Winter at the NYC Flower Market
Even with the impending bitter cold, spring is making its way into our hearts yet again with beautiful tulips, peonies and blooming bulb plants. A late afternoon visit to the flower market on West 28th street between 6th and 7th avenues gave me a chance to escape the noise of the city and take in all the vibrant colors. These miniature daffodils are happy and bright!
I was happy to see one of my favorites even in the dead of winter. These peonies are imported from Chile where they are currently in season.
Winter is a great time to get blooming branches like forsythia, quince and cherry blossoms. When you pass by them at the market they might look like dried up sticks but hammer the ends of the stems and put them in warm water. After a few weeks they will be in full bloom and last such a long time! Check out these blooming quince we found in the market.
Another great spring flower with a subtle scent are sweet peas. They come in vibrant colors and are great for wedding bouquets or in a simple vase.
These kumquat branches and ornithogalum are a great shade of orange and offer a fresh look for arrangements. Kumquats are fun to use all winter and have a citrus fruit hanging from them.
French and parrot tulips covered the market along with fragrant hyacinth. Looks like spring to me!
There are so many more and gorgeous flowers at the NYC flower market, even in winter. Stop downtown and take a look at all the great flowers, plants and things they have to offer!
Get inspired!
2012 Land Rover Evoque Premiere at the Guggenheim
The new Land Rover Evoque made its mark on the Guggenheim this past November as a local dealership hosted an event to show off their newest addition. We were excited to be working with them and helping to design the concept for their space and bring in the decor for the event. When we arrived at the Guggenheim prior to the event we were fascinated by the amazing piece currently on display. The artist, Maurizio Cattelan, is credited with creating some of the most unforgettable images in recent contemporary art. The pieces were suspended from the ceiling in a fashion that provided a unique perspective from each level.
The dealership brought in this amazing metal and wire model sculpture of the new Evoque. The life size work of art looked like it belonged at the Guggenheim as a permanent display piece. Once they got the lighting setup the piece really came to life and set the mood.
During the cocktail hour we kept the arrangements clean and simple using stainless steel cube vases filled with white peonies and folded Thai leaves.
The bar arrangements were housed in large stainless steel cylinder vases filled with curly willow, white peonies, white hydrangea and folded leaves.
We were inspired by the great art and architecture of the Guggenheim when making the pieces for this event. Everything came together perfectly and the event went as smooth as possible. A great venue to enhance with flowers and we were so lucky to be able to experience the great art!
A Stunning Holiday Party in Connecticut
Before the New Year, In Bloom New York traveled north of the city to arrange flowers for a special holiday party at a private home. Our designers tailored the arrangements to suit the interior décor while maintaining a holiday feel.
The main hallway boasted two large arrangements combining flowering quince branches, naked seeded eucalyptus, white garden roses, white amaryllis, white hydrangea as well as mini green hydrangea.
Parker Voss – one of our designers – between the main hall and dining room arrangements.
The dining room centerpiece incorporated similar elements to the hallway arrangements but with amnesia roses for soft color.
The four niches in the library became the perfect display area for four very artful arrangements of red amarayllis and dried cecropia leaves. The result appeared both substantial and sculptural.
Instead of a traditional garland for the mantel, we chose a simple yet impactful pairing of red, white and green arrangements using amaryllis and anemones in leaf-wrapped containers.
The simplest arrangment such as this fishbowl with amnesia roses gave finishing touches to the upstairs landing/coat-check area.
Fresh cut greens like those added to these jardiniers bring any room to life. We also added Spanish moss to the wrought iron chandeliers wrapped in grape vines.
Thank you to everyone for all the compliments on our interpretation and display of holiday florals for a wonderful private party!
-Parker Voss
Winter Holiday Party at Celsius, Bryant Park
In Bloom kicked off the holiday season with a string of events at one of our favorite venues for winter holiday parties, Celsius at Bryant Park. We dressed up this ‘glass house’-style restaurant, bar and event space – an ideal winter wonderland – for a festive and memorable client appreciation party on December 2, a date which coincided with the tree lighting at the Pond at Bryant Park.
In order to transform the pop-up venue for our client, we remodeled the environment by using floral and winter branch arrangements, renting furniture, custom ordering monogrammed pillows, arranging for gobo lighting, as well as staging an ice sculpture showcasing the exact company logo.
Plant partitions, which normally demarcate the open upstairs area with views of the big tree and skating rink, became attractive dividers between the lounge and cocktail areas. We draped the partitions in custom-cut white linens with mirrored surfaces on top of which we placed white manzanita branch structures with hanging mercury glass votive candles.
In addition to the larger installations and standing birch branch arrangements, the table arrangements incorporated more branches than straight florals, contributing to the “winter woodsy” effect imagined by the client. The design included white birch branches and white-dipped thistles in glass cylinders with realistic wet “snow.” The smaller arrangements for the seven cocktail tables evoked snowflake clusters of the same white thistles in metallic towers.
For the bar, we delivered an orchid trio: the largest arrangement being white birch branches with white cymbidiums in a birch-wrapped container, the next a submerged phalaenopsis with pale river rocks, and finally a bunch of spraying dendrobium orchids.
We were just as pleased as the client with the overall transformation and thank everyone for the rave reviews!
-Parker Voss
Skintimate Studios Event
Another night in NYC and another amazing event honoring the winner of the first Skintimate Studios all-girl film program. Skintmate, the #1 women’s shave prep brand, provided teenage girls with an opportunity to work alongside Director Gail Mancuso to see what it really takes to make a movie. The winning group of ladies, Team S.O.S. saw their 12 minute short film “Save our School” premiered at Skylight West followed by a true NYC after party. DJ Mia Moretti and electronic violist Caitlin Moe played while celebrity guests Molly Simms and Jessica Lowndes enjoyed popcorn and signature cocktails.
Inspired by the New York City skyline, the barscape adeptly showcased the new Skintimate line of shave gel. Vases of contrasting shapes and sizes incorporated florals in varying shades of pink. Roses, daisies, lisianthus and antique pink hydrangeas are just some of the blooms used.
To view more photos of the event, click here!
Enjoy!
Campari 150th Anniversary Party: Design & Planning
Negroni? Campari & Soda? Campari & orange juice? Which is your favorite Campari drink? I am a sucker for a Campari on the rocks with a splash of soda and orange...always delightful on a hot summer day like today...
I'm regressing now! Back to the topic at hand - Campari! Dating back to 1860, this aperitif is one of the most recognizable in the world, primarily due to the brand's beautiful advertisements that have been captivating consumers and art collectors alike for over a century now. This past May, Campari celebrated their 150th Anniversary at The Bowery Hotel and In Bloom New York was asked to create the flower displays as well as the environmental decor for the fete.
The evening was produced by the Art Production Fund, with a special musical performance and never-before-seen works of art by Kalup Linzy. Co-hosting the event were mixologists Tony Abou-Ganim, Jacques Bezuidenhout, Marco Dionysos, Francesco Lafranconi, Lynnette Marrero, Eric Alperin & Allen Katz as well as Manhattan Cocktail Classic and United States Bartenders' Guild.
There were a many elements that we needed to design for this event including bar displays, floral decorations for their vintage advertisements, a large-scale logo for stage backdrop, a photo booth display, one significant entry table design as well as several table centerpieces. We knew we wanted to create something entirely new and fresh while still maintaining Campari's classic brand and image.
Our immediate inspiration came from an antique birdcage at our hands as well as Alexander Mcqueen's 2008 Spring/Summer Butterfly headdress. We wanted there to be whimsy and also an element of darkness in this Campari garden.
First, we began brainstorming for the main installaion that would set the mood for the additional design elements. Envisioning the large antique birdcage coupled with a mannequin on display, we quickly put together a mock-up to get a feel of the layout. We conceived this display based on the image of a beautiful woman who lives in a garden with hair of butterflies and dresses in a bodice of flowers. Reaching out, she embodies an eternal desitre for this bottle housed behind the overgrowth of the antique birdcage.
As for producing this imagination, we first needed to create the bodice for the mannequin. After mapping out the pattern in pencil, we individually hot-glued every petal and ruscus leaf onto the heart shape-leotard. We simply used two elements to keep the design clean and fresh: dark green Italian Ruscus and red rose petals.
We built the boddice from the bottom upward with Italian Ruscus to achieve the effect of organic growth. Ruscus ended up being the perfect plant to achieve this goal.
Next, we added the rose petals one by one. Since the hot glue changed the color of the petal, we needed to ensure that we covered these areas by an overlapping petal. We initially thought to use silk flowers instead of fresh florals but decided against it, keeping in mind that we would have to house the mannequin in our floral refrigerator until the following day to keep the petals fresh.
The last element that we were able to prep in advance was the wisteria and branch design on the antique birdcage. We used branches varying in width, choosing the most twisted and interesting pieces.
Part 2 to follow with photos of the event!
Great Bridal Expo in New York
In Bloom New York participated in the Great Bridal Expo held on Friday April 9, 2010 at the Marriott Marquis hotel in Times Square. We were very excited to be involved in this bridal show - it was a great opportunity to meet prospective brides and new vendors. We decided to go against the grain and chose three high cocktail tables instead of the traditional long table. The individual tables allowed us to showcase two different designs and color schemes instead of having a hodgepodge of arrangements and bouquets on a single table.
Our table on the left involved a primarily pink and white color scheme. The tall centerpiece consisted of white Cherry Blossoms, white Cymbidium Orchids, gorgeous Antiqued Hydrangeas, pops of yellow Oncidium Orchids and pink Lisianthus. We left the design very natural and free flowing, allowing the flowers and branches to mix together well.
The matching bridal bouquet consisted of white Cymbidium Orchids and the Antiqued Hydrangeas. We chose not to add every flower included in the large centerpiece to remain clean and simple. We added three sterling silver julep cups filled with pink Lisianthus and pink Cherry Blossoms to complete the look. The heavy-weight cotton linen we chose was in a Berry tone that added beautiful, contrasting color to the overall floral design.
For the second display, we decided to go with a black and white theme using green flowers as the pop of color. We fell in love with this Black Etoile Print heavy cotton linen at Party Rental Ltd and made use of this substantial black glass urn for the tall centerpiece. Since we picked a busy linen we decided on a simple arrangement of green dogwood branches. Always delicate and beautiful, flowering dogwood branches can come in either green, white, pink or red.
We added 6 haning, mercury glass votives from the branches as well as several mercury glass cups filled with green Snap Dragons, Mini Hydrangeas, and green Roses. We created a beautiful bouquet with green Cymbidium Orchids, green Roses, green Hypericum Berries, and green Mini Hydrangeas. This bouquet seemed to please everyone for its simple color scheme yet luxurious texture.
Thank you again to all the brides that came out on Friday to the Great Bridal Expo and who entered in our raffle contest. In Bloom New York appreciates your support. Don't forget to check back this week for a view of our full set up at the Wedding Salon event at the Roosevelt Hotel on Monday April, 12th.
