In keeping with their Minnesota State Motta, “L’Etoile du nord” – Member Floral Logic, located in the historic Semple Mansion of  Minneapolis,  www.FloralLogic.com was crowned “Best Florist 2010″ in early July at the invitation only party hosted by Minnesota Bride Magazine at Carlson Rotunda.  It was their second win in so many consecutive years!

Hats off to our own “Star of the North”!

BBrooks member Geranium Lake in Portland, Oregon www.geraniumlake.com shares a lovely idea for boutonnieres with us from their May 2010 newsletter:  http://www.projectwedding.com/wedding-ideas/beyond-flowers.

Succulents are all the rage among eco-chic trendsetters. For your home, garden, or wedding, these hearty plants are beautifully shaped and come in a dazzling array of colors. Many succulent plants even grow flowers! Combined with stones, moss, and local blossoms, succulents make modern and elegant centerpieces.

Because they’re hearty and easy to care for, succulents make great wedding favors and souvenirs for you and your guests. Any succulent can be taken home and replanted, and will live for years with minimal care.

Member Twig, www.twigboston.com has invited noted Santa Fe impressionist Joseph Breza to exhibit his remarkable work at their Charles St Location during the latter half of June 2010.

Joseph Breza is extremely accomplished, being exhibited and collected internationally.   Breza is known for his use of color and bold brushstroke in brillant Impressionistic landscapes, garden still lifes and scenes from France, Italy, and New Mexico.   Between 1984-1985, Joseph Breza studied under renowned artist Richard Goetz at the Art Students League, N.Y.

In His Own Words: “Each artist creates his own language in color. I consider color to be the foremost component of my painting. By laying down large fields and flattening them out in some areas, I can draw out strong planes of color from the image. I am always experimenting. Sometimes I lay down thin washes to catch the power of the idea more quickly. I like to observe the reflections on a pond in the Spring and Fall. Winter interests me because  the snow creates big, abstract areas. The more I get into the art, the more depth I find. The simplest idea, like Cezanne’s apples, is sometimes the most incredible.”

Also on display will be beautiful flowers, unique gift products.

Grayson Handy is the creative director of New York’s Prudence Designs and Events, www.prudencedesigns.net.

He is the co-author of a gorgeous new designer book. Flowers for the Home,
Inspirations from the World Over by Prudence Designs.

Showcased are 100 simple and stylish floral arrangements for both everyday and special occasions that have been shaped by Handy’s worldwide travels. These floral designs are inspired by cultures and traditions from such far-flung places as China, the tropical rain forest, the English countryside, and the American South.

We here at BBrooks are mostly, obviously, concerned with yummy flowers in a vase. But, this is a great article from The Times about the path flowers take when they are being turned into artisan perfumes.

Long time member Roberto James Floral & Event Design, www.robertjameschicago.com created the exquisite Snow Lily headdress for this stunning cover image of Vanessa Williams for Rouge magazine, December 2009.

Congratulations to member Bloomsbury Flowers in London, UK, www.bloomsburyflowers.co.uk!  Their elegantly rustic display fetched a Silver Medal at the Chelsea Flowers Show this month!!

Huzzah!!

Arranging flowers is a creative, artistic process in which beauty is very much in the eye of the beholder. What some people find beautiful, others will find unappealing. An avant-garde’s cutting-edge design may be a traditionalist’s eyesore. But that is precisely how art stays fresh—by constantly experimenting, reinventing and transforming itself.

Should the government have the power to say who may or may not become a florist?

A Louisiana law threatens to shut down bbrooks member Mitch’s Flowers in New Orleans, because their sole licensed florist passed away in February. The owners have 90 days to hire another licensed florist…or close up shop.  Visit them on facebook to show your support!!

Watch the CBS News story, click here.

To arrange and sell flowers in Louisiana, aspiring florists must first obtain a government-issued license.  The licensing exam, which is offered four times a year, consists of two parts: A one-hour written test and a four-hour practical test. The practical exams are graded by 3 to 6 judges – who are working licensed florists. Louisiana thus empowers a small group of licensed florists to decide who may compete with them and who may not.

If Louisiana can license florists, there is no limit to what it can license or to the burdens it can impose on honest, productive livelihoods.

States That License Florists

On March 4, 2010, the Institute for Justice filed a civil rights lawsuit, Chauvin v. Strain, in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana against the Commissioners of the Louisiana Horticulture Commission seeking to have Louisiana’s anti-entrepreneur, anti-competitive and anti-consumer florist licensing scheme declared unconstitutional.

This case is about more than just florists in Louisiana.  The U.S. Constitution protects every American’s right to earn an honest living in the occupation of their choice and prohibits the government from erecting barriers to entrepreneurship that are arbitrary or do nothing more than keep entrepreneurs from competing with existing businesses. Thus, this case is about setting a national precedent that will stop the government from licensing harmless occupations.

What began in New Orleans must end in New Orleans. It is time for the courts to declare Louisiana’s anti-competitive florist regulations unconstitutional. The Institute for Justice aims to restore the 14^th Amendment’s Privileges or Immunities Clause to its proper role as the foremost constitutional protection for the right to earn an honest living.

photo courtesy of Compositions ME

The history of Mother’s Day is centuries old and can be traced back to the ancient Egyptians.

Early Christians initially used the day to honor their “Mother Church.” They also celebrated a “Mother’s Festival” during Lent to honor Mary, the mother of Christ.

In England, in the 1600′s, the celebration began to include real Mothers, earning the name Mothering Day. During this Lenten Sunday, servants and trade workers were allowed to travel back to their towns of origin to visit their families and came bearing cakes and flowers for Mother. Mothering Day also provided a one-day reprieve from the fasting and penance of Lent as families enjoyed a sumptuous family feast—Mother was the guest of honor.

English colonists settled in America discontinued the tradition of Mothering Sunday –perhaps due to lack of time. Another possibility, however, is that Mothering Day conflicted with their Puritan ideals.

In 1872, Julia Ward Howe, who penned The Battle Hymn of the Republic, established a landmark in the history of Mother’s Day.   Howe had become so distraught by the death and carnage of the Civil War that she called on Mother’s to come together and protest the futility of their Sons killing the Sons of other Mothers. She called for an international Mother’s Day celebrating peace and motherhood.

The holiday nearly failed once Howe stopped providing the funding for the majority of these celebrations.  Howe had nevertheless planted the seed that would blossom into what we know as Mother’s Day today

Anna M. Jarvis also campaigned for the creation of an official Mother’s Day in remembrance of her mother and in honor of peace.   Her request was honored, and on May 10, 1908, the first official Mother’s Day celebration took place at Andrew’s Methodist Church in Grafton, West Virginia and a church in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.  Andrew’s Methodist Church exists to this day, and was incorporated into the International Mother’s Day Shrine in 1962.

In 1908, U.S. Senator from Nebraska, Elmer Burkett, proposed making Mother’s Day a national holiday at the request of the Young Men’s Christian Association (YMCA). The proposal was defeated, but by 1909 forty-six states were holding Mother’s Day services as well as parts of Canada and Mexico.

Anna Jarvis quit working and devoted herself entirely to the creation of Mother’s Day, endlessly petitioning state governments, business leaders, women groups, churches and other institutions and organizations. She finally convinced the World’s Sunday School Association, a key influence over state legislators and congress, to back her. In 1912 West Virginia became the first state to officially recognize Mother’s Day, and in 1914 Woodrow Wilson signed it into national observance, declaring the second Sunday in May as Mother’s Day.

New York City member, L’Olivier, www.lolivier.com created a spectacular tableau in their downtown storefront location on 14^th St!

Simple Monobotanic, Monochromatic arrangements of Pave Roses in White, Lavender and Hot Pink bouquets are presented in opaque designer vases  and linked with Dusty Miller and Deep Purple Hydrangea  arrangements by the use of elegantly draped bear grass.

These beauties rest atop a refreshing tablecloth of purple, robin’s egg blue, white and charcoal paisley.

Rounding out this unique and exciting setting are wall hangings of Pave roses inmixed pastels, framed in a shadow box style.