Flower Delivery London - Valentine's Giveaway

Flower Delivery London - Valentine's Giveaway

If ever there was a year to embrace Valentine's Day, it is surely this one. This year we all need that bit more kindness, love and excuse to treat ourselves and others. We've teamed up with Kemp Kitchen and MASAJ to run a give-away; adding some treats for someone you love to win in addition to a flower delivery in London.  Between us, we've got every type of love covered. Here is what we are all offering this Valentine’s Day with details of how to enter our give-away.

A feast for the eyes – Valentine’s Flower Delivery London

I don’t find it much of a challenge to design bouquets at this time of year – early Spring flowers are some of my very favourites and feature in this year Valentine’s arrangements. I’m using the biggest most premium peach ranunculus available, with ranunculus support acts in dark red and a ruffly peach number. Tulips are at the core of everything I make in this season and this bouquet is no exception; I am using three varieties in a soft pink, a chocolate and a tall French white tulip. Possibly the most exciting element to the bouquet lies dormant upon arrival: magnolia buds will eventually open in your homes and though their beauty is ephemeral, they are worth the wait and the fleeting moment. Our Valentine’s bouquets come in four sizes, ranging from £45 - £110.

Purchase a Valentine’s Day Flower Delivery in London here.

Relax and indulge – MASAJ awakens the senses

MASAJ, East London based bodywork studio, are sending their aromatherapy goods and partnership products nationwide. As a company they endeavour to make all of their processes and products wholly sustainable. All of their products are 100% natural and are handmade in small batches, from their essential oil blends to their soy candles.

Their ‘Love Bundle’ contains:

• Limited Edition 100% pure essential oils MASAJ LOVE Candle (100g) (Lemon, Bergamot and Patchouli)

• MASAJ Pink Himalayan Salt (500g)

• Land Chocolate (60g) - Vegan option available

• Mini MASAJ Studio Oil (50ml)

• Handwritten ‘Make Hearts Happy’ Postcard

You can upgrade your Bundle by choosing to add a Perlesque Selene Palm Massager to the set and/or add a 30, 60 or 90 Minute MASAJ Treatment Voucher for the ultimate upgrade - valid for 6 months from the date their Studios are able to safely reopen.

Purchase a MASAJ Love Bundle here.

Eat your heart out – Kemp Kitchen’s Valentine’s Box

Usually working in food styling and shoot catering, El of Kemp Kitchen, was one of the very first to turn her hand to home meals in the face of the pandemic, and in addition, fed many who were going without. As one of the many ‘pivot experiments’, we partnered up then, adding London flower delivery to her meals by bike. After the success of her Christmas hampers, she has packaged her ‘Valentine’s Box’, a collection of her most loved treats available for nationwide delivery. Perfect for Valentine’s, Galentines, or to send in the post to someone you miss.

The Valentines Box includes

• 4 brown butter chocolate blondies

• 6 coconut macaroons

• Jar of Seville & blood orange marmalade

• Jar of chilli jam

• A bag of Kemp Kitchen buckwheat granola

• Raspberry & pistachio dark chocolate

• Halen Môn Bloody Mary ketchup

Kemp Kitchen are donating 10% of the profits to St Mungo’s, a charity working tirelessly to end homelessness.

Purchase Kemp Kitchen’s Valentine’s Box here.

Flower Delivery London – How to enter our London Valentine's Giveaway

Win the ultimate Valentine’s Day treat for someone you love. You/they could win:

• A Limited Edition MASAJ LOVE Bundle

• A Kemp Kitchen Valentine's Box

• ​A Still Life Flowers Valentine's Bouquet

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​All you have to do is:
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​✔️Follow ALL THREE brands on Instagram @stilllifeflowers @masajme_ @kempkitchen
​✔️Like the relevant post of their pages
​✔️Tag someone who deserves to win this glorious prize!
​

Each comment counts as a new entry, and we'll combine all the entries across each brands' posts to select a winner at random at 6pm on Monday 8th February. Because we're all in need of a little love this February, MASAJ will send a Treatment Voucher to the winning entrant too.
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Good luck to all entrants…and for those that don’t want to take their chances, here is a link to our Valentine’s Flowers for London Delivery.

London Wedding Flowers - Five Floral Design Ideas for a More Sustainable Wedding

London Wedding Flowers - Five Floral Design Ideas for a More Sustainable Wedding

Let me start by saying I am no expert on this subject! I am far from perfect when it comes to my actions that impact the planet. Though I have long been sustainably minded, more recently the impact I have personally, and more widely speaking the industry that I work in has on the planet, has become a point of focus. I can’t claim to be a total eco warrior but bit by bit I am trying to live and work more sustainably. The irony of working with a natural product for such a special occasion, juxtaposed against the incredible waste the industry creates, is sometimes heart-breaking. Reports suggest that last year in the UK somewhere close to 4,910 tonnes of unrecyclable plastic was used and left behind at weddings. When it comes to tackling such a gigantean issue, the numbers feel overwhelming. I write this as no know-it-all but I believe that small choices made by all will make a difference. I want to walk you through five ways that make for a more sustainable wedding through your flower and design choices. 

1. Find a sustainable wedding florist who doesn’t use floral foam

Floral foam bricks soak up water like a sponge, that florists use to keep flowers both fresh and in place in arrangements. In many instances it has previously been a fall back for me. Despite it’s practicality, floral foam is highly toxic and most notably not bio-gradable. To think of how many bricks of floral foam that go to landfill is quite sickening.

Thankfully more and more florists are choosing to go #foamfree – a hashtag as well as #nofloralfoam to look out for when seeking out a more sustainable florist. Floral foam is certainly more reliable and easier to work with but there are many design tricks and mechanics available to us florists to create more sustainable wedding flowers. I now actively don’t use it unless there is no other option.

2. Choose seasonal flowers, and where you can, choose British

The carbon footprint of flowers is just staggering. A lot of flowers are grown in Holland, Italy and France, however flowers are imported from across the world; most roses are grown in Kenya, Ecuador and Columbia.

There are many reasons to go British: most obviously for the sustainability factor, but the quality and charm of British stems is second to none. Rather than being mass farmed under a single light source that create your supermarket super straight stems, British growers put relentless hours into their fields that produce stems with shape and character.

It would be highly misleading for me to not acknowledge that I do use imported flowers.  British grown flowers are amazing but the UK is playing catch up in this arena. Unfortunately, varieties grown here are limited and the vase life of these often delicate stems doesn't contend with those grown in Europe and beyond. My clients demands often can’t be fulfilled with British grown, but I think being mindful of where the flowers I choose are grown is a start. I limit purchases that have come from afar and make the more sustainable choice where there is such an option, always preferencing British grown.

3. Consider using dried flowers for your sustainable wedding arrangements

As well as being a fashionable choice, using dried flowers for your wedding is also a sustainable one. Many of the dried flowers I use for sustainable wedding displays have had a previous life which I just love. Collecting, drying out and holding onto certain stems for the right calling, rather than going to waste brings me a lot of joy. Where I have been able to repurpose dried flowers I have also passed on some of the financial saving to the client as well. If dried flowers are on your moodboard, have a conversation with your florist about which pieces you would like to take home and which that youre happy for your florist to reuse for other work.

4. Make your flowers work harder by re-using arrangements

Despite the beauty and romance created with an abundance of beautiful blooms, some floral arrangements (especially those used for your ceremony) may only be seen by you and your guests for a matter of hours, sometimes minutes. You can achieve having the look of more flowers throughout your day by asking your florists’ input on how your displays can either be moved, say from one venue to another, or entirely repurposed to make another arrangement using the same flowers.

Don’t necessarily expect this to save you the equivalent money spent on a second arrangement; the time spent moving or repurposing your flowers will increase your labour costs but will keep waste to a low.

5. Re-use and gift – be prepared to make giving out flowers a smooth process

Following on from point 4, sometimes there aren’t ways to reuse your flowers, perhaps because of the types of flowers being used or the flow of your day means that a conspicuous operation reusing and resetting isn’t possible. Where it is feasible, I have started asking my couples whether they would like their flowers to be made into bunches for guests to take home at the end of the evening. This works particularly well for the ceremony flowers that often are left behind or larger displays that still have long stems suitable for a vase at home. In scenarios where your florist may not be able to facilitate this, it can be a good idea to have twine and scissors to hand so that your guests can help themselves at the end of the night.

Wedding centrepieces, depending on how they have been arranged, are often best not dismantled! We usually arrange our wedding centrepieces in chicken wire held in low bowls. To create our signature dynamic shapes, many stems are cut particularly short to create that in-out effect. I’ve known some couples to assign wedding centrepieces for certain special guests to take home as thank you gifts. The bowls that we use to arrange our flowers in can be reused again at home.

I hope that some of these ideas can make their way into your wedding plans. If you are interested in further advise on how to have a more sustainable wedding beyond just your flowers, have a look at this incredibly in depth resource The Guide to Sustainable, Zero-Waste, Ethical Weddings

For unique and interesting ways to incorporate dried flowers into your wedding centrepieces and bar displays - read our post on Inspiration for Dressing your Dry Hire Wedding Venue We used a mix of fresh flowers with dried; some that were repurposed and a collection that Maya and Stephen could keep forever as a keepsake from the day.

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London Wedding Flowers – Inspiration for Dressing Your Dry Hire Wedding Venue

London Wedding Flowers – Inspiration for Dressing Your Dry Hire Wedding Venue 

If you’re planning your wedding, your first consideration has most likely been the venue. Finding somewhere that can host all of your guests, facilitate all of your ideas as well as reflect your taste can be a challenge. One way of making your wedding day truly unique and true to you as a couple is to use a dry hire venue: a blank canvas that gives you the freedom to make a space your own. In this blog post I share with you my advice on how best to approach a dry hire venue and my experience working in them. I also share London wedding flowers image inspiration from one of my favourite weddings held last summer at Trinity Buoy Wharf.

To Dry Hire or not to Dry Hire

Be under no illusion that a dry hire venue will save you much money; and for the pennies one may save you, it may not be worth the stress likely caused. As much as they are desirable for their custom-ability, they require an inordinate amount of organisation and logistics, by comparison to a furnished venue.

When making that comparison between dry hire and those that aren’t, really consider the pros and cons and be fully aware that going dry hire just quite simply will be a lot more work. Wedding planning stress should not be underestimated – pick your battles and work out what is important to you both.

When a Wedding Planner is Key

When hiring a dry hire space my first and top suggestion is to employ a wedding planner. There will almost certainly be questions and costs that you won’t think to enquire about that will be integral to a smooth flow of your day and the avoidance of surprise bills later on in your planning.

Your venue will likely come with a dedicated venue manager, but this person won’t offer the same hands on support and best intentions for creating your dream day. They will have regular suppliers that they like to work with, however credible these may be, this won’t result in a bespoke outcome, the very reason you might have gone down the route of dry hire.

A good wedding planner will listen to your wishes and requirements and work closely with specially selected suppliers, doing all the back and forth, cross-comparisons and budgeting so that you don’t have to. Beyond the admin, they are invested in designing a unique celebration that is representative of you. They don’t want to run out what they have done before for the sake of convenience.

London Wedding Flowers and Decor – Choosing the Right Suppliers

Should a wedding planner not be a priority for you or within budget, then I have a handful of crucial recommendations:

• Carefully choose suppliers that you can trust and who’s work you love. With a dry hire space, your suppliers’ advice and input with be invaluable. Listen to their ideas on how they can maximise impact. This could mean sacrificing some ideas and small details you had in mind, but with a large dry hire space it’s important to maximise impact in fewer areas as opposed to scattering lots of ideas and spreading your budget too thinly.

• Budget more than you expect, especially for decor.

• Don’t be too hasty to choose the least expensive quote from comparative suppliers – it won’t necessarily mean you are getting the same for less.

Of course, as someone who works with and sells London wedding flowers, I am biased, but I guarantee, without all the paraphernalia that a furnished venue comes with, a dry hire venue requires a lot to make it feel atmospheric.

Still Life Flowers and Wedding Planner, Hilde. Case Study - London Wedding Flowers and Decor Inspiration

Anne of Hilde. is someone that I have had the pleasure to work with a number of times. She put me forward as an option to wedding couple, Maya and Stephen, who chose me for their wedding at Trinity Buoy Wharf last summer.

As an interior designer, Maya had a focus on having an aesthetically beautiful wedding day. She chose a dry hire venue so that she could make it her own, working with suppliers she could put her trust in to transform the space.

Maya and Stephen wanted to bring their Indian and Italian cultures together and so decided on hues of warm oranges, gold and yellows to transform the four vast white walls that make up Trinity Buoy Wharf into a warm atmospheric setting.

Anne provided me with a dreamy palette and source of inspiration from hers and Maya’s design choices. I love striking a balance between potentially conflicting elements: I knew I would need to create impact in such a space but wanted to ensure a sense of softness and romance that reflected this understated couple.

Ochre was chosen as the lead colour for the arrangements: combo roses and vanda orchids formed the base of the arrangements, softened by delicate white sweet peas and creamy beige peppercorns. In using our signature grouped and sculptured style we created a harmony between the luxury Art Deco influence and the soft earthy aesthetic created for the day.

Suppliers

Venue – The Chainstore at Trinity Buoy Wharf

Wedding Planner – HILDE.

Photographer – Jessica Williams

Catering – Sabel Food

Some of my favourite weddings have been held at dry hire venues. So much energy, thought and attention detail has gone into these and has certainly paid off. If you are considering a dry hire venue, I hope you have found my suggestions helpful.

Read more about Maya and Stephens beautiful riverside celebrations at Harpers Bazaar.

For more London wedding flowers inspiration, have a look at Aimee & Simon’s botanical inspired day at The Barbican or Chris & Skyla’s Guildhall wedding mixing fresh and dried blooms and grasses.

Flower Delivery in London - Five Flower Arrangement Techniques and Tips

Coronavirus, as for many, has necessitated the rethinking of my business model and what I can offer to my clients.

It’s meant muddling through and continuing to struggle at times, but it has also provided the opportunity for growth – pushing me out of my introverted comfort zone; connecting with more businesses, more people, adapting my skill set…hustling!!

One new addition has been a web shop, offering luxury flowers for customers to enjoy in their homes. 

Another first (bar the odd Instagram caption) is sharing my thoughts in public…and so here you are reading my first ever blog post…Hello!

With my introduction out of the way, I would like to share with you five tips for arranging flowers at home.

1.     Flower prep and care

On receiving or purchasing your flowers, take care to remove all packaging as soon as is possible.

Remove the lower leaves of the flowers (this will most likely have already been done for you and is one of the perks with a pre-arranged bouquet). The reason for this is, any leaves under water will add bacteria to the water that your flowers are drinking from, shortening their vase life.

When you’re ready to position your flowers, cut all stems at an angle before plunging into cool water. Cutting your stems at an angle gives them a larger surface area to absorb water.

2.    Choosing your vase

One of the most common faux-pas I see with flower arranging is where too big a vase has been used. My two cents are - whichever sized vase you may think you need, you most likely need to go smaller!

The key is to go for a vase with a relative neck size to your bouquet (or number of stems). 

• Too big a neck and your flowers will splay unintentionally creating a sort of crown effect with no flowers in the middle and nothing standing sprightly.

• Too tight a neck and you’ll lose the ability to arrange any kind of shape and organic feel – everything will stand too firm and upright.

Take the above photo as an example – tall stems, and few of them, require a smallish neck so that they can stand tall and proud. As you can see, the vase itself is relatively small. 

The key is always in the neck…Go smaller than you think…

3.    Create a Grid

You may have seen florists using chicken wire or tape to create a grid that facilitates the desired shape. With the right vase size, you can also have control over your arrangements using the stems themselves to create a grid.

• With your initial stems, place them so that they cross each other. Your first stems will lean against the neck of your vase. Continue criss-crossing your stems as you place them, creating a grid formation. 

• At a certain point your grid will be strong enough to hold stems at different angles i.e. not just how they wish to fall. Play with the different angles and positions you can place your flowers at, now that you have this grid. I like to place my grid flowers low and short and finish with taller more pronounced stems.

4.    Style considerations

For a Still Life Flowers take on your arrangement try the following steps:

• Cut mostly shorter stems for your initial grid-forming-flowers, taking care not to arrange two flowers at exactly the same length next to one another. You want to group your flowers without creating a flat surface area.

• Start building with middle length stems, still working with shorter ones to add points of depth throughout your arrangement. Think about your flowers moving in and out, creating an irregular and exaggerated shape rather than a round smooth shape. 

• Now that you have a strong grid, build height with taller stems in two thirds of your arrangement.

• Finish your flower arrangement by adding your tallest stem(s) in the other one third.

The overall finish should feel airy and asymmetric. 

5.     Secret mechanics

My last tip is for those who have a vase with a perfect neck size but the height of the vase is just too tall for the stems that you are working with.  This tip is really only for ceramic vases or opaque options that you can’t see the mechanics through. 

Really quick and simple – scrunch up the cellophane that your flowers came in and pad out the bottom of the vase. You can achieve the same thing by using marbles or pebbles, which can be a good idea especially for otherwise lightweight vases that might topple with taller stems. When you’ve done this, apply the same steps as above and your flowers will sing….remember to keep your water topped up high whilst your stems don’t reach the bottom of the vase.

You can use these tips to arrange any of our flowers available on our Shop, please visit our range for collection here…and remember, in these hot summer months to keep your flowers out of direct sunlight for the best possible vase life.