A Few Good Pumpkins

We are always on the hunt for eye catching accessories and we found these last year at Market. This fall they showed up on the cover of Gump's of San Francesco's wonderful catalog!  Fabulous velvet Pumpkins that will add  unexpected elegance where traditional gourds would be too rustic. And they are very light weight which is a bonus if you store your seasonal decorations up or down staircases.

If realism is your thing, how about these faux gourds - I'm crazy for the color and shape. These are definitely going to be added to MY home collection. 

Remember Thanksgiving is late so we have an extra week to enjoy our fall decorations.

Fall Accent Boxes

 Being creative by nature, Floral Designers are constantly looking for new ideas to repurpose "stuff " I came across this idea on the Design Master web site.  What a great look and super easy to do.. Since I work in the "Giant Kraft Box" (as my sister calls it) I don't worry about having left over supplies. I assure you that the spray paints, used in this project, will become your favorite Go To tools for lots of touch ups around the house.

Since the colors are translucent they can be used to freshen old baskets, give painted objects an antique look or spray on silk or dried flowers for a shabby chic fall look.

Give them a try!

Decor Boxes

Prep bare wood by sanding. Clean surface with tack cloth. 

TOOLS AND MATERIALS

Design Master Sprays - Home Décor Stain HONEY, CHESTNUT, HICKORY (one color per box) - Clear Finish GLOSS - TACK 2000 Spray Adhesive Unfinished Wood Boxes - Fine Sandpaper - Tack Cloth - Disposable Gloves - Soft Cloth or Paper Towel - Masking Tape - Silver Paint Pen - Silver Pearl Studs - Hammer - Silver Skeletal Leaves - Drawer Knobs - Permanent Bonding Glue

  

1. Spray Home Décor Stain close to the box surface until wet and glossy. 
2.  Quickly wipe the stain into the wood grain with cloth, removing the excess. Let dry (3-5 minutes).
3. Now spraying approx. 12" from surface evenly apply an additional light coat of stain. Let dry.
4. Create a pattern by masking areas with tape, making sure edges are pressed firmly. Apply more coats of stain on the exposed wood as in Step 3 until the desired contrast is achieved. Allow stain to dry between coats. The more coats applied, the deeper the color - you choose the color intensity.
5. Repeat Step 2 on box lid. Then apply additional coats of stain as in Step 3 until desired color is achieved.
6. Evenly spray several coats of Clear Finish GLOSS on box lid (we applied 4 coats). Let dry between coats.
7. Add trims to decorate. (Option 1) Hammer silver studs into wood. Use a soft cloth over studs to protect from scratching. (Option 2) Spray TACK 2000 on backside of skeletal leaves and adhere to box. Paint lid sides with silver paint pen, using a circular pattern to fill in.
8. Glue knobs on lid.

Summer Flower Bouquets

Gorgeous Summer Offerings

Pacific Hybrid Delphinium in glorious shades of blue skies and billowy white Mop Head Hydrangea in a  white vase with accents of graceful grasses. The delphinium are cut daily and quickly trucked a short distance from Ontario Canada. Buy an arrangement of many stems or just a few.

 But don't miss them while they are fresh and local. 

Summer Skies

Scent of Summer

Fresh Herbs

Lush and fragrant herbs and roses in a ceramic crock. 

Earthy and organic - a gathering of yarrow, flowering oregano, scented geranium, sage and mint exude a wonderful scent and provide texture while the fresh Skyline roses and Allium add long lasting beauty.

We are offering scented herbs and foliage in all our Summer 2013 selections of bouquets and cut flowers.

Strawberry Arrangements

I have wild strawberries growing in my garden. My mother, then my sister and now I have tended this garden. We are vigilant weeders yet each of us has allowed this spreading plant a home amongst the the hosta and azaleas. I have my reasons. The tiny unripe berries never fulfilled their sweet promise  because the rotten chipmunks never left me more than one or two. So, at the beginning, I weeded them out. But I quickly missed the dainty white blossoms - those cheerful harbingers of summer to come.

This year the chipmunks have disappeared. All three hundred of them. But now there is a plague of cats. However kitties don't eat strawberries, so I am taking advantage of this bonus year.
 

All that is required to make this tiny arrangement is an abundance of strawberry plants and fresh mint. Any small container will work and a demitasse cup is perfect. I don't suggest using Oasis as the mint does not take up water from the foam very well. And without the stability of foam, this bouquet could not be delivered. But it is an easy DIY and would be irresistible on a brunch or luncheon table.

June is strawberry month. And this year it has new meaning for me as my wonderful Husband has built me a raised garden for strawberries and blueberries. Next year I will be sharing pictures of my own berries.

If the chipmunks make a come back perhaps the story will be different...

Enjoy the luscious photos and go pick some strawberries this weekend!

No April Showers for this Wedding

Handsome and Gorgeous. And having a great time at their wedding. I was browsing through the images on James Bass Photography and it was plainly clear that EVERYONE was having loads of fun. James also captured some tears of joy which plucked a familiar heart string. Isn't that what a good photographer should do! Capture the moment and tell a story.

Such a pretty soft pink. So perfect for April. The color is flattering on each Bride's maid.

Bride bouquet of pink and white peonies, blush alstilbe and roses, green hypericum berries, white sweet peas and hot pink roses and boronia.

Table centerpieces of floating candles and roses surrounded with twinkling votives and rose petals

Pretty details count. I can't say it often enough - pick a theme and work it!

Love Love the spoons. Dear readers, you need to go to James Bass Photography to see what Jennifer and Brad were eating with those spoons. Yumm.
www.jbassphoto.com

Easter Flower Inspiration

Soft as spring sunshine on a babies cheek

The colors of the hand painted eggs by Leslie at A Creative Mint inspired our Easter Basket

Order  Sunny Skies for your Easter Table

www.whistlestopflorist.com

Oh Spring - where art thou?

My green thumb is itching. Flower and seed catalogs are calling my name AND  Valentines Day 2013 is over. Spring cannot be far behind if you think like me. And my opinion is that spring begins when the Red Wing Blackbirds arrive from Florida on March tenth. Sure, it may snow and bluster in March but the sun is warm and it melts quickly. So take down that Christmas wreath and get ready for Spring.

My friend +Marcia Phillip is thinking alike. I was perusing her blog and found these wonderful images of her beautiful garden. Enjoy the inspiration and call her if you are planning to spruce up a room or two.
Click on "Summer Garden Projects" and she describes the process.  I was delighted to learn that she used +Chuck Longyear from Landmasters.I enlisted him to help me with my garden design as well.

www.interiorsbymarciaphilipp.com

Will you Bee our Valentine ?

I love The Buzz Blog at Diane James Home which is where I found this image. There is always something interesting, compelling and thought provoking.  What do you think of this image...it caught my attention.

This is a difficult week for Flower Shops as we await delivery of the flowers that were pre-ordered for Valentines Day. We are waiting for sweet peas and ranuculas from Italy, roses and carnations from Ecuador, peonies from Israel and wax flower from California.

 Blizzards and cancelled flights make us very nervous. We are thankful that most of  I 95 and Rt 81 Southbound will remain unscathed by the storm as we wait for the truck on Sunday night.

My heart goes out to the shops in the storm area. Some of my Florist friends in New York City are closing down today.

Worcester florists - Sprout: The Sprout Big Chill Test

Worcester florists - Sprout: The Sprout Big Chill Test: So when it's this cold out (OK it's been single digits and teens this week, but I'm talking about any temps below freezing) we tell people...

 Flower Buyers -  click on the link to find out what happens when you don't protect your purchase from the cold!