It's Beginning To Look A Lot Like Christmas

The Christmas Traditions of the Poinsettias

Every Christmas we fill The Holly Berry with fresh Poinsettias that will grace the homes of Evergreen and surrounding areas. The Poinsettias are a Christmas tradition, but do you know why?

Poinsettias are believed to have originated in central and south America and were recorded, described, and revered by the ancient Aztec peoples.  This flowering plant eventually became a symbol of Christmas to the Mexican culture and it became a tradition to use poinsettia plants to decorate during Christmas time.

 In 1824 the American Ambassador to Mexico, Joel Poinsett attended church service on Christmas Eve and was impressed with the bright red flowers used to decorate the church alter.  Poinsett took seeds with him when he went back to America and shared the plants with local churches during Christmas celebrations over the next several years. 

 Because Joel Poinsett was so closely associated with the plant in the United States, people who bought them started calling them Poinsett’s plants or Poinsettias.  Today, millions of Poinsettia plants decorate homes throughout the world.  The colors of the plant, red to represent the blood shed for human redemption and green representing the promise of new life and rebirth tie in with the religious teachings of Christmas and the preparation of starting a new year.

Holiday Thoughts

Christmas gift suggestions: To your enemy, forgiveness. To an opponent, tolerance. To a friend, your heart. To a customer, service. To all, charity. To every child, a good example. To yourself, respect. - Oren Arnold

Deck The Halls!

The Holly Berry is filled with the Holidays, and boxes and boxes of garland, greenery, glittering trees, ribbons and surprises. The Holly Berry in The Heart of Evergreen -303-674-4821

Thoughts on Thanksgiving

Gratitude can transform common days into Thanksgivings, turn routine jobs into joy, and change ordinary opportunities into blessings.  William Arthur Ward.



The Perfect Hostess Gift

We all strive to be the perfect hostess, to offer our guests a well prepared, delicious meal accompanied by good wine and conversation. We should approach being a guest with the same eye for detail and graciousness. The perfect hostess gift throughout the decades has been a bouquet of flowers. The staff at The Holly Berry hand picks each bloom for your bouquet. At The Holly Berry fresh means 'freshly picked". We are conveniently located in The Heart of Evergreen.

A Touch of Autumn

 The beautiful autumn foliage is gone. Bring the warmth of the season's colors to your entry hall or buffet table with a floral arrangement. The candles will add an ambiance to your holiday gathering. The staff at The Holly Berry will design your floral arrangement to compliment your style of entertaining.



Thanksgiving Centerpieces

You have planned every detail of your Thanksgiving dinner, it is an extensive "to do list." Allow us to make it a little easier by delivering your holiday table centerpiece.
You may order on line at http://www.thehollyberry.com/ or call
 The Holly Berry at 303-674-4821.

Evergreen Garden Club

While demonstrating "how to create a Fairy Garden" for The Evergreen Garden Club, I had the opportunity to have some great treats, this was a recipe worth sharing. Thank you, Pam Hinish, for sharing it.

 My friend Rena Kuberski gave me this recipe about 30 years ago and it's still my favorite!
Wheat Germ Zucchini Bread3 eggs
1 cup sugar
1 cup brown sugar
1 cup oil
3 teas. maple flavoring
2 teas. baking soda
1/2 teas. baking powder
2 teas. salt
1/2 cup wheat germ
2 1/2 cups flour
1 cup walnuts
2 cups shredded zucchini
1/3 cup sesame seeds
Beat together until thick and foamy - sugars, oil, eggs and flavoring.  Stir in zucchini; add remaining ingredients except sesame seeds, mix well.  Spoon into two well greased loaf pans.  Top with sesame seeds.  Bake at 350 for 1 hour or until tooth pick comes out clean.  Cool before removing from pans.
Enjoy!

Fresh Flower Friday

Just a reminder that it's Fresh Flower Friday. All cut flowers are half price from 2:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. at
The Holly Berry in the Heart of Evergreen.

The Evergreen Garden Club

 Pam, owner of The Holly Berry had the pleasure of demonstrating how to make Fairy Gardens at The Evergreen Garden Club's monthly meeting at the Fire and Rescue Training Center in Bergen Park. The Evergreen Garden Club was established  in 1965. It is a charitable and educational organization focusing on mountain horticulture and conservation of natural resources. The club members have continuously responded to community needs for beautification at numerous public spaces.  Members volunteer many hours each growing season by planting, weeding and watering.  The Club and community benefit from working together. By helping out on projects members gain valuable information from other members on what grows where in our mountain community. Their website http://www.theevergreengardenclub.com/ is great source of information.



How to attract Fairies

Place bells and fairy wind chimes in your miniature fairy garden to hear them magically tinkle as fairies pass by your  enchanted garden. The Fairies enjoy music and dancing and will be attracted to the tinkling. Add sparkling glitter to your fanciful Fairy houses and paths. Fairies are naturally attracted to sparkling items and will transform your ordinary glitter into magical fairy dust. Magical stone paths will entice fairies to roam throughout your gardens and perhaps leave tiny fairy footprint.

Fairy Folklore is charming and sweet. Making Fairy Gardens with children is enhanced with a bit of fanciful folklore making lasting memories. Let your little ones choose their own Fairy from The Holly Berry's Fairy drawer.

Making a Fairy Garden Part 2

The plants you choose for your Fairy Garden may inspire you in your choice of fairy garden sets. Curly Chives or Creeping Savory can be used to form a hedge. Herbs work very well in Fairy Gardens.  Plants for your indoor Fairy Garden can include small ferns, like the Asparagus Fern or Maidenhair Fern, English Ivy, Purple Heart, Nerve Plant, and Gold Dust Plant to name a few. The staff at The Holly Berry will help you select plants that will provide various heights and colors to create your Fairy Fanasty. We enjoy giving our Colorado fairies a small Buddhist pine or a touch of Evergreen. And, of course a touch of Holly. Once your plants are placed you can begin adding small pebbles and stones to create pathways and walls. We found our pebbles at the local feed store in Kittredge. The Holly Berry carries tiny bridges and garden sets, and can order other miniature accessories. Craft stores carry doll house miniatures that can also be used in your Fairy Fanasty. Decorate your Fairy Garden to reflect the season and the holiday and indulge in this delightful whimsy!

Making a Fairy Garden Part 1

 A Fairy Garden is a garden, or section of a garden, or an indoor potted garden, with miniature houses, furniture, or accessories that create the impression of a tiny world htat fairies might inhabit. Potted Fairy Gardens make delightful and are a fun hobby and project to involve children in.

When making Fairy Gardens, there are a few decisions to make upfront. You need to decide whether you are going to have your garden outdoors or indoors.  Outdoor gardens provide more room for your fairy world to expand, but may limit the accessories you can use, as some may be damaged by weather, and trampled by Elk and Deer. indoor gardens are easier to maintain, but are limited as far as the space they can take up.  Another issue you'll want to think about ahead of time is how much you want to leave to the imagination. You can choose to put actual miniature fairy statues in your garden or simply use furniture and ornaments (and hope real fairies come to stay)

If you are doing an outdoor Fairy Garden  create alongside plants that are smaller in scale, with fine detail. If you have an herb garden this would make a perfect place for the Fairy Garden. If you are doing an indoor Fairy Garden choose a container.  Window runners or large terra cotta pots work well.  Alternatively, you can use a series of small pots in a row on a sill or counter top.  This is fun because you can easily rearrange the garden or an an extra pot to expand your fairy's world. Once you have your contain, you need to decide upon what plants create the garden. We will go into types of plants tomorrow.

Corners and Nooks.

The Holidays are creeping into every corner, and nook. The walls are beginning to look like Christmas, with greenery, garlands, red balls and holly. Candles scented with Apple Cinnamon, Fresh Pine, Lavender, Lemon Grass, and Butter Blossom are tucked in glittered twigs and Poinsettias. Everyday more boxes arrived - It's being to look a lot like Christmas.

A Winter's Friday.

It is never Winter in The Holly Berry, we are always surrounded by Summer.
 Friday is 50% OFF ALL FRESH FLOWERS, from 2:00 - 5:00.
Indulge yourself in an inexpensive luxury. Indulge yourself in the rich warm colors of Autumn.
The Holly Berry in The Heart of Evergreen.

Christmas is Arriving Daily

Boxes and boxes of Christmas greenery, decorations, and ribbons are filling our tiny shop. Let us create a holiday wreath for your front door that will welcome your neighbors and guests.

In Remebrance

The staff at The Holly Berry would like to remind our clients and friends, that in this month  of Thanksgiving, today is a time for remembering those who served and are serving our country. We are truly Thankful for all the brave men and women in our armed forces.

House Plants

We are in that transition period when the beauty of Autumn has faded into a monotone of browns and the beauty of Winter is just a thought. Brighten up your home with live, healthy, "happy" plants. The Holly Berry always has a variety of plants and sizes to select from. Our staff will advise you on the best care for your new plants and help you with creative containers and plant combinations. Stop into The Holly Berry in the Heart of Evergreen, 28165 Highway 74, 303-674-4821

Add a Touch of Style to Your Serving Table

It has always been popular to use a buffet table or serving table for Holiday Parties. It is more informal and allows the guests to mingle in comfort. You want your buffet table to make a statement and to be visually pleasing as well as functional. The centerpiece will set the theme and add a more pulled together look. Who knows better than Martha Stewart, so we have borrowed some tips from her for the holiday buffet table.

 1. Choose dishes that can be cooked ahead and warmed for serving, or dishes that can be assembled at the last minute.

2. Position the buffet table away from the wall, so that guests have access from all sides.

3. A few days before Thanksgiving, take out serving pieces and utensils for each dish. Map out what will go where, to be sure that it all fits neatly on the table.

4. Mix and match coordination dishes and serving plates.

5. Protect your linens by placing empty saucers around the table so guests can rest serving utensils on them and not on the tablecloth.

6. Lay out food in a logical order: entrees before side dishes.

7. Save space for food by displaying low arrangements

Read more at Marthastewart.com                                                                                

Table Centerpieces for Holiday Parties

Thanksgiving is a time of gratitude and gathering together. It is the one holiday that evolves solely around food and the table. To add a more festive touch to the decor of your home we suggest the addition of an Autumn wreath to your front door or your entry hall. The staff at the Holly Berry will work with you to find the silk flowers and foliage that compliments your colors.  

The Thanksgiving table is the centerpiece of the Holiday, keep the decoration simple, rather it is elegant or woodsy. The floral arrangement for the center should be low, as not to hide guests, and in the warm colors of the season. This is a great opportunity to use a vintage gravy boat or other mismatched piece of china for a vase. At The Holly Berry we encourage our customers to bring in their vases and we create the perfect fresh flower (or silk) arrangement in it. 303-674-4821

TO DO: Send flowers to MOM, to thank her for all the Thanksgiving dinners she cooked for you!

Saturday Thougths

I perhaps owe having become a painter to flowers.  ~Claude Monet

Is there anything other than flowers, that have graced the marjority of our art, poems and our tables, and have been used to express our happiness, sorrow, and special moments of life?

Our Signature Design

We specialize in creating custom floral arrangement, bouquets and centerpieces to suit each and every taste. Our experienced floral designers at The Holly Berry can help you select the perfect flowers, designs and colors for special occasions and events. Some of our bestselling designs feature square

glass and rectangular glass vases in an array of colors.  These have become a signature Holly Berry design element!

Our small cubes are approximately 4 x 4 x 5 inches tall in come in red, black, clear, pink, purple and blue. Our small rectangle comes in bright green glass and our tall rectangles are available in black, clear and green. Pick you favorite color and let us create a beautiful array of flowers to match. 

 We also have an assortment or rounded and convex shaped tall vases. Just ask to see what is available.

Custom Designs (the "fly swatter")

"Mom and Dad" were in town to help with the move. The movers continually left the doors open and soon the house filled with flies. This became a source of aggravation and humor throughout the day. The young family are settled into their new home and "Mom and Dad" have returned home and wanted to send a special house warming bouquet. They asked The Holly Berry if they could add a fly swatter to the arrangement. The staff at The Holly Berry is known for custom designs and customer service. 

Now finding a fly swatter in November in Evergreen is another story!

Go to our website for more on our custom design services. http://www.thehollyberry.com/

Welcoming in the Holiday Season

Beautiful candles add an ambiance to any room. The Holly Berry has begun unpacking our Holiday shipments. The staff favorite is the long burning, high quality candles filled with botanical and dried fruits. The Holly Berry in the Heart of Downtown Evergreen (next to the Evergreen National Bank) is open from 9:00 am to 5:30 pm, Monday thru Friday and from 9:00 am to 4:30 on Saturday.

The Kissing Ball

The kissing ball is also known as a floral pomander ball. They are most often carried by flower girls and junior bridesmaids, but can be carried by the adult attendants. The floral kissing ball is beautiful and practical, and easy to carry.

The floral ball can be suspended from the center of the wedding arch or from the pews or chairs.

This lovely floral arrangement can be suspended above the reception tables in place of a centerpiece.

 

The Floral Arch

This arch can be "woodsy" and casual or formal.
The arch can be wrapped in grape vines and then decorated with the bride's favorite flowers. In Colorado we often use Aspen boughs attached to the sides of the arch.