Our Huge Remodel

The months of August and September have brought many changes to Best Wishes Floral and we are happy to share the completion of our remodel project!  We have been working hard to update and redesign our store to better serve our customers the unique home and floral design expertise we specialize in.  The last three weeks have been especially hectic since we did nearly all of the remodeling ourselves, all while remaining open for business for all our usual work for events, weddings, funerals, birthdays and anniversaries.  Here's a series of photos of the progress.

The first thing we decided to change was the ceiling, pulling down the tiles and painting it black, to add height to the space.  Thankfully, painting the ceiling was the one part we hired experts to deal with, and we couldn't be happier with the result.

With the ceiling straightened out, next we took aim at the floor.  This was an adventure to find the concrete under the carpet in the front, and the green linoleum in the back room.

Underneath the carpet is a layer of adhesive gluing the carpet to the concrete, which needed to be stripped.

 We also decided to re-paint the walls to match our new shopping bags and business cards, a dark brown and complimenting olive tone.

The cooler before the new paint job.

The new brown on the molding above the cooler.

The tile torn out of the design room.

The scraper we rented to chip up the ceramic tile in front of the cooler.

We moved the shelving to the opposite wall, trading places with the card racks.

The bare concrete, stripped of adhesive and cleaned, ready for the acid stain.

Once treated with the acid stain and washed again several times, we did a coat of sealer to give our new bronze-earth toned floor a nice shine.

We found a perfect ceramic tile to match the floor for the base boarding.

The huge new counter, with the old on on a dolly ready to get rolled out!

And just one of the many things we did during this whole process- a beautiful fresh cut flower wreath for a funeral.

August Update

Flowers and chocolate anyone?  We're going to have some very exciting updates here soon, but here's a quick sample of what's we've been cranking out.  Above is a delicious summer treat: sunflower, orange lilies, oregonia, ti leaf, bear grass and oh yeah, CANDY!  Hammond's chocolates are absolutely delicious and we've got them!

I'm certain this cute get-well-soon gift did its job.  How can you not feel better looking at these beautiful blooms?  There's sunflower, pink gerbera, orange lily, purple alstroemeria, a bit of green hydrangea and some Queen Anne's lace.

This bubble bowl was just huge in person, and had beauty going all around!

This dish garden was put together for a longtime customer who needed a get-well-soon present.  She wanted succulents because they require less care than most plants.  I was quite disappointed we had to sell it because I wanted it in my home!  Well, I guess I'll just have to make more.

This rather unique item is actually the most clever way to return your neighbor's things you borrowed and forgot to return.  A regular customer was cleaning out their cupboard and was horrified to find an electric skillet they had borrowed months before.  Returning it filled with flowers remedied the guilt and potential hard feelings, and also made for one of the stranger things we've put and arrangement in!  Frank even incorporated the cord and control box into the design!

A few simple, elegant boutonnieres with alstroemeria, leucadendron, yarrow, hydrangea and eucalyptus.

July Update

Summer has been flying by and although its usually our slow season, we've been kept very busy indeed by a spate of weddings, events, and the gearing up for a big remodel of the shop.  Here's a few shots of just a slice of what we've been up to!

We have standing orders with a number of businesses and organizations around Golden Valley in which we provide weekly or bi-weekly flower arrangements to liven up interiors.  This one went to Golden Valley Library last week.  In a unique L-shaped vase, we put hydrangea, pink spray roses, yellow mini daisies and a deep pink gerbera daisy, framed by that great eucalyptus.  I wonder if anyone got any reading done with such beautiful flowers to distract them!

Another standing order, This fun little tropical design features pink lily lavender and hot pink stock, yellow yarrow (that's fun to say) with a big monstera leaf.  Garnish with a bit of Italian ruscus and red dogwood and you've got a funky tropical treat for the luau!

We love to interpret people's creative gift ideas or any crazy idea our customers might have with flowers.  This one was a rather sweet idea involving Reese's Pieces and a colorful gift bouquet.  The result is a splendid treat for the eyes along with a nice treat for the tastebuds, adding some elegance you probably won't find in the fruit-on-a-stick Edible Arrangements.

One of our clients needed something for the grand opening of a friend's cupcake shop.  They provided us with a ceramic cupcake-shaped cookie jar, and we topped it with a rich frosting of floral beauty.  White hydrangea, pink-tipped dahlias, and some yellow button mums as sprinkles.  Tasty!

See you soon down at the shop!

June Update

Wow, the time has been flying by!  Its already Summer and we've left you high and dry without a blog update for two months!  Here's a taste of what we've been up to lately, a hint of what you'll see when you stop in to see us.  Above is a mock-up of a wedding bouquet Frank made for a client's upcoming August ceremony.  Beautiful blue cornflowers contrast with bright yellow craspedia (the round things), and beautiful lavender dahlias.  Just a bit of Queen Anne's lace and a few of our locally grown Len Busch roses (in white and the bi-color pink/orange variety aptly named Miss Piggy) thrown in and you're ready to toss!  (Or save in a nice vase with water.  Your call.)

A few arrangements that are currently adorning our cooler, ready to be picked up!  Above, that great yellow craspedia is glowing on a bed of blue Dutch hydrangea, ruddy maroon alstroemeria, a few Miss Piggies and that awesome deep magenta astilbe.  The cute cube vase size is perfect for a dining room table.  On the buffet table, below, are some stunning Asiatic lilies in beautiful orange and pink shades, yellow daisies, pretty pink larkspur in the center, a few Len Busch lavender roses all accented with bright yellow solidago and that luxuriously long-leafed eucalyptus.

Come get one or more of these adorable 4" orchid plants before they're gone.  I'm particularly fond of the one pictured on the right with the variegated leaves.  You won't mind keeping that around in anticipation of the next flower spike to come up!  Don't forget we love to give green thumb guidance, just ask us!

This really cool plant is actually a variety of the more commonly seen kalanchoe, called "desert surprise."  A very unique leaf pattern and flower structure reminds me of southwestern succulent varieties.

A shot of the planter in front of the shop; succulent garden in bloom!

We hope you're all having a wonderful summer so far!  See you soon!

Mother's Day Is Here!

The excitement is palpable, the air is thick with anticipation, the shop is stuffed to the brim with flowers... it's about to be MOTHERS' DAY!!  We all have mothers in our lives, and many people know many moms:  wives, daughters, grandmothers, and friends who deserve a bit of recognition for the hard work and love they give to their families.  We are just so excited to help you make her day special because really, what's better than fresh flowers and a hug?

This arrangement above, and the two at the top are examples of fun, springy fresh flowers that Mom will adore.  A colorful and fragrant mix of lilies, gerbera and pom daisies, iris, roses, tulips, alstroemeria, spider mums, stock, and waxflower bring spring into the home.  Don't know what everything is called?  Don't worry, we love to help!

Super cute daisy basket on the left or simple yet colorful tulip bunch tied with a bow on the right?  Flip a coin, you can't go wrong here.

Our designer Remy loves to make these topiary-like creations;  alstroemeria bunched and tied in raffia and decked at the base with greens and that awesome magenta heather.

One lucky mom out there is getting this huge arrangement of 2 dozen roses!  Very special.  Let's hope its not one for each kid!

Don't worry, this isn't an arrangement, its how we're keeping these incredible orchid stems to use in your order.  Phew!

Let's talk plants.  Sometimes people like to go for blooming plants because they last as long as you take care of them.  With our advice and pro tips, that will be easy!  Above are 4" and 6" azaleas that are looking just awesome!

In the center here is 6" kalanchoe in a bright magenta hue, and in front are these really cool double gloxinia I picked up today.  Most of these plants are going to have different bloom color and basket style options in stock, and we're always happy to swap things around to get just what you're looking for.

Adorned with colorful twigs and butterflies, these blooming gerbera plants are a great choice.

Or put the same gerbera plant in a euro garden basket with other green plants, and we have another great look.  There's a few more plant baskets to check out in the shop right now, so don't miss out!

A cactus garden can sometimes have a kitschy connotation, but we've been making super fun and unique succulent gardens with a much more elegant feel.  This one is getting sent out to a hospital on delivery this week, but there's more where that came from!   Succulents are great plants for less experienced caretakers, since they're used to surviving a massive drought (oops I forgot to water) or the blazing sun.

More succulent gardens, these two make a fun pair.

Ok, wow, I tried to get a photo of these massive orchid plants we have in the shop right now, and they completely outgrew my photo staging area.  This maroon colored intergenerational orchid in the front is nearly four feet tall!  We just started to carry orchid potting mix and bloom booster as well, so we'll get you on the track to orchid professional in no time.

These ready-to-go hanging planters with a variety of blooming plants are perfect for decorating mom's patio.  

Don't forget that as well as fresh flowers and plants, we have all sorts of gifts for mom and year-round.  From cards and candles, to decor, teddy bears, chocolate, silk flowers, and lights to this cool hanging succulent garden made with faux plants that even the most inept gardener couldn't kill, we have just what you're looking for.  Happy Mother's Day, see you soon!

Art In Bloom 2012

This year's Art In Bloom at MIA was a big success.  If you didn't get a chance to make it down to one of the Twin Cities' best events, shame on you!  Here's a few photos of our display, shared again this year with Gabbert's Design Studio, who provided the furniture.  Above is the star of the show, some dramatically wrapped curly willow branches sprouting from sod and fresh flower dishes and holding fresh flower arrangements of their own.  

Its always a bit difficult to properly capture our work in MIA (aside from the invigorating smells) due to the huge windows backlighting the entrance to the second-floor Target Gallery.  Here's an alternate view from behind.

The one piece of furniture that was not provided by Gabbert's is this awesome coffee table that worked as a hybrid glass-top table/fresh flower arrangement.  A base of sod grass holds lavender statice, bupleurum, scotch broom, and more.  A conversation piece for certain!

A splash of elegant yellow eremurus paired with lavender statice makes the arrangment on the right pop.

If you made it down, thank you for coming, and if not, these pictures are just a taste of the wonderful sights you missed!  Hopefully we'll see you there next year (and definitely before then at the shop)!