CARLE PLACE, NY- Every year, the 1-800-Flowers.com office hosts a Diwali celebration. If you missed our post on what Diwali is and how it’s celebrated, check it out here! In short, Diwali is known as the “festival of lights” and celebrates hope, knowledge, good (over evil), and light (over darkness). Check out a few photos from our celebration on October 28th, 2016.
NEW YORK, NY – On Wednesday, October 26th, 2016, Pencils of Promise celebrated their 6th annual Gala at Cipriani Wall Street in Manhattan. In case you didn’t catch last year’s Gala post, Pencils of Promise (PoP) is a non-profit organization that supports education for children in developing countries by building schools, supporting teachers, providing school supplies, and overall increasing educational opportunities for children in Ghana, Guatemala, Laos and Nicaragua.
For the sixth year in a row, 1-800-Flowers.com has been honored to donate the floral centerpieces for the annual gala. This year, the arrangements featured a mix of monstera leaves, ti leaves, monstera, sago palms, dracaenas and raphis palms to give the room a tropical rainforest feel. Jay Casiano, the designer from PlantShed NY Flowers, told us “I loved the opportunity to create the centerpieces and step and repeat for POP’s Gala last night. It’s so easy when you have such a cutting edge organization to work with. Always thinking out of the box and allowing artistic freedom from their partners! We can’t wait to do this all over again!”
“We are delighted to support Pencils of Promise, as we recognize the importance of education and training to help individuals grow both professionally and personally.”
– Chris McCann, President, 1-800-FLOWERS.COM
Always entertaining (literally), the event started out with an engaging dance performance directed by celebrity choreographer, Luam.
Next was a performance by the singing duo Nico & Vinz who sang their hit “Am I Wrong,” which reached number 1 on the American Top 40 Charts in 2014.
After the amazing performance by Nico & Vinz, Pencils of Promise Founder, Adam Braun, took the stage. Adam got the idea for Pencils of Promise when he was an India and a small boy said that the thing he wanted most was a pencil. Seeing the happiness in this little boys eyes when he gave him the pencil gave him an idea.
As Adam backpacked across over 50 countries, he handed out pencils to more and more children and saw the extreme need for schools and educational materials in developing countries. Since starting the organization, over 300 schools have been built, over 4,000 scholarships have been distributed, and over 500 teachers have been supported in receiving a high quality education.
Following Adam Braun was the Womble Family who received The Philanthropist Award for their work with the Collis Foundation, a family foundation that focuses on children’s education, scholarships, literacy programs and basic human needs.
With auction items ranging from exclusive Stuart Weitzman shoes to a saxophone signed by Bill Clinton, bids started pouring in. Over $300,000 was raised during the auction alone. $50,000 was raised for the expansion of literacy, $90,000 was raised to build 3 schools, $70,000 was raised to fund a WASH infrastructure for 7 communities, $30,000 was raised for providing e-readers to a classroom of students, and another $30,000 was raised to educate 1,200 kids for one year.
After the auction, it was time for the grand finale: a performance by famed rap artist Wiz Khalifa. Wiz closed out the night by performing his hits, “Black and Yellow,” “Roll Up,” and “See You Again.” The crowd joined him around the stage with glow sticks and sang along. They danced, too, of course!
To learn more about Pencils of Promise, visit their website at pencilsofpromise.org. From all of us at 1-800-Flowers.com, we thank you for an amazing evening for an even more amazing organization!
Here at 1-800-Flowers.com, we love cacti and flowers, which means we especially love flowering cacti. We came across some of Greg Krehel’s amazing timelapse videos of echonopsis cactus flowers during their blooming cycle and had SO many questions. Luckily, Greg was able to answer some of these for us and we thought you may be interested in Greg’s impressive artwork, too!
Growing up in New York, I often went with my father to a local nursery. It had a table with small cactus in 2” pots that I became fascinated with. That was the beginning of my love of cacti. The bug stuck with me over the years but really blossomed when I retired and had time to take on some new hobbies.
Most cactus flowers last only a brief period. In the case of the Echinopsis genus of which I’m particularly fond, the flowers last barely a day from opening to wilting. This brief existence caused me to first start taking still photographs of the blooms to try to preserve some of their beauty (I’d never owned a DSLR camera or taken anything besides family trip pictures prior to starting to image cactus blooms). The jump from still images to time lapses came from seeing one of my sons produce a time lapse video as part of a work project.
My favorite time lapse to this point is one that shows 24 hours in the life of 10 gorgeous yellow ‘Daydream’ flowers compressed into a few seconds. The scene opens with 6 flowers open and 4 buds. The 4 buds grow and bloom. The 6 flowers that were already open wilt to nothing (which is actually not only interesting but has its own beauty). I love this time lapse for a number of reasons … there’s some much interesting action … you can watch each of the 10 flowers and see something different. And the colors are gorgeous, even in the wilting flowers the colors are special.
Even though my skill at the time lapse process has improved greatly due to have done several 100 at this point, there is one big challenge that remains: Anticipating how the flowers will move as they open. Sometimes the flowers will drop in height as they open. Other times they’ll move up towards the lights I’m using. Sometimes some blooms will drop while others move upward. It’s a crap shoot. I try to have the view framed to allow for these shifts, but often … too often … the shift is more dramatic than I anticipated and the result is a bust.
Prior to becoming interested in photographing cactus flowers three years ago, I’d never really been into photography/videography and didn’t own a DSLR type camera. Upon becoming interested I got my hands on a good many books and watched some of the great free resources on the net. I was really taken by the great photographer Harold Davis’ books and attended one of his workshops on using Photoshop to edit images. And then I went and made tons and tons of mistakes and learned from them.
I use a Canon 6D DSLR and an assortment of Canon lenses … most often the great Canon 100mm Macro lens. I use LED lights since they stay cool over the long period I am shooting images. I have an inexpensive light tent with a black backdrop that I set up in my “studio” (which is really a bathroom that ceases to serve its normal functions during cactus blooming season).
I became a full-fledged echinopsis addict 3 years ago.
There is … where I live in Florida, Echinopsis bloom from April until October … the period of the year when it’s above 80F most days. One of the great things about Echinopsis vs. many other types of cacti is that many Echinopsis species/hybrids will bloom multiple times in a single season. I’d also note that different hybrids bloom at different times during the season. Some bloom early and are done. Others won’t start blooming until late summer or even early fall.
Nope. I’m a one-trick pony.
The single most important piece of advice is to not over-water, especially during winter months when cacti are virtually dormant. I don’t water my collection at all from November until March. Yes, the plants will shrivel and look awful. But at least they won’t die from root rot! I have a good many other suggestions about soil and fertilization and etc. on my echinopsis.com website … specifically this page: http://echinopsis.com/care
Check out Greg’s Instagram @echinopsisfreak where he posts new timelapses regularly.
In addition to flowers, we also love cats! With that said, we hope these cute cats with flowers pictures helps make you smile!
In honor of friends everywhere and Friendship Day, we decided to celebrate our BFFs with the timeless tradition of friendship bracelets. Consisting of a series of tied knots, friendship bracelets represent the strong and unbroken bond between two friends…and they look pretty, too!
Whether making a friendship bracelet as a gift for your closest friend or organizing a party to make bracelets with a group of friends, the sentimental value of handmade bracelets is priceless. Just like every friend, each bracelet is unique and can be made to fit your bestie’s personality. So, take out your string and let’s get crafty with these easy-to-follow instructions!
Decide which colors you want to use for your bracelet. For ours, we used pink, lavender, purple, and dark purple. The more strings you use, the wider the bracelet will be.
Measure out one string using your forearm as a guide, from your wrist to your elbow. If you are making the bracelet for your friend, consider the size of their wrist, and increase or decrease the size as needed. Cut the string to four times the length of your forearm, leaving a few extra inches for safe measure. (It is better to have more string than not enough.) Use your first cut string as a guide to measure the rest of your strings. All strings should be the same size. When you have finished cutting all your strings (we used four total, one for each color), place all the strings together and then fold your strings in half. This should leave you with two of each color.
After folding the strings in half, create a loop. Tie the loop into a knot.
Tape your loop onto a flat working surface, such as a table. Spread out your strings so the colors are symmetrical.
To make the chevron stitch “V” shape, start from your left side (stitched from left to right) until you reach the middle, then work from your right side (stitched from right to left). The right and left side of the “V” stitch is completed by tying the two middle strings together, which should be the same color. Start with the left outermost strand (we used dark purple) and make a forward knot by crossing it over the next string (to the right) in a “4” shape, and looping it under and through the opening.
Pull the string up to tighten the knot. Repeat this step again using the same string (in our case, dark purple). One stitch consists of two forward knots per string. Make two forward knots per string, until you reach the middle.
Once you’ve reached the middle of the row, move to the right outermost strand. Create a “backward knot” by crossing it over the strand to its left and forming a “P” shape. Loop the strand under and through the opening of the “P.” Do this for each string until you reach the middle.
Tie the two middle strands (which should be the same color) using either a forward or backward knot.
Continue doing forward knots on the left side, and backward knots on the right side, until you are halfway done with the bracelet. You can check if you are halfway done by measuring with your wrist.
This step may vary depending on what type of beads you have, how many beads you use, and where you would like to place them. You will want to place all strings through the one bead, so make sure your bead holes are large enough.
Repeat steps 4 and 5 to continue the rest of the bracelet until it fits around your (or your BFF’s) wrist.
Take the remainder of the string and neatly smooth it out into one large strand. Take the large strand of strings and tie it through the end of the loop to make it secure around your (or your friend’s) wrist.
JONES BEACH, NY – On Tuesday, July 26, 2016, 1800Flowers.com participated in the Marcum Workplace Challenge. Since 2005, the Marcum Workplace Challenge has brought Long Island businesses together for the amazing cause to help raise money for various charities. Annually held at Jones Beach State Park, the race features a 3.5 mile course followed by a picnic. Event participation is so great, that it is actually Long Island’s largest office picnic. This year, 1-800-Flowers.com was happy to have a team of 75 people participate in the challenge! Some even brought their families, too!
Participating Charities (including but not limited to):
CARLE PLACE, NY – On Thursday, April 29th, 2016, 1-800-Flowers.com celebrated Take Our Daughters and Sons to Work Day at the corporate headquarters in Long Island. Every year 1-800-Flowers.com has an amazing time participating in Take Your Child to Work Day, to help teach today’s youth about different employment opportunities.
This year’s Take Your Child to Work Day agenda was a “home run!” In addition to taking a tour to learn about different areas of our business from marketing to merchandising, our young guests also received hands-on decorating and design experience. From a floral design class with one of our top designers, to dipping strawberries in chocolate from one of our FruitBouquets.com experts, to creatively decorating Cheryl’s cookies and popcorn balls, the kids had a lot of fun, while learning, too! As an added bonus, the children also got to meet a very special guest! But enough writing, we’ll let the pictures do the talking to give you a “play-by-play” of this special day!
The kids started out the day with a presentation about FruitBouquets.com. Talented Designer Diana taught the kids all of her tricks of the trade on how to dip the perfect chocolate covered strawberries! Within minutes, the kids were able to create (and eat :)) their own chocolate berries!
After learning about how FruitBouquets.com makes the perfect chocolate berry, the boys and girls embarked on their next class: flower design 101! Floral Designer & Teacher Phil DeVito taught the kids how to create beautiful Mother’s Day flowers for their mom. After all, Mother’s Day IS around the corner. Using a colorful fresh flower assortment with everything from yellow and purple daisies, to white monte casinos, the kids had a fun and educational time arranging flowers just like a pro!
Next on the agenda was a fun-filled creative lesson of decorating cookies like our bakers at Cheryl’s, and decorating popcorn balls from our friends at The Popcorn Factory. Jessica, Ryan and Josephine, in marketing for the Great Food Brands, stepped in to help lend their expertise! With a wide variety of toppings from candy corn to sprinkles and more, the kids started to let their creative juices flow to start decorating… while sneakily eating some snacks, too!
Just before a pizza party lunch, the kids received a visit from a very special guest… Mr. Met! They even got a professional photo with the New York Mets baseball “celebrity!”
Some of the adult helpers got a little “star struck” and snuck in a photo with Mr. Met, too! 😉
The kids wrapped up the day with a tour through the 1-800-Flowers offices and returned to their parents with all of their crafts and snacks from the day!
This year, Take Our Daughters And Sons To Work® Day celebrated its 23rd anniversary as a national, public education program. The foundation takes a community-based approach that involves workplaces, schools, mentors, and parents, allowing children to connect school teachings with real-life careers.
Every year Pantone comes out with their “color of the year,” but this year they changed things up! For the first time ever, 2016 has two colors of the year: “Rose Quartz” in the pink color family and “Serenity” in the blue color family. These soft shades of pink and blue were selected based on trends in fashion and culture.
According to the Pantone website, these colors symbolize the gender blur in fashion and culture. In addition to the contemporary meaning of these colors, the balance of a warm rose and a cool tranquil blue symbolizes order and peace.
In honor of the “colors of the year,” we chose some of our favorite floral arrangements that remind us of Rose Quartz and Serenity. Check out some of our floral arrangements that best highlight these lovely colors of 2016!
This Local Artisan floral arrangement (designed by talented local florists) is a perfect mix of both Rose Quartz and Serenity, featuring soft pinks and purples in lilies, daisies, alstroemeria, and more.
This arrangement is all about the “Rose Quartz,” from lilies to roses to carnations, and more importantly even features rose quartz colored roses.
These pink and purple flowers stand out in their purple vase and feature many different shades that may remind one of Rose Quartz & Serenity.
The mixture of the Pantone colors are a perfect example of the lovely shades in this “Lavender Dreams” bouquet, featuring lighter pink roses with varying shades of purple (similar to Serenity) in a neutral grey ceramic pitcher.
Finding flowers in blue are few and far between which is why blue hydrangeas are such a popular flower. Particularly lovely for weddings, these hydrangeas are similar to the “Serenity” Pantone color in a calming baby blue.
This gorgeous hydrangea and rose arrangement embodies the light shades of pink in “Rose Quartz.”
This hydrangea plant perfectly encompasses the combination of Rose Quartz and Serenity. The vintage style planter also includes a bit of Serenity.
The United States has a holiday for everything from National Puppy Day to National Kissing Day, but did you know that there is also a holiday for cheese? That’s right, January 20th is National Cheese Lovers Day, and if you’re like us then you know how exciting this day is. From macaroni and cheese to meat & cheese platters to cheese-flavored popcorn and more, the list of our favorite cheese foods goes on. Craving some cheesy goodness yet? Check out our top cheese picks from our family of brands:
Harry & David’s Gourmet Cheese Assortment features Manchego cheese, Promontory, St. Pete’s Select Blue Cheese & Sartori BellaVitano Gold cheese (it’s so good it won a gold medal!).
The Popcorn Factory’s Cheese Popcorn is a classic favorite available in most of their popcorn tin varieties.
Harry and David’s Award-Winning Cheeses includes five gourmet cheeses from hard cheeses to crumbly blue cheeses.
The Popcorn Factory’s white cheddar popcorn is another mouth-watering flavor which can be found in many of their 2-gallon tins.
1800Baskets has a premium cheese basket including cheddar, monterey jack, and a cheese knife to cut all your fresh cheeses with!
When you love cheese so much that you want it year-round (and who doesn’t?) join a cheese club that sends you either wine & cheese or wine & fruit monthly!
However you decide to celebrate this day, make sure you include some cheese (and don’t forget to share)!
