What have we been up to…

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Well, what a year, do I need to say more?! I could say all those words we’ve heard relentlessly over the last 6 months (6 MONTHS) – unprecedented, extraordinary, strange, crazy, new normal etc etc…but I won’t…apart from just then! I’m going to focus on our plans for the future and tell you about what we got up to during lockdown.

We managed to have a wonderful Mother’s day, so many people wanting to send flowers out as people began shielding…Pete the delivery was out about with hand sanitiser and gloves.

We then sat down that evening, exhausted, to watch the news…lockdown was officially announced. We were concerned, we had a busy wedding season this summer, we didn’t know what would happen with flowers, would we be able to continue working, would the weddings stay with us?!

Flower deliveries stopped initially, but we could still source compost and seeds…that was the way to go we decided, give people what they need; enquiries for bedding plants then started coming in, it was still so early but with the beautiful weather we were having, people were enthusiastic to get out there planting, so our back garden turned into a garden centre, such a lovely sight to see, although quite tiring bringing everything in and out every day but hey…we couldn’t do anything else!!

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Flower deliveries resumed and we did contactless deliveries, people were desperate to send out messages of hope and love to their family and friends, people celebrating birthdays, births, anniversaries or just wanting to let people know they were in their thoughts. We also had funerals and sympathy flowers, a time when you need people around you the most and you weren’t allowed them. It was so important to us that we could provide these services for people, as they said their last goodbye or to show their thoughts were with people in need.

And then it was over…ish….

We’ve had a few determined couples who were adamant they were getting married, social distancing or not and they have made us excited for 2021 and all the love that will be on display, with the majority of weddings re-scheduled from 2020 to 2021 our dates are slightly limited so get in touch if you’re considering us as your florist…we’d love to have you! A couple of snapshots from this year below…just to give you a taster!

We have some new gifts in and we’re always on the look out for more exciting stock. We bought in more of our Wild Olive products, including face masks and shower smoothies and we also sourced a range of vegan lip balms…then I went a bit mad and got some different soaps (vegan) and lip balms (not vegan) in as I just LOVE the packaging so much! All British made, no plastic packaging and all made from lovely natural ingredients.

The event at the end of the year…C*****mas is on our minds and we’ve got plenty of stock ideas, including a small children’s range of gifts coming in. We’re not sure about the wreath and table arrangement classes as yet, it’s still so early to know but rest assured we’ll be doing everything we can to get you crafting somehow, someway!

It’s beginning to look a lot like…winter!

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With the arrival of the cold, I thought it was best to give you a little account of the new products in the shop.

We’ve stocked some fabulous card ranges – quirky and pretty – Birthdays, Births, Congratulations, Farewells, Good Luck, and Christmas (ssssshhhhh, hoped you might not notice it if I stuck it on the end)! We’ve also got some glorious plain ones…and when I say plain, I don’t actually mean plain…

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Next up scarves…and not just ones to keep you warm!! When I’m in the bleak midwinter and all I wear are hoodies, jumpers, jeans and big fat mountain boots, a scarf can lighten my outfit, don’t get me wrong, it doesn’t make me look actually glamorous but it does somewhat detract from the glum get-up I wear for 6 months of the year (or so I hope)!

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Candles – gloriously scented candles…if like me, you currently have a new cat who can’t yet go out but unfortunately still needs to go to the toilet, then a scented candle can make the world of difference. These candles come in a wide variety of smells (seriously, we’ve got loads of them), and we also have the classic smaller tins from a company we’ve been using for a while. Prices from £4.50. I would have put a picture of the cat too but she moves too fast to capture at the moment.

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CACTI CANDLES – I don’t think I even need to say much about these…they just look good!

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Soaps and bath-time tea bags – A gorgeous range – handmade in England, recycled or recyclable packaging, all natural ingredients, ALL vegetarian… all smelling lovely…I feel a theme of scents in this blog post, well, we are a flower shop after all…it tends to go with the territory. Tea bags are £1.95 – perfect stocking filler, and the soaps are from £2.35.

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Wrapping paper – festive and none festive…it’s erm….to wrap presents in…although actually, you could also just hang some in frames, it’s that pretty!

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Finally, CHOCOLATE – Another really lovely company and ‘very tasty chocolate’, that’s a direct quote from Pete who is a chocolate aficionado! Choc affair chocolate is palm oil free, has sustainably sourced ingredients and also covers the vegans among us…the dark chocolate ones do anyway. Flavours galore in the shop including Raspberry and Rose, Orange and Geranium…see the floral theme, plus, salted caramel…nothing floral, amongst others.

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Keep a lookout on our facebook page and Instagram for more inspiration for yourself, for friends, for a stranger on the street ‘why thank you’! 🙂

Reduce, Re-use, Recycle

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Being a florist, it’s not the most eco-friendly career to have…something that has plagued me since I began in the business, but,  I try my best to make it better and I thought you might like to know how.

There has been a lot of focus in the floristry industry recently on the #nofloralfoam movement, this simply means not using foam to create arrangements, mainly because it doesn’t decompose.  I’ve never really liked using foam because of this reason, and I also believe flowers don’t last as long as they can when they’re in good old fashioned water, but, being a florist in the wedding industry, I’m guilty of using it…

We do a lot of designs here at Lily Blossom that don’t involve foam, mainly jam jars, vases, bottles etc that flowers can happily sit in and look gorgeous on a table…but I thought I’d try an actual arrangement. I first taped up the bowl below and this gave me a grid to fill with flowers…

Next, I started filling, I find with this style of arranging it will tend to be quite a loose natural flowing style…ALTHOUGH…I’m sure with the grid you could also do compact tight arrangements (I actually just thought that as I was typing)!

Now please bear in mind, these are all old flowers out of my waste bucket…not particularly my colour scheme or choice of flowers…but we’ve got to start somewhere…

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Let me know what you think…

Secondly, I’ve never massively promoted my attempts at not using foam, recycling, composting our green, re-using anything I can (some people would call this hoarding), as I don’t really believe it should be a sales tactic…it should just be…you should just do it!!

BUT…it’s come to my attention that I should be promoting these things…or that, some people might find this interesting?! Lots of flowers come in wrapped in elastic bands…bands that I just can’t throw away, my arm won’t actually let me…so they’ve been kept (hoarded) in our cellar, and I’ve wracked my brains for 5.5 years now, with what to do with them… (the chains are an attempt at a skirt for the mannequin)! 20180509_140850_resized

So apart from the obvious of elastic band balls…I started knitting, (not started knitting, I’ve always knitted, just not with elastic). I’m thinking a shopping bag?!

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Next up I’ll tell you about our composting, paper recycling, how to re-use your flower wrapping for gifts and…erm…plastic netting baubles…now I’ve got you interested!

 

Mother’s Day Inspiration

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So, I’m just going to get down to it…Mother’s Day inspiration…

Call us on 01484-844-472 to order or use the Direct2Florist website to order with us online.

We have a range of bouquets available for order or collection – prices start from £12.00 in the shop –  How about a spring mixture of Tulips and Narcissi – a promise that the snow and ice have to leave us alone at some point or a bright bunch of mixed gerbera, perhaps a promise of summer?!

 

We can cater to any colour scheme you desire – red and yellow and pink and green, orange and…you get the picture. Bouquets start from £20.00 and from there you can spend however much you like, we’ll have a range of different styles and prices but if there is something specific then just get in touch and give us the lowdown.

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We aim for all deliveries to be done by 12.00 on Mothering Sunday.

We have plants a-plenty in too, orchids, hyacinth planters, peace lilies, cyclamen, narcissi in cups, coffee plants in coffee cups, funky succulents in dazzling gold pots…honestly, we go ALL OUT!! 🙂 Just a little sneak peek below.

 

 

2018??!!

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2018? It surely can’t be?! Where does this time go? We celebrated five years of being open in September and already we’re another four months gone!!

Yet again, we had a very busy wedding season (although season suggests a set period of time and these days it just never seems to end…not that we’re complaining)! Our last weddings were on the 16th December, one at our neighbourhood venue, Crow Hill, and one in Salford at the Worsley Court House and our first wedding of 2018 came on the 12th January….so season, schmeason…

 

Thanks to Elizabeth Baker Wedding Photography for the pictures of Amy and Marks wedding in January, below.

 

So, as always this year, we’ve got Valentines coming up, thanks to Pete for doing this fabulous window display, I think this year needs to be me against Pete window battle, the battle of the windows…and whoever wins…gets Christmas off…HA! Vote for your favourite on Facebook!

 

Mother’s day is next, the opportunity to spoil that lady in your life who looks after you, whether it be Mum, Grandma, Aunty, Sister, your next door neighbours daughter, Fairy Godmother (yes, that’s a thing)! I believe these people should ALWAYS be lavished with flowers and gifts BUT sometimes we forget, Mother’s day is the day not to!

Keep a look out on the blog and our Instagram page for more fabulous Mother’s day ideas, flower arranging classes, monthly flower deliveries, gloriously scented candles, plants galore or sophisticated silk flower arrangements…for those people whose houses are just TOO HOT for fresh…doesn’t happen often in Marsden!

And then we’ll be back into weddings, this year we’ve got some real floral feasts for you to peruse over, hanging pomanders of flowers, garlands of greenery, spring fandango (I like that word, expect to see more of that), and a wedding abroad…Portugal, here we come!!

Until next time…which I PROMISE will be before Mother’s day…see diary entry…

Keep updated on our various social media thingies, Instagram, Facebook, and Pinterest. We’ll also be showcasing some our wedding expertise at Holmfirth Vineyard wedding fair on the Sunday 4th March and of course at the Crow Hill Wedding fair on Sunday 18th March. xx

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A little insight…

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We were recently sent a little interview questionnaire to fill in for a new floristry magazine, and I thought as I’ve not done a blog post for ages, I’d post the answers here for you all to have a little read! I decided to include Pete too…because he is a big part of the business…even if he’s not as vocal as I am….and refuses to have his picture taken!! 🙂

Enjoy!

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1. What time does your alarm go off?                                                                                    

Rox – Around 8.15 but it can be as early as 5.00 on a wedding day.                                         Pete – The same time as Rox although she sometimes lets me have another hour on a wedding day.

2. Name one person in the flower industry you’d love to meet

Rox – I like to meet anyone who is involved in the flower industry, working on my own can be quite lonely sometimes so as soon as I meet a fellow florist it’s none stop chat!!       Pete – I’d really like to go to Tatton Park next year, I ‘ve got into gardening more this year so it would be interesting to see what’s there.

3. Tell us something that would surprise people about you
Rox – We never have fresh flowers in the house – well, we live above the shop so technically we do…but they very rarely make it up the stairs!
Pete – I enjoy doing floral funeral tributes – letters or special designs – we’ve done a motorbike, a golf club, a Pheasant to name a few.
 
4. Name a guilty pleasure
Rox – Having my nails painted, I’m so used to having shabby hands that I take great pleasure in them when they’ve got a bit of polish on!
Pete – Killing zombies on the computer and listening to 80’s music whilst working.
5. If you weren’t a florist what would you do?
Rox – I’d love to be a window dresser.
Pete – I’d love to do up camper vans – especially VWs.
6. Name the flower you like the least
Rox – I’m not a massive fan of lisianthus
Pete – I’m not a fan of Veronica or Tulips
7. Rainbow roses: yes or yuck?
Rox – YUCK!
Pete – Yuck!
8. What trends do you see facing the industry?
Rox – I think people are starting to go slightly over to more modern look again, instead of the DIY ‘vintage’ look. ‘Elegance’ and ‘opulent’ are a few ‘buzz’ words I’ve heard when discussing 2018/19 weddings!
Pete – People seem to really like wild flower styles at the moment.
9. Name a trend you think is best left in the past
Rox – I love the whole ‘vintage’ look but I’m losing sight of what it means anymore, it’s used so often for so many different looks. I’d love to stop using foam, purely on an environmental stance, but that just ain’t going to happen!
Pete – ‘Vintage’.
Rox – Pete obviously isn’t a fan!
10. Best moment of your career so far?
Rox – Getting our shop and EVERY single time someone contacts me after we’ve done some flowers, to say thank you, whether it’s their wedding day, a family funeral or just someone who needed cheering up, it’s such a pleasure knowing you’ve helped make someones day that bit more special.
Pete – Realising for the first time I was capable of running the shop on my own (even though it was very stressful) and being able to do a bouquet that Roxanne didn’t have something bad to say about it (a rarity)!

The lazy lazy florist

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Ok, well, I’m not lazy as such, not when it comes to doing work, just when it comes to keeping up to date with my blog posts!! So, the end of the year came and went and now we’re right into the new one (quite far in really)! We’ve had a mini wedding, Valentine’s day, and the fabulous Crow Hill wedding fair! We’ve had at least four different window displays in and so this is what I thought this blog could be about…I’m already making notes on what the next blog will be about and it’ll be done just before Mother’s day…soooo pretty soon then!!

Our first new window of the year, after the glitter and glamour of Christmas had departed, Chinese new year, well, it had to be didn’t it!!! We had mini dining table set up with Chinese brass coins, lots of red flowers and the piece de resistance…a big floating dragon!

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Valentine’s day, well I always like to keep it simple, so an abundance of Roses with red and pink pom poms hanging down with a couple of cupid hearts were all it took, thanks to our new Saturday girl Carys for helping out with this one. 20170121_151144_resized

After the overload of red in the windows (Christmas, Chinese New Year, Valentines) I thought we’d go for a colour change…blue (like my football team)! We got some lovely new vases in and I really wanted to show them off, so into the window they went!  16463813_1606089599407738_6726667239682297023_o

And seen as Mother’s day isn’t far away I thought I’d show you that window too, with homemade bunting no less!! 🙂

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Christmas time…mistletoe and wine…

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It’s here, the festive frenzy that is Christmas!!! The shop has been dressed for a couple of weeks now but I thought I’d give you an opportunity to look around even if you don’t manage to physically get into the shop, how lucky are you?! Come on in…wp_20161203_11_40_03_pro

 

First up, our Christmas windows…no, we didn’t win the window competition this year, Congratulations to Cubecure by the way, (she says, through gritted teeth) with their fabulous wooden wonderland. But, we’re still very happy with ours, despite the torment it causes me every year!! 🙂

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We’ve got some beautiful Christmas gifts stacked around the shop at the moment and that loveliness is only going to get better as we get closer to the big day. Christmas visiting starts as soon as December hits so we’ve got lots of cute pick up gifts ready in the shop, priced from £5.00 they’re the perfect little something!

Next up, we have wreaths for your door, a selection of Spruce or Holly ones…or even, FULL ON GOLD GLITTER ONES!!!

We’ve got some lovely little bulb planters in the shop, Hyacinths/Crocus, all waiting to get into the warmth and bloom for you.

We have city scape candle holders that create a lovely glow sat on your fireplace or window sill and priced at only £4.50/£11.95 they are a bargain!

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Hampers and bags to pop all those lovely goodies in, a few different sizes, big and bulky, small and petite and elegantly slim line (I’m not sure how a bottle bag can be elegantly slim line but it sounds good, sooo…) Priced from £2.50 why not fill them up with other goodies from our village, toys from The Magic Box, Cheese, Biscuits and WINE from Goodness me, some fabulous art from Enjoy Art and other little trinkets from Cubecure!

 

Flower deliveries will commence on the 22nd and we’ll be delivering right through until Christmas Eve! A few examples are below but all our bouquets are bespoke, made individually and designed on the day, feel free to request specific things, Lilies, Amaryllis, Berries, Gerberas, Roses…the list goes on and on (it really does).

 

Table Centrepieces can be ordered now and then collected nearer the time – candles, no candles, flowers, no flowers…I fear I’m giving you too much choice now!

img_2529And with that, I’ll say goodbye, hope you all have a wonderful Christmas and New Year and I’ll soon you in January, hopefully as fresh as a daisy (see what I did there)…if I don’t indulge in too much mistletoe and wine! 🙂

It’s nearly the end of the year.

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WE’RE BACK!!!  I’ve had numerous difficulties trying to get on here and write a new blog post (we’ll blame wordpress and not my laziness, no honestly)!!

What a summer, I’m shattered, but also full of wedding love for all my couples and for the exciting ones coming along in 2017, booking up quickly might I add! 🙂

Every summer that comes around I have the best intentions of showing you a wedding from start to finish and then when I get into the thick of it those intentions disappear in a cloud of foliage, not a bad way to go but still not helpful for you at home!

I’ll start with a wedding we had just before we left for our American road trip (yes, we had a holiday)!  A mental weekend of three weddings and lots of lists, LOTS of lists. Michelle emailed me this week when we’ve got back and sent some beautiful photos to go with a beautiful email. Michelle and Josh were married at The Huntsman, this is only the second time we’ve been to this venue despite it being so close, hopefully, we’ll be back again!

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This weekend we had two weddings, one locally at Standedge Visitor Centre and one in the beautiful town of Saltaire, near Bradford, check out the history on this place, it’s really lovely!

Elsa wanted a BIG bouquet of wild and natural flowers, initially going for an autumnal colour scheme she changed her mind a tiny bit and eventually opted for deep pinks/burgundy and purple. I’ve been so lucky to have brides wanting large and wild bouquets this year, I love creating them, they’re always a big focal point on the day!

Obviously, I tried to match my outfit on the day with the bouquets – I’d make a fabulous bride…just without the big walking boots! 🙂

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And then finally we had Caroline and Craig’s wedding at Standedge Tunnel, Caroline was very relaxed about her flowers and just gave me the order of Autumnal, really loved this bouquet too (will there ever be one I don’t like)?! The photographer Shot by Amy  took some really beautiful shots of the flowers so will be posting them on our facebook page as soon as they come through, keep a look out on Facebook for more updates. I think this will definitely be one for my wall of flowers in the shop!

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Weddings are upon us…

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Look at me, just over a month later and I’m writing again, there must be something in the air! We’ve had a lovely month, a calm month, nothing manic month and now as the middle of the year approaches we’re gearing up to be inundated with Wedding fever.

The first half of this year has been steady (apart from the madness of Mother’s day, Valentines and Easter…ok, maybe not THAT steady) but with weddings every weekend for the next six months we’re getting ready to be busy bees and preparation is key!!

Mid April saw us at one of our  favourite venues Crow Hill for Emma and Richards big day, Emma wanted yellow callas as the main theme and loved a design we had done a few years ago for one of Crow Hills wedding fairs, so, of course, we obliged!

InstagramCapture_8eba9d14-cad0-431b-aad2-73c2dea7150aInstagramCapture_b018f65f-5482-4a44-8be7-aaa926e9d8d0I love the way the martini vases matched the favours on the table!!

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End of April saw us travelling to Todmorden and the fabulous venue of Todmorden Unitarian church, a stunning setting for this gorgeous relaxed wedding!

 

Emma and Joby loved the building and decided to have not only their ceremony but also their reception there. Friends and family provided the food, one or two dishes each; I LOVED this idea, call me sentimental but I felt it really summarised what the day is about, friends and family, supporting and celebrating your commitment to each other, it was almost like they were providing the beginning of the marriage, making that first meal, the wedding breakfast for them, beautiful!!

Emma wanted her bouquet to be simple, textured but with a bit of blowse to it (no, apparently that’s not a word but I think it should be). She loved the idea of succulents, and so did Joby for his buttonholes, Craspedia and Brunia were also firm favourites. I loved the bouquet, I had difficulty handing it over, how I’ll ever make decisions on my own day, I don’t know!! Keep your eyes peeled on our Facebook page for more images of the flowers, the day and Emma’s FABULOUS outfit!!

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This week sees the release of the new Alice in Wonderland film, VERY exciting not only because I’m a big fan but also because we’re doing a Alice themed wedding in July, it’s a biggie and it’s going to look AMAZING, even if I do say so myself, I’m going to have the wonderful Liz Baker taking photos of me setting up on the day so I’ll give you an lovely run down of how I prep on a big day. I can’t wait to show you the results!!!