May 2013

10 Unique Father’s Day Gift Ideas For Golf Lovers

Dads who love to spend their days on the golf course are sure to enjoy unique, personalized golf gifts this Father’s Day. From practical golf accessories that will get good use on the course to golf-inspired gifts that only true golf lovers can appreciate, we have 10 great gift golf ideas for your dad.

Whether it’s his name, monogram, a photo, or a special message, adding a personal touch to your Father’s Day gift will make it more meaningful and memorable. Dad will know that you thought of what he loves most when he opens his Father’s Day golf gift, and you can be sure that your present is a hit.

5 golf gift ideas for Dad to enjoy on the course

Photo golf balls

Make Dad’s next game of golf more fun with a custom set of photo golf balls. Add your favorite faces to a set of a dozen golf balls he can keep and use on the green. Any close-up photo with one or two faces will work, so you can even include a shot of you and dad!

Personalized Golf Towels

Give Dad a reminder that he truly is the best with a personalized golf towel he can use during every round. Choose from four verses and three accent colors, and then add any two lines of text. This quality-made personalized golf towel will surely become his favorite golf accessory.

Custom Golf Club Covers

These stunning custom golf club covers will protect Dad’s favorite driver in luxurious style. Choose from three designs featuring a golf crest, golfer, and name or monogram. The top of the clover has a zipped opening where he can store extra tees, divot tools, pencils, and more.

Engraved Golf Bag Tag

Help Dad accessorize his golf bag with a quality wooden bag tag that’s custom engraved with his address and information. Choose one of three golf designs and add any two lines of text on one side, then add Dad’s address on the other. His golf bag will never get misplaced with this custom golf bag tag.

golf gift ideas with divot tool and ball marker

Personalized Divot Tool, Ball Marker & Clip

A good golf divot tool is a must on the course. Our personalized three-in-one combination tool includes a magnetic ball marker, a belt clip for easy access, and the essential divot tool. You can personalize this quality piece with any title within the “best by par” quote to let Dad know it’s uniquely his.

5 golf gift ideas for Dad to use at home or at the office

Custom Etched 19th Hole Golf Beer Mug

After a good game of golf, let Dad enjoy a cold one in his very own custom etched golf beer mug. Our exclusive 19th hole design can be customized with any two lines of text. This traditional style glass mug holds an impressive 25 ounces of Dad’s favorite brew.

Custom Golf Coffee Travel Mug

Whether he’s heading to the office or for a morning round of golf, Dad can enjoy his coffee in a personalized travel mug featuring the top 10 golfers of all time — including your Dad, of course! Add Dad’s full name to the list of professional golfers like Jack Nicklaus and Tiger Woods for a gift that’s above par.

Engraved Golf Cigar Humidor

If Dad loves cigars as much as golf, he’ll love this beautiful cherry wood cigar humidor. The top of the box is skillfully engraved with a golf crest design that features his initial and name. This stunning personalized golf cigar humidor is more than just storage — it will keep Dad’s cigars fresh, fragrant, and properly moistened.

Golf Ball Personalized Round Wood Wall Sign

Make him feel right at home when he returns from his latest round with a golf-ball-shaped wood wall sign. The sturdy piece can be personalized with any two lines of text. A sporty addition to any wall, it’s perfect for a bedroom, bar area, or rec room.

Engraved Glass Golf Ball Keepsake

Create a one-of-a-kind golf-inspired keepsake for Dad by personalizing this dazzling crystal golf ball with any four lines of text. This heavyweight crystal glass golf ball will look great on Dad’s desk or bookshelf, creating a great reminder of his loving family.

How to Help the Oklahoma Tornado Victims

As news about the heartbreaking devastation caused by the tornado in Oklahoma continues to pour in, today we’d like to take a moment to step away from our usual flower-themed posts and show our love and support for those in need. For our readers who want to know how to help the Oklahoma tornado victims, we’ve put together a list of reputable organizations you can partner with to join in relief efforts. Here are the links to each organization’s website, as well as a short description of how your donations will help the disaster victims:

American Red Cross: Provides hot food, water and other personal necessities
The Salvation Army: Provides meals, water and emotional support
AmeriCares: Provides medicine and other medical supplies
Samaritan’s Purse: Provides emergency supplies and equipment, such as generators, chainsaws, heavy-duty plastic and more
Feed the Children: Provides food, water, blankets and other necessities to affected families with children
Feeding America: Provides food and hydration to hungry families
Save the Children: Provides food and medical care to affected families with children
Operation USA: Provides emergency, shelter and cleaning supplies
DonorsChoose.org: Provides child care items to teachers for their students
World Vision: Provides emergency supplies such as tarps, blankets, food kits, cleaning supplies and personal care items
Operation Blessing: Provides tools, supplies and construction help
Convoy of Hope: Provides food to affected families with children
Direct Relief: Provides personal hygiene supplies, infection control products, gloves, soap, baby care items and more
Oklahoma Tornado Relief 2013: Provides funds to various causes
The Regional Food Bank of Oklahoma: Provides food, clothing and other supplies
OK Strong Disaster Relief Fund: Provides medical, emotional and educational support
Central Oklahoma Humane Society: Provides care and shelter to affected animals
Oklahoma Baptist Disaster Relief: Provides laundry services, removal services and meals
United Methodist Committee on Relief: Provides cleanup and rebuilding assistance, pastoral counseling, and support for traumatized children
LifeChurch.tv: Provides personal care and storage supplies
Jewish Federations of North America: Provides food and other personal care items

To help ensure that your contributions are going directly to Oklahoma tornado relief efforts, here are a few important tips to consider before donating to any organizations not listed above:

Donate only to charities you trust and are familiar with.
Do not give your personal information, such as your credit card or bank account number, to any charity that is not reputable.
Always check the Better Business Bureau (BBB) Wise Giving Alliance, Charity Watch, GuideStar or Charity Navigator website to make sure the charity to which you’re donating is legitimate.
Never send cash envelopes. They might get lost in the mail, and you won’t have any records of the donation to keep for personal or tax purposes.

1-800-Flowers.com Helps Salute Fallen Heroes at the USS Intrepid’s Annual Memorial Day Ceremony

Time to pay tribute to America’s bravest: Memorial Day is Monday, May 27!

Every year on the last Monday in May, we honor the courageous men and women in the armed forces who have lost their lives. The holiday, originally known as “Decoration Day,” was first announced on May 5, 1868, and first celebrated on May 30 of the same year. It began as a day to remember the soldiers who died in the Civil War, but over the years it transformed into a national holiday to memorialize the American soldiers lost in any war. One of the earliest ways to observe the holiday was to wear a red poppy in honor of lost heroes and decorate their graves with flowers, but today we also celebrate with family barbecues, parades and other touching Memorial Day ceremonies.

Of the countless commemorative events that are held for the heroes who have made the ultimate sacrifice for their homeland, the Memorial Day Ceremony at the Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum is one of the biggest and most exciting in the country. And for almost 10 years, 1-800-Flowers.com has had the privilege of taking part in this historic occasion.

As a kickoff to the Summer Salute to Heroes program, the Memorial Day event starts at 10 a.m. with fun interactive displays and hands-on activities along the USS Intrepid’s Pier 86 in New York City, featuring exhibits from the U.S. Coast Guard, Coca-Cola, American Red Cross, CrossFit NYC and more. Then, the poignant Annual Memorial Day Commemoration Ceremony begins at 11 a.m. Visitors can pay their respects to fallen military men and women as they observe the unfurling of a 100-foot American flag and watch as four beautiful Memorial Day floral wreaths are thrown into the ocean from the pier.

These stunning wreaths are specially made for, and proudly donated to, the ceremony by 1-800-Flowers.com. They measure more than 30 inches in diameter and are hand-arranged with fresh red, white and blue flowers, such as roses, mums, daisies, monte casino, lilies, carnations, baby’s breath, delphinium and more. The wreaths are then adorned with gorgeous matching bows and set on easels for all to see before they’re customarily released into the water. It’s a tradition that the team at 1-800-Flowers.com is grateful to be a part of for the past decade, and one that we’re looking forward to commemorating for many years to come.

“It is truly an honor to participate in the annual Memorial Day Ceremony,” says Chris McCann, 1-800-Flowers.com president. “Our caring team is passionate about helping the Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum honor and recognize our fallen soldiers each year.”

The Memorial Day Ceremony is free and open to the public. So if you’re looking for a meaningful way to tip your hat to our fearless U.S. military, visit the Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum! You can find more information on the event at IntrepidMuseum.org.

Orchids, Orchids Everywhere! Touring the 2013 Orchid Show at the New York Botanical Garden

New York Botanical Garden Enid A Haupt Conservatory

Every spring, the New York Botanical Garden (NYBG) is transformed into a dazzling showcase for one of the world’s most beautiful and exotic flowers: the orchid. This year, for the 11^th straight year in a row, the biggest orchid show in the United States celebrates this bewitching flower by displaying tens of thousands of its blooms in every shape, size and color imaginable, from deep purple Vandas to electric green Cymbidiums.

The Orchid Show was first created as a colorful kickoff to the spring season, during which NYBG visitors could escape their urban surroundings and learn more about the exciting research and many breathtaking exhibits being hosted at the garden.

“We were looking for a display that could help brighten up the gray days of winter and be a perfect prelude to our spectacular outdoor spring displays,” says Marc Hachadourian, orchid curator and manager of the Nolen Greenhouses for Living Collections at NYBG. “Orchids seemed a natural choice. They have come to symbolize many things: Most people associate them with the exotic and unusual, and some consider certain orchids to be an aphrodisiac. During the last few days of winter—when people are really craving warmth, color and flowers—it is the perfect place to visit and immerse yourself. Being surrounded by thousands of colorful and fragrant blooms in one of the greatest glasshouses in the world is the best way to spend a day.”

This year, designer and horticultural expert Francisca Coelho fashioned the NYBG’s Enid A. Haupt Conservatory into a lush rainforest with towering palm trees and exotic foliage. The 2013 show was inspired by Coelho’s upbringing in the tropics of Trinidad, and it took more than a year to plan and about two weeks to set up. The tropical paradise overflowed with the rarest and most exquisite orchids from every corner of the globe.

“Two of the most unusual might be the Butterfly orchid, or Psychopsis—with blooms that look exactly like a butterfly in flight, even down to the antennae—or the Darwin’s Star orchid from Madagascar, with its white flowers and 12-inch nectar spur,” says Hachadourian. “Phalaenopsis orchids are also wonderful because their flowers can last several months under ideal conditions, outlasting any flowering plant or certainly cut flowers. I love to give them as gifts for that reason alone.”

Aside from being surrounded by these stunning blossoms, NYBG Orchid Show visitors were also able to learn how to care for orchids at home, enjoy soothing music from all over the world, and unwind with an evening of delicious cocktails.

Of course, with its magical collection of one of our most beloved flowers, this show was one we simply had to experience in person. Here are the photos from our blissful stroll through orchid heaven!