The "What, Where, When, and How Much?" of Wedding Flowers

So somebody has made a proposal of marriage to someone else.
The question was popped, you're "Tying the Knot", and now you've got a wedding to plan.

There are a lot of different elements that make up a fabulous wedding.
One of those elements happens to be one of about two things that studies
have shown most of your guests are going to remember more than anything else...
Flowers!

Traditionally flowers in some way, shape or form are one of the many elements
of your wedding that create the mood of celebration. Wedding flowers can and do
add color to otherwise drab spaces. They can help to camouflage unsightly aspects
of your venue space, and they can also add that much needed drama to the space.
After all you want family and guests to know there is a celebration happening.

Some of our flowers at Divine Designs Bridal Boutique, Portland Oregon.

In this blog post we are going to discuss different flower varieties that are popular
for weddings. We are also going to discuss availability for flowers that are in season
at different times of year... and last but not least we are going to discuss some of the
cost issues involved with choosing your wedding flowers.

While you go through the process of picking what flowers you would like to have. 
Keep in mind you can have just about anything you might want anytime of year
if you are willing to pay for it.  So if you are on a tight budget try not to let yourself
get in that mind set because it can end up costing you in the end.

So since we now have brought that up lets talk a bit about PRICE.

The most cost effective way to pick wedding flowers is to choose flowers that are in season.

Winter, Spring, Summer, and Fall all have different availability.
There are a lot of different varieties that are easy to get all year round but because
of seasonality prices are still going to fluctuate.

Other determining factors effecting cost and availability are your date and the proximity to major floral holidays, and weather. The easiest of Holiday examples is Valentine's Day. Many people think "Oh wouldn't it be romantic to get married on or near Valentine's Day?!" Yea it is... However when it comes to wanting flowers for anything, not just weddings, you are going to pay through the nose for them. It all has to do with supply and demand.

Also with Valentine's Day falling in February, Winter weather conditions
can toss a nasty curve ball into the mix.  Other major floral holidays you might want
to stay away from include Christmas and Mother's Day.

However if you aren't real picky and you are real savvy on color choices etc. Getting married around Christmas can actually make things really cheap. Christmas is such a major celebratory holiday that we decorate for. Most Churches, Hotels, Event Venues all decorate in a pretty big way.
So if their décor works for you that can work to your advantage... and you won't need
to buy as much to make the place look Fantastic.

We are going to talk more about the pricing and costs involved with Weddings in a future post. So now lets move on to what varieties are popular and when they are available.

At least in North America Roses are by far the number one requested and desired flower variety
for weddings. Luckily Roses are also one of the varieties that are readily available all year round.
Other very popular varieties include Hydrangea, Calla, Oriental Lilies, Asiatic Lilies,
Gerbera Daisies, Dahlia, Tulips, Lily of The Valley, Orchids, Peony, Sweat Peas, Ranunculus,
and the list goes on. What I have listed so far are by far the most asked for however there are many other choices. Everything from more old fashioned garden variety flowers and also tropical varieties
are also popular. There are even some other cool things to use that aren't flowers at all.

Because of their wide variety of colors and textures Sedums are currently a very hot trend in
Bridal/Wedding work. They are very hardy, hold up well in heat and they are popular to use all by
themselves or mixed with other more traditional blooms. Also if you are trying to decide what to use
and you are dealing with allergy issues they are a great choice. Since you don't have any actual flowers of the plant you don't have any pollen  issues. If you do have allergy issues other great options for you include tropical varieties such as Anthurium, Orchid, Ginger, Kurkuma among others. You could also use a wide variety of different foliage for some other beautiful design options that won't effect any allergies.

Now lets talk about seasonality and what generates different costs of different flower varieties.

Flower varieties that are readily available all year round can also be some of you more budget friendly types of flowers but not always. Flowers with year round availability include, Roses, Gerbera, Iris, Lilies both Oriental and Asiatic, Carnation (Dianthus), Chrysanthemum, French Tulips, Gardenia, Hydrangea, Stephanotis, Stock, Lisianthus, Snapdragon, Larkspur are probably the most commonly known however there are many others including most of your Tropical varieties. Now of those varieties the Tropical, Roses, Gardenia, Stephanotis and Oriental Lilies, French Tulips tend to be more costly than most of the others.

A good example of one of our European style Bridal Bouquets showing a modern mix of Carnations and mini green Cymbidium Orchids.

Winter really includes most of the year round varieties with a few additions. Usually just before Christmas we start seeing the first forced Tulips as well as Amaryllis and some of the other spring bulbs. More and more as we get more advanced with growing techniques. The lines between growing seasons becomes more blurred. You especially see this in Europe where the science, technology, and growing techniques are much more advanced than in the USA (at least when it comes to flowers).

For Spring flowers this group as you can guess includes most of your bulb type flowers.
Tulips, Narcissus, Iris, Hyacinth, Muscari (another Hyacinth), Lily of the Valley, Ranunculus. There are several others but these are the most commonly known.

Moving into Summer we start to see Sweat Peas, Peony, Viburnum, Brodea, Nerine Lilies, and many more of the garden varietals become available. As we move farther into Summer months other popular varieties that become available include Dahlia, Sunflower (Helianthus), Larkspur, Delphinium, Crocosmia, garden Phlox, in North America we get more "locally grown" Hydrangea, Zinnia, Asters, and many others.

With cooler fall temps we still continue to have Dahlia for a while as well as Asters, blooming Sedums and many of the garden varieties still continue to produce and are available as long as the weather holds out. As an example here in the Pacific Northwest we continued to have local Dahlia and many summer bloomers well into October. This was mainly due to the fact that things stayed dry (very little rain) , sunny warm days, and  mild nights. It doesn't always happen but we got lucky last year.

Other than what I have mentioned there are still thousands of varieties of cut flowers, foliages etc. available. I have at this point just given you the basics.

Now when it comes to cost there is a very wide range. Basically the harder and more difficult it is to get something to bloom makes it cost more. Some really good examples of this are some of our popular bulb flowers like Lily Of The Valley, Muscari. These bulb flowers are produced by some of the smallest bulbs there are, they produce several leaves but only one single flower spike. Once those flowers are harvested that bulb does not produce another bloom for a year. Orchids and other tropical flowers are kind of the same way in that each individual plant just doesn't produce a whole lot of flower spikes. Once these plants have flowers harvested it can take anywhere from six months to a year before they produce more. That gives that part to you in a nut shell, there is a whole lot more to it but those are the basics for those flowers. On the other end of the cost spectrum are things like Roses, Dahlia, Peony etc. anything where each individual plant produces many flowers. Some of those type plants also produce more the more they are harvested. You could say they are a "Cut and come again" type plant. Any kind of plant grown for cut flower production that grows in that way generally are a lot easier to produce thus the flowers cost a lot less.

We have now covered a whole lot of information, but we hope we have given you some basic insight. Its not the whole story but it gives you an idea as to what varieties of cut flowers are available at certain times of the year, and also what effects pricing. Happy Wedding planning, and until next time. Cheers! 

 

Plants, indoor tropical plants to be exact... How do you feel about Plants, do you like them?? Maybe you think they are a pain to take care of, maybe you think they are messy and a waist of time. Or maybe you are the complete opposite and try to have plants covering every square inch of your home and office space. Either way no matter your opinion of indoor plants they do have benefits for you and your health.  Yes plants can be messy if you pick the wrong plant for the wrong location or don't take care of them properly. However with a little effort, careful planning and some basic plant care tricks. Plants can not only be good for you and the people around you but they can be easy to take care of too.



When you embellish interior spaces with houseplants, you’re not just adding greenery. These living organisms interact with your body, mind, home, and office in ways that enhance the quality of life.

Breathing Easier

When you breathe, your body takes in oxygen and releases carbon dioxide. During photosynthesis, plants absorb carbon dioxide and release oxygen. This opposite pattern of gas use makes plants and people natural partners. Adding plants to interior spaces can increase oxygen levels.
At night, photosynthesis ceases, and plants typically respire like humans, absorbing oxygen and releasing carbon dioxide. A few plants – orchids, succulents and epiphytic bromeliads – do just the opposite, taking in carbon dioxide and releasing oxygen. Place these plants in bedrooms to refresh air during the night.

Releasing Water

As part of the photosynthetic and respiratory processes, plants release moisture vapor, which increases humidity of the air around them. Plants release roughly 97 percent of the water they take in. Place several plants together, and you can increase the humidity of a room, which helps keeps respiratory distresses at bay. Studies at the Agricultural University of Norway document that using plants in interior spaces decreases the incidence of dry skin, colds, sore throats and dry coughs.

Purifying Air

Plants remove toxins from air – up to 87 percent of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) every 24 hours, according to NASA research. VOCs include substances like formaldehyde (present in rugs, vinyl, cigarette smoke and grocery bags), benzene and trichloroethylene (both found in man-made fibers, inks, solvents and paint). Benzene is commonly found in high concentrations in study settings, where books and printed papers abound.
Modern climate-controlled, air-tight buildings trap VOCs inside. The NASA research discovered that plants purify that trapped air by pulling contaminants into soil, where root zone microorganisms convert VOCs into food for the plant. This is one of the big reasons you see a lot of indoor tropical foliage plants in large building and public spaces. It can be the difference of having a comfortable, healthy work space or a sick building.

Other studies have also shown that plants in office work spaces relaxes the workers/people in those spaces. This doesn't make people sluggish its actually the complete opposite. Usually the workers in office spaces with plants show higher productivity, become more creative at problem solving and produce better work overall.

Improving Health

Adding plants to hospital rooms speeds recovery rates of surgical patients, according to researchers at Kansas State University. Compared to patients in rooms without plants, patients in rooms with plants request less pain medication, have lower heart rates and blood pressure, experience less fatigue and anxiety, and are released from the hospital sooner.
The Dutch Product Board for Horticulture commissioned a workplace study that discovered that adding plants to office settings decreases fatigue, colds, headaches, coughs, sore throats and flu-like symptoms. In another study by the Agricultural University of Norway, sickness rates fell by more than 60 percent in offices with plants.

Sharpening Focus

A study at The Royal College of Agriculture in Circencester, England, found that students demonstrate 70 percent greater attentiveness when they’re taught in rooms containing plants. In the same study, attendance was also higher for lectures given in classrooms with plants.

How Many Plants?

The recommendations vary based on your goals.

• To improve health and reduce fatigue and stress, place one large plant (8-inch diameter pot or larger) every 129 square feet. In office or classroom settings, position plants so each person has greenery in view.

• To purify air, use 15 to 18 plants in 6- to 8-inch diameter pots for an 1,800-square-foot house. That’s roughly one larger plant every 100 square feet. Achieve similar results with two smaller plants (4- to 5-inch pots).

Remember that for the best success with any houseplant, you need to match the right plant to the right growing conditions. Learn more in Tips for Healthy Houseplants. For low light situations, choose a plant adapted to those conditions.

How are you going to select your Wedding Flowers?

So you are now planning your Wedding. Along with deciding what you the Bride are going to wear, very likely your next big decision is going to be flowers. Even thou the decision of selecting wedding flowers is near the top of the list of important choices for Bride's. Making the final decision and booking with a professional florist is often times one of the last things Brides get around to doing.

Making the decision to use a professional florist or making the choice to go the DIY route has a whole lot of pros and cons. Those pros and cons are different for every Bride and every Bride weighs those pros and cons differently. Often times how this decision  is made comes down to budget. People often times think they are going to save money by doing some or all of their flowers DIY. However even thou you might get lucky and save some money ( and it will be luck). You are definitely opening yourself up to not only going over your budget but opening yourself up for potential disaster as well. One of the main, unseen things you are paying for when you hire a professional florist is "Professionalism". That professionalism that you can't see is what can not only save you a whole lot of money but can also save you in a disaster. For myself as a professional floral Designer I am always prepared to be able to fix things fast and on the spot if needed. I do not know a Designer/Florist anywhere that does wedding and event work that is not prepared to deal with and handle potential disaster at a moments notice. Being able to handle such things is just part of what sets us apart as professionals. Now that's not to say that all professional Designers/Florists are created equal because we most certainly are not. However when you find the right one for you it can be a match made in heaven. Making your flower choices not only becomes fun but easy as well.

Now lets briefly talk about how you go about deciding on what kinds of flowers to have.

When is comes to picking wedding flowers Brides in Europe tend to be much more sophisticated with their choices. The basic trend between Brides in Europe and Brides in the USA is very different.
The difference seems to continue to come down to Style and Variety. According to my Designer friends in Europe their brides seem to continue to be more interested in the overall "Style" or "Look" of their wedding flowers. It seems the overall finished design (meaning line, form, color, and texture, balance, and unity)is of more importance to Brides in Europe more than varieties of flowers. In the USA our Brides seem to be the complete opposite. Our Brides more often then not seem to be more concerned with what "Varieties" of flowers they are carrying more so than the overall finished design, style, or look. For Brides in the USA/North America this difference alone can cause some problems, headache, and heartache. So many US Brides tend to get so caught up in what varieties of flowers they want that when they can't have them for whatever reason they are very disappointed, sometimes devastated, even angry. However much we might want a specific variety of flower they are living breathing things. Sometimes why we can't have them is totally out of our control no matter how hard we try.  Here now I am going to give you a perfect example, one we were discussing this very morning at my local wholesale flower market.

In the USA the number one varietal flower choice for weddings is the Rose. In the rose category there literally are thousands of choices when it comes to rose color, flower form (Look of the bloom), fragrance and size of the blooms. Within the Rose family the old garden Roses, or commonly referred to as "David Austin" Roses, are some if not the most desired of all flowers. Of those the "David Austin" Garden Rose "Juliet" (pictured below courtesy www.davidaustin.com) is the number one choice.

 

Yes this variety is beautiful, lush, and fragrant with its clear peach/pink color. Why can't we all have it when we want and need it??????????????????

 

Well it all comes back to the fact that flowers are a living breathing thing. Our discussion about this particular variety of Rose at the Flower Market this morning comes down to this Supply and Demand. This particular variety is in such demand that there literally aren't enough farms world wide producing it to cover the demand for it... So as of now most flower markets/Wholesalers in the USA are just not guaranteeing them for anyone the rest of the season. Which means yes you can order them but that doesn't necessarily mean you are going to get them.

 

This supply and Demand issue is the same for a lot of other varieties of flowers. So you can see how educating yourself about design and "Style" for your wedding flowers can in the end be much more fruitful in so many ways.

 

I hope you have enjoyed this our first little tidbit of light on the world of a professional Designer/Florist. Check back often to see what's new on our blog. We will be having new posting at least every week from now on and more often when new things come up. Cheers! Now get out there and smell some flowers.

 



 

 

Welcome to the new blog of La Vie Flowers and me Frank Blanchard. For those of you that don't know me, my background is rather vast a varied. Everything from a life in classical ballet, almost 20 years teaching classical ballet, and at the same time close to 30 years working as a floral designer, and I'm not done yet. The majority of this blog will be dedicated mostly to flowers, everything you might want to use flowers for, and gardening. In addition to all of that I'll be tossing in a few other things in the mix just to keep things interesting. I hope you will find this blog helpful, entertaining, enlightening, thoughtful and most of all fun.

Now down to the business of the flowers. You might not think there was that much to talk about when it comes to flowers, but in reality the commercial floral industry is a multi billion dollar business world wide. Here on my blog we're going to talk about all of it, the good, the bad, the fabulous and everything in between. We are going to talk about what flowers are grown where, what can effect their prices, how to care for flowers and plants, their uses, design, and more.

There is more to the story?? Oh yes there most certainly is.

We are also going to talk about all of the uses of flowers, plants, their propagation, gardening, etc.
I am also going to try my best, bringing my years of knowledge as a designer, to share how best to support your real local retail florists and designers.  I will also be sharing pictures, we're going to go on field trips, I plan to go over all the ins and outs of Weddings and Events, and the list goes on.

So all that said, I hope you will check back often and enjoy what all we are talking about. Most of all though I am really looking forward to sharing the world of flowers that I love with you.

Cheers!

Crazy Winter Weather Will Effect Our Spring Flowers

Everyone can agree I think that our fall and winter weather 2011/2012 has been completely crazy world wide. Temperatures for the most part have been quite mild for a good portion of the world. We have had massive devistating rain in many parts of Asia, especially in Thailand ( a major Orchid Producer)... And now late winter much of Europe has been hit with historic amounts of late season snow and extremely cold temperatures.

All of this crazy winter weather I'm sure is going to effect the flowers that we love for the entire rest of the year. It might not necessarily all be bad, but it will be interesting to watch it all unfold.

Here in the NW part of the USA we are seeing many kinds of plants that are normally in bud this time of year swelling, and some have already started to break. If we get a late season cold snap this could be a bad thing especially for our major fruit Producers. Walking through the city of Portland Oregon we are seeing many kinds of spring bulds already up and doing their thing, and wondering how this is going to effect our Tulip and Daffodil commercial crops this year. Even most all of the roses in the historic rose gardens of Washington Park have already sprouted and are well on their way to show us their seasonal splendor.

For those of us on the commercial side of using and dealing with flowers. Our crazy weather this year could potentially cause us some problems, especially those of us here in the northwest. Here in our part of the world we have some of the better and larger producers of all kinds of bulb flowers as well as Peony and Dahlia, and my favorite producer of all kinds of cut herbs is here in the Willamette Valley. If we get a spring and summer season with warmer drier temps earlier this year. It might mean a lot of our crops will be done and over with right when we are expecting them to be available, thats something for all of our spring, summer, and early fall Brides to be concidering. It might be a good idea to have some plan B's ready for substitution.

So now thinking of all of these seasonal flowers we are all so looking forward to. We would love to hear from other people elsewhere  as to how the seasons "unseasonalities" are effecting your part of the Planet.

Thanks for checking out our new blog, and check back again soon to see what flowers we might be playing with.