Inspiration | B Floral

Happy Earth Day

Today is Earth Day and also the start of Bloomberg’s New Energy Finance Summit which discusses the future of energy at the Grand Hyatt. We had the opportunity to decorate Bank of America’s conference and reception rooms for the Summit and decided to keep with the sustainable, green theme of the conference. Events can easily be made environmentally conscious by simply taking a few steps. One major way is to not purchase cut flowers to decorate, instead choose potted ones that can be used to well after the event or even planted outdoors. For today’s event we chose to repot white orchids in modern silver vases and place wheat grass in small silver square vases. The end look was clean, modern and best of all, sustainable.

Grand Hyatt Lobby

Orchid grass

photo[7] photo[6] Conference Table

Spring Flowers

Well we are going to waste no time over here and start talking about Spring! I think everyone is ready for it and last week it officially arrived. Although even though Spring is here, the weather does not seem to have gotten the memo. Well anyway, since it’s finally here we wanted to give you a list of our favorite seasonal flowers that can be found in Spring.

1. Hyacinth

Hyacinth

2. Tulip

Tulips

3. Anemone

Anemone

4. Ranunculus

Ranunculus

5. Peony

Peonies

6. Sweet Pea

Sweet Pea

7. Poppy

Poppy

Spring Colors

Pantone has released their Spring 2013 Color Report and all of the bright colors like Sunflower, Vibrant Orange, Poppy Red, and the color of the year, Emerald, have got us very excited for the upcoming season.

Pantone Spring Colors

I love all the punchy, whimsical colors and can’t wait to see them incorporated in upcoming events. Some of my favorite pairings are nectarine and grayed jay, Tender Shoots and Emerald, and Monaco Blue and Poppy Red.

And the award goes to…

My favorite award show, as I’m sure is everyone else’s, is the Oscars. There is just so much glitz and glamour that it’s impossible to not get caught up in it. From the pre-show seeing all of the gorgeous dresses, to the award show where we see what movies prove to be the best, to the after parties where the stars let loose and seem just a little more real, I love it all. It’s also the perfect night to host a party and here at B Floral that’s what we’re about. We’ve compiled some great ideas from all around the Internet and infused a few of our own ideas so you can host your own award worthy party this Sunday.

The Design…

If you’re planning a get-together with your girlfriends, Lauren Conrad’s blog has some inspired design ideas as well as great free printables. I especially love the idea of a popcorn bar!

Free Printables Popcorn Bar

The Glitter Guide designed a Sweet and Simple Oscars Viewing Party and has lots of DIYs to share. I love all of the gold they’ve incorporated!

Oscars Straws Oscars Design

The Food…

Obviously a party wouldn’t be a party without food. Epicurious has some very creative Oscar-nominated movie inspired menus.

Coconut Cake

If you want to keep it easy, Glitter Guide has some simple and healthy food recipes like Roasted Chickpeas.

Chickpeas

The Cocktails…

A traditional cocktail like the Sidecar screams Old Hollywood.

Sidecar

Jazz up some champagne with a little mandarin liqueur.

Mandarin

The Huffington Post shares lots of mouth-watering movie inspired cocktails like “Summertime Tea” created for the movie The Help.

Cocktail

If you’re looking to make it a night out instead of hosting an event, Guest of Guest has created a great list of places to watch the Oscars all around New York City.

Weekly Roundup

If you haven’t seen or heard yet, we threw our 2nd anniversary bash last week. You can read about it here and see it here and here. Make sure you check out the photos because they were shot by Raquel Bianca and I’m obsessed with them.

B Floral Party

Anyway, this weekend is a pretty big one for some people, it’s the Super Bowl. I hope everyone will be watching the game while at a great get-to-together and enjoying delicious food and cocktails. Fun fact: Super Bowl Sunday is the second largest day of food consumption in the United States, right after Thanksgiving.

I’ll leave you now with a Super Bowl themed roundup…

1. Blood Orange Sangria, sounds pretty awesome to sip on game day.

Blood Orange Sangria

2. I prefer snacking on appetizers all day rather than one large meal and these from Real Simple look mouth watering.

Chicken

3. Scratch the whole only appetizers thing, this Cheddar and Ale Soup with Potato and Bacon needs to be made for your guests.

Cheddar Soup

4. These free printable Super Bowl bingo cards are adorable.

Super Bowl Bingo

5. I love the idea of these Super Bowl commercial rating score cards. You can find the free printables here.

Score Cards

Winter Whites

All of us at B Floral sincerely hope everyone had a wonderful holiday season and a happy New Year! Can you believe that the holidays are already over? I’m sure I sound just like everyone else, but they really go by so fast and before you know it we’ll be in the dead of winter.

Winter always brings to mind the color white for me, must be the snow. White is such a sophisticated and elegant color for events and I love the look of layering different shades of white. Inspired by Matchbook Magazines Color Palette of the Week, we’ve put together our own white color palette to help inspire you.

Holiday Table Inspiration

Since the holidays are filled with dinner parties and entertaining guests, we wanted to share some of our favorite easy tablescape designs that just about anyone can put together. Simple touches create a dramatic impact with these designs and the best part is they won’t take but a bit of time to put together.

1. Inexpensive pinecones and evergreens mingle with beautiful mercury glass votive holders and hand printed candles in this gorgeous tablescape from Stylizimo. The easy hand printed candle tutorial can be found here and would also be great for gifting.

2. I love mixing gold and silver together when it comes to holiday decor because it creates such an elegant look. Filling glass vessels with ornaments is not only easy but is visually stunning (via Style At Home).

3. Wrapping cinnamon sticks around a plain candle will not only create a holiday look but also will make your table smell amazing. Cluster together candles of varying heights and sizes for a simple yet elegant centerpiece.

4. If you’re looking to infuse a bit of color into your tablescape, these topiaries from Better Homes and Gardens, made out of cranberries, are just the ticket. They’re super simple, using just toothpicks, foam balls, and cranberries but have dramatic look.

5. Another one of my favorite color palettes is green and gold. What really makes this tablescape special are the gold dipped glasses.

Here’s a DIY tutorial to make your own gold dipped glassware that would also work perfectly for a New Years bash.

Or you can purchase the Midas Collection Glassware from Design Within Reach. Amazing, yes I know.

And the Winner Is…

If you haven’t heard yet, Pantone announced their color of the year for 2013. The winner is Emerald! “Lively. Radiant. Lush… A color of elegance and beauty that enhances our sense of well-being, balance and harmony.”

Most often associated with brilliant, precious gemstones, the perception of Emerald is sophisticated and luxurious. Since antiquity, this luminous, magnificent hue has been the color of beauty and new life in many cultures and religions. Also the color of growth, renewal and prosperity, no other color conveys regeneration more than green. For centuries, many countries have chosen green to represent healing and unity.

“The most abundant hue in nature, the human eye sees more green than any other color in the spectrum,” said Leatrice Eiseman, executive director of the Pantone Color Institute®. “As it has throughout history, multifaceted Emerald continues to sparkle and fascinate. Symbolically, Emerald brings a sense of clarity, renewal and rejuvenation, which is so important in today’s complex world. This powerful and universally-appealing tone translates easily to both fashion and home interiors.”

That’s a Wrap

Although it’s only December 6th, the holidays are fast approaching. I’m usually someone that puts off holiday shopping until the last minute but that sometimes takes away from all of the excitement of trying to find the perfect gift for someone and taking the time to wrap them oh so perfectly. This year I’m vowing to start earlier so I can enjoy the process more, find perfect gifts without stress, and wrap them in special ways to complete the whole gift giving process. There are a ton of gift wrapping ideas and inspiration on the internet but here are a few of my favorites that can be used for your host/hostess, family, friends, and significant others.

First things first…the supplies:

Oh So Beautiful Paper has a roundup of their favorite pretty holiday wrapping paper, gift tags, and ribbon. They also have a really great curated selection of holiday cards that you can shop on their site.

My obsession with Etsy grows more and more every month but they have everything you could possibly need for gift wrapping and the holidays. From paper to ribbon to stamps to fun accents you name it and you can probably find it on there.

Now on to the inspiration:

Woodland Wrapping by Odessa May Society
DIY Tutorial on Festive Gift Wrapping by Oh So Beautiful Paper
Gold Accented Holiday Gift Wrap by 100 Layer Cake
Wax Paper Bow Tutorial by Whipper Berry

Weekly Roundup

It’s just about the weekend, and tomorrow is December 1st! I know most people start decorating and getting into the holiday spirit right after Thanksgiving (some before but that’s just crazy to me because I need to be fully concentrating on that glorious meal) but for me, December 1st is that official marker that it’s time for the holidays. This week we sent out our holiday cards and decorated an office for the holidays so it’s been making me very excited for the holidays to “officially” begin. Hope you all have a great weekend and now for the roundup…

1. I love the idea of this self serve hot toddy station complete with napkins that had instructions to make the cocktail printed on them.

Hot Toddy Station

2. I have been craving hot cocktails ever since the temperature dropped and here are a few that have caught our eye…Spicy Aztec Hot Chocolate, 15 Cider Recipes that all look amazing, Spiked Pumpkin Pie White Hot Chocolate, Spiked Hot Chocolate Ice Pops, and Orange Spiked Hot Chocolate.

Orange Spiked Hot Chocolate

3. I love the idea of spray painting a store bought wreath (from Real Simple). Try using gold for a classic look or white for a winter wonderland effect.

Pine Cone Wreath

4. Looking for creative wrapping ideas and adorable holiday cards? Check out Design Sponge’s Gift Guide: Cards and Gift Wrap Post, The Ellinee Journal’s list of favorite materials for gift wrapping, and these Free Printable Holiday Knit Gift Tags from Eat Drink Chic.

Printable Gift Tags