Rare, rich, romantic, hidden, secret, unseen, deep, dark, dangerous, elegant, mysterious, mournful, quiet, controversial, strong, silent, and sleek – the color black is powerful, and natural black flowers are particularly striking.
Natural black flowers are rare – out of 4,000 flower species, only 8 are dark enough to be called “black,” and they are usually highly sought-after for their color.
In reality, natural black flowers (i.e., in nature) are a deep, dark red or purple with pigmentations so rich they appear almost black. Flowers that appear flat black are usually enhanced with artificial dyes or spray.
As a person who worships flowers, in general I don’t like to mess with Mother Nature by manipulating colors as it tends to accelerate decomposition. Rather, by combining natural black flowers with white or gray accents in our black flower arrangements, the blackness can be intensified. [Read more →]
Halloween is a holiday that gives you permission to let your inner child run wild, whether it means dressing up like a zombie prom-queen or buying giant bags of candy “for the kids.” As adults, we really shouldn’t go door to door begging for candy, but we can treat ourselves to a different treat: gorgeous, ghoulish Halloween flower arrangements!
Frightful Halloween Centerpiece Ideas
Our “Midnight Glow” Halloween flower arrangement creates the look of a haunted forest. It features bright mango callas and deep aubergine, practically black “Schwarzwalder” callas combined with black scabiosas, brown, snake-like fiddleheads (also known as monkey tails – to me, a much more disturbing name), and twigs.
My friend Sharon is hosting a Halloween Costume Soiree on Saturday, and her invitation included the emphatic request: “PLEASE DON’T ALL COME AS ZOMBIES!!” Slimey, gooey, oozy, and brain-eating, zombie costumes are this year’s answer to 2010’s rash of True Blood-inspired vampire costumes. But no matter how hard you try, it is impossible to make a zombie pretty. Thus my latest quandary: “what should I be for Halloween?”
As usual, my brain turns to floral design concepts. This week I found an awesome site dedicated to making your own costumes: Coolest-Homemade-Costumes.com! This DIY costume site site even has an entire section devoted to flower costumes.
Some of these flower Halloween costumes designed for little kids are so adorable that we can’t wait to try them ourselves, like this one for a Flower Garden Costume. What you’ll need to embrace your own inner flower child:
Green sweatshirt and stretch pants
Artificial flowers
Yarn
Artificial (or real!) wreath
Face paint
You can easily find the items you need for this costume at any thrift store – the author only spent $13! Now that’s a bargain.
This fabulous and inspiring site gives detailed instructions on how to make many other flower costumes, as well as an estimated cost for materials. Check it out, and be a pretty, living flower for Halloween instead of a gross dead thing!
If you’d rather use lovely-smelling real flowers for this costume, we can always whip up some Halloween-friendly holiday flower arrangements for you! Give us a call at (212) 687-3434 or browse our selection of holiday-themed floral arrangements online.
The days are growing shorter, the mornings are crisp and cool, and the leaves are beginning to change from green to the gold. In autumn, everything becomes jewel-toned. Thus, the inspiration for our wonderful new jewelry gift basket combinations!
For Big Apple Florist’s delightful new fall promotion, we are collaborating with Maya J. Jewelry to bring you the perfect unique jewelry gift combination for the autumn season: the “Glitz and Glamour” Collection. Show someone just how fabulous they are with a pair of gorgeous earrings combined with a beautiful floral arrangement in coordinating jewel tones!
Unique Jewelry Ideas and Gift Baskets
The color combinations in these unique jewelry gifts are a feast for the eyes, and the jewels remain enduring symbols of your feelings long after the flowers fade. [Read more →]
Check out our lovely flower arrangements on the set of Anderson Cooper’s new daytime talk show, Anderson! Our floral designer Georgeanne created the flower decor using inspiration from Judy Collins’ 1967 album Wildflowers. We think they’re a perfect background setting for Judy Collins’ performance of “Amazing Grace” for Gloria Vanderbilt, if we do say so ourselves:
We love being a part of New York City events like this, and are happy to provide event flowers and floral decor for all occasions! Give us a call (212) 687-3434 for a consultation of your own.
Dive in, get your hands dirty, and learn something new with one of our first-ever floral design classes! This class is your opportunity to spend an evening surrounding yourself with gorgeous fresh flowers, opening your mind, and feeding your soul wit
Flower Arranging Classes for Designers With a Taste for Flair
Hosting a last minute dinner and need the perfect floral table centerpiece? Need a gift that stands apart for a friend’s housewarming dinner? Like to spruce up your apartment every now and then? Learn how to arrange your own stunning arrangements in our professional floral design class, a 2 hour class that will give you a sneak peek into the exciting world of professional floral design.
Our flower arranging class will teach you basic floral design techniques such as cleaning and cutting flowers, greening vases, and modern-compact design. We’ll fill you in on how to make our signature green looping (a Big Apple Florist specialty), and we’ll also share some our favorite professional floral design resources for purchasing fresh flowers, vases and greens in the city.
By the end of our professional floral design class, you’ll be able to go home and create your very own unique floral arrangements, sure to dazzle any Manhattan apartment. [Read more →]
