The Flower Blog

Give it a Toss!

During my tenure at Gillespie Florists, I have worked with wedding themes that are
trendy or traditional, simple or grandeur, classic or unique. One topic of discussion during the planning stages of all the weddings that I am involved in is “Are you going to have a bouquet toss (ceremony)?”

Traditionally, the bride will “toss” her bouquet during the reception toward bridesmaids and other unmarried ladies. The person that catches the bouquet will customarily be the next to marry.

The brides of today are split on this tradition; some have opted for more contemporary versions of this idea, still others hold fast to the traditions set forth by their mothers and grandmothers.

For me, it’s a simple decision. A lovely bouquet of fragrant flowers with long, streaming ribbons, floating through the air above the joyous faces smiling below, is an image that will be treasured forever. 

Click below to ask our bridal consultant a question or schedule an appointment!

  What is it about Zombies that appeals to us? Zombies have been notably popular since the late 19th century and these days are exceedingly popular in these United States! 
Zombies are known for their eating habits- eating human flesh and brains, causing a breakdown of civilization- a Zombie Apocalypse, and looking grotesque with torn clothes, bugs crawling on them and extremities falling off. 
Actually, it's no wonder Zombies like flowers! They need something good in their undead lives, right? This picture to the right is showing an ugly but sad looking Zombie trying to smell a flower, even though he has no nose. Looking at this, You actually feel sorry for this flesh eating creature. Click on the Zombie to see the full image and see the artist's notes on it. 

  This bouquet was a Halloween Special, this is a great depiction of beauty complementing the grotesque. 

I Googled " Zombies like flowers" and came up with tons of content on this. I think people want to see the sensitive side of the Zombie. I think they want to see a being that is remorseful for eating peoples brains. It is a sad and lonely life for the Zombie, they probably ate everyone they know and really I don't see other Zombies being great listeners. 

So, the next time you see a Zombie, don't try to sever his head. Instead, think about how he might have feelings too. Hand him a bouquet of flowers, then while he is enjoying the flowers and smelling them, get a chainsaw and hack off his head. Because though he may have feelings, he won't be able to change his nature and he will still eat your brains!

Need a Zombie distraction? Buy some flowers!


Check out this video: Plants vs Zombies Music Video
Can Zombies be ugly and cute at the same time?

Delivery charges 

When I joined the company as a full time staff member in 1969 we didn’t have a delivery charge.  We expensed all costs related to delivery along with all other corporate expenses.  Therefore, each and every customer whether taking a product out the front door or having us deliver it across town would contribute to the payment of those expenses. 

Over the years as wages, fuel, floral products, insurance, taxes, vehicles, maintenance etc. have increased to such an extent that we felt the costs could not be shared by all customers so we decided to direct the delivery expenses to those using the service.

I am amazed at the acceptance of the fees charged by the package delivery industry.

Consumers willing pay delivery fees in excess to our delivery charge for an item to be delivered within 3 days. 

We’ve experienced resistance to our standard delivery to deliver a product within an 8 hour time frame.

Recipient Phone Number

Here at Gillespie Florists we try to secure a phone number for the recipient from our client.  If there is no answer at a residence, it is our policy to us a company cell phone to contact the recipient.  Many times the recipient is at a location in the house or apartment that they cannot hear the knock at the door and/or the doorbell but hear the phone that is nearby.  If there would be no one at home, generally there is an answering machine or voice mail available to leave a message for the recipient.  In addition, we leave a Call Tag at the door advising of the delivery attempt.   The tag may not be seen because many people enter through their attached garage using a garage door opener.

The Doorstep Problem

Another delivery related issue.  The package industry leaves items at the doorstep.

In my opinion that is unacceptable in our industry.  Our products are perishable, weather conditions and animals could destroy our product.  People could see and remove the product from its location.  The recipient might never see our product because they do not use that particular entrance or they could be out of town for days leaving the product in an inappropriate environment.

Buy Flowers with a Real Local Florist! Click Below!

We’re halfway through 2011 and at Gillespie Florists; we know that brides each have their own very distinct style. However, there are a few color trends that are new to the 2011 wedding season.

Our Top 5!

 

#5 Spice  

Perhaps replacing classic red, this terra cotta colored spice version is gaining popularity for use year round, where prior to 2011, spice was nearly exclusive to fall weddings.

 

#4 Bright Yellow and Cream

Pale shades of yellow (often paired with tiffany blue) have been a staple for brides over the last couple of years, but this year the brighter yellows are blossoming.

 

 

#3 Peaches and Creams

Hinting at our number one color combination, this brighter version landed in the number 3 spot.

 

#2 Blue and White 

 

“Something borrowed, something blue” might be the mantra for brides choosing to accent their wedding décor with shades of blue (often paired with purple and/or green).

 

#1 Champagne, Ivory and Pink

Our number one color combination is trimmed with berries, beads and even wire accents; this bouquet is anything but bland!

Getting Married? Have questions about our Bridal bouquets or Weddings? Click below to get some answers!

What You & Dad Don't Know.

 Father's Day is coming up on Sunday June 19th and most people don't know that flowers are not only a totally appropiate gift but that Dad will love it!

Every year we work hard to come up with unique designs for Dad that he will love! Like this Webber Gill Bouquet pictured to the right. It is a mini grill made by Webber filled with flowers! How cool is that?

Not Hooked?

Just because we work hard on making interesting designs for Dad doesn't mean you are hooked on the idea of flowers for Dad this year.

Men are actually stimulated by color and are visually oriented. Research shows that men prefer vivid colors such as yellow, orange and red. Men also enjoy plants and blooming plants! Pictured to the left is a perfect example of a planter filled with green plants that are easy to take care of!

Try having us incorporate a favorite hobby of Dad's into your Flowers for Dad. We have an assortment of sports, trucks, coffee mugs, grill, fishing containers and gifts!

Not Just Flowers.

Still don't want to send Dad flowers? That's OK! Send him what he craves! Junk Food! We have Junk Food baskets, Fruit baskets & Gourmet baskets!

Make your gift more personal by giving us something to add into your bouquet! Is Dad a golfer, barbecue king, fisherman, ect? Bring us a box of golf balls, grilling utensils, fishing lures or whatever is going to make your gift extra special!

Get Dad flowers this year and he will absolutely love it! He will love getting something totally different this year!

Check out our entire Father's Day selection!

Thanks to AboutFlowers.com for the great info!

What is the Fuzz that Wuzz?

We found out about a really great product called The Fuzz that Wuzz and had to have it! Mary Meyers created a line of plush stuffed animals made out of plastic bottles! It's incredible to think that these lovely, cuddly stuffed animals were once plastic bottles destined to be sitting in a landfill!

The 411 on the Fuzz

Each Fuzz that Wuzz animal is made from 100% recycled plastic bottles. This means that each animal keeps over 10 bottles out of landfills! Mary Meyers says that two million plastic bottles are used in the U.S. every ten minutes and 51 billion go into landfills annually.

It will take 700 years before plastic bottles in landfills start to decompose and less than 30% of plastic bottles in the U.S. are actually recycled.  Wow, those numbers are staggering!

We recycle here at Gillespie Florists and we encourage for you to do the same! Every time I toss a plastic bottle into our recycle bin, I wonder, will this be an adorable stuffed animal someday? I'd like to think so!

To see this great line of The Fuzz that Wuzz, stop in our store at 10th & Raceway!

Looking for great gift ideas? Check out our website!

How does the weather impact my flower order?  

As operations manager of Gillespie Florists, one of my responsibilities is to keep our 500 square foot cooler stocked daily with the freshest flowers from around the world, and with not just a few varieties or colors- literally thousands!  Importing flowers from around the world is a lot of fun, but takes planning and patience.  Many of major crops are grown in America (California, Florida, Michigan, Illinois, Washington State, Oregon, Indiana and more).  However, the weather in the United States is not always conducive for the growth of product throughout the year.  Therefore, we must go beyond our borders to find product that is off crop (not available) here.  South America, Canada, Holland and Italy are a few of my favorite exporters of quality product for our customers.

Not only does the seasonal change in weather affect the production of flowers, but severe or unexpected weather conditions can influence price and availability worldwide.  California's cold and rainy winter season affect the production of waxflower, stock and larkspur (just to name a few).  Florida's intense summer heat affects the production of gladiolus crops.  The severe flooding in Bogota, South America seriously contributed to the shortage and high cost of pom pons and alstroemeria during early May of this year.  A freeze in January of 2010 in Florida caused major damage to thousands of acres of fern crops, which in turn affected thousands of florists during the Valentine's Day holiday.

Typcially, poor weather conditions in one or two regions do not disturb the overall world wide production of floral crops.  It is my job to seek out product elsewhere to fill our cooler and keep our customers satisfied with the quality flowers they are used to seeing every day.  From time to time, minor substitutions may be made on popular arrangements due to seasonal or weather availability conditions.  However, you are still guaranteed a beautiful gift that will be pleasing to not only the senses, but to the heart as well.

Check out our wide selection of flowers by clicking below!

What can you find in our 500 square foot cooler? Whatch this video below to see!

We at Gillespie Florists thought it would be fun to have a Prom King & Queen Contest! Prom customers only needed to post their picture on our Facebook Fan Page wearing our flowers! We then asked our Facebook fans to "Like" their favorite picture or make a positive comment about it to determine the winner. We had several people enter but there can be only one winner! 

And the Winner is...

The Results are in! Our Prom King & Queen for 2011 is....

 

Leah Nurnberg & Steven Melton!

They are the couple on the right.

Leah & Steven each get a $25.00 gift card to Gillespie Florists and Leah will be crowned with a tiara!

 

They had a whopping 58 "Likes" and comments on their photo! Congratulations!!

  Leah wore a three-alstroemeria corsage similar to the one pictured here. Leah's was white and silver and looked great with Steven's matching alstroemeria boutonniere!

 

 

As a Thank You to everyone who entered the contest, we want to offer you a free Sunshine Bouquet! Just stop in the store any time, give us your name and we will give you your Sunshine!

Those Contestants are: 

Tyler Weir & Meredith Warbinton

Carly Lewis & Jacob Miller

Brenda Danielle & Tommy Dennis

Ryan Page & Cory Urick

Michael Brissey & Simi Bean

Thanks again to everyone who entered the contest! Until next year!

 

  This year we asked Prom customers to post a snap shot of them selves wearing Gillespie Florists flowers on our Facebook Fan Page to get the chance to be crowned the Gillespie Florists Prom King & Queen!

 

 

Here is what our Prom King & Queen Hopefuls had to do:

·  Take a snapshot wearing Gillespie's Flowers.

·  Post it on our Wall.

·  Tag everyone in the picture.

·  Gillespie’s adds the picture to "Prom King & Queen Contest Album".

·  Then they ask friends and family to "Like" their photo or make a positive comment on the photo.

·  One week after the end of Prom Season, we will tally up the "Likes" and Comments and whoever has the most wins!

 What do they win?

The Queen will be crowned with a tiara and both King and Queen will be awarded with $25.00 Gift Cards to Gillespie Florists!  And don't forget, Bragging Rights!

Want to help decide who wins? Click Here to go to the "Prom King & Queen Contest Album" and “Like” your favorite Now!

Winners will be announced on Facebook May 21st!

Check out our Fabulous selection of Prom Flowers!

Blue wedding flowers are a popular choice for brides. Bring the Something Blue into your wedding with flowers! There are lots of great choices!  We’ve done several weddings featuring combinations of blue and shades of white. 

Click the video below to see photos of some of our favorite blue weddings from 2010.

Our wedding specialist can help you put together your dream bouquet. 

Click the button below for more information on blue flowers and a complimentary consultation.