Spring(?) Update

Looking at the weather outside its been hard to hold out hope for Summer, or any sign of Spring, but we have all sorts of ideas to help remind you warmer weather is actually on its way, bringing with it the lush sights and smells of nature in bloom.  Above is a large arrangement we made for a funeral, putting together a large ivy plant and a colorful burst of fresh cut flowers.

Here is a fresh cut arrangement we made for another funeral, a glorious splash of colorful flowers that bring to mind the rebirth that is Spring.  Cherry blossoms and forsythia branches accent the locally-grown red and yellow roses, orange tulips and orange and pink lilies.

A vase of fresh-cuts with our locally-grown Len Busch lilies, alstro and gerbera daisies.

Bright Spring colors like these are sure to chase away the Winter blues and blahs.  This arrangement has yellow freesia that has a lovely peppery aroma distinct from other floral scents.  Its paired with some Asiatic lilies and waxflower that also provide a beautiful fresh flower smell.  Then throw in some hydrangea, alstromeria and a rose for some vibrant hues.

We have a nice selection of blooming plants available in-store, and are able to order most popular green and blooming plants.  These blooming gerbera plants were sent out as centerpieces for an event, a simple idea that provided a nice pop of color and vitality to the tables.

The 4-inch blooming gerberas are really cute, and are sending up all sorts of new blooms!

Tulips have become a symbol of the beginning of spring because they are often the first plants to pop up with colorful blooms in the early months of the season.  We have plenty of them at Best Wishes this time of year, and are great in small desk arrangements as well as large splashy buffet table arrangements.

This big arrangement of tulips and two varieties of myrtle was prepared for our neighbor Doolittle's weekly standing order.

An elegant birthday bouquet with iris, roses, gerbera, alstroemeria, lily, statice and waxflower.  The branchy sweet huck adds texture and character.

This was made for a get-well-soon gift.  The orange ranunculus and yellow freesia are contrasted with the vivid pinks and purples in the spray roses, alstroemeria, waxflower and calla lily, all gathered into a bubble bowl that is the perfect size for a bedside table.

We send and receive orders through the Teleflora network, and occasionally an order comes through for one of their products where we must make substitutions in the recipe due to what is available in-store.  The above picture was what we were aiming for and below is what we came up with.

Subbing out the blue asters for some blue iris did wonders!

Lovely bi-color gerbera daisies, a very cool dark green peperomia, and an adorable little terrarium.

Dish gardens can be the perfect antidote to the current lack-of-springness in the air, since they sit on your desk at work or on your table in the living room and have the lushness of a verdant forest in some tropical (or arid) place.  They are quite easy to maintain and take care of and should last at least a year before they need to be replanted.  We're always happy to share our plant care tips with our customers, just drop in and ask!

Spring is the time for succulent dish gardens, and these easy-to-care-for creations are beautiful for the home or office.

Don't forget that next week, Wednesday the 24th is Administrative Professionals Day!  We will post specials here on our blog later this week.  Also, Art in Bloom at the Minneapolis Institute of Arts is coming up next week and we are working with them in an exciting new capacity this year so look for that announcement next week.

Spring Update - Part 2

In the next installment of our Spring update, we've got plants, plants, plants, a few fresh cut arrangements and some home decor to show off for you.  The plant baskets in the previous post were very popular, there's only one left!  I'll be making more when we get new plants in the store on Monday.  In the meantime here's a selection of the beautiful single plants we have in the store.  We'd love to show you around when you come in to visit!  Above are a few of the Easter lilies we have in stock right now, some decorated with festive Easter grass and eggs, and some in more neutral baskets, with a bit of Spanish moss.

These hydrangeas are looking just splendid with big and beautiful blooms full of color.  We're always happy to swap out baskets and other add-ons to get the exact style you're looking for.

This pretty pink azalea is just starting to pop open, and we have a few more in the cooler, keeping the buds tight so when you take them home, they'll put on their full blooming show just for you!

Here's some of the other blooming plants we have available right now, top and right are cyclamen, and on the left is a lovely yellow chrysanthemum plant.  We get the fresh cut 'mums in year round for arrangements, and now's the time to get the plants which have a nice fragrance;  very refreshing for Spring!

A few anthuriums, on the left is the pretty light pink spathes, and the one on the right is just starting to grow a few spathes which will be white when fully open.  In case you missed our earlier post about anthuriums, spathes are modified bracts that is the colorful part around the spikes, which are actually made up of very small flowers.  Thanks, Wikipedia!

This bromeliad is huge and absolutely beautiful in person, and really easy to take care of.  The smaller guy on the right is actually a variety of bromeliad as well, with a cool striped leaf pattern you don't see very often.

A few aloe vera plants (seen at the right) are in the shop right now, which live for a very long time.  You can also harvest the leaves for their healing and nutritional properties, very cool!  At the top and left are cactus-like succulent plants called gasteria, which are good for plant novices because they don't need water very often.  They remind me of the southwest and more arid climes, and being in the sun long enough to need some aloe vera!

At the far left and right in the picture are dark green ficus plants, in the center bottom a cute white cyclamen, directly in the center is a cool little bird's nest fern, to the left of that is special variety of croton with the most amazing circular leaves and is called croton Revolutions.  Up top is a sample of the beautiful phalenopsis orchid plants we have in store right now, come see the whole selection!

Our mini calla lilies are on special right now, $4.00 a stem, in yellow, pink and that beautiful bi-color white/purple.  We can add them to an arrangement of fresh spring flowers, or you can come and pick out a few and we'll wrap them up for you!

Here are some of the fresh cut flower arrangements available in our cooler right now, as you can see a variety of styles and colors.  Pick one out as-is, or we would love to make one up just how you like it!  Call us today to get your Passover centerpiece!

I snapped a couple pictures around the shop to show what we have for home decor, and there is so much more to see.  These ceramic bunnies are so adorable and have different flower illustrations printed on them, as well as plates to match.  I just love these guys!

Roosters and rabbits and pigs, oh my!  These critters come in different shapes and sizes, as well as on picks for a variety of uses.  They have that sort of country appeal, don't you think?

Who framed Brer Rabbit?

These frosted glass vases are really cool, they remind me of upside-down balloons.  The candle holders one either side of the picture are ceramic artichokes or pine cones, depending on your perspective, and hold votive candles as well as the battery-operated LED votives we have in the shop.

Best Wishes Floral wishes everyone the Happiest of Holidays this weekend! We can make your holiday tables as festive as the season. Don't forget to thank your host or hostess with a hand picked bouquet of fresh flowers.  See you soon!