Showing posts with label funeral flowers. Show all posts
Showing posts with label funeral flowers. Show all posts

Tuesday, January 14, 2020

Wedding and Event Pictures

2020 has got off to a busy start! Last week, we had several events, all happening at the same time. It took lots of planning and coordinating, but we pulled them all off, with help from our friends! The Mineola Antique Fair was Friday and Saturday, with us having to put the finishing touches on our new space on Thursday morning. I also had funeral flowers to deliver on Friday and a wedding on Saturday. I did as much advanced prep work the week before, since I knew it was going to be a busy weekend.   

We finshed setting up Thursday, then I picked up all the flowers and started the prep work for Friday and Saturdays arrangements. I opened Friday and closed on Saturday in Mineola, and in between made lots of pretty floral bouquets. This large arch was one of our favorite things to make. The Spencer Wedding was held at Dove Hollow Estates in White Oak. Madison's colors were white, black, silver, and burgundy. 



wedding arch with fresh flowers
 The view from the second story...
The bridesmaids carried bouquets of burgundy roses and callas.

 The front entrance of the elegant barn.
entry way flowers

 Hydrangeas and iced branches comprised the entryway arrangement, where guest would sign in.
wedding entry table
 Sharlette helped me with the on location work at Dove Hollow.

 The bridal bouquet was a cascade style arrangement with white roses, callas, and orchids. (Can't wait to see a picture of the bride carrying the bouquet, since I didn't get a great pic of it.)
 Always have my scissors nearby! The arch was huge at about ten high, so we climbed up and down the ladder a lot.


 Friday night we had storms and a huge temperature drop. Saturday temps were definitely winter like, but the shows had to go on! As soon as we finished up with the wedding, we hit Highway 80 west to Mineola.  Many local schools and businesses closed early on Friday (in anticipation of a storm that didn't hit till after 10:00 pm Friday night. We certainly didn't close or stop work, because the shows had to go on. We are thankful that the storms weren't as bad as predicted.
Selbie was nice enough to help Angea, while I wasn't there. 
We are liking our new space in the building and heard lots of compliments on our new set up. One things for sure, one picture can't capture all the booth anymore, as you can shop from all the way around it. 


A couple of years ago, I give a presentation at a 4-H meeting. At the meeting, I officially met Mrs. Fite (although I had known of her for many years.) We talked and she ask for a business card. Later on, we discussed sewing machines, since she wanted to get one for her granddaughter. A few months later, she called me about flowers for her son's funeral. She had specific ideas and flowers she wanted to use and I was able to make the flowers for them. 

Last week, I got a call that she had died and left instructions for her family to call me and I would take care of it. They didn't tell me any colors, just that they needed a casket spray and an easel with ribbons on it (that was the only details that they give me.) That level of trust and respect for my work is truly humbling. I later talked to her sister on the phone and she said Mrs. Fite always talked about my work. 

I knew she had picked out a pink or red dress to be buried in, so I decided to go with a mixture of red roses, stargazer lilies, along with pink and purple mixed flowers. 

mixed flower casket spray
 Last week, I also wrote a blog post about living in small town America. The word "Community" was on my mind a lot last week. It was a community service type event where I met Mrs. Fite. It was a lady in our community that recommended me to the Spencer family, when they were wedding planning. It took a community of friends for me to pull off everything in three days. The best selling shirt at the fair last week was the "Rural Route" - it's a t shirt design inspired by our life and work in the rural community and apparently it resonates with many of you as well. 


My business depends on your referrals and an online community of support and shares. I am extremely grateful for all of you that are a part of our community! 

Here's to a great start of 2020! Looking forward to helping all of you in the coming year! 



Saturday, May 14, 2016

Once a Florist, Always a Florist


I previously worked as a  lead floral designer at a flower shop for 15 years, before GypsyFarmGirl became my full time business. When I left the flower shop (Christmas 2014), I had no plans for doing fresh flowers in the future. I was devoting myself to my burlap wedding bouquets, online boutique, a few vintage markets with my glamper and wherever my path might lead. Well, there's a saying around the floral business "once a florist, always a florist" and so it seems, it's a part of who I am and there is no escaping it and it is a part of my path! With my last business card order, I made some edits and added "freelance florist" to my description.


GypsyFarmGirl by Janice East - Rustic Weddings, Gifts, Home Decor and Freelance Florist

I'm honored that former customers, friends and new acquaintances have called and ask for me to design flowers for their special occasions, events, and funeral needs. While I don't keep fresh flowers in stock all the time, I am happy to help with local events, with enough notice and minimum order. Occasionally I will have some extra flowers left after an event and will post on Facebook and Instagram, if anyone wants a special bouquet, without having to preorder or a minimum order. I work from my home and deliver locally or I am  available to work on location for weddings and events. I decided to create a new tab for my blog that is devoted to the fresh flowers, to showcase some of the custom designs I have created and I'll continue to add more pictures as time progresses. 
Large centerpiece / church alter flower arrangement
Farm and Flowers - that's what my life is about!
Red Spray Rose Corsage (Pin on)
Blush pink spray rose wristlet corsage
White spray rose pin on corsage for Mother's Day
Blush and cream wristlet prom corsage
Spring vase arrangement with stargazer lily, purple larkspur, hydrangeas, and roses.
Spring arrangement with blue hydrangeas, pink roses and lilies
Two dozen red roses!
Summer mixed flower bouquet
Lemon and Lime themed wedding - bride and groom's table and arch backdrop
Arch for wedding ceremony
Lemon centerpieces with white stock and twigs
Wine barrel with lemon and lime centerpiece
Pink and white arrangements for wedding ceremony.
Bridal bouquet with red roses, surrounded by white roses.
Red and white mixed arrangement for corporate event.
Red and white casket spray
The Cowboy Rides Away - fall flowers on the western saddle, used as a casket spray
Fall mixed flower casket spray
Fall mixed flower casket spray
Large fall mixed flower standing easel spray
Fall mixed flower standing easel spray
Red and white mixed easel spray
Red and white mixed flower casket spray with banner
Red, white and blue easel for the airplane enthusiast.
Casket spray with shades of pink and purple mixed flowers.
 My customer shared a few examples of ideas she liked and trusted me to create a casket spray and coordinating easels in shades of pink and purple for them. I was able to source flowers from three suppliers to get the freshest flowers for their order. An assortment of delphinium, larkspur, snapdragons, stock, callas, stargazer lilies, several types of roses, carnations, and status was used to complete the designs. 

pink and purple mixed flower easel 
pink and purple mixed flower easel

Open heart easel with pink and white spring garden style flowers.

Cross with white background and pink roses

Tropical / exotic mixed flower easel - the picture doesn't do this easel justice. It was much more stunning in person. 
red and white mixed flower easel
red and white mixed flower easel
Pink and white wedding shower arrangement
Pink and white wedding shower arrangement in grapevine birdcage
Simple and elegant white hydrangea and curly willow centerpiece
Spring pastel garden style basket arrangement
Red and white mixed Valentine's Bouquet
Red roses and white hydrangeas and snapdragons for a business event
Elegant lanterns centerpieces for a business Christmas party
All white arrangement for a business open house
All white hydrangea arrangement for a business open house
Red and white office arrangement
Red and white Christmas arrangement
Red and white Christmas arrangements
pink and green birthday arrangement
For local  orders and delivery, please email, call, or you can send me a Facebook message. Sometimes blog comments are not delivered to my email or can get filtered as spam, so I don't always see them promptly. I'm always happy to accommodate your custom request and ideas and look forward to helping with your special events or creating personalized floral tributes for a loved one.