When I make this type of investment, however, it’s important to get my money’s worth. So here are a few tips from my friend, Kim, head floral designer at Emily Joubert Home & Garden:

1. Buy your arrangements from a reputable florist. Top designers like those at Emily Joubert visit the flower market 2-3 times a week. They also develop excellent relationships with the major floral buyers so they get flowers “fresh off the farm or plane” rather than select from buckets on the floor.

2. Aim for free form arrangements rather than those dependent upon floral foam. High end floral designers strip all lower leaves from stems so the water doesn’t get unnecessarily tarnished. Really clean water is essential for fresh flowers. To change the water without disturbing the design, place the container in a sink and carefully run water through it until most of the old water is swapped out.

3. Try to keep your arrangements out of the sun (or warm areas) as much as possible. For example, if you are having a backyard party, keep the flowers in the refrigerator until just before your first guest shows up. I have gotten into the habit of refrigerating my flower arrangements each night to help them last longer.

Take another look at the photo above, it was taken about 30 minutes ago – and this display is a week old today. I can usually make my arrangements last from 10 days to 2 weeks!

4. Selecting the right flowers for an arrangement can have a big impact on its longevity. For example, Kim chose to add hydrangeas because of their unique ability to drink from both the bottom and the top. This means you can give them additional hydration via direct misting.

5. It’s important to re-cut stems from time to time, too. Certain flowers, like hydrangeas, form a seal when they’re cut. This diminishes the amount of water that can travel up the stem. Roses and other soft, gardeny flowers will also benefit from having their stems re-cut. Note: this does not apply to tropical flowers, such as ginger; they hold up longer naturally.

To keep your arrangement looking its best, check it daily and remove any sad or wilting flowers. This will give you a chance to play “floral designer” as you slowly compact your bouquet.

For me, it starts with food, flowers and getting a bit more organized. Like many people, we take it easy during the summer. A memorable vacation (two this year: one to Italy and one to Florida), lots of al fresco dining and, in general, enjoying some much-needed down time.

Fall, however, inspires me to take stock of our home and garden and think about spiffing things up. Now that the cake contest is behind me (full report to come, I promise), I can concentrate on transitioning to one of my favorite seasons.

To get into the right frame of mind, I visited my local nirvana today: Emily Joubert Home & Garden. The amazingly talented Kim created the stunning floral arrangement above and I couldn’t wait to get home and start brainstorming fall menus and party ideas. Some people consult books and magazines, I confer with my style gurus at Emily Joubert.

As luck would have it, they had just unpacked something I’ve been coveting for about a year: a simple, elegant red wine decanter (below).

I bought the white wine version last year and hoped they would re-order so we could have a matching set. Aren’t they gorgeous? Hurry and get yours before they sell out again!

Next, I began playing with a table arrangement.

This inspired me to start thinking about fall menus with red, green and dark purple things: tomatoes (finally ripening in our garden!), apples (also ripe), figs (in the stores) and grapes (versatile). I’m thinking about a dressing up a classic marinara with a little extra onion and some Italian sausage and creating a salad that combines figs, apples, argula and possibly some walnuts and chevre. What do you think?

We visited Crate & Barrel after dinner at the Yard House to see about replacing our old classic-style pasta bowls (having broken our way down to three). After looking at an updated version of the over-sized, indented ones you see at many restaurants, I decided I wanted something a bit more modern to compliment our flat white dishes (which have no indents). So I selected the plain, wide ones shown above. I knew I had bigger ones for soups and stews and I thought these would be a smaller, pasta-oriented size.

Guess what? They are EXACTLY the same ones we already have! So they are going back to the store this weekend. What can I possibly get as a birthday gift instead? If you have any ideas, please let me know!

One last look before I head to the store to get dinner ingredients!

Happy Mother’s Day to all you wonderful mom’s out there! It’s a sincere pleasure getting to know you in person and via the Internet!

Kathy

If you want to see any of them up close, be sure to stop by Emily Joubert on Satuday for their “PJ’s and Peonies” event (11am-2pm, 3036 Woodside Road, Woodside). Kim promises to have some lovely ‘grab and go’ Mother’s Day arrangements on hand just in case your sweetheart wants to make you feel like a queen! Enjoy!

http://emilyjoubert.com/flowers.html

P.S. My absolute favorites are the nest & branch designs… wow!

If you want to throw a similar shower and need help or advice, please contact me!

I have about two more days of photos and details to post – stay tuned!

Our Valentine’s “his” and “hers” roses are going strong… 12 days later! I took this photo a day or two ago and the arrangements still look great, don’t they? I’m convinced the rose quality plays a huge role here (thanks, Kim, and Emily Joubert Home & Garden for selecting such hardy varieties). We haven’t done anything to them either. No cutting the stems, no changing the water. In fact, I’m not sure there’s even water left because I don’t want to disturb my napkin wrappings. It took me a while to get them “just right”.

I’m definitely noting this for future floral arrangement investments. I like to get the biggest bang for my buck and although these were more expensive than say Safeway or a roadside stand, they have lasted three to four times as long. Has anyone else experienced this? Flowers are one of my favorite luxuries and I’m always looking for great, economical ideas. Share away, please!

Above: Last look… doesn’t this view make it look like the flowers are kissing???

P.S. Check out the Valentine’s wonder on Emily Joubert’s Facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Emily-Joubert/101312312858

I photographed this last month for the Emily Joubert website and still cannot get over how absolutely darling it is. This SO makes me wish for a little girl (or at least one to borrow for a tea party party). Any of my mommy friends out there who want to do this, be sure to head over to Emily Joubert to pick up these old-fashioned sundae cups. They are just like you remember if you are of a certain age!

And if you’re a little older than a tween, check out the amazing Valentine’s floral arrangements at http://emilyjoubert.com/flowers.html – I am drooling over the ‘Table for Two’ arrangement. The intertwined fiddle head ferns make a charming heart and the flowers can be done as reds, pinks or purples depending upon your fancy. Happy almost Valentine’s everyone!

P.S. If you order a flower arrangement at Emily Joubert before 5PM tomorrow, you will automatically be entered into a drawing for a free Mother’s Day arrangement (that might be a two for one for one of you!

Well, I wanted to give you a quick update – they are still going! I cleaned out the two repurposed arrangements and consolidated the freshest looking items in a single vase (and eliminated that pesky residual floral foam!).

The succulents were an inspired choice and I’m so thankful to Kat at Emily Joubert Home & Garden for suggesting them; we’re at 50+ days and I couldn’t be happier to have stretched my splurge this far. And although we’re getting ready to decorate for Halloween, I can’t let go of my attachment to the luscious green represented here (green is my all-time favorite color).

Has anyone experienced something similar? I’m always looking for tips to get the most out of my home decor budget!
 

I think the key is to have the arrangement contain a mix of short-life and longer-lasting flowers and/or elements but I am going to defer to the experts. I was at Emily Joubert Home & Garden this morning photographing the amazing (adult!) Halloween decor they just received (please note that I am not a professional photographer but am reasonably qualified to take shots for EJ’s Facebook page). I got into conversation with Judy (owner/dear friend) and Kat (floral designer extraordinaire) and we realized others may want to learn how to stretch their floral arrangements as well.

Note, if you will, in the photos below my rookie mistake of leaving a bit of floral foam on the ends of the succulents – clearly, I need a good lesson from Kat!

Kat has agreed to give a few online lessons via video so be sure to tune into the forthcoming segments at http://www.emilyjoubert.com (look for an announcment mid next month!).

If you want to see the stunning Emily Joubert arrangements in their original glory, please go to:

http://dirtandsunshine.posterous.com/helping-my-hubby-tie-one-on

The Idaho burlap for the tablecloth is from Joann Fabrics ($1.99/yard – yeah!) and the black & white checked napkins are from Sur La Table. I used Judy’s terrific rosemary sprig napkin ring idea from last fall’s SCENE magazine lunch (see posts tagged Girls’ Fall Luncheon) and oversized low bowls and plates from Crate & Barrel (so versatile!). The old-fashioned candy bars were purchased at Powell’s Sweet Shop (locations in Campbell and Los Gatos); I picked a different one for each guy.

The font for the invitation and placecards is Trade Gothic Extended and the stock photo image of the brown tie is from Veer.

The flowers*, of course, are from Emily Joubert Home & Garden in Woodside (http://www.emilyjoubert.com). I could not stop photographing them all afternoon, hence the many different views below! I asked Kat (EJ floral designer) for something masculine and she created two of the most beautiful arrangements I’ve ever seen. I love that she added many varieties of succulents – prickly and dangerous/yet inviting are very masculine qualities, don’t you think?

I repeated the succulents as candles on the cake trio – Paul really liked the aesthetic simplicity and the tie-in with the flower arrangements and aluminum potted cactus on the bar. The bar was put together by covering a beige plastic table with tin foil, then adding a few woven placemats to make it look more rustic. The gorgeous urn holding the beer is Arte Italica pewter; I love how it made a nice focal point and brought a bit more metal to the decor. I then used glass vases to hold pretzel slims, peanuts in the shell and chocolate-covered peanuts.

Lastly, I put together a small outside table for Dane and Tate; it was really wonderful to see the guys drag the boys’ table over to the main one so they could be part of the action.

If you want to re-create some or all of this and want a bit of help or advice, please contact me!

*flowers include red roses, hydrangea, cymbidium orchids, succulents, and fiddle head fern curls.