The Gothic Wedding Arch

For the Gothic Wedding Arch use a dark colored arch that rises to a point. You can make this dramatic with a huge floral kissing ball hanging from the apex. If you do use fabric on this arch, use very little, and use heavier fabrics. The Gothic Wedding Arch lends itself to more formal weddings.



Happy Halloween

Sunday night is the annual Halloween Walk in
Downtown Evergreen.

Stop in The Holly Berry for treats with no tricks.

Simplicity



There are locations where the beauty of the surroundings are so breathtaking that all we, as floral designers, need to do is add the bride's personal touches. This was taken at the Evergreen Lake House. The Evergreen Lake is the "jewel' of Evergreen and a favorite with bride's and groom's.

The Woodsy Wedding Arch

There is a charming simplicity to the Woodsy Arch, that echos the beauty of nature. This arch is all Sunflowers with fern accents and was designed by The Holly Berry for a summer wedding at The Meadows at Marshdale. A Woodsy Arch can incorporate grape vines and a variety of  flowers.
The Holly Berry in the Heart of Evergreen.

Ordering Flowers on Line

 The Holidays are the time when our thoughts turn to family. It is easy to order flowers on line to be delivered anywhere in the country. The Holly Berry takes your standard on line floral arrangements and adds their own special touches and creativity to the designs. The staff at The Holly Berry adds a personal touch to everything they do.                                           
Order on line http://www.thehollyberry.com/
or Call toll free 308-842-3779

The Classic Wedding Arch

The Classic Wedding Arch is a favorite of brides, it is soften with guauzy tulle or organza. The romantic fabric is draped down the top of the front in U-shapes. The placement of the flowers offers an opportunity to add the bride's personal flair. Flowers are commonly placed in the center of the arch with smaller arrangements down the sides.
The Classic Wedding Arch can be used in all wedding themes.

The Wedding Arch

The wedding arch may have originated from the ancient tradition of the arch of swords. The bride and groom would walk through an arch of swords to ensure their safe passage into their new life together. The wedding arch can complete the bridal theme of an outdoor ceremony or enhance the beauty of a chapel. As nature's colors fade into winter, this arch carried out the joyful theme of Bryan and Jamie's wedding day.

There are ten types of arches and we will write about each over the next few days, with suggestions for creating the perfect one for your wedding. We will also write about the tradition of the Chuppah (Marriage Canopy).

With over two decades of creating flowers for brides, The Holly Berry has become an Evergreen, Colorado, wedding tradition.

The Most Beautiful Wedding Bouquets

Each time we do wedding bouquets, I think "oh, these are the most beautiful ones we have ever designed". Go to The Holly Berry's Fanpage on Facebook to view the flowers we did for our son and daughter in law's wedding last weekend. This week I think "these are the most precious bouquets."

The Ten Most Popular Flowers

Roses, Orchids, Tulips, Lilies and Hydrangeas made the most popular lists for weddings and for gift bouquets. The most popular flowers for weddings included, Calla Lily, Casablanca Lily, Gardenia, Lilac, Lily of the Valley and Stephanotis. The most popular flowers to give as gifts included, Hibiscus, Sunflowers, Daisies, Magnolias, and Iris.
The Holly Berry always has a variety of fresh cut flowers. 303-674-4821

Please Don't Eat The Daisies



Friday and Saturday are busy days at The Holly Berry. Special occasions are usually celebrated over the weekend and there are deliveries and last minute (oh, no, I forgot our anniversary) bouquets and floral arrangements to create. So, what does a florist do on Saturday night - popcorn and a movie.

A good comedy never goes out of fashion and Please Don't Eat the Daisies is a 1960 classic. It is based on a book by the same name and later became a television series. David Niven plays a New York drama critic and Doris Day plays his wife. They and their four, out of control, sons live in a crowded Manhattan apartment. When they buy a run down old house in the country, the trouble and comedy of errors begin. Four decades after its release, it still makes you laugh!

The Legend and Life of the Daisy Part 3

Bess of Harwick after being widowed three times married the Earl of Shrewsbury and the pair served for years as the jailers of Mary, Queen of Scots. Gilbert Talbot, the eldest son of the earl by his first wife married his stepmother's daughter Mary, and they were the parents of the Countess of Kent. Like all the great ladies of her time, the countess knew about domestic medicine and practiced it in her home and went on to invent medicines as well. The Countess of Kents powder, good against all malignant and pestilent Diseases: French Pox, Small Pox, Measles and Plague added the common daisy to her formula which included expensive drugs such as pearls, gold,coral, jet, and other ingredients beyond the means of common sufferers. Her other specialty was the treatment for sore eyes and "Web over the Eye". Daisies have been used in heraldry. Marguerite, the French word for daisy, is derived from a Greek word meaning "pearl". Francis I called his sister Marguerite of Marguerites and the lady used the daisy as her device, So did Margaret of Anjou the wife of Henry IV and Margaret Beaufort, mother of Henry VII. St. Louis is said to have had a daisy engraved on a ring he wore. Along with it was a fleur-de-lis and a crucifix. This ring, the king claimed, represented all he held most dear: religion, France and his wife, Margurite.
compliments of http://www.sfheart.com/

A Celtic Daisy Legend

There is a charming story about Rhiwallon of Myddvai who was the son of a poor cowherd and the Lady of Llyn-y-Van-Vach. This local lady of the Lake was a beautiful girl who after various appearances on and disappearances into, the lake that was her home, abandoned it and settled down with her cowherd husband to whom she brought great wealth. Her father, however had stipulated that she would have to return to the lake if her husband struck her without anger three times. The husband was very careful but over a period of years, a playful slap with the gloves and two other equally playful gestures finally cost him his wife. She had in the meantime bore him three sons of whom Rhiwallon was the eldest. The boys had been told of their mother and used to wander by the lake in hopes of seeing her. One day she appeared to Rhiwallon and told him that he was destined to benefit mankind by relieving pain and curing illness. She pointed out the various herbs to him and explained their healing virtues. That son became a physician to the Lord of the manor,Rhys. Rhyss gave him a castle called Myddvai and he traveled forth all over the country side curing people and building up a reputation. He was one of the few earlier physicians who advised cleanliness as a good way to avoid illness.It was most likely his bias in favor of cleanliness that helped account for his many successes. His son followed him in the profession and on May 12,1842, Rice Williams M.D., died at the age of eighty-four, the last, although not the least eminent of physicians descended from the mysterious Lady of Llyn-yu-Van-Vach. Six hundred years of medical practice in one family. An extraordinary record. Useful to the physicians of Myddvai, the daisy had another virtue of great importance to them. It could tell if a patient would live or die.
Take the flower of the daisy and pound it well with wine, if the patient vomited he would live.
Thank you http://www.sfheart.com/ for the legends of the daisy.

The Legend and Life of the Daisy Part 2

In Anglo-Saxon times the daisy was also used as medicine but furthermore required the reciting of magic spells to make it truly effective. An addition of "Holy Water" was recommended as well. Another example of Christian trimmings added to primitive medical practice. In the thirteenth century they were used for wounds, fever and gout.  Reference: http://www.sfheart.com/



The Legends and Lives of the Daisy Part 1

Beautiful gold hairpins, each ending in a daisy like ornament,were found when the Minoan palace was excavated. They are believed to be more than four thousand years old. Later by about five hundred years is a game board, gay with color and bordered by a design of yellow and white daisies. Numerous daisies are to be found on ceramics in Egypt as well as elsewhere throughout the Middle East.
A daisy has an "eye" just as its English name of day's eye suggests and primitive medical men drew the obvious conclusion that it was plainly intended to cure eye troubles. Assyrians were among these men and many prescriptions have been found with recipes on its use for eye problems. Assyrians also believed that if you crushed daisies and mixed them with oil you could put the mixture on your grey hair to turn it dark again.

Referenced: http://www.sfheart.com/                    

The humble daisy is one of the most commonly used flower in bouquets and centerpieces. It is humble and whimsical, often equated with Spring. The colors of daisies are perfect Autumn themes.

Shop Filled with Bridal Bouquets

 

 

 

 

If a picture is worth a thousand words, this is a novel of bridal bouquets and centerpieces.

Wedding Day

I dreamed of a wedding of elaborate elegance,
A church filled with family and friends.
I asked him what kind of a wedding he wished for,
He said one that would make me his wife.
~Author Unknown

Saturday in Evergreen - Elk & Weddings

It is a sunny autumn day in Evergreen, Colorado. The Elk are grazing in the grassy areas along the Bear Creek and you can smell coffee brewing in the crisp morning air.  The wedding last night at the Lake House was beautiful. The center pieces we worked on all day Friday added color and warmth to the log beam building. Today we are putting the finishing touches on the flowers for Bryan and Jamie's wedding on Sunday. All weddings are special to us, but this is very special because this is our son and his fiance's wedding. The Holly Berry's floor is lined with flowers and gift baskets scheduled for delivery, reminding us that this is

a special weekend for some of our neighbors and friends.
We hope you will enjoy this Saturday and make this a special weekend!

The Occasions of Life

As we cut and arrange the beautiful flowers for the weddings, our thoughts are also on an upcoming funeral. The Holly Berry is in the business of special occasions, the joy of weddings, anniversaries, and birthdays, and the sorrow of endings. During our 20 plus years in Evergreen we have created the corsages for the first formal dances, the wedding bouquets, and the flowers celebrating the birth of babies. Our customers and their families have become our friends and we share their happy moments and their sad moments. The Holly Berry is more than an 800 number you call, we are part of  this community and supportive of the non-profits. We have raised our families here, and we have shared our customers/our friends laughter and tears.

 Friday is Flower Market Day, from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. we offer fresh cut flowers for half price.

It's more than a way to say Thank You to our loyal customers - It is a way to fill your weekend with a little more joy.

The Tossing Bouquet

 The bridal bouquet is a very important part of wedding traditions and is the main accessory of the bridal gown. The tradition of tossing the bouquet originated in 14th century England. It was believed that a piece of the bride's clothing and flowers would bring good luck. Guests would tear away pieces of the bride's dress. Brides would toss their bouquets into the crowd of guests to prevent them from tearing the gown. This quickly developed into a tradition involving the single ladies. It was thought that catching the bridal bouquet would bring good fortune and a forthcoming wedding.
Today's brides design a smaller bouquet, called the tossing bouquet, for this purpose. This allows them to continue with the bouquet tossing tradition while preserving their bridal bouquet as a treasured keepsake.
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Autumn Brides' Bouquets

 
Autumn weddings offer an opportunity to use rich, deep, jewel tones as the color palette.
June is the most popular month for weddings, but our favorite at The Holly Berry is the Autumn weddings. These can utilize the fall foliage as a source for the color inspirations. Velvets can grace the table tops and candlelight can create an atmosphere of warmth. An Autumn wedding can have the elegance of  Renaissance
royalty. An Autumn wedding can also have a casual earthiness by bring fall leaves and berries' branches into the centerpieces. Small pumpkins can be used as vases for the floral arrangements and pine cones can be worked into the table theme. The rich velvets can be replaced by woven linens in the Autumn colors.
Popular flowers include roses, orchids, gardenia, mums and dahlias.
Whatever the season for your wedding, The Holly Berry will create beautiful bouquets and centerpieces for your special day.  888-842-3779         303-674-4821                  Evergreen, Colorado

The History of the Bridal Bouquet

In ancient times women carried aromatic bunches of garlics, herbs and spices to ward off evil spirits. Traditional Celtic bridal bouquets were also strong smelling herbs and spices thought to have mystical powers, and would include ivy, thistle and heather. The ancient Greek and Roman bride and groom wore garland around their necks, symbolizing new life, hope and fertility. Europeans used dill in the bridal bouquet, which was consumed by the bride and groom at the reception to increase sexual desire. By the time Queen Vitoria married Prince Albert, the herbs and spices had been replaced with fresh flowers, setting the stage for the beautiful bouquets carried by the modern bride.
The Holly Berry, Evergreen, Colorado

The Wedding Bouquet

 The wedding bouquet is a reflection of the bride's personal taste and her joy. The elegant orchid can be combined with simpler blooms to create a beautiful arrangement. The Holly Berry specializes in unique and creative bridal flowers. We work closely with the wedding planner and the bride to insure each bouquet and arrangement is perfect for the "perfect day." Please visit our fanpage for more photos of bridal bouquets and center pieces.
http://www.theholyberry.com/    303-842-3779    303-674-4821
303-674-3779

Kiwani's Pancake Breakfast

Please support the Evergreen Kiwanis by attending the Pancake Breakfast on Saturday October 16 at the Evergreen High School. The Holly Berry is doing the center pieces for the tables and we have created this charming fairy garden for the silent auction. http://www.thehollyberry.com/  More than Wedding Flowers!

Best Dressed Table

 You carefully selected the invitations, labored over menu and wine, have your best dinnerware, rented extra tables and linens - let the party begin? Wait! Even the "best dressed" table needs accessories. Let us enhance your next dinner party with coordinated floral centerpieces.
http://www.thehollyberry.com/

Orchiophile

I laughed as I typed Orchiophile, it sounded like a rare disease, then I realized it is a disease or maybe addiction is more precise. Orchiophile is very contagious, all it takes is exposure to one beautiful, elegant, and exotic Orchid and you want more. Over a 1,000 new orchid species have been discovered in the past twelve years. Ecuador is home to 4,000 orchid species, and last December the world's smallest orchid was discovered there by accident. An ecologist (Loou Jost) collected an orchid of a larger species to study in his greenhouse. Months later he saw a tiny plant nestled in the roots of the flower. The tiny orchid is just over 2 millimeters (0.08 inch) and nearly see through. The variety and beauty of orchids can be enjoyed all year.http://www.thehollyberry.com/

My Favorite

I love the variety and beauty of every flower I touch. But, I do have a favorite, Orchids. There are an estimated 25,000 different types of Orchid and every year more are being discovered. Although associated with tropical climates this exotic looking plant can be grown in almost any climate.  It is the most popular house plant and adds elegance to any setting. In Victorian England it was popular to have a greenhouse just for Orchids. Cultivating Orchids was considered the height of wealth and luxury. Please drop by The Holly Berry in the Heart of Evergreen to view our new arrivals.

Calla Lily - Pig Lily - Dragon Lily

  A calla lily is not a true lily or even a calla. It is grown from rhizones (genus Zantedeschia). It is also known as the arum lily, pig lily, water dragon and trumpet lily. The calla lily is native to South Africa and despite its delicate appearance is a hardy plant easily grown in any humid climate. It blooms in the late spring and is an excellent house plant. The calla lily is popular for weddings and is often used in bouquets with roses. The most common color is white but the calla lily can also be yellow, red, burgundy, pink, orange, and a purple/black combination. It is a stunning and elegant flower.  The calla lily represented purity and marriage decades before the Victorian Language of  Flowers. It is also a symbol of resurrection and rebirth and often used in funeral arrangements.

Why Tussie Mussie?

The earliest reference to Tussie Mussies referred to them as a tumose of flowrys. Originally the name may have been spelled tuzzy muzzy. Tuzzy was "a knot of flowers", and muzzy may have referred to the damp moss wraped around the flower stems. Originally Tussie Mussies were used to eliminate unpleasant odors. The most common aromatic flower used was probably posies. It was believed that Tussie Mussies containing certain herbs could ward off infectious diseases. Lavender, Sage, and Rosemary were thought to prevent the spread of disease. The English Elizabethan Tussie Mussies included Thyme, Marjoram, Mint, Chamomile and Rosemary. A proper Victorian lady was trained in the art of floral arrangement. The degree of her talents at creating Tussie Mussies were considered a reflection of her culture.

HOLLY was the symbol of domestic happiness, and at The HOLLY Berry we assure you that a bouquet of flowers will add to your domestic happiness.

Monday Afternoon

There was a hint of coolness in the air today, the sky was filled with billowy gray clouds. Monday's are quiet on Main Street in Evergreen. The tourist are gone, some of the small shops are closed, and everyone is doing their Monday banking. The Holly  Berry was filled with activity and the colors of spring, summer and autumn. Fresh flowers arrived and there were corsages to be made for Homecoming Weekend. At The Holly Berry the beauty of summer never fades.

Tussie Mussies in the Movies

Tussie Mussies and their secret meanings have been represented in several movies set in the 1600 - 1800's. In Amadeus, Constanze, Mozart's bride, carries a tussie mussie of pink rose buds, signifying grace and beauty. In the Age of Innocence, Newland Archer sends Countess Ellen Olenska yellow roses, signifying infidelity. He sends his fiancee a small bunch of blue violets, signifying humility, modesty, simplicity. And in the movie Sense and Sensibility, Marianne carries a tussie mussie of lilies of the valley on her wedding day, signifying return of happiness.

Tussie Mussie!

What amusing words "Tussie-mussie", and no, it is not a character in a children's book.  A Tussie-mussie is similiar to a nosegay, which is a small bunch of flowers. The name originates from the early 1400's in France and quickly found favor and revival during the Victorian Era. Tussie-mussies were wrapped in paper doilies and ribbons. Not only did the type and number of flowers relay a secret message, but the types and combination of herbs and greenery were part of the code. Messages to suitors could be communicated and rendezvous's arranged while strolling in the park. Tussie-mussies are popular bouquets for the mothers of the bride and groom. They no longer are a secret code, but still charming and beautiful.

The Secret Code of Flowers

Flowers were used for centuries to communicate thoughts, feelings and sentiments. The Victorian Era, 1837 to 1901, moved this custom into an art form and proper etiquette. The restrained atmosphere of the Victorian Era created a need for a discrete way to express one's emotions and sentiments. All flowers and the combinations, number of flowers and colors were imbued with a particular meaning. A gift of a bouquet or flower became a coded message creating intrigue. This was called the secret code of floriography. The Language of Flowers was published in London in 1884 and became the first reference book for decoding the hidden messages. Floriography dictionaries soon became common place and were given as New Year's gifts. These charming books were the predecessors of the literary almanac.

A single red rose would say "love" but when presented with baby's breath and ferns it would mean sincere and everlasting love. Flowers presented in an upright position represented a positive opinion. If given with the right hand the bouquet would be a "yes" to a question, left hand represented a "no."  There were many nuances to the carnation, pink - I'll never forget you, red - my heart aches for you, striped - refusal or I cannot be with you, purple - whimsical, fickle, and white - sweet, lovely, good luck to a woman. Flowers are still used to express our feelings of love, friendship, appreciation and sympathy and the receiver of flowers no long needs a code book to decipher their meaning.

Saturday in Evergreen

Saturday is a busy day at The Holly Berry. Abbey, our new doggie employee, is insisting on taking long breaks behind Baskin and Robbins.

Shop Dogs!

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Abbey

Emma has decided to take an early retirement to pursue her other interests. She plans to chase more squirrels, bark at Elk, indulge in games of fetch and catch up on sleep. We are pleased to welcome Abbey to the staff of The Holly Berry. She is very enthusiastic and eager to help. ( But, she does insist on taking long outdoor breaks.)