Dried Flower Expert

Dried Flowers

admin — Thu, 16 Oct 2008 06:22:29 +0000

You say you’re ready to do some special floral arrangements using natural product to add to your home accessories. How & where do we begin? Let me be your guide, just come with me to my favorite dried flower wholesale supplier at www.schustersoftexas.com. Now that we’ve gotten the supplies we need, get started with these step by step instructions. Layer #1, place 3 natural Sun Palms in staggered positions; Layer #2, mix in the preserved foliage of the burgundy Lasianthia leaves; Layer #3, add 2-3 dried Hydrangeas in the vibrant colors of burgundy/blue (pinch off a bloom or two to glue onto the Sun Palms in selected places); Layer #4, add a few bleached bell caps with 3-4 natural colored Mahogany Pods. Final step, tie together with a gathered-up bow of natural raffia, leaving curly streamers. Hang-on the front door to welcome your visitors with colorful pizzazz.

Lead your guests into a floral paradise using the exotics of Ting Ting flowers in candy pink with Twisted Ting Ting in Boudreaux & Flax Grass in what else but Bordeaux. Select at least 3 Banksia in Bordeaux to serve as the center of interest. Place around the Banksia the Ting Ting flowers & Twisted Ting, pulling blades of the Flax Grass at random. Poke-in several stalks of 20” natural Cane Coils & Cane Springs, to be the tallest points, keeping the arrangement loose & airy. Set these in an appropriate container such as a milk glass vase or clay pot.

With all this decorating going on, keep in mind the different aromas available in potpourri. Being the crafty, decorative genius we are, we can make our own using natural products from our wholesale source, www.schustersoftexas.com, using the preserved flowers & preserved foliage available. We can combine the burgundy preserved Peppermint with the burgundy preserved Cedar Leaves. Tempt our palate by adding the purple or red Eucalyptus. Arrange these into a bundle form, placing the cedar & peppermint on the bottom with stems overlapping in the center. Place the Eucalyptus gingerly on top of the above, along with a couple of cinnamon sticks. Wrap this bundle of nose twitching treats with several strands of raffia for home accessories to bring pleasure to all who enter. Place on a table in your entry way or lay on a window sill or hang as swags above the entry door.

Thinking on the same wave length or should I say following the aroma trail we’ll be using the preserved Eucalyptus dried wreath (wreaths are not just for hanging anymore).

Place it in a straw basket large enough to hold it up sideways. Add, to the wreath, just the heads of the merlot Celosia, using at least 5 good sized ones; mix-in burgundy Vabascum tips, letting them hang down & around the wreath. Make a nice sized raffia bow using the natural color & attach at the base of the wreath. How about that for an aromatic change?

Everyone I know loves plants. Since I have no green thumb, I rely heavily on dried preserved greenery such as the green Succulent with a mix of green Lasiantha added for fullness & natural color of the Phalaris & basil twisted Tin Ting snipped off to the length of your choosing. Place in a terra cotta pot. Why not do several of these at a time to take to a neighbor or a shut-in, with a note attached “No Care Needed”? Wouldn’t that be a nice jester on your part?

Another option could find us using several 3’-4’ Birch Branch bundles mounted in a large container. Place a 30” Peacock Feather Spray down in front of the Birch. At the base fill in with green preserved hanging Amaranthus (fairly thick), having it spill (in different lengths) over the edge of a clay pot.

Since I like arranging things in threes, let’s form a small 7” circle using the grapevine garland, gluing yellow Star flowers at random on the vine. Fill the circle with sheet moss, making a nest. Pop in a colorful fake bird for a tweet treat. Group these last 3 floral arrangements together for a complete overview.

Technorati Tags: dried flowers, mosses

Erica and Curtis_0001.wmv

admin — Sat, 04 Sep 2010 05:10:14 +0000

Wedding album I made for my niece last year. Her colors were black, white, and red. I used silk flowers and paper flowers. Stamps, bling and ribbon.

Technorati Tags: Curtis_0001.wmv, Erica

Adelanto Clan Wreaths Storm-War

admin — Sat, 04 Sep 2010 02:12:06 +0000

Clan Wreaths Ally Legendary. Server Storm War.

Technorati Tags: Adelanto, Clan, StormWar, wreaths

Dried Plants. Do you know the tricks that can be done with them?

admin — Fri, 03 Sep 2010 18:43:02 +0000

Plants can cheer up a interior design or an ornament. They can stir up ideas and offer calmness to the distracted brain. In addition to when put to use as arrangements or decorations in by themselves, plants portray natural splendor. And yet, they will quickly wilt and perish. Then again, the sophisticated style of blossoms as room decorations and decorations broaden to the conclusion of its everyday living ranges. Without a doubt. Dried flowers can be put to use for pretty applications, as well. Furthermore, they are simply as lovely and expense-valuable as their particular clean alternatives.

Dried out flowers are fine-to-go for 12 months-round flower arrangements. When you protect plants, you do not only recycle normal components. Much more critical, you get pleasure from the marvel of a extensive selection of plants no matter if they’re in or out of season.

Anyone can without difficulty have dried out blossoms possibly by dangling them or setting them in a container of desiccant to much better retain the flowers. Presently there are a lot of far more procedures of protecting blossoms. But what’s sizeable is that you are capable to appreciate dried blossoms calendar year round by coordinating them in flower vases, developing wreaths, candlestick holders and other residence ornaments.

Irrespective of whether it’s dry blossoms in their initial kind or it’s the pressed dried blossoms you have, the pursuing are the factors you can do with your dried blossoms in addition a small touch of creativity and innovation:

Seasonal floral arrangements: Irrespective of whether in vases or baskets, these dried plants will previous for quite a few years when effectively saved.
Potpourri: As wreaths, wall decorations, mirror decorations, hat decorations, photo frame decorations or lamp shade decorations, these dried blossoms can include to the eye attractiveness of a wide variety of points.
Gifts:Irrespective of whether dried plants are on hair combs or decoupage unto boxes or on photo frames, your present will have the uniqueness and personalized contact variables.

These are only some of the a lot of factors you can do with dried plants. With the right storage, dried plants don’t just combine beauty as decorations but they can also previous a extended time.

For your dried flower and decoration requires, try out the products of Schusters of Texas. When it occurs to blossoms, Schusters has 50 a long time of marveling the earth with their how-to guides and decorating suggestions.

So what are you waiting for? Invest in dried flowers now. And invest with the greatest – Schusters Of Texas.

View full post on List My Feed

Technorati Tags: done, Dried, Know, plants, Them, Tricks

Gillespie Florists Floral Bouquets Gift Baskets Indianapolis

admin — Fri, 03 Sep 2010 10:10:59 +0000

Birthday? Wedding? Weekend Colts game? Whatever the occasion, Gillespie Florists in Indianapolis can supply the bouquets, gift baskets, balloons and any added touches and get it all to where it needs to be quickly. Boasting an array of fresh and silk flowers, figurines, plants and gourmet goodies plus a creative and caring staff, they have what you want whether it’s for a tux and tails event or a tailgate party! Visit us www.yellowpages.com

Technorati Tags: baskets, bouquets, floral, florists, gift, Gillespie, Indianapolis

Ideas To Decorate A Small Porch

admin — Fri, 03 Sep 2010 08:15:53 +0000

It is exciting and challenging to decorate a small porch. The typical houses nowadays include a rather small porch. Whatever reason those owners have or those contractors have, you can still decorate your small porch to your own delight, without even accidentally trying to make it smaller. With a little imagination, a couple of amenities and some storage spaces, you can make your tiny porch to a much bigger one.Now, all that you have to do is to start with the following:-Change your old door knobs or door knockers to a new one.-Mix and match your color and your style to a much consistent look.-Change your hinge plates and door knobs if they give you that tarnished look, or they are basically worn out. If you can enhance its look with a bit of cleaning, you can also do that to save money.Now, let us move to decorating details.If you have an old doorbell, why not try to change it with something that lights up at night. That way, people will be able to see it even if the lights are out at night. It will also give your old doorbell a new life. It will also help you save up on your electricity bill, as you would not need to open up another light at night.You can also try to change your old ceiling fixtures, to suit your current decoration. If the ceiling of your porch is a bit high, then you can always go for those hanging lights. If you want to just use your old one, then I suggest that you start cleaning them up, by simply wiping them. That will make it emit a much brighter light.Now, when you choose colors for your porch, it is best that you try to make a dramatic impact by simply painting a part of your porch area a contrasting color as your main door or vice versa. That way, it will stand out and it will look as if the area is actually bigger than it really is. After that, try to pick out a wreath that will compliment your new paint. Did you know that wreaths do add warmth to your main entrance and at the same time, it is something that you can change easily.If it is possible, why not add art to your porch? You can easily do so by putting a tiny sculpture or painting. If you do that, it will give your porch a sort of focal point. This will bring a good and instant impact to your visitors for sure. You can also get one of your paintings; just make sure that you pick one that will compliment the current color of your porch. A decorative flower will also help in enhancing the look of your new decorated porch. This will give the area more life. Just ensure that you pick out something that is of the right size, and not something that will overcrowd your small porch.Now, let us talk about adding storage to your small porch. Your porch may be small, but you can easily add more storage space to it, without really crowding it. You can do so by getting columns for your porch. When they are painted in synch with your porch color, it can actually blend with it, and make the area looking a bit open. This is as opposed to putting one with a different color. Try to get those squares or rectangle ones, avoid getting the oval or circle ones, as they do tend to eat more space.

Technorati Tags: decorate, ideas, Porch, small

You too can make a botanical Plates with Dried Flowers

admin — Thu, 02 Sep 2010 18:42:38 +0000

Not only do dried plants stay pretty longer and are a lot more readily available than their clean counterparts, they can also be utilized in a great deal of crafts. Crafts that would normally be difficult with the delicate foliage and structure of refreshing plants can arrive to existence conveniently with dried bouquets.

Through all the seasons, you can collect a broad array of lovely blossoms, textured herbs, elaborate foliage and multi-hued leaves – dry them and then employ them in very simple but captivating crafts and projects.

Producing botanical plates is one particular of the a lot of crafts that could be accentuated with the use of dried plants.

Under are the measures to adhere to in doing your personalized dried blossoms botanical dish:

You can invest in dried blossoms from neighborhood and on the web flower shops or you can opt to offer dried blossoms for your botanical platter by your self. If the second preference is a lot more desirable, purely press blossoms of your selection in between blotters or tissue cardstock and then shop them in a thick book (a telephone book or dictionary perform fine) or flower press for a range of weeks.
Aside from the dried blossoms, acquire glass tableware like plates, bowls, vases and platters. Also be prepared with the following resources: decoupage method, white glue, scissors, and a little brush.
The following action is to style and design your botanical platter. When it comes to the designing portion, there’s no room for becoming humble – let your creativity operate as wild as conceivable. A dried flower botanical platter is only as excellent as its style and design – no matter if it’s uncomplicated or a busy clutter.
Turn the glass platter upside down. Employing a little volume of white glue, attach your dried blossoms in position. A single essential issue although, DON’T Actually Neglect THAT YOU’RE Completed Dish WILL BE VIEWED FRONT SIDE UP-often, you’ll stop up with a style and design that’s on the incorrect side.
Manage the dried blossoms with utmost care. Dried blossoms are annoyingly and inconveniently fragile.
When all the resources are previously in position, lay a piece of rice cardstock (reduce a small greater than the platter) more than the back of the platter (or above the upside-down blossoms). With a finger, hold the cardstock in position despite the fact that cautiously applying decoupage method employing simple strokes from a loaded brush. Don’t go brushing any region for a lot more than twice or thrice-often you’ll stop up tearing the cardstock.
Allow for the decoupage method to dry completely. You will know that it has dried wholly mainly because the platter will be obvious, as if the rice cardstock has melted onto the platter, and the color is in a lighter hue with the texture particulars a lot more emphasized. Reduce the additional cardstock on the plate’s rim.

Tada! You have your really very own dried bouquets botanical platter!

For the most effective dried blossoms and how you can successfully dry blossoms, go to http://www.schustersoftexas.com/. They present how-to guides for all floral matters, and they have 50 many years in the floral small business to aid you out in your floral requests, quests and queries.

View full post on List My Feed

Technorati Tags: botanical, Dried, flowers, Plates

Sia – Home Fashion by Schmedes – Blumen und Grün in Hannover

admin — Thu, 02 Sep 2010 15:14:54 +0000

Sia-Home Fashion – flowers, blooms, plants and accessories for decoration and style available at Schmedes – Blumen und Grün in Hannover / www.blumen-schmedes.de

Technorati Tags: Blumen, Fashion, Grün, Hannover, Home, Schmedes

How To Throw A Great Toga Party!

admin — Thu, 02 Sep 2010 14:10:43 +0000

About once a year I feel this need to make my friends dress up ridiculous and come to my house for some fun. I’ve had some creative theme parties in the past: 70′s Disco, 80′s Punk, Saturday Night Live, Polyester, Christmas, Halloween, but my all time favorite has to be the TOGA party. My friends are all over 40 and surprisingly have no problem wrapping their bodies in sheets to come over for a few beers.

I sent invitations out a good 3 weeks in advance. They had a photo of my husband eating grapes in a toga, to let people know we were serious about the dress code.

I believe this party was a huge success because guests didn’t have to be extra creative and they certainly didn’t have to shop for a costume (a big complaint at our other parties). No one had to diet the week before the party so they could fit into their outfit. They could easily go to their linen closets an hour before the party to find their sheet. A simple belt around the waste and some flip flops sealed the ensemble. Finally, with a few branches tied together from the shrubs out front, they had a head wreath and were ready to go.

The fact that EVERYONE came dressed in full TOGA made it extra fun. Some had themes on top of their togas. Like a Viking fan’s toga accents were long purple and gold braids, a cowgirl’s toga was accessorized with hat and boots. My head wreath had blinking white lights and a battery pack attached to it for some extra sparkle.

There were a few more details I had to tie together to get my party decor just right: A visit to the local craft stores helped me find 9 foot strands of green olive leaves that I intertwined with mini white Christmas lights and zig-zagged across all the ceilings on the first floor of my house. This gave us that feeling that we were outside in Rome. I borrowed candelabras from many friends and had candles lit everywhere on the 1st floor of the house. (Don’t forget to blow those out at the end of the night.)

For the dining room, I brought in some garden statues of goddesses from my neighbors yard and set them in the middle of my dining room table, surrounded with leaves and greens. I found and purchased a plastic 3-tiered punch fountain for $60 from a restaurant supply store. I filled it with cosmopolitans and had a selection of HuePhoria cosmo glasses from www.huephoria.com on the table next to it for the partygoers so no one would lose their glass. Wine was also served from HuePhoria goblets for an extra touch of party fun!

The bathrooms each have a big basket on the counter with all those necessities a partygoer may need at any point during the evening. Deodorant, breath spray & mints, hair spray, comical gadgets, etc. My friends sneak their own accessories into the baskets to give me a good laugh for my cleanup in the morning.

I never spend a lot of money on food for a good party. My closest friends always offer to bring something and I happily accept. Then I know the food will be a good variety and each appetizer is made with care. For the toga party, I did go to my local greek restaurant and order up a few trays of olives/hummus/grapeleaves, etc. to have on the table. Remember, if the party starts at 7p.m., guest arrive at 7:30-ish (fashionably late) and most of them have already eaten so you don’t need a huge spread of heavy food. Finger foods do the trick. I always make my famous sugar cookies and chose a leave cookie cutter for that evening.

Small green jello shots were set at the front door to greet all the guests and put them in the right frame of mind. You can buy the little plastic cups at any restaurant supply store. Ware all over 40 so it doesn’t get that wild that easily anymore. Above the front door hung a sheet reading TOGA similar to Animal House. Had the weather been nicer, we might have thrown the basement couches on the front lawn but we chose not to that night in fear of rain.

This is one party that you MUST buy a KEG for because it goes along with your theme. Then you need to find the neighbor who always stands next to the keg at parties (Glen) and throw a pitcher in his hand. That way, there will always be a quick pour when needed.

Music makes the party at my house. LOUD music. If I have to invest in one thing to make a party rock, it is a good pair of BOSE speakers. My 5 hour ipod playlist is carefully chosen with a mix of awesome songs from the 70′s, 80′s, and 90′s. It is always set so that rocking dance music starts to play an hour and 1/2 into the party because that’s when people start to feel their happy feet.

It is a tradition in our home to move all the furniture out of our family room for big parties, hang a disco ball and spotlight in the center of the room, roll up our carpets and turn our hard woods into a dance floor. The music in the family room is very loud to get people to dance and it flows into all the quieter surrounding rooms just perfectly. People who want to talk can stay in the kitchen and dining areas. I hate going to parties with no music. They tend to end early… if you haven’t noticed. Not the TOGA party! The dance floor was loaded with the playing of great songs like “Louie Louie”, “Shout” & “Tossin’ & Turnin’”. The dancing didn’t end until the party ended!

I used to love to burn CD’s as party favors with the top 14 songs of the night but now that the crowd has gotten larger, that isn’t so easy to do. It is a good thought if you have less than 50 guests but over that is too much work.

Finally, don’t knock yourself out cleaning because your house will be a mess the next day! No one can see a dirty floor or dusty shelf at night… in a crowded party… with lots of candles. Pick up your stuff but don’t stress out scrubbing everything. I know too many people who don’t have parties because they get way too stressed entertaining. It is supposed to be fun. Have a good time and don’t worry because everything comes together just fine. We always have a great crowd of people who just want to let loose!

My favorite all time quote is from Julie Childs –

“And above all, have a good time!”

Technorati Tags: great, party, Throw, Toga

The Early Ages of Jewellery

admin — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 20:10:36 +0000

Jewelry has been part of our culture for thousands of years and first came in to existence from different regions throughout the world. Starting with early Egyptians right through to the Romans and Greek jewelry has been a major part of showing off ones stature and wealth.

Ancient Egyptian jewelry reflects the culture’s deep roots in religion. Their gem carvings, or glyptic art, were usually of scarab beetles and other anthropomorphic religious symbols. The glory and power of the Pharaohs were symbolized by their lavish furniture, art and jewelry.

It was not only important for the Egyptian to be wealthy in life, but also in the after-life. While the Egyptians wore simple clothing, they always wore elaborate jewelry. They produced earrings, bracelets, anklets, rings, and beaded necklaces.

Men and women wore jewelry in ancient Egypt for many different reasons. Jewelry was not only worn for aesthetic purposes, or as a symbol of wealth, but also as a protection from evil. These amulets were worn around their necks or strapped to the arm or leg.

Ancient Egyptians used gold more than any other precious metal. They believed that gold was divine and that it was associated with the sun. Instead of using many precious gemstones, they imitated their colors using glass. They did however use certain gems such as lapis, lazilu and malachite, garnet, onyx, and turquoise.

For the ancient Egyptians, every color had a symbolic meaning which made jewelry coloration very important. For example, green jewelry symbolized fertility and the success of new crops, while red jewelry was said to satisfy the God Isis’ need for blood. Similarly, a jewelry motif was equally important and symbolic. The scarab beetle, for example, was one of the most important motifs of the ancient Egyptians. The beetle symbolized rebirth and the generative forces of the rising sun.

It was very common for the deceased to be buried with their possessions which included their jewelry. In fact, the Pharaohs and other high officials were buried with hoards of jewelry pieces like crowns, wreaths, rings and necklaces.

Ancient Romans had access to a wide variety of materials and natural resources because of their dominion over Europe and the Mediterranean during the 9th century BC to 5th century AD. Because of this reason, gold, precious gems, glass beads and pearls were used to create earrings, necklaces, pendants, and bracelets.

Many of the ancient Roman jewelry pieces had practical and decorative value. One of the most common pieces was the fibula, or the pin. Because Roman clothing was mostly pinned instead of sewn, these large pins became fashionable items and were often elaborately decorated. Similarly the brooch was designed by the Romans to secure clothing. It has endured as a decorative piece of jewelry to this day.

Early Roman jewelry was heavily influenced by Greek and Etruscan jewelry, but new designs were invented overtime. A well-known design invented by the Romans was the gold hemisphere, which was used in necklaces, bracelets and earrings. The Romans also invented the hoop earring, which emerged around 300 BC. Hoop earrings were usually decorated with carved animals and other images. Many of their gold bracelets were often carved into coiling snakes, which symbolized immortality. The Romans also borrowed several designs from ancient Egyptians that were incorporated into their own jewelry designs, including the knot of Hercules. This design features a powerful knot that is created from two ropes. Also known as the marriage-knot, it was worn to protect the wearer from evil.

For women in Rome, jewelry was a sign of wealth and status. The stylish upper-class women of Rome usually wore a significant amount of jewelry. Men were known to wear a single ring. After death, the caskets of the wealthy women were decorated with paintings, famously known as the Fayum Mummy Portraits. These paintings featured the deceased adorned with their finest jewelry.

Most of the early Mycenaean Age Greek jewelry was made up of beads that were shaped into shells and animals. It wasn’t until 1400 BC, that the Greeks began using precious metals and gems in their jewelry pieces. But by 300 BC, they were experts at incorporating colored gems in their jewelry including pearls, amethyst and emeralds. They were also skilled at carving elaborate patterns into the gems and into ivory.

Early Greek jewelry was easy to distinguish from other cultures. Their unique craftsmanship and simple designs were in contrast to the elaborate styles of other cultures. But as time went by the Greeks began to use more materials and produced a wide range of jewelry with complex designs and techniques. The Hellenistic age (330-27 BC) also introduced new types of jewelry to the Greeks from Far-East and Egypt. The use of gold became increasingly common during this time.

Ancient Greeks produced all types of jewelry including earrings, pendants, pins, bracelets, armbands, thigh bands, rings and wreaths. They enjoyed wearing pendant earrings that were commonly decorated with doves or the gods Eros and Nike. Their necklaces had two main styles: the wide strap chain and the round chain. Many of their motifs were either derived from nature, including plant and animal motifs or the gods and goddesses.

Jewelry during the Hellenistic age (330-27 BC) was passed down from generation to generation. Jewelry was also known to be used as offerings to the gods. Ancient Greek women were usually buried wearing their jewelry. Many of the samples today come from these tombs.

Without the knowledge passed down from generation to generation the beauty of jewelry may have never been in existence without our early ancestors paving the way to today’s stunning array of exotic jewelry.

Technorati Tags: Ages, early, Jewellery