Christmas Wedding Number 3

This wedding went for a frosty wintry look - which certainly suited the day as it was bitter cold out! The bride wanted a classically elegant bouquet with fragrance so we used gardenias, roses, and imported lilacs. Yes, lilacs. Not a flower you expect to see in the winter, but a few stems become available at the holidays.

The maids had pewter colored dresses and ivory pashminas (wish I had photos of them, it was a lovely look) so ivory roses, white tulips and stock accented with silver brunia (those cool gray berries from Africa) and dusty miller foliage fit the bill. All tied up in pewter satin ribbon with silver bullion wire wrap accent.

And our flower girl carried a snowball of mums with a frost covered handle - cool!

Christmas Wedding Number 2

Quick picks of our second holiday wedding - bride's bouquet in 4 shades of red roses and black mini callas. The callas definitely did not have that green tinge to them in person. I can only guess that their somewhat shiny surface is reflecting my lime green wall in this photo!

And the pretty maids - all boxed up to go! Maid of honor with the all black mini calla (with no green tinge!) bouquet and the other maids with the roses in assorted reds.

Christmas Wedding

It seems we never have weddings in December, unless they are after Christmas, but this year we had several all in the beginning of the month.

This one had a decidedly holiday look and feel to it with bridesmaids bouquets all in red - roses, anemones, and tulips - with white pine and cedar.

The bride wanted a simple bouquet of white roses with a collar of holiday greenery and a touch of sparkle on the handle.

The bride and groom did not need a lot of additional decor from us, but we did create some flowers for the stage area at the reception, featuring more red roses, tulips, and my seasonal fave, amaryllis.

The bride DIY'd her centerpieces using large glass bowls filled with Christmas ornaments, that only needed us to finish them off with a few sprigs of holly and pine tied with ribbon. Joyeux Noel!

Christmas Flowers

Candy Cane - Santa gets funky with a bright arrangement in red and lime green, featuring ginger and roses. 24"h x 20"w
One size - $75

Sugar Cookie - Something sweet and frosty in shades of white and silver, tulips and hydrangea are the highlights. Large 13"h x 16"w, small 10"h x 12"w.
Large (shown) - $70
Small - $45

Fruit Cake - Rustic elegance in the classic shades of red and green, with pomegranates and roses. Large 18"h x 20"w, small 13"h x 15"w
Large (shown) - $100
Small - $60

Eggnog - A winter warmer in cream, white, and gold, with roses and hydrangea. Large 25"h x 22"w, small 21"h x 16"w
Large (shown) - $110
Small - $65

All sizes are approximate. Flower selections subject to availability.

The Great $50 Wedding Centerpiece Contest Gets Postponed

Due to a lack of submissions, I have decided to hold off on the contest for a couple weeks until after the holidays. In spite of encouragement to go forth and run the contest during December, we did not get enough entries to truly make it a contest.

I'll take this to mean that everyone has been super busy at work which is a really good thing and not that you think the concept is lame!

I got a great comment on the contest from a bride who thought that the $50 centerpiece idea would be of great service to brides and florists by giving them both some fresh ideas in a reasonable price point.

So put your thinking caps on, and get those creative juices flowing, and we'll get this baby back on track in January!

Christmas Garland or Why Sprout is a Pansy

This is one of my vendors, Richie, making Christmas garland. He's smiling because he's hoping I won't post his picture on the blog - LOL! I tell him he'll look great in pixels. :-)

Personally, you can't pay me enough to make garland, especially Christmas garland. The laurel Richie is using here is just brutal on the hands; you can't really see it in the photo, but his hands are completely calloused over and embedded with grime. Never mind all the repetitive motion stuff and how much they will be aching.

Not for me.

I'm a pansy in the flower world.

Mind you, I'm not all about having a manicure, but I appreciate not bleeding into my work.

Richie is tough. (Trying to think of a tough plant here to extend the analogy, but it's late...) He was born into this and has been doing it all of his life. I imagine there are few folks coming into the field of floristry now who would be up for doing this kind of hand work. In fact, the next generation is coming up in his biz, but I don't see them making garland. It's the old timer's job and who knows for how much longer before the joints can't handle it any more.

Just a small sigh as I watch my industry change, evolve, mature...

Amaryllis Plants

Falling behind in posts lately - not because I have nothing to say! Just not enough hours in the day to get everything done, and done well, so something has to give.

Any how, we have these amazing amaryllis plants in the shop right now. We've done them up in an uber modern look with acrylic pearls in a cylinder vase, and sparkly white branches.

This is a close up of some cut amaryllis. One of the beauties of the plants is watching them grow, so we sell them starting to sprout so you can watch them shoot up and bloom. This particular color is a stunner - such a deep velvety red.

Here's a version with no twig structure for those of you who like things super simple and clean.

Those things that look like marbles are actually water retaining crystals. They come looking like grains of sand and then swell up to this size when added to water. And since they are basically just water, you won't have to water your plant for a really long time. In fact, you'll need to wait for those pearls to shrink up, so your bulb won't rot.

And after your plant is done, you can recycle the pearls into potting soil to retain moisture in your outdoor potted plants next summer - then you won't have to water them as often either!

Plain amaryllis plant - $45
Amaryllis plant with twig structure - $53

FREE Christmas Wreaths!

So ever since reading Eloise at Christmastime as a child, I have had this fantasy of living in a city where all the businesses were decked out with wreaths for the holiday.

For the second year, instead of wishing it would happen, I have decided to make it happen!

If you have a business located in Worcester MA, we would like to give you a wreath! A nice green wreath with a big, fat, red bow - FREE!

All we ask is that you call or email the shop to reserve your wreath and leave us your business card when you pick it up.

Wreaths will be available for pick up from December 1 - 15.

We'd like to infect everyone with a little holiday cheer and goodwill and make this city the sparkling place of my childhood imagination!

Wreath hotline - 508-757-5300
sproutwreath@gmail.com