Small business Day 3!!

Today's small business is Wiggles & Giggles a fantastic scrapbook store in Wethersfield! But to say that Wiggles & Giggles is just a scrapbook store would be wrong it is the largest scrapbook and paper craft store in the Northeast!! Check them out and if you can show me a receipt dated between today 11/30/10 to 12/31/10 for a sale of over $75 before tax and any discounts and HGK Designs will give you 15% off any arrangement for delivery* before 1/31/11! 

*certain restrictions for delivery apply contact for details

Small Business Highlight Day 2!

Today's small business is Heartwood Carpentry! Heartwood located up in picturesque Litchfield county can do everything from trim work to adding on a room to your home all at affordable prices! If you have Heartwood Carpentry do a job over $500 before taxes HGK Designs will give you a choice of 3 Free Wreaths, 3 Free 7 1/2" Poinsettias that up to 10 blooms!, 100 Free invites to any type event, or 10% off a floral order of $100 or more.Contact Heartwood Carpentry today and get some of that to do list done! heartwoodcarp@yahoo.com

Small Business Week!

In honor of Small Business Saturday I have decided to highlight a small business each day until next Saturday! Here is the first business!:

60b Photography is run by one Miss Jillian whose photography I just love but don't take my word for check her out at http://www.60bphotography.com/ 

60b Photography makes it easy and affordable to capture every chapter of your life! Be sure to hurry and take advantage of her Nov special $40 for a session when you book by the 30th! Also if you book by Dec 31, 2010 any photo session with Jillian HGK Designs is going to give you either 50 FREE invitations to any event or 5% off any floral order of $25 or more!

 

Photography Special from 60b!!

November is the month Jillian was born so she is running a special and here it is:

NOVEMBER SPECIAL


Well hello november! To celebrate this lovely month (it's my birthday month!) I'm offering one hour photo sessions within 20 miles of 06062 for $40! Tack on that extra hour for only $20! Oh and did I mention the shoot didn't have to take place in November? Feel free to book up to March 2010 with this deal! Offer ends November 30, 2010. Certain restrictions may apply.
Contact me for details! Payment won't be due until the day of the session so if you book a date and something comes up we'll just reschedule!

60bphotography@gmail.com <--Don't be shy now!

Take advantage of this fantastic offer with this fantastic photographer she is booking quickly!

Last weekend I had the pleasure of working with Jillian of 60b photography on a bridal shoot with a couple who were fantastic enough to dress up in their wedding attire again and be our models!  Here is a sneek peek at some of the photos that Jillian got to me can't wait to show you the rest!

Did we not get some beautiful models?  Love the pics can't wait for the rest!

My 1st fellow WAMOGO 2001 graduate Wedding!

This October I had the pleasure of working with one my past WAMOGO classmates, Stacey.  We graduated together in 2001 and had not seen each other since that graduation day in '01.  So I was so happy to find Stacey to still be just as nice as she was back then and not only that but a fantastic bride to work with!

With this to say I have to think Stacey also enjoyed working with me:

Heather - Thank you soo much! The flowers were absolutely GORGEOUS and EXACTLY what I wanted!! You're the best :)

Her flowers were just so gorgeous that Jillian of 60b Photography and I took some great photos of them at Hubbard Park.

One of my favorites but you would have loved to see the hop skip and jump I had to do to get the bouquet there

This was one of the first shots taken I loved it, it was taken on an old tree stump a great natural background

I have yet to have Jillian take a photo for me that I have not loved so if you ever need a fantastic photographer I highly recommend 60b Photography and not just for her flower shots she also took fantastic pictures at my sisters shower this past July!

http://www.60bphotography.com/

http://www.facebook.com/60bphotography?v=info

60bphotography@gmail.com

Pictures of HGK flowers from Sassy Mouth Photo's Studio Opening

I did up 2 arrangement for Marisa of Sassy Mouth Photography in Meriden for her new studio opening last night.  I aslo had the pleasure of doing a 3rd as a gift from Jen at Embellish Floral in NH, I love when other designers have such faith in you that will order from you!  Any way onto the photos

This was for Marisa's new office the bright happy colors just scream MARISA!!

This went into the new "living room" of the studio a stylish living room setup in the new studio

A close up of the gift from Embellish that Marisa put my card on and around!

More Beautiful bouquet pics from 60b!

I was so lucky to have come to know Jillian of 60b photography over the past couple months and not only is she great fun and totally professional she takes fabulous pictures! Check out her take on last weekends wedding she was nice enough to come over and take some shots!

A close up of the brides bouquet

 A close up of the bridesmaids bouquets

                                   One of the mason jar arrangements for the cocktail tables

                                           The Bride's bouquet a wonderful fall mix

                                       Another close up of the bridesmaids bouquets

                                 One of the miniture stem vases that surrounded the                       larger mason jar for the centerpieces

                    This Manzanita branches was accented with mokara orchids and maiden hair fern and was used to decorate the place card table.

I hope you all liked these as much as I did, I can't wait to work with Jillian again!



Hillstead Museum Wedding of Joanne and Brooks

This past weekend I had the pleasure of doing the flowers for a wonderful bride named Joanne at her picturesque setting of the Hillstead Museum in Farmington, CT.  Here are some of the pictures taken by Marissa at Sassy Mouth Photo in Meriden:

The centerpieces were an eclectic mix with a large mason jar in the center with 3 different smaller vases surrounding it.

The bridesmaids

A fabulous closeup by Sassy Mouth of the bridesmaids bouquets

You can check out more of the photos at http://www.sassymouth.net/ the pictures really did come out fantastic Hillstead is a beautiful place to hold a wedding o in fact any function!

Bouquets Pics done by 60b Photography

These are just 3 of the great shots taken by 60b photography.  Did she not do great?  Jillian has a great eye for capturing things on film I love her work.  You check more of the photos and other work by Jillian at 60b Photography

Main Street Market Photo Shoot!

Just wanted to do a quick post about an event HGK Designs hopes to be part of (of course weddings come first) through August 2010!  It's a Model for a Day photo shoot at the Main Street Market in Torrington, CT!  We will be teaming up with Motives Makeup by Erin and Fazzino Photography to do your makeup, accesorize you with flowers, and take your photo for FREE!  Come on down to the Market it is held every Thursday from 5-9 on Main Street in Torrington! And of course photos will be up asap!

I was so very excited to be involved with a photo shoot by the wonderfully talented Diane Parsons of Parsons Photography be sure to check out her work at http://www.parsonsphoto.org/
***Photo courtesy of Kia from Estoccasions

Become a fan or recruit a fan and win!

I have decided finally! Once the page reaches 1000 "like"aka fans I will be giving away Visa Gift Cards plus something extra! For the 1000 person a $50 card & 100 note cards, for the person who has recruited the 1000 person a $50 card & a beautiful plant, and finally for the 900 and their recruiter you will receive each a $25 card & a plant!The winners can be from anywhere in the US or Canada to receive the Visa card, in order to get the card and plant the winner must be in CT

http://www.facebook.com/HGKDesigns
I will also send out a $50 card to the blogger who recruits the most followers!

I want to thank everyone who has been so instrumental in the success of my business from my friends and family to the brides who have used me to the many wonderful other business owners I have met in this last year!

So do we like the new tag line?

Garden Roses!!!

These beautiful roses smelled so fantastic I wish I could upload the

smell!!! And yes that right they opened up to 4" or more and the

bride just loved them

New Local Flowers!!!

                  I am so happy to announce that in the past few months I have found many local flowers right here in CT! Even if not in CT I have found beautiful flowers that come from New Jersey and California, now I know California may not be local but they are still in the US cutting down on any shipping costs not to mention having to abide by the USDA.


                     Back to the local flowers, I was so excited to find roses being grown in CT again!! In 2007 the Pinchbeck Rose Farm in Guilford closed after over 75 years in business sad day in the cut flower world. Now once again the farm is growing roses again this time as Roses for Autism at the Pinchbeck Rose Farm. The roses that are bought from here not only are they fantastic because they are supporting a local business they also provide adults on the autism spectrum with employment. As of right now they are growing 16 different varieties of roses. I can tell you from personal experience that these roses are the best not only are they picked at the correct time they smell fantastic unlike many of the South American varieties that have lost their fragrance due to hybridization.

                       Thank you to an August bride for the next grower. I was in need of a dinner plate size dahlia for her wedding and she preferred that they be local. I was happy to find a grower who has been growing not only dahlias but gladiolus all of varying sizes for over 53 years! I now can provide dahlias from golf ball size to over 10" and both miniature and regular gladiolus. I am excited to tell you that those red dinner plate dahlias are being grown for my bride as we speak.

              I look forward to finding more local growers both large and small so if you know of anyone do pass their name on!

Just some of the fabulous cut flowers grown right in CT:

                          Yes these were all grown in CT soil!!!

Flowers really do make you happy

Check out this article I found threw a facebook group!
Flowers really do make you happy

Free Delivery??

"Numerous research firms and studies have confirmed that free shipping is a customer favorite and we would not expect to see any change in this area. Thus it’s no surprise that 89% of shoppers found free shipping very to extremely helpful."

Free delivery is it really free? Most often not unfortunately. When a vendor offers free delivery it means they are absorbing the cost of gas, maintenance on the vehicle, and the labor of the delivery person. I don't know many business owners that are willing to absorb those costs do you? The fact is when offering free delivery the actual delivery charge is worked in the product price somehow. For instance the other day I had a bride contact me for a bouquet price, the price I gave her was $75 when she heard this she was astonished. Why was she? well it seems she contacted another florist who offers "free delivery" and was told $125! Now say the delivery charge from me was $25 she is still saving $25 by paying for delivery. I hope that next time you are offered free delivery you check some other comparable vendors to see if you really are getting "free delivery"

Thank you 2009 brides for helping us get the Brides Choice Award from weddingwire.com! 

What is the award you may be asking?

The WeddingWire Bride's Choice Awards ™ recognizes the top local wedding professionals from the WeddingWire Network that demonstrate excellence in quality, service, responsiveness, and professionalism. Unlike other awards in which winners are selected by the organization, the Bride's Choice Awards are determined by recent reviews and extensive surveys from over 500,000 newlyweds. This year's winners represent the top five percent of WeddingWire's vendor community, which consists of over 100,000 local wedding professionals nationwide.

Here are a few of the fantastic reviews we received:

"...The day of the wedding when she showed up with the flowers me, my mother, and my girls were blown away by how beuatiful they were, they really made my day!!! I have already told my husband if any of our friends get married I am going to tell them to use her for their flowers. BEST experience EVER! Thank you Heather for being such a joy to work with = ) "-Eileen

"....Getting married on one of the hottest days all of the flowers withstood the heat and my bouquet lasted for a week. Heather went beyond my expectations." Dayna

"...I would recommend using Heather for any season or style of wedding she has a gift with color and structure that few wedding florists command and a wonderful personality that makes you feel like everything will in fact be OK!"-Rebekah

Waxflower, Lavender Roses, Lisianthus, Phlox, and fragrant Hyacinth was one of my favorites from the show you can't really see but the wire wrapping on the stems gives a nice pop of color on the white ribbon

White Tulips and Spray Roses surrounded by a collar of Dusty Miller was a big hit at the Whole Food Show this year the feel of the dusty miller was the big hit!

Floriculture vs Horticulture

    I thought for my first entry I would take the time to explain the differences between Floriculture & Horticulture. I find this to be important because many people use the two words interchangeably and they are not and also for my 4 years of college I had to constantly explain what I was going to school for.


    So here it goes, with a floriculture degree you get the knowledge that prepares you to operate and manage commercial and contract florist enterprises, supply and delivery services, and flower catering services. Includes the hands on instruction in the principles of plant science; purchasing, storage, and delivery systems; floral design and arranging; and principles of business management. Basically you get to learn how to run a floral shop both in design and business aspects.

    Now for horticulture it is defined as a program that focuses on the scientific principles related to the cultivation of garden and ornamental plants, including fruits, vegetables, flowers, and landscape and nursery crops. Includes instruction in specific types of plants, such as citrus; breeding horticultural varieties; physiology of horticultural species; and the scientific management of horticultural plant development and production through the life cycle.

    As you can see the difference is clear once you know what each are one is a floral designer the other grows the plants with no design being taught. I hope I have helped some college kid out there who has to explain that they are studying floral designs not floors and no they can't diagnose what’s wrong with your ficus but if you need a beautiful arrangement we are there for you :)

PS: I have to say that this post was purely informational and many many a great floral designers just have it they were self taught and in all fairness I believe that most of us designers have that innate ability to design and to use color to help soothe and bring happiness.