Christmas Hues & Fresh Color Combinations for your Holiday Decorating

It's hard to imagine that it isn't even December 1st and we are already discussing Christmas decorating. Even though you might not have all of your holiday decorations out or up you can at least get started on color combinations.

Some traditional color combinations we see year after year are gold, reds, silvers and greens. This year you might add a unique twist to your existing color combinations. Here's just a few recommendations for adding a unique color combination to existing holiday decor:

* Golds - add in touches of chocolate browns or celadon green
* Reds - keep the golds and bring in tones of warm brown and copper
* Silver - cool things down with a frosted turquoise
* Greens - add in tones of celadon with your traditional green tones

Splashes of these new hues can spice up your existing decor without having to start from scratch or spending a fortune.

Thanksgiving Table

We are a day away from Thanksgiving and thought The Hidden Garden would give you a few tips on how to add those extra touches to your dining table decor.

Napkins
* consider wrapping a brown or rust toned ribbon around a rolled napkin
* use raffia or another natural twine rather than ribbon if you are going for a more rustic look

Place Cards
* place a small pumpkin at each guest setting. Place a small slit into the top of the pumpkin and put the name card into the slit
* cut a slit on each side of the name card and slip a ribbon through the slits. Tie the ribbon around the napkin with the escort card at the top

Votives
* incorporate colored votives on the table (ambers, reds, greens)
* wrap fall leaves around your votives
* cut out the center of a mini pumpkin or mini artichoke and place a votive candle in the center

Enjoy your Thanksgiving!

Oh Henry! Bar Mitzvah

What a special day for Henry. Henry celebrated his Bar Mitzvah at Spago Restaurant in Beverly Hills. Henry {or, shall we say, his mom} chose rich colors of deep red, orange, yellow, purple and green to create a fantastic luncheon for family and friends. Each centerpiece consisted of 6 smaller vases each filled with a different type of flower in alternating colors. We utilized a variety of roses, hydrangea, fiji mums, dahlias, orchids, and hydrangea. The table linens were a vibrant, yet rich green crinkle material. Each napkin was adorned with a single dahlia head.

The kid's tables had a smaller version of the adult tables; however, they had additional vases filled with monochromatic candy to compliment the flower colors. The place card table was a beautiful display of tall glass vases filled with groupings of flowers to compliment the guest tables. As the guests signed in to the party, they were greeted with vases filled with candy- including Oh Henry! bars. How fun!

Unique Color Combinations: Red & Turqouise

This coming Saturday, The Hidden Garden has the pleasure of working with the talented coordinators at Levine Fox (Diane & Alyson) Arielle's Bat mitzvah will be held at the Hollywood Social. The location has one of the coolest vibes as everything there is just ultra chic and only calls for the most modern floral design to dress the room. Our color pallet for the event is what i find most striking, turquoise & red. This is a color combination that we have worked with in the past and have a few events planned for the future. It's seems like an odd pairing but they are so striking together. Both colors have a blue undertone so they end up being very complimentary to one another.

I can't wait to share the event photos with you once we have theme. In the meantime, enjoy the sample centerpiece photo to get a glimpse at what lies ahead.

Amy & Johns Santa Barbara Wedding

This past summer Hidden Garden had the pleasure of designing Amy & John's wedding at Bacara Resort. I know I blogged about the wedding in the past but I have a little more to add.

Just today we received a great video snippet from Harmony at the fabulous Riley Towne Productions. They are amazing videographers! Enjoy!

Thanksgiving Centerpieces

We are almost a week away from Thanksgiving so it's time to start thinking how you might dress up your dining table for the big feast! At The Hidden Garden we can help you adorn your table with flowers! It's not to early (or too late) to order your dining table arrangements. Feel free to give us a call or order on line.

For more great ideas, check out my tips on Better TV for fall table settings.

Shopping the Los Angeles Flower Market

It is that time of year when floral novices want to decorate their homes for a Thanksgiving Feast, Hanukkah or Christmas so I thought i would share a few of my tips when shopping at the Los Angeles Flower Market. A visit to the Los Angeles Flower Market is one of greatest flower experiences for a flower lover. Stretching over 2 city blocks it offers a wide array of flowers from all over the world as well as amazing vendors that provides supplies such as containers, ribbons and other finishing touches.

The Trade industry shops Monday through Saturday buying their flowers and supplies to stock their design studios. The market is open 6 days a weeks at varying times. The market opens as early at 2 am certain days of the week but only available to the wholesalers during that time. The general public is able to gain access to the Flower Market at 8 AM (Mon, Wed, Fri) and 6 AM (Tues, Thurs, Saturday). The Hidden Garden's favorite days to shop at the Mart are Wednesday and Fridays. A good majority of the product arrives on those days so your chances of purchasing the "freshest" floral selections would be on those days. If you do go on a Mon, Tues, Thurs or Saturday there are still fresh flowers arriving daily just ask the grower when the product came in to assure freshness.

I thought I would share a few of my favorite vendors: Mayesh, Basket World, Blossom Valley, Wasabi Green, Orchid Man and Floral Supply Syndicate. If you visit any of these vendors you are guaranteed fresh product any day of the week. Any additional information pertaining to the Los Angeles Flower Mart.

Enjoy creating your own personal floral designs!

A Pea in the Pod

This past weekend we created centerpieces for "a Pea in the Pod" baby shower. What a cute theme for twins or someone that might not know the gender of their new baby. We created the most adorable centerpieces for the occasion. So simple for even the novice florist to try.

Supplies Needed

* 3 oasis balls (we used 6 in balls)

* chicken wire - covered in green fabric

* 3 bundles of kermit mums

Step 1 - create your Pod shape with the chicken wire and fabric

Step 2 - soak oasis balls in water

Step 3 - cut kermit mum blooms leaving 1 inch stem

Step 4 - insert kermit mums into Oasis Ball

Step 5 - place oasis balls into "pod"

So easy, so adorable and quite affordable!

Fall Elements in Your Arrangements

Halloween is over and we are jumping into a time of the year filled with textures and many non traditional elements you can use in your floral arrangements. When creating your floral designs start to think about incorporating elements you might see growing in your own backyard! Some items might include picking up fall leaves and tucking them into your arrangements. Clip privett or eucalyptus berries from the trees and use them to drape over the sides of your designs. At your local grocery store you can pick up mini pumpkins or gourds that you insert a floral pick into the bottom and intermix them into your design. Accent all of these long lasting textures and elements into your fresh floral arrangement and you will have created a wonderful harvest display.