Let’s Talk Bold Colors!

May 3, 2016, 5:00 am

≫ Next: Coming to Colorado

≪ Previous: Tulips with Longfield Gardens

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For this arrangement I went BOLD! Just two varieties of tulips – Bright Parrot Tulips and Monsella Double Tulips. Yes, its name is “Bright Parrot Tulips”. Super simple design, just the tulips and no foliages or other textures added, set in one of my Campo de Fiori baskets which was lined with moss –

Bright Parrot Tulips and Monsella Double Tulip

Here’s an upclose on the two tulips I used –

Yes, I’m throughly enjoying tulip season here in my garden. I thought I might feel lost as the hellebores started to wane, but the tulips are adding so much color to the flower bed I feel satisfied!

As for the tulips – you can find the bulbs at Longfield Gardens.

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Coming to Colorado

May 5, 2016, 5:00 am

≫ Next: How to be the most valuable floral designer at your company by Alison Ellis

≪ Previous: Let’s Talk Bold Colors!

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I’m excited to announce a floral design class scheduled in Colorado for August 16, 2016!

The Bridal Bouquet Designing & Pricing Workshop is a hands-on workshop where you will learn how to design lush hand-tied bouquets.
Class will begin with a Bouquet Demonstration. Think airy, assymterical, Instagram-esqe style bridal bouquet; this is the bouquet we’ll be designing with a lovely assortment of summer flowers! We’ll embellish this beauty with elegant ribbons.
After we design a beautiful bridal bouquet we will have a discussion and learning session about pricing our designs.

In the afternoon we’ll work on creating lush, garden styled compote floral designs. We’ll work with chicken wire as our mechanic, which will help us create a lush design. We’ll be designing with more gorgeous summer flowers!

All instruction and fresh flowers are included, please bring your own tools.

Date: Tuesday, August 16th, 2016
Location: Pink Posey Design Studio, 9850 W 59th Pl, Arvada, CO 80004
Time: 10am to 5pm
Investment: $399.00 (July 1st the price will increase to $499)
Register: HERE

How to be the most valuable floral designer at your company by Alison Ellis

May 9, 2016, 5:00 am

≫ Next: Wedding Wednesday :: Bikes with Flowers

≪ Previous: Coming to Colorado

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Can a single rose really derail your business? When you look at the numbers, the answer is definitely, yes.

In fact, when you hear the case I’m about to present you might want to sit down.

My inspiration when I made today’s video was “How to be the most valuable floral designer at your company”.

This is a lesson I learned many years ago from a shop owner who I always refer to as my best-worst-boss-ever.

Because while he really was the worst boss in some ways, he was the best at teaching me about customer service, running a beautiful flower shop, and the importance of not overfilling orders.

Thanks for watching or planning to watch it later.

I hope you’ll share this video with your employees or at least relay the stats as they relate to your flower business.

Check out my FREE online courses for florists at http://freshevents.floralartvt.com including 4 Pricing Mistakes Florists Make and Flower Boss, as well as Flower Math, The Florist’s Guide To Pricing And Profitability, 12 E-mail Templates for Florists and How To Write Proposals That Sell.

Contact Information:
Alison Ellis
Floral Artistry
Vermont

Wedding Wednesday :: Bikes with Flowers

May 11, 2016, 5:00 am

≫ Next: Playdate with Peonies – Floral Design Class

≪ Previous: How to be the most valuable floral designer at your company by Alison Ellis

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Au Courant

BLOOM

Entriken Studio

Flowers in the Vine
Caught The Light Photography

Isn’t She Lovely
Hunter Ryan Photo

Maxit Floral Design

Playdate with Peonies – Floral Design Class

May 12, 2016, 5:00 am

≫ Next: What Happens When Flower Friends Get Together by Lauren Wiebe

≪ Previous: Wedding Wednesday :: Bikes with Flowers

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Playdate with Peonies Floral Design Class
Saturday, May 21, 2106 | 9:30-Noon

Who wants to join me in playing with perfectly pretty Peonies?! Oh my word, so many adjectives are possible when we talk about this Queen of Flowers, right?! For this particular class we will have a bevy of these beauties to design with at our fingertips, along with some of their complementing flower friends. We’ll discuss the care & handling of the peony while designing a lush, garden style flower arrangement. Our vessel of choice will be a compote using chicken wire as the support structure.

Date: Saturday, May 21, 2016
Location: Seattle Wholesale Growers Market, 5840 Airport Way S, Ste 201, Seattle, WA 98108
Time: 9:30-Noon
Investment: $225.00 per person
Register: Click Here

What Happens When Flower Friends Get Together by Lauren Wiebe

May 16, 2016, 5:00 am

≫ Next: Announcing Freshcut!

≪ Previous: Playdate with Peonies – Floral Design Class

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Every floral designer knows they are blessed on those rare moments when we get to design purely for ourselves. Wanting to experience that joy before heading into the busy wedding season ahead, I gathered a few of my local flower friends together for a design day – with a twist. The 4 of us (myself, Lauren of Stone House Creative; Britney of Fache Floral Designs Tatiana of Oak & Lily and Kelly of Lily Stone Gardens) have formed a friendship thanks to flowers. We each own our own businesses, Britney and I each operating out of our home studios and focusing primarily on weddings, Tatiana opened a storefront a couple of years ago, and Kelly has an in-home studio as well as a seasonal flower farm.

The concept? Armed with an overall budget as well as a general colour palette, we asked our local wholesaler to order us in a surprise. The result? A day full of fun. The four of us got together, opened our blooms, and were so excited to see what showed up. We spent the day designing for ourselves, and with a combination of some standard flowers and some that we would almost never have, we were stretched creatively. Some of us wanted to try things we hadn’t done before, while some of us relished the chance to dig into a style that is what we truly love but don’t always get to work on.

Even better than our design time was the chatting. The wedding industry, and especially the floral industry, can be really hard to get into and do well. Many of us come up against more established floral shops who push back against individual designers, limiting our growth. The four of us “flower friends” are so blessed by our connection and mutual respect for each other. We refer clients to each other, support each other, buy from each other, and talk business together. Every floral designer out there needs to have a group of flower friends!

Thank you to Victoria Anne Photography for sharing these photographs of this lovely day –

Announcing Freshcut!

May 17, 2016, 5:00 am

≫ Next: Wedding Wednesday :: Flowing Ribbons

≪ Previous: What Happens When Flower Friends Get Together by Lauren Wiebe

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Online Marketplace Freshcut Helps Florists Buy Directly from Flower Farmers

Freshcut (www.freshcutmarket.com), an online marketplace for farmer-to-florist flower sales, soft launched recently to local florists across the USA. Freshcut helps florists source flowers directly from real flower farms through it’s easy to use online platform.

By purchasing flowers on Freshcut, florists get access to Cut-to-Order flowers shipped overnight to their door at competitive prices, combining convenience, quality, and price. Florists can also easily purchase unique, hard-to-find flowers, branches, and greens available from specialty farmers on Freshcut.

Flower farmers across the USA and from select international countries give florists access to their floral inventory on Freshcut. Freshcut is a Members Only site, open To the Trade only to florists and retailers to purchase directly from flower farms at wholesale prices. All prices on Freshcut include Free Shipping to anywhere in the continental US. Flower farms that don’t offer shipping list their products available for Pickup to local florists in their regions.

Farmers use Freshcut to list their products and reach new buyers across the country, giving them direct access to the floral artisans designing with their flowers. By selling direct, they also keep more of their hard earned money per sale. Freshcut’s alpha partners include 40+ commercial and family owned farms like Blooming of Beloit, Oregon Coastal Flowers, Peony Acres, B&H Flowers, and more.

Freshcut was created by the team behind Bloompop.com, a nationwide network of luxury local florists serving consumers and corporate customers across the country.

Freshcut is open now to eligible flower farmers and florists in the USA. Apply for an account at www.freshcutmarket.com

Wedding Wednesday :: Flowing Ribbons

May 18, 2016, 5:00 am

≫ Next: Fleur Friday

≪ Previous: Announcing Freshcut!

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Seventh Stem Floral & Event Design
Olivia Ashton Photography

Myrtie Blue Flowers
Photographer Lauren Kinsey

Petal Pixie
Photographer Tonya Peterson

Petal Pixie
Photographer Tonya Peterson

Scarlett & Grace

Scarlett & Grace

Sebesta Design
Lauren Fair Photography

The Arrangement Company

The Blue Carrot

Victorian Gardens Floral Design

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Fleur Friday

May 20, 2016, 5:00 am

≫ Next: Ariella Chezar to appear at Seattle Wholesale Growers Market

≪ Previous: Wedding Wednesday :: Flowing Ribbons

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Interesting business articles –
13 Awesome Apps for Marketing Your Business on Instagram – See more here.

5 #GetPublished Tips from Submission Star Pepper Nix – Read the article here.

What’s Sarah Winward’s Secret? Read the article here.

Ariella Chezar to appear at Seattle Wholesale Growers Market

May 20, 2016, 5:53 am

≫ Next: Joseph Massie and Chelsea Flower Show 2016

≪ Previous: Fleur Friday

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ARIELLA CHEZAR, BEST-SELLING AUTHOR AND FLORAL EDUCATOR, TO APPEAR AT SEATTLE WHOLESALE GROWERS MARKET!

The Seattle Wholesale Growers Market will host floral industry icon Ariella Chezar for two days of inspiring workshops and lectures on May 24 and 25, 2016, scheduled to take place at its facility in a turn-of-the-century historic brewery in Seattle’s Georgetown District.
Known for her lush, whimsical, garden style, Ariella has influenced the floral industry coast-to-coast. She is based at Zonneveld Farms in western Massachusetts and is both a popular faculty member at FlowerSchool New York and a contributing editor to Martha Stewart Weddings Magazine.

On Tuesday, May 24, Ariella’s Master Class presentation will share design concepts from her long-awaited second book, The Flower Workshop (Ten Speed Press, 2016). Students will participate in a personal, small-group setting, experiencing Ariella’s artistry, design philosophy and professional sensibilities. The workshop will cover seasonally-inspired floral design using an abundance of local roses, peonies, flowering branches, bulbs, and other botanical ingredients from Pacific Northwest flower farms that are members of Seattle Wholesale Growers Market.

On Wednesday, May 25, Ariella will demonstrate her design techniques to SWGM customers, including professional florists, wedding and event designers and floral retailers. Her presentation takes place from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. and will be followed by a book signing of The Flower Workshop.

About The Seattle Wholesale Growers Market: SWGM is a producer’s cooperative, started by flower farmers in 2011 as a grass roots effort to make local floral products more available to florists and professional buyers in the Puget Sound Area. Since then, it has hired staff, changed its business model and experienced dramatic growth as demand for locally grown flowers has increased.

Joseph Massie and Chelsea Flower Show 2016

May 23, 2016, 5:00 am

≫ Next: For the love of Orchids by Neill Strain Floral Courture, London

≪ Previous: Ariella Chezar to appear at Seattle Wholesale Growers Market

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The RHS Chelsea Flower Show starts this week in London and I plan to live vicariously thru social media!! I got word that my friend, Joe Massie, has an amazing floral installation planned. His team sent me this sketch of the planned installation and the following information. I can’t wait to see photos of how it all comes together!

Award-winning floral artist to create show-stopping exhibit at Chelsea Flower Show for Queen’s 90th birthday

Joseph Massie, five-time RHS Gold Medal Winner, has been commissioned to create a floral installation at the RHS Chelsea Flower Show 2016 (24-28 May) to celebrate the 90th birthday of, RHS Patron, HM the Queen.

Botanical artist, Massie, 27, from Liverpool, has created a design that will see a swathe of 5,000 fresh-cut Avalanche roses from Meijer Roses and 1,000 preserved rose petals suspended in the air to create a romantic, sensory tunnel.

Massie’s floral tunnel design, entitled Rosa, will be 20 metres long by 10 metres wide and suspended four metres above the ground.

The project marks Massie’s first return to the Chelsea Flower Show since he achieved five successive RHS Gold Medals and four Best in Show Awards between 2009-2013. Joseph was the youngest person ever to achieve this feat.

Joseph Massie, botanical artist and designer of the Rosa installation, said: “I am thrilled to be back at Chelsea – and on a much a larger scale this time around.

“It is a huge honour to be commissioned by the Royal Horticultural Society to create an installation to celebrate Her Majesty the Queen’s 90th birthday.

He added: “I would be lying if I said I wasn’t a little bit nervous to know what Her Majesty’s verdict will be when she sees my installation for the first time!”

To create Rosa, Massie will use the finest preserved rose petals that will appear rise up from the ground to a floral ceiling, strung on invisible threads, from two opposing corners of the space. Petals in warm, summery pink tones will rise up on one side, contrasting with softer apricot tones opposite – in keeping with this year’s RHS Chelsea Flower Show logo colours.

In matching tones, full-headed, fresh-cut roses will be intertwined with the preserved petals as they rise, forming two fuller columns, which will thicken and pool out as the florals reach the ceiling of the tunnel. Chunkier rose heads will then spill out overhead and the two contrasting colours will meet in the centre, creating a truly spectacular floral display.

Massie, continued: “With my design, I am aiming to create a sensory and immersive experience by presenting fresh rose blooms in a truly romantic and captivating way.

“I really hope that the Queen, and all of this year’s visitors to Chelsea, will enjoy the exhibit.”

Five thousand flower blooms and five different types of rose varieties from Meijer Roses will be used to create Massie’s exhibit, including Sweet Avalanche, Pearl Avalanche and White Avalanche, as well as more than 1,000 preserved rose petals. The roses and preserved rose petals will dry naturally over the course of the week and will be recycled into new artworks after the Show has finished.

Massie has recruited 25 volunteers to work alongside him, assisting with the installation over four days in the lead up to the Show. Volunteers were selected from Massie’s flower school, the UK School of Floristry, and from other leading colleges around the UK, as well as students from Australia, France and Sweden.

Joseph Massie has collaborated with Meijer Roses and Avalanche Roses to create the Rosa Avalanche installation at the RHS Chelsea Flower Show 2016.

The Rosa exhibit will be beneath the Rock Bank restaurant, which connects Main Avenue and Ranalegh Way.

For more information about Joseph Massie, visit www.josephmassie.com

The RHS Chelsea Flower Show 2016, sponsored by M&G Investments, takes place from 24-28 May 2016 in the grounds of the Royal Hospital Chelsea. The theme of this year’s Show will champion the health and wellbeing benefits of greening-up our grey spaces. For more information, visit www.rhs.org.uk

UPDATE! FOLLOW ALONG ON INSTAGRAM AS JOSEPH WORKS ON THE INSTALLATION!!!

For the love of Orchids by Neill Strain Floral Courture, London

May 24, 2016, 5:00 am

≫ Next: Wedding Wednesday :: Long Table Designs

≪ Previous: Joseph Massie and Chelsea Flower Show 2016

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If your in London for the Chelsea Flower Show be sure to wander over to Neill Strain’s flower shop to view the display of orchids they have planned!
“For the love of Orchids” will be a unique opportunity to see more than 30 varieties of Vanda and Phalaenopsis orchids including some rare Vanda plants up to 22 years old.
Read more about it here.

Wedding Wednesday :: Long Table Designs

May 25, 2016, 5:00 am

≫ Next: Why You Cannot Compete On Price by Alison Ellis

≪ Previous: For the love of Orchids by Neill Strain Floral Courture, London

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Botanic Art – Floral & Event Design

Exquisite Designs

Flora Nova Design

JF Floral Couture

JF Floral Couture

JF Floral Couture

JF Floral Couture

JF Floral Couture

Posh Floral Designs

Ron Wendt Design

Why You Cannot Compete On Price by Alison Ellis

May 31, 2016, 7:51 am

≫ Next: Wedding Wednesday :: Boutonnieres

≪ Previous: Wedding Wednesday :: Long Table Designs

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If you ever feel the pressure to lower your prices to “compete” then today’s video is for you. It’s easy to fall into the trap of reducing your price to win a job, but if you’re reducing your price you may be in a race to the bottom….and that leaves you with nowhere to go, but down.

The moral of the story is this: You cannot compete on price.

Click to watch it now!

And…if you like my videos please click “like”, leave a comment and subscribe on YouTube for future updates!
You can check out my FREE online courses for florists at http://freshevents.floralartvt.com including 4 Pricing Mistakes Florists Make and Flower Boss.

Contact:
Alison Ellis
Floral Artistry
Vermont

Wedding Wednesday :: Boutonnieres

June 1, 2016, 5:00 am

≫ Next: Fleur Friday

≪ Previous: Why You Cannot Compete On Price by Alison Ellis

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Brocade Design Arts
Kristyn Hogan Photographers

Floressence Flowers

Floressence Flowers

Green Bouquet Floral Design

Scarlett & Grace

Southern Blooms by Pat’s Floral Designs
Adam Barnes Photography

Southern Blooms by Pat’s Floral Designs
Jen Fariello Photography

Stems Floral

Studio Bloom

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Fleur Friday

June 3, 2016, 5:00 am

≫ Next: Identifying Your Ideal Customer by Alison Ellis

≪ Previous: Wedding Wednesday :: Boutonnieres

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Always good to know what’s out there for instagram usage –
5 Photo Editing Apps To Add To Your Phone Now by Create & Cultivate

New to Floral Design? Few Basic Tips to get you started. by Floranext

Identifying Your Ideal Customer by Alison Ellis

June 6, 2016, 7:15 am

≫ Next: Eye Candy :: Nature Composed

≪ Previous: Fleur Friday

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I use the term “ideal customer” quite often and in today’s video I’m defining what that means for your business as well as my process for identifying my own ideal customer.
This is such an important aspect to running your small business, especially if you’re a home-based designer like me.
I think the single most important part of the customer relationship is a mutual enthusiasm. You want to be psyched to work with each other.

Click to watch today’s video on how to define your ideal customer.

Ideal Customer video from Alison Ellis on Vimeo.

Check out Floral Artistry Courses at http://freshevents.floralartvt.com/ including my free courses, Flower Boss and 4 Pricing Mistakes Florists Make.

Contact Information:
Alison Ellis
Floral Artistry
Vermont

Eye Candy :: Nature Composed

June 7, 2016, 5:00 am

≫ Next: Wedding Wednesday :: Hair Flowers

≪ Previous: Identifying Your Ideal Customer by Alison Ellis

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I’m totally crushing on Nature Composed’s Bridal Bouquets, check out these pretties:

Jodi and Kurt Photography

Jodi and Kurt Photography

Emily Sacco Photography

Wedding Wednesday :: Hair Flowers

June 8, 2016, 5:00 am

≫ Next: Q&A :: How did you decide to become a Florist?

≪ Previous: Eye Candy :: Nature Composed

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Sophisticated Floral

Lauretta Morley of Paeony Floral Design
Folega Photography

Vases Wild

Gertie Mae’s Floral Design

Bare Root Flora
Laura Murray Photography

Stems Floral
Briana Purser Photography

Scarlett & Grace

Q&A :: How did you decide to become a Florist?

June 9, 2016, 5:00 am

≫ Next: Fleur Friday & Hello!

≪ Previous: Wedding Wednesday :: Hair Flowers

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Hello Flower Friends,

I received a note from a reader that I would like to share with all of you, here goes –

How did you all decide to become florists? Any advice for someone such as myself considering this career choice?

I’ve always had love for plants and used to pick and arrange flowers for my mom randomly. I never ‎thought of it as a career until my ouma (grandmother) passed away. I was really disappointed in the flower arrangement which sparked the interest again.

Any and all advice as well as moments leading up to becoming a confident florist will be so appreciated.

Warm Regards,

From Lisa, all the way from the west coast in sunny south africa

Great question, Lisa! I, too, would love to hear how other floral designers decided to take the path of this career!
Please leave your reply in the comments section!!