandoned for the electronic miracle that is the iPad/Tablet. The other discovery you are likely to make during this time of planning and purchasing is Pinterest. In case you haven’t heard of this miracle of planning, check it out and get started pinning things you love to your own boards. Our Pinterest boards are great places to start for inspiration so don’t forget to check us out too! Here is something that I pinned recently which gets a Love, Love, Love!

Another great place to get ideas (and make purchases) to make your wedding uniquely yours is Etsy. Most items sold on this website are hand-crafted and reflect what is “in” right now. Prices are fair and the selection is endless.

Once you have ideas for how you want your wedding to look, flow and impress it’s time to start selecting your vendors. The era of on-line reviews is both a blessing and a bane so tread carefully when doing research on potential vendors. Although the big review gatherers like Google, Yelp and Wedding Wire claim to have the ability to warn users about possibly bogus reviews, it is not a perfect system. Learn to read between the lines, trust your instincts and meet face to face for an all around approach that should yield perfect fit vendors for your big day!

Black and White – Hot for Fashion & Hot for Flowers

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Mar 052013

Look at any fashion magazine, red carpet event or luxury clothing catalog and it becomes obvious that black and white have replaced the color blocking trend that was hot last year. Stripes and bold patterns in black and white are on-trend for 2013 and can be easily incorporated into wedding and event decor. I love the black and white styling in the photo below with the “pop” of coral to soften the look. Perfect for a flower girl!

We all know that flowers in shades of white are plentiful, but less well-known are the black flowers that make the black and white trend oh, so easy to do. White anemone, which are available in late winter and early spring, comes in two varieties – one of which has a black center. A bride’s bouquet styled with nothing but white anemones is simple and beautiful.

Also lovely for a black and white inspired design palette, white hydrangea accented with black mini calla lilies. Choose the calla lilies with the black stems for the deepest, darkest shade of black. Create the arrangement in a black glass or ceramic vase and accent with black ostrich feathers to maximize drama.

This combination of flowers is great for a bridal bouquet also and will provide long-lasting beauty for the bride’s big day. Wrap the stems with black satin or lace and accent with white pearl pins for the final stylish touch. While always popular, this year black and white is the hot, new trend so indulge your passion for this color palette with confidence in 2013!

Flowers and Art in La Jolla

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Feb 222013

The Museum of Contemporary Art in La Jolla was the setting for an event for which we were lucky to provide flowers. One entire wall was painted deep blue with orange lettering announcing the exhibit, providing inspiration for the reception decor. The art being exhibited was from San Diego artists created during the decades of my youth and was fun, thought provoking and beautiful. I especially enjoyed the “swing” hung from the ceiling. Once the swing was sat upon, the occupant was lowered slowly simultaneously lifting the walls of the enclosure. In the open (flat to the ground) format, the walls of the enclosure are enrobed in the American flag. Once “up” and surrounding the occupant of the swing, the flags displayed are those of the old U.S.S.R.

Though thought provoking and fascinating, the “flag box” was no competition with respect to beauty for the flowers we created for the party. The color palette was perfect as was the styling. It is safe to say that the flowers became part of the art at this beautiful museum and we are thankful to have had the opportunity to be part of the event. It was our good fortune to have the opportunity to spend a bit of time looking at the art and I would encourage anyone in the area to stop by and do the same. The museum is small so you can squeeze a visit in between lunch and cocktails in beautiful, downtown La Jolla.

Why are Rose Prices so Darn High for Valentine’s Day?!

Events, Flower Info, Specials, Valentine's Day, Valentine's Day Comments Off

Feb 112013

It is common knowledge among romantics all over the world that flower (especially roses) prices go up significantly on Valentine’s Day. There are a couple of reasons for this. The first, and probably most significant reason is the market seems to bear price increases quite well. The second, and less well known, is the way the growers “force” a huge crop for this one day. The rose plants must be cut at a specific time to ensure a full bloom on February 14^th. Therefore, any flower that was developing at the time of the cut is lost for harvest. Additionally, all the manual labor it takes to do the cut and harvest adds significant cost.

Not every florist wants to gouge clients on Valentine’s Day. That is why we are offering an amazing BOGO special for our local customers. If you purchase one dozen roses for pick up or delivery, the second dozen is FREE (by one, get on = BOGO). Not only do we want to make the quantity of flowers is amazing, we ensure that the flowers are fabulous as well. We source only the highest quality, long stem roses from our grower in Columbia, South America. Passion Growers is a concerned about the quality of their roses as we are, making them the perfect farm for us!

In spite of the inevitable price increase, treat your sweetheart to beautiful, long stem roses in any color you choose for the ultimate expression of love for Valentine’s Day!

Choose the Perfect Wedding Venue

Destination, Events, Planning, Weddings Comments Off

Jan 312013

Wedding planning is in full gear for many couples who got engaged over the holidays and for many, it is a brave new world they are entering into. There are so many elements to take into consideration and everyone involved has an opinion to share. Luckily, the ‘net has revolutionized the way wedding planning is done and there are lots of resources, my favorite being Weddingwire.com, available to guide newly engaged couples.

One of the first decisions (if not THE FIRST) to make is choosing the venue, or venues. For religious ceremonies, the couple’s place of worship is the obvious choice. For out-of-town folks planning a Catholic ceremony, Founder’s Chapel and The Immaculata, both on the USD campus in Linda Vista are popular choices. Book your wedding early for either of these venues since they are in high demand.

Non-religious ceremonies most often take place at the same location as the reception. Choosing a single venue is a great option for convenience, for both the wedding party and guests. Hotels are a great choice, making accommodations for out-of-town guests an easy pick. Visit out venue quick links page for a guide to selecting the perfect hotel for your wedding and reception. Choose a downtown hotel, like the Marriott Marquis and Marina, and you are right in the heart of San Diego and can take advantage of great restaurants, beautiful waterfront parks and baseball!

If a beach ceremony followed by a low key reception at an historic hotel is what you have in mind, check out The La Jolla Shores Hotel. This is one of very few San Diego locations where you can have a true beach wedding and reception all in one place! If you haven’t been to La Jolla, be assured it is one of the most beautiful places on the planet so you will be assured of a lovely wedding! Keep in mind that the beach at this hotel, like all others in California, is open to the public. If you are planning a holiday weekend wedding, your beach will be attended by dozens of beachgoers – and everyone loves to watch a wedding so they will!

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