CasaSugar

Valentine's Day Bouquet Inspiration From Flora Grubb

Elka Karl — Wed, 08 Feb 2012 03:00:16 PST

If I had my druthers, I'd have fresh flowers in every room of my home year-round. But a standard bouquet of roses simply isn't my taste. When it comes to bouquets, I prefer flowers that embrace the other - grasses, succulents, tillandsia, even carnivorous plants, are all favorites in my bouquets. Thankfully, San Francisco's own Flora Grubb is the go-to resource for beautiful, out-of-the-ordinary arrangements. Flora's on-site floral designer, Susie Nadler, is responsible for the gorgeous bouquets you'll see in the following pages. She's available for events, weddings, and parties.

Additionally, local residents can take advantage of three upcoming events at Flora Grubb, including two free succulent arrangement classes and a fee-based bird cage aerium class. Keep clicking for a look at some unusually gorgeous floral arrangements, as well as a link to the Valentine's Day arrangements Flora Grubb is offering this year!

Quick Tip: Add Citrus to Winter Bouquets

Elka Karl — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 16:08:59 PST

In many regions of the country, finding a wide variety of beautiful blooms in the Winter months is sometimes challenging. Instead of sticking with the same mix of roses or carnations, fill out your bouquets with a variety of your favorite citrus instead. I particularly love the look of these gorgeous arrangements spotted on The FlowerSchool's blog.

Head to green markets, farmers markets, or Asian groceries to find citrus still on the branch or displaying leaves. Kumquats, pictured in the bottom right photo, are a wonderful addition to bouquets, given their smaller size. Mandarins, satsumas, and blood oranges would also all add drama to a bouquet. In lieu of branches, use bamboo skewers to suspend the oranges within a bouquet, filling in the area around them with fuller flowers that camouflage the skewers. Think ranunculus, roses, or mums - showy blooms that take up a lot of volume.

Sprout Home Inspiration of the Week: White Bouquets

Stylelist Home — Tue, 03 Jan 2012 12:30:41 PST

I'm excited to present a post from one of my favorite sites, Stylelist Home.

One thing that I find beautiful about Winter is the calm that comes over me when I look at the fresh white snow blanketing the city, so regal, pure, and somewhat innocent. It changes the color palette of the world around you for a couple of months, which is bound to affect how you see things. Just like the seasonal weather change, my floral cravings can change accordingly. I get excited when an opportunity presents itself to create floral for a Winter wedding or a holiday arrangement where the juxtaposition of Winter whites can be explored and manipulated. I do not see it as a limited palette but instead a of study of form and texture with tonal contrast. You do not need an abundance of color to make a statement, sometimes less (color) is more. When you are creating your own floral piece or need to verbalize to a florist about what you are looking for, know that there are various shades of white. Remember the last time you painted something "white" and you were in awe of how many options there were for white? Some color chips might be completely void of pigment, but most have a hint of color, which can point to any direction in the color wheel. Selecting floral for your white bouquet can be a lot like selecting from those white paint chips. Keep in mind these hue differences when setting the tone for your arrangement.
Keep reading for more tips and gorgeous images of white bouquets!

9 Ways to Decorate With Terra Cotta Pots in the Winter Season

Elka Karl — Mon, 02 Jan 2012 10:00:27 PST

The natural, rustic look of terra cotta pots is such a sweet way to add charm to annual flowers in the Spring season. But terra cotta pots shouldn't just be relegated to the warmer months. There are other ways you can use these pots inside your home - planted and not - throughout the year. Keep clicking for a few ideas.

Create Gorgeous Party Interiors With Paper Flowers

CasaSugar — Thu, 29 Dec 2011 11:03:12 PST

I recently ran across these gorgeous paper flowers from stylist Zoe Bradley. Zoe's paper creations have been seen everywhere, from the McQueen runway to the windows of Louis Vuitton and Donna Karan. While many of us will always prefer fresh flowers to paper ones, carefully crafted and displayed paper blooms, such as Zoe's, can make a huge visual impact. Imagine displaying them at a New Year's Eve party, baby shower, or even an outdoor wedding. I can see them hanging from trees, clustered in modern vases, or even tucked in party goers' chignons. Want to make some for your next soiree? See some of my favorite paper flowers.

Source

Holiday Bouquet Alternative: Succulents

Elka Karl — Thu, 22 Dec 2011 04:00:00 PST

If you're tired of paper whites, amaryllis, poinsettia, and other standard holiday fare, try a bouquet featuring succulents this holiday season.

I featured several succulent bouquets at our annual holiday party this past weekend, which I mixed with yellow freesia and lavender-tinged calla lilies, I love the way the flowers looked together, and they were a nice departure from the classic red-and-green color scheme prevalent at most holiday gatherings. I harvested the succulents from a friend's overgrown succulent patch in her backyard, so the arrangements were quite cost-friendly, too.

Another great aspect of succulents is that you can replant them after you've used them for your bouquets. Simply bury about half of the stalk, stripped of leaves, in soil. Water every two to three days, and you'll have a new plant rooting and growing in no time!

Do You Display Amaryllis During the Holidays?

Elka Karl — Sun, 18 Dec 2011 05:00:29 PST

Of all the traditional holiday florals - paperwhites, Christmas cactus, and holly to name but a few - amaryllis are my runaway favorite. One of the reasons I adore them is that you can force them to bloom year after year, so that $10 bulb you bought can turn into a great investment if you care for it properly.

And while you can buy amaryllis in the traditional red, there are plenty of other colors, from lightly striped pink and white flowers to some pretty mint greens, too. My amaryllis is fully flowering now, and I have another one set to start blooming soon. Are you an amaryllis fan as well?

Source: Flickr User polandeze

Sprout Home's Guide to Holiday Plants

Stylelist Home — Tue, 13 Dec 2011 06:00:42 PST

I'm excited to present a post from one of my favorite sites, Stylelist Home!

Want to spread the holiday love by giving the gift of blooming green? There are a lot of options to choose from so here is the 411 on holiday blooming plants, Keep clicking to see our favorites.

Create a Winter Wonderland Wedding With These 5 Florals

Diana Nguyen — Wed, 07 Dec 2011 06:00:54 PST

Fall and its unexpected floral offerings have come and gone, but don't think the frosty Winter weather leaves only a limited array of flowers for your holiday or wedding day arrangements. Winter includes some seriously innovative bridal-bouquet-worthy elements! From ruby red flowers to ornamental foliage to a delicate, albeit nonliving, wintry accent, click on to be inspired by these seasonally perfect florals.

Photos by Henry Chen via Three Petals

A Surprisingly Seductive Arrangement: Roses, Peonies, and Succulents

Elka Karl — Fri, 02 Dec 2011 11:31:31 PST

Last night at the Greystone Mansion Gala in Beverly Hills, I oohed and ahhed my way through dozens of rooms at the Greystone Mansion, all lovingly decorated by the likes of Jamie Drake, Kathryn Ireland, Lori Dennis, Kendall Wilkinson, and other amazing designers. When I wandered into the gentlemen's study and terrace on the second floor, designed by Patrick Dragonette, I was wowed by many features, including the agate slice table lamps he created (stay tuned for more photos, coming soon).

My eyes were also really drawn to the pops of color and texture in the succulent, peony, and rose arrangements in Patrick's room. These arrangements were created by Missy Fine and Neda Davari of M and N Events.

I've seen succulents paired with a variety of flowers and foliage before, but this simple mix of tightly clustered red roses and peonies with accents of succulents really impressed me. When I chatted with Neda Davari about her inspiration for the arrangements, she told me, "The inspiration for these were Patrick Dragonette and his stunning room! We wanted to pick up a strong masculine accent color that would complement his work. The deep red in the roses and peonies accomplished that touch we were looking for. We used Echeveria Pulidonis plants, which are a type of succulent, to bring in that masculine character and with its rose-like features it blends into this arrangement quite nicely. It's a great accent plant to work with as it's very well behaved in floral arrangements and requires very little water."

I'd love to re-create this arrangement for parties.This is also a perfect Christmas party centerpiece, since the two main holiday colors - green and red - are beautifully interpreted here, and such a nice change from your standard poinsettia.