Four Summer-Inspired Flower Arrangements

Summer is officially here. Days are longer, the sun is brighter and hot weather brings out the best in nature.  While spring might be considered “flower season”, flowers truly thrive in summer and won’t stop blooming until the fall.  Whatever the next few months may hold, brighten your home and overall well being with colorful flowers from Carousel Floral Gifts & Garden!

Here are a few summer-inspired color trends and flower arrangements that will make a great addition to your window sill, patio or garden:

Lovely Lavender
Lavender flowers bring a sense of passion, romance and beauty to any space.  This bouquet overflows with purple hues from lavender roses, alstroemeria, asters, stock and other flowers.  Lovely Lavender is the perfect birthday present or romantic surprise for the special person in your life.

Radiant Rainbow
You can now have a rainbow in your own home with a Radiant Rainbow Bouquet from Carousel Floral!  This bouquet boasts a colorful selection of daisies, alstroemeria, carnations and more to represent every shade of the rainbow. Not only will it brighten your home but it will uplift your mood!

Happy Thoughts
The Happy Thoughts bouquet immediately illuminates any room or office!  This bundle of pink and purple daisies creates a symphony of tones that sing summer.  If you want to set the mood for a special summer night, set the Happy Thoughts bouquet on the patio and grab a bottle of wine!

Enchanted Fields
Light, vibrant and summery, this bouquet is a beautiful field of wildflowers, alstroemeria, daisies, asters and more.  Inspired by the countryside, this is the perfect bouquet to show someone you care.

From spending the holiday weekend with friends to a romantic dinner with your significant other, don’t forget to impress with a beautiful bouquet from Carousel Floral Gifts & Garden!  We feature an impressive selection of flower collections, bouquets and plants in a range of colors.  From romantic lavender to happy yellow, you will find a complete list of arrangements on our website.  Don’t forget, we provide FREE DELIVERY for local orders! Give us a call at (507) 288-7800 with any questions.

Flowers for Prom

We’re just a few short weeks out from prom season! Prom is a magical night and is often described as the culmination of the American teenage experience. It’s known for its sometimes elaborate themes, as well as formal evening attire. The young men wear suits or tuxedos and boutonnieres, while the young ladies wear ball gowns and corsages. For a formal dance, it goes without saying that there will be tuxes, dresses, jewelry and fancy hairstyles. But what about the flowers? Let’s look a little into the history of boutonnieres and corsages.

Corsages have been part of formal wear for centuries. Derived from the French term "bouquet

Prom Corsages

de corsage," which translates to bouquet of the bodice, because originally corsages were worn as a cluster of flowers on the bodice of a gown. In ancient times, corsages were commonly worn to weddings as it was believed that the flowers and herbs placed in the corsage would ward off evil spirits. It wasn’t until the 20th century that the corsage was moved to the wrist and given as a gift to the promgoer by her date.

Boutonnière is the French word for “buttonhole.” Once upon a time, boutonnieres were worn frequently by men as part of their usual attire. According to GentlemansGazette.com, boutonnieres became popular as lapel adornments in the early 19th century. The fashions of this time period started to include coats that folded over at the top, revealing the inside of the buttonhole. Gentlemen would push the stem of a flower through the buttonhole and feed it into a loop at the back of the lapel which would hold it in place. Today, boutonnieres are usually only worn for special occasions, such as weddings or formal dances like homecoming and prom.

To make prom night even more magical, get your flowers from Carousel Floral Gifts & Garden! Our expert designers will handcraft a stunning corsage or boutonniere that will be the perfect complement to your prom attire. And a bonus tip for the young men out there: Make sure you ask your date what color she plans on wearing so that we can make a corsage that will beautifully complement or match her gown!

Seed Starting in Your Home

Spring is in the air!  The sun is warmer, the days are longer, the air is fresher and the ground is alive with the beginnings of new growth.  We live in a society where products are at our fingertips almost immediately.  All it takes is a drive to the local supermarket and we can pickup any food our stomach desires.  While most people are happy with this process, growing your own food is a more rewarding experience.  Even if you weren’t born with a green thumb, cultivating your inner farmer can easily be done all year round.

Did you know it’s possible to start your own plants from seeds indoors?  Seed starting is a method

used for those who want to start a sprout inside away from the cold and later move them outdoors to avoid shock.  If you’re thinking about seed starting before the warm weather arrives, follow these easy tips:

·         Keep your plants near a sunny window.  A south-facing window should give your container sufficient lighting.

·         Start seeds four to eight weeks before the plant-out date.  This will provide enough warmth and light for them to start growing before you move them outdoors.

·         Choose a container with drainage holes in the bottom.  Something as simple as a yogurt container with holes punched in the bottom will work. 

·         Start seedlings in containers that will hold 3 to 4 ounces of moist seed-starting mix.  Don’t use soil from your backyard but instead use a fertilizer-rich soil.

·         Water the seedlings carefully everyday and make sure they are not too wet and not too dry. 

·         Keep plants indoors until the last frost date in your area has passed and your soil has warmed. 

When the weather has warmed up and the soil is ready for your seedlings, get planting!  Serving the Rochester area since 1991, Carousel Flowers offers a large arrangement of blooming flowers delivered at the peak of their beauty and guaranteed to be in good health.  Plant our flowers in your outdoor garden and they can be enjoyed for years to come! 

For a full list of our flowers and plants, visit www.carouselflowers.com.

Spring Wedding Florals

The start of peak wedding season is almost here! Spring weddings are the quintessential

Wedding Floral

matrimonial event - new life and warmth returns to the cold weather states, everything is in bloom and newly lush and green; even the air smells cleaner in the spring. Bridesmaids are clad in pretty pastels and brides wear fairytale gowns while carrying bouquets of soft pinks and creams.

Spring flowers are arguably the prettiest - fun but traditional, and always ultra-romantic. If you’re a bride looking to follow this year’s hottest trend in florals, the 2016 spring season projects wedding flowers to look a little wilder. Bouquets and centerpieces will use funkier blooms in more than one color (expect lots of green!), accented with interesting details like vines or fiddlehead ferns.

Are you more of a traditional bride looking to keep things timeless? These spring flowers are six popular choices that never go out of style:

●       Peony - An all-time favorite for brides, pink peonies are gorgeous and romantic. They have that perfect, delicious mix of softness and texture, and easily complement many wedding palettes. Here’s your fairytale bloom!

●       Rose - This flower is universal. It works in any season. It works in weddings. It works on Valentine’s Day. It works on your anniversary. This is one hard-working bloom! For spring weddings, you can keep your roses romantic by ordering yours in beautiful blush and cream shades. Accent with some strategically-placed green leaves, a bit of baby’s breath, and voila! You have the perfect springtime bouquet and centerpieces.

●       Lilac - weddings aside, is there any flower that reminds you more of spring than lilacs? One whiff of this sweet-smelling flower can whoosh you right back into your childhood. Want a vintage or nostalgic feeling for your spring wedding? Use lilacs in your ceremony and reception florals and treat your guests to a walk down memory lane.

●       Hydrangea - A favorite for centerpieces, this bountiful bloom gives you lots of volume for less (cost, that is)!

●       Tulip - Another classic springtime flower, associated more often with windmills than with weddings. Be a bride who breaks the mold and use these in your bouquet or centerpieces!

●       Gerbera Daisy - This is a great option for those fun-loving, shabby-chic brides. Having your reception in an old barn with burlap table runners and drinks served in mason jars? These are the flowers for you!

Welcome to Carousel!

Whatever flowers you choose for your spring wedding, make sure you choose Carousel Floral Gifts & Garden to do your arrangements! We’ve been proudly serving the Rochester area for 25 years and are the ideal choice for weddings, Valentine’s Day, or any occasion.