The Flower Blog

Every year Van’s has a Holiday Design show and everyone at Gillespie Florists loves to go to these shows! Van’s partners up with the Teleflora Indiana Unit to bring a great designer to the show to give us new ideas for the upcoming holiday season! This year we had Bert Ford AIFD, PFCI from Ford FlowerCompany in Salem, NH.

Top 5 Colors for Fall

I asked Gillespie staff members and customers what colors come to mind when they think of fall flowers.Here are the top 5 answers I received; you may be surprised by some of the colors

5. Purple

Purple is a color that some people find surprising for fall flowers. I think it is a great accent color and can brighten up an otherwise dark bouquet.  It is easy to see how purple can work in a fall color scheme when looking at this picture.  Be careful when using purple in your fall bouquet. You want to make sure you are using a deep purple, if you use a lighter shade it will look out of place.

4. Burgundy

Burgundy is a rich color that will bring depth to your bouquet! Burgundy mums are a favorite among customers! Burgundy flowers pair up nicely with orange and rust flowers.  Cattails would go great with this combination of flowers, the chocolate colored spikes of the cattail will anchor the burgundy within the bouquet and the cattail’s unique texture will give added interest.

3. Golden Yellow

Golden Yellow flowers are a must in almost any fall bouquet!  Golden Yellow will not only brighten up the bouquet but also helps the other flowers pop! For instance, if you had Burgundy and rust flowers in a vase; it would be pretty but very dark and you may lose some of the definition of the individual blooms. If you add Golden Yellow flowers to the vase in between the other flowers, you will define the individual blooms and get more enjoyment out of the bouquet.

2. Orange

Think about when you go out shopping, what do you see this time of year almost everywhere?  Pumpkins! When we design our bouquets we make sure to add orange to our arrangements. We want to match the pumpkin orange color to incorporate the pillar of the fall season! The pumpkin! Sometimes we even design a bouquet in a ceramic pumpkin! The reason why orange is close to the top of our top 5 is because it is so versatile.  You can match up orange flowers with red, purple yellow and rust flowers or for a darker look; Burgundy, yellow and rust flowers. Orange is neutral color when you are dealing with fall so, it can go with just about any fall flower!

Drum Roll Please….

1. Rust

Now for me Rust can come in many shapes and sizes. Well, actually many different shades! Rust is an earthy color that can have hints of orange in it but also touches of brown and bronze. Rust is the true natural color of fall! Look around you and you will see it in the mums in people’s front yards, the falling leaves of the trees and in the décor of the stores you shop in. Almost everyone I asked about fall colors, the first color out of their mouths was: Rust.  You can see with the different pictures I have provided that Rust does have different shades to it. So, when dealing with its darkest version, make sure to pair it up with burgundy and a golden yellow for contrast. If you are working with a lighter shade of Rust, you can pair it with orange, yellow and red.

So what are your Top 5 Fall colors? Stop in the store and go through our walk in cooler and pick out your favorite fall colors and see how they go together! If you are not sure about what you picked out, our helpful staff will be glad to show you the ins and outs of the perfect color combination! Then see if you have an old watering can or pitcher at home you can put these great flowers into! You don’t have to use a plain old vase, look around your house and see what you can find!

Don’t have time to stop by? Check out our great selection of Fall flowers on our website! Click below!

Changing of the Season

Here at Gillespie Florists we are always under going dramatic changes with in the display room floors.  Every season, we have the most complete changes with specialty displays for the individual holidays.  We always start in the entrance foyer and move forward into the main room pulling seasonal fixtures to go into storage at our residential Gillespie garage or barn. Currently, we are fully engaged into bringing Christmas to life.  Half of the store has gone through a transformation of Summer to Fall and of course, Halloween!

A Touch of Christmas

A touch of Christmas has already been put out for our customers to preview. As soon as we get new Christmas products in, we are excited to show off the festive items!

We are proud to have one of the largest and most complete lines of plush available in Indianapolis.  Featuring elite lines not easily found at other retailers such as London based "Jelly Cats" and New York style, Manhattan Toy. You'll see them in the video below along with some of our current displays!

Our designers are busily designing outstanding set pieces to complete our eye-catching displays. It is our hope that every time you stop by you will see something new and interesting.

 Don't have time to stop by the shop but want an eye-catching bouquet? Just have it delivered! Pick a beautiful bouquet from our wide online selection! Click Below!

There are a few days in our lives that we can remember exactly where we were and what you were doing. With the 10-year anniversary coming up in a little over a week, it brings back the memories of that day.

I was going to Butler University as well as being a high school senior. I had just gotten out of an early class at Butler and was driving back to my high school when the radio DJ announced the World Trade Centers in New York had been hit by a plane. Honestly, I thought it was a joke. It took a few minutes to realize this was no joke, this was for real.

When I got to school, there was a somber atmosphere.  Every classroom had TV’s on watching the news.  There was no way the teachers would be able to get our minds off the terrible tragedy that went on that day.

I asked my sister, Sarah Gillespie, to tell me about that day because she was working here at Gillespie Florists. 

As was usual every morning, I had the television on the local news, quietly in the background. As I was preparing to head out the door to work, an anchor broke in suddenly with news that a plane had crashed into an office building in New York.

Details were scarce, but it appeared to be a horrible, unthinkable accident. I put my things down and watched the events unfold before my eyes. When the second plane hit the World Trade center, it became apparent to the media that this was no ordinary accident. I became uneasy; worrying what other places might be attacked.

I finally tore myself away from my television set because I was 20 minutes late leaving for work. When I got into my car, I turned on the radio to continue listening to the latest on the events unfolding that day. As I traveled, I heard about the plane crashing into the pentagon. Suddenly, I was overcome with fear that the plane flying above me might suddenly crash into a building here in Indianapolis!

When I got to work, surprisingly, the two or so people who had come in “on time” were not aware of what was happening on the East Coast. We turned on the radio so we could all listen together. We worried, waited and prayed as more details came across the airwaves. We do not have a television set in the store but someone brought one from their home during their lunch break so we could listen and see what was going on all around us. Once the planes were grounded, it was oddly quiet, as our store is located within a few miles of the airport. There was less traffic. It was very eerie and stayed that way for a few days beyond the attacks.

We have no record of any sales that day… we did have deliveries that were previously scheduled that we delivered, but no actual new sales in the twelve hours that we were open. Only one sale the next day (the 12th) and no sales again on the 13th.

We at Gillespie Florists want to thank all of the firemen, police officers and other emergency crews who risked their lives to save others.

Our thoughts and prayers go out to the families who lost loved ones on that day. 

Where were you on 9/11? We’d like to know. Leave a comment on our blog.

Fall Mums are in at Gillespie Florists!

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!

  I just want to thank the makers of 'Glee' for having all the main characters of 'Glee' wear Prom Flowers! To me, of course, it's just not Prom with out the flowers!

'Glee' Certified

So, What kinds of flowers are good enough for our favorite 'Glee' characters? I am glad to say there were a great variety of flowers, from Carnations to Roses to Orchids. I think they did a great job showing that you don't have to get roses to look great. But it doesn't mean that the producers of 'Glee' skimped out.

Most Memorable

  The most memorable corsage was Quinn's. No one will forget the sweet scene where Rachel told Finn what type of corsage to get Quinn! Though, I have to mention, she said a Gardenia corsage not orchid. But Finn still did great! He got Quinn a Dendrobium Orchid and Rose corsage with a green ribbon. Very similar to the one pictured here! I also noticed it was on a pearl beaded keepsake wristlet.

Favorite Corsage

My Favorite Corsage was Santana's! Quinn's was a little too big for my taste but Santana's was perfect! I couldn't get a good enough look to tell if it was Carnations or Roses but what was great about it was, it matched perfectly to her red dress but didn't take away from it. It had just three flowers, a little ribbon and a few leaves! Similar to the one pictured to the right! 

The Boutonnieres

  I really like Kurt and Blaine's Boutonnieres! I loved the use of the Boutonniere holder, like the one pictured here to the left. In this picture, there is a yellow rose with blue wire, black leaves and the boutonniere holder. But Kurt and Blaine had a beautiful pink carnation. It gave it a more dressed up chic look with out looking too frilly!

The rest of the guys wore Roses or Carnation pin on boutonnieres. Finn had a great matching Rose and Dendrobium Orchid boutonniere with a green ribbon to match Quinn. It was great!

The Prom season is almost over! This weekend is the last of the Proms for Gillespie Florists. If you are a GleeK like me and want your 'Glee' prom flowers click below!

Watch this Video of Designer Favorites!