My Quest for Heathers Dahlia's Part I

I had met Heather and her best friend Lilit about 45 days ago to discuss flowers for Heathers wedding. Heather LOVED dahlias and was getting married at the right season for them. The wedding was to take place in her Uncles gorgeous back yard with a amazing pool and yard. We had decided  on dahlias for her bouquet and the bridesmaids bouquets. The idea of floating dinner plate dahlias in the pool along with candles was  the perfect finishing touch to this beautiful wedding. The plan was in motion.........

I placed my order for the dahlias 2 weeks before her event  just to make sure the availability. Growers said no problem and the plan was set...  Fast forward to the week of the wedding....  The dahlias had come in and were not the quality they needed to be and the dinner plate dahlias didn't even come in. I called all over and had made at least 20 phone calls, to Boston, NYC and all the growers in between with no luck. The back up plan, after a state wide search for dahlias, was going to be yellow zinnias for the bouquets and clusters of large marigolds for the pool. Heather was Ok with this plan but I could tell she was bummed about the dahlias...

After I picked the backup flowers from a few local farms and was heading home to start the designing of her flowers, I received a phone call from a sweet lady who is a dahlia grower and has such a passion for this amazing  flower.............................

To be continued ...............

August special ~ Paper lanterns~

August Special:

Book a wedding or event for 2011 and we will decorate your venue with paper lanters for free (if allowed*) Includes up to 24 lanterns and includes instillation, and break down. Valid In CT. 

Solid Colors:

 White, Light Pink, Magenta, Dark Blue, Light Blue, Apple Green,

 Dark Purple, Red, Yellow & Orange 

Patterns:

Lt pink, magenta and apple green polka dots on white

Dk Blue/Lt Blue/Green Polka dots on white 

Mix and match colors

Email or call us to set up your complementary consultation 

weddings@stylishblooms.com 860.392.8045 

Shown Below The Barns At Weslyan 

with white paper lanterns and indoor lights with green strings

add the indoor lights for $200 Extra up to 400'

*Has no cash value if can't be used at venue*

Here we GROW again..

I started Stylish Blooms not just because I love flowers and designing, But also because I believe that every one should  have access to  flowers that are beautiful, personalized and affordable. My commitment and involvement to my clients is my number one priority and will always be no matter how much we grow. After much deliberating and consulting I have decided to make a few changes to some of my original policies.  These changes are necessary to help continue to grow and maintain the core values Stylish Blooms was born on.   These changes will also allow me to be better accommodating to my clients new and old and properly handle any new request. My involvement will never change and neither will my values, and  I will not be raising prices anytime soon. The changes are to delivery policies and service fees.  I will also be adding a few good people to the Stylish Blooms crew who are hand picked based on their talent and their abilities to represent Stylish Blooms accurately and professionally. This only applies to new contracts signed with Stylish Blooms. Every client who has already signed a contract will not be subject to any additional fees.  

Here is the new policy changes and they also can be found on our website at http://stylishblooms.com/Pricing.html

Event Delivery 

Basic delivery is included with our services over $500. This includes 2 delivery locations within Connecticut.  A $35 fee will be added for each delivery location  requested beyond the included 2. A $35 fee will also be charged for any deliver request made 2 hours before start of the event. (unless deemed necessary or at the venues request) Events under a $1000 may be delivered by one of our trained employees. 

Events under $500 may either be picked up at our studio or can be delivered for a small fee of $35 to one location within Connecticut and may  be delivered by one of our trained employees. 

A $1000 Minimum is required for events located in NY, MA, RI, NH, VT and will incur a travel fee of $.50 per mile each way from zip code 06010 and will be serviced by myself   

For all other locations outside of new england please refer  to our

 Destination weddings page 

Basic delivery includes: 

Placing of centerpieces cake flowers and other arrangements  ordered for the reception, setting up of church/ceremony decor,  delivery of corsages, boutonnieres, and bouquets.  All corsages and boutonnieres will be labeled  for easy distribution.

Please note that events that include the use of our Chuppah or Arch already included  the set up in the price and will be delivered and set up personally by myself. 

Rentals and decor instillations will be invoiced and billed separate from floral details and will require a rental agreement to be signed regardless of the rentals are free of use or not. 

Are those expensive?

Today was a busy day and not because of weddings. This was the only free Saturday that I had open  and decided to take advantage of it by meeting with a few new brides.  I meet with a lovely couple for their October wedding to start out my day. As I was giving my expert opinion and suggestion for  fall flowers that would work  for their style they asked "Are those expensive"? I hear this a lot and yes some flowers can be very pricey when not in season and for others its all about how you utilize them.   This question was asked in regards to a Asiatic lily in comparison to a rose.  All though the difference in cost is a few dollars its the perceived value of the lily that makes it less expensive choice than the rose.  For instance if a rose cost $5 and if a stem of lilies cost $7  you might say well the rose is the less expensive choice. Before you can make that conclusion you first should think about how the flowers are going to be used. A lily will have 2-3 nice sized open blooms and a few buds per stem making each bloom about $2.50 each. 3 lilies  in a vase with greenery will give you a full look for about $35 with the cost of the flowers and vase. Take the same vase and substitute it with roses for $35 and you will get about 5 roses. 5 rose will not have the same impact as the 3 stems of lilies because the lilies  have more blooms per stem and are a bigger, fuller flower. You would need to use about 10 roses to achieve the same fullness as the arrangement with all lilies costing you more money closer to $60. Don't hesitate to ask for the flowers you love because when flowers are used correctly they can be affordable no matter the price per stem. 

July Special

July Special, $200 deposit must be paid by July 31st to guarantee price.  valid for 2010/2011 weddings and events in Connecticut... For other areas please contact us for pricing 
Contact us for more information. Weddings@stylishblooms.com or 860.392.8045

24dz roses, for $1200... The roses  can be designed into bouquets, boutonnieres, centerpieces and more... you will also have the choice of 2 types of greenery and 2 different types of filler and your choice of up to 4 different color roses ( not valid with certain varieties or garden roses)

This special will also includes:
(all subject to availability)
Use of rental vases for your centerpieces (up to 12)
Use of our custom chuppah or garden arch
12 pew bows in your choice of colors

all the above can be decorated with roses and greenery

The only extras you would pay for are extra greenery or filler (if requested), extra supplies (if needed for more complex designs)

Upgrades
$1500 - 24dz roses and 4 dozen Hydrangea (blue, white or green)

$2000 24dz roses and 6dz large calla lilies or mini cala lilies

Price shopping

I was asked  a few weeks ago by a new client if I could look at a quote already given to her and if I thought I could beat the price she was given. All though I am as  budget friendly as they come,  this is something I simply can’t do. However  I explained to her that I could give her a price based  on my take of her vision and the look she wanted to achieve for her event, and  from that I would develop a proposal that worked with in her budget.  I advised her it would be best for us to meet so I could learn about her event, get to know her and also to show her what my company could offer her wedding.   She understood the reasons and was happy to meet to discuss all the many options I had for her.  So I thought I would share with you why this is something I can’t do blindly.


  I cant beat someone else’s price quote because:  


A: I do not know the quality or grade of flowers being used. I.e, 40cm roses versus 70cm roses or in this case the church pieces described “a mix of   seasonal” flowers does this “mix” include carnations and daisies, or  the real seasonal fall  “mix” such as zinnias and sunflowers?  


B: I do not know the sizes the quote is based on or the number of flowers the designer had intended to use for each piece. The


C: each designer uses different suppliers, different growers,  offers a different service and prices designs differently and thus makes it impossible to know what their final price is based on


 In cases like this I suggest a consultation so that I can show them what I have to offer and suggest ideas that work for their event and budget. I will then give a fair price based on my quality and my personalized service.  I met this client last week and not only was I able to give her a better price but was able to give her more than the original one she had presented, I even showed her options she never considered but loved. Its ok to shop around, In fact I encourage it, in the end choose the designer who you feel is best for your event and your vision and wallet.  

My new camera

A few months ago I had to purchase a new camera and it was one of the longest and hardest purchases I had made in a while. My last camera was on its last leg and with the wedding season fast approaching I had to make a decision fast. Along with my new camera I vowed to my business that I would take better pictures and lots more of them. I played with the camera settings  indoors and out played with natural light and different backgrounds. I still couldn't capture the beauty of my designs. It wasn't until I found this amazing rock out side the studio that I took my portfolio to another level. I started by making a logo to add to the new images and then updated the online galleries www.stylishblooms.com/bouquets . It was hard to delete older pictures but I knew it was for the best. I have some amazing photographer friends who  capture my designs so perfectly. Special thanks to Aurora from www.aurora-photography.net for doing it so well. But Lets face it I can't always have a profesional photographer around to take pictures of every event and I can't always rely on my clients hired photographer to give me images. So its up to me to document my designs. I some times take over 50 images of one design to make sure I get at least 1 perfect picture.  My portfolio has never looked so good and I feel that the pictures finally represent who I am as a designer.