The Weekly Florists' Review. 



683 



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THE RETAIL 



FLORIST 



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Wedding Decorations. 



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Uings iiiul otiier tonus ot tostivities are 

 about tlie most importiuit matters to 

 •discuss this week witli tlie retailer, and 

 tlie many other subjects, particularly of 

 matters pertaining to last Easter, must 

 lay over for another time. 



Very few carte blanche orders are 

 given nowadays, but Madame and Miss 

 call at your store and pump you dry of 

 ideas for nothing; at best they will ask 

 you to furnish designs and estimates, 

 and these are the rocks on which your 

 bark of hope is liable to get wrecked. 

 The getting of an order these times, es- 

 pecially where there is much rivalry, is 

 cause for even more anxiety than the 

 tilling of it, and many times the failure 

 to land one is due to either stiff-necked 

 independence or lack of diplomacy. 

 There need be very little "bell-pulling" 

 About wedding orders; a good reputa- 

 tion, artistic and otherwise, is the first 

 care, and how to grasp the situation the 

 ne.'ct. 



Whenever we are asked to furnish an 

 estimate we send two — one cheap and 

 the other fairly high; and we never fail 

 to get the high one. The sending of 

 two estimates is absolutely necessary in 

 these days of keen competition, one to 

 meet the "Cheap John," the florist 

 whose only apparent mission on earth 

 seems to be to undersell all others, and 

 the other to enable you to give satisfac- 

 tion to all concerned. Now in giving 

 jin estimate one needs to be "up" on the 

 values, appropriateness and availability 

 of materials, and no one is justified in 

 pleading ignorance of these today. The 

 time has come — it may be general soon 

 in the large cities — when people expect 

 sketches with their estimates. One 

 house in New York furnishes them now 

 with a success which justifies a more 

 general adoption. Many, perhaps the 

 great majority of people, don't know 

 what they want until they see it; try to 

 supply their wants. 



If a bride-to-be is in the habit of 

 visiting your store and you hope to get 

 the wedding order, endeavor to have not 

 only her favorite flower, but some 

 specially choice or novel arrangement 

 always on the counter; don't feel it in- 

 cumbent on you to present her with 

 flowers every time she comes in, for it 

 is only "cheap people" who care to be 

 under any obligations. Many accept 

 flowers gratis from the florist because 

 they are too well bred to hurt feelings; 

 if you want to give flowers away, put 

 a bunch of something choice in with 

 their order, or better still, execute their 

 order first class. That will create a 

 better impression than giving them a 

 bunch of violets and charging them two 

 dollars for the one they order. 



As to materials for wedding decora- 

 tions, we know many of our readers are 

 living in places where there is a great 

 abundance of choice evergreen stuff and 

 outdoor blossoms at present. Northern 



florists envy them their chances for ar- 

 tistic creations, but not their financial 

 recompense. Here in the cold latitudes 

 we must look to the greenhouse for the 

 majority of our material, getting only 

 from the South that which furnishes the 

 background of our work. The plant and 

 cut flower markets nere are in such a 

 condition that none are justified (ex- 

 cept in very bad cases) in doing scrimpy 

 work; it is a matter of selection rather 

 than price. 



It is hard to convince some that many 

 times an artistic spray in the center of 

 a wall produces a better effect than the 

 entire wall being covered. Application 

 is all in all very often. The roman- 

 tically sentimental is a most essential 

 element at the wedding decoration, and 

 no matter how cynical or bitter your 

 nature, let your work impart some joy; 

 have it illustrate some of the great 

 beauties of that which makes life worth 

 the while. Old-time methods, designs 

 and ideas no longer obtrude upon the 



The manner of using it depends on the 

 extent of the work. Sometimes a bunch 

 ill a one-colored Japanese vase makes 

 :i hit. The use of flowering plants such 

 a> azaleas, hydrangeas, lilies, genistas, 

 el c, for weddings is so much on the in- 

 crease that growers find it wise to have 

 a supply right up to the end of June. 

 .\ great mistake is made in using small, 

 insignificant flowers in the church; 

 whatever you do use big showy blooms 

 and concentrate them. A decoration 

 loses considerable of its value if only seen 

 a few feet from the altar, and the ma- 

 jority of the people don't see them and 

 the bridal party are too much occupied to 

 examine your work. For this reason, 

 too, it is a mistake to concentrate all 

 one's endeavor on the altar; the body 

 and entrance to the church deserve more 

 consideration than is usually given. 



Then, where it is possible, and it is so 

 in nearly every case, the center aisle 

 should be reserved for the bridal party; 

 in this way it can be made a grand fea- 

 ture. An azalea can be fastened on the 

 end of each pew ; have them all one 

 color — any variety will do; trim the rest 

 of the ends of the pews with greens and 

 a garland and pendant of flowers of a 

 contrasting color. No ribbons should be 

 used. The idea to be brought out is to 

 have the bridal party walk down an ave- 

 nue of flowers. Use a white or light 

 green crash carpet on the fioor and scat- 

 ter a few short pink or red roses on it. 

 Have a floral swinging gate at the en- 



Easter Plant Arrangements. No. 



progress of today, not that we see 

 much newness; the progress lies more 

 in the way of better work, and par- 

 ticularly in the using of choicer ma- 

 terial. Thus we see a greater demand 

 for spring blossoms, such as almond, 

 peach, Japan quince, the deutzias, spi- 

 reas, forsythia, magnolias, "red bud," 

 and the host of beautiful flowering 

 shrubs so easily brought into flower. 

 These are arranged in arbors or avenues, 

 or arches, or manufactured into trees, 

 care being taken to have each by itself. 

 Often the mere suggestion of the use 

 of such blossoms may get you the or- 

 der. 



trance and don't arrange the flowers 

 higher than one foot above the wood- 

 work. Be careful not to have stems, 

 wire, thorns or such things protrude in a 

 way dangerous to dresses. Floral arches 

 should never appear cheaply done; if 

 the price is small use plenty of greens 

 and cluster your flowers where they will 

 show most. 



The altar or communion rail is an- 

 other important point, and the flowers 

 put there should be high enough to be 

 seen from all over the church. Rig up a 

 temporary shelf, cover it with a white 

 cloth to iiang about a foot in front, over 

 this a delicate tracery of vines and roses. 



