I love flowers. Absolutely LOVE them. And I love being surrounded by them in the shop. So, it’s probably not a surprise that I take flowers home with me, though I don’t have an abundance of them, as some might expect. I spend most of my day at the shop, so just a small touch of flowers at home is perfect for me.
Garden roses on my kitchen table
I think of my kitchen as the center of my home, both physically and emotionally (!), and there’s usually a small vase of flowers on the kitchen table, next to the PC. Having coffee in the morning, reading the news via the internet, with a simple, yet beautiful vase of flowers next to me is the ideal way to start the day. Usually there’s a cat nearby as well!
I often use a cluster of 3 small vases (vintage milk bottles, mason jars, or bud vases) in which to put some of the blooms I’ve been admiring from the shop.
So, yes, in just above every way, I take my work home with me.
“What do you have?” That’s a questions some of our customers ask when they call to place an order. The full answer would be a long list, so we usually just respond with a short list.
We describe FlowersFlowers as a European style flower shop. What does that mean? It means we have a wide variety of flower types, we sell the flowers by the stem, and it’s a market driven variety. The flowers are easily accessible to customers who walk into the shop; they can walk around and see what we have, the costs are posted, and they can pull the stems themselves to make an arrangement, or can ask for our assistance. We are unique in our area to sell flowers in this manner.
So, what IS available on this cold and windy day in January when we have a blizzard warning that is expected to dump 24+ inches of snow on us? The flowers come from distance warmer (!) places, and I’d like to share a sampling of them with you, via photos on the internet!
The callas ranging from shades of orange to burgundy are from Holland, the mokara orchids are from Thailand, and the bold yellow freesia is from California.
We have green and burgundy hypericum from South America, pink and white stock from California, and hydrangea from New Zealand. There’s also fragrant mimosa, snowy ginestra, pastel lisianthus, and much more!
And, then of course there’s the bunches of colorful tulips, fragrant hyacinths, and delicate muscari, all from Holland.
When you walk into the shop in January, you transition from the cold Midwest wind and snow to the warm fragrant abundance of FlowersFlowers. The spring flowers let you imagine it’s April in Chicago, before you head back out into the cold again. Hopefully you’ve chosen a few blooms to take home with you.
Photos in this blog were taken by the talented Rebecca Plotnick. My many thanks to her for capturing the essence of the flowers.
When the temperatures are in the single digits here in the Chicago area, and there’s snow and ice everywhere outdoors, it’s time to focus on the indoor decor!
You can have a beautiful winter arrangement of magnolia, pine, cedar, berries, and varieties of eucalyptus to bring life into your home.
For a more traditional Christmas holiday decor, consider tradition with a contemporary twist by having your arrangement in a glass vase. This arrangement is red and white roses, ginestra, winterberry, lilies, and cedar, designed in a clear glass square vase with a wide ribbon wrapped around the vase.
Another option to consider is a winter arrangement of whites and blues, shown here with blue thistle, white ranunculus, anemones, silver/grey berzilia, and dusty miller.
Whether it’s a single stem or a larger arrangement, always bring some flowers in to warm up your home.
The bad news is that the flowers and plants have died, and the leaves have fallen. 
The good news is that you can decorate outside your home, and it will last all winter! 
FlowersFlowers has greens (magnolia, pine, cedar), winterberry, and dogwood, along with wreaths for your door. This is one of the the pair of urns we decorated for one of the beautiful homes here in Evanston.
Here’s what the outside of our shop looks like as we approach the month of December (makes you want to come in, right?)…
Time to Decorate (part 2) will provide you with ideas and possibilities for indoor decorations. Stay tuned for more from the blog!
Want to make an impact on your local economy?
You can!
That’s the main message of The 3/50 Project. The basic numbers are simple, from their website:
3
Select 3 independent brick and mortar businesses you would miss if they disappeared.
50
If half the employed population spent $50 at 3 locally owned independent stores, it would generate more then 42 billion (!) in revenue
68
For every $100 spent in locally owned independent businesses, $68 returns to the community through taxes, payroll, etc. vs. only $43 if spent at a national chain vs. $0 if spent online.
1
The number of people it takes to make a difference. YOU can make a difference.
LOTS and LOTS of WEDDINGS this summer!
Here are some photos to share:
I’m LOVING white flowers…..peonies, dahlias, clematis, astilbe, arabicum, tulips. I designed this fresh and summery arrangement for a party tomorrow.
It’s official……we’ve moved to 1110 Davis Street, and I absolutely LOVE the new space. We’re directly across the street from the main Evanston post office, and we have tons of natural light with a big front window, a wide street in front (with lots of traffic), a busy walking traffic neighborhood (particularly down the block from the Davis Street Metra and CTA station), and, it’s just wonderful.
I’m pleased to see both long time (‘old’) customers in the shop as well as new customers newly discovering us! And, our phones are as busy as always.
The shop has an airy feel with the very high ceilings, and the new storage area (full basement!) is wonderful. We look forward to being re-discovered, and discovered anew.
Moving day is coming up for FlowersFlowers…..yes, we’re moving from our long standing location on Dempster Street and moving to the exciting ‘downtown’ Evanston neighborhood (ok, it’s just 5 blocks away, but a whole different neighborhood!) at 1110 Davis Street.
We will be directly across the street from the Evanston main post office!
Other new neighbors include:
TinkTinks http://www.tinktinks.com/
Grateful Yoga http://www.gratefulyoga.com/
Margarita European Inn http://www.margaritainn.com/
Bennison’s Bakery http://www.bennisonscakes.com/
Lemoi Ace Hardware http://www.acehardware.com/
Bramer Animal Hospital http://www.brameranimalhospital.com/
Tom Thumb Hobby & Crafts http://www.tomthumbcrafts.com/
Pine Yard Restaurant http://www.pineyardrestaurant.com/
And, many more!
We are now part of Downtown Evanston http://www.downtownevanston.org/
Moving day is Saturday, May 22nd, and we plan to be closed just for the day, opening at 1110 Davis on Monday, May 24th. It’s very exciting, and I can’t wait to be in our new digs.
MOTHER’S DAY IS SUNDAY, MAY 9TH!!!
Here’s a couple of inspirational photos.
Wonderfully fragrant lily of the valley with pink peonies and sweet peas. Delightful!
A spring garden arrangement of lilac, roses, hyacinths, viburnum and ranunculus
Time to start thinking about ordering your Mother’s Day flowers!
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