Magic Mistletoe!

Mistletoe grows in clusters on tree branches almost like a birds nest. Despite being highly poisonous and causing stomach pain with low pulse, Mistletoe is most commonly used as Christmas decoration and well known for being the kissing plant!

Ancient culture has passed on the tradition that the mistletoe sprig, once cut, shouldn’t come into contact with the ground and is hung above a door way to preserve the house from lightning or fire.


The ‘kissing under the Mistletoe’ is believed to originate from Scandinavia where a man and a woman meet under the Mistletoe to share a kiss. A berry is then plucked from the bunch. This goes on until all the berries are removed.

Here at Quintessentially Flowers we think this is a lovely, fun concept and encourage you all to buy a bunch of Mistletoe for your door arch and get picking those berries!

Christmas Colours!

Christmas Day is only just around the corner so it’s definitely time to start getting into the festive spirit…but what colour theme for the decorations? With regards to style, you have a few to choose from. The traditional red, green and gold adds a warm, cozy feeling to your home and gives more of an indulgent look. It would be perfect for a grand hall or an older style house.

If you’re looking for something a little more contemporary, why not go for the modern icy look with frosty blue, sliver and white? This colour combination gives of a winter wonderland type feel, and allows you to go a little kitsch and sparkly with silver and white glitter sticks and blue glitzy baubles. Suitable for theatrics and glitter lovers!

Alternatively, purple sits in between the traditional and modern style. Equally as seasonal and festive, purple has a comfortable and relaxing vibe. Paired up with silver or gold, adds a glitzy edge for a glamorous Christmas.

Quintessentially Flowers can aid you in choosing your Christmas decorations no matter what your style!

Flowers and Their Ancient Sygnificance...

Flowers carry great symbolic meaning according to Greek mythology. Each flower has a specific meaning and story behind it portraying different emotions.

Due to the fleeting life cycle of flowers, they have often been linked with youthful, innocent beauty and natural life cycles, hence being related to weddings and christenings. As well as being beautiful when they bloom, flowers also wilt, giving them the symbolic meaning of youthful death. This is why flowers are also traditionally used at funerals as a way of representing the life and death of a person.

The lily flower suggests fertility, creation and chastity with reference to virgin saints and Greek goddesses. The poppy signifies dreams, sleep and hypnosis relating to the opium extracted from the poppy.
The word narcissist derives from a narcissus flower, also known as the daffodil. In Greek mythology, Narcissus was a beautifully hansom young man who was pined over by many women. His arrogance and lack of respect for his loved ones angered the Gods, who made him fall in love with his reflection. Narcissus was so encapsulated by his reflection in a nearby lake, he drowned. And in that spot, a narcissus/ daffodil sprouted from the ground.

It’s interesting how an ancient myth can have such a knock on effect on meanings and symbols today. These symbolic references are still used as we relate flowers to significant and appropriate events.

Chocolate cosmos

Flowering from mid to late summer the chocolate cosmos acquired its name from an unusual characteristic. Its natural scent has a bizarre similarity to the poignant aroma of chocolate. Stunningly delicate, the rich dark red/ maroon-brown petals balance precariously on a thin green stem, adding to its incredible beauty. The cosmos is a cultivated flower native to Mexico but isn’t widely used in the floristry industry. Apart from being fairly rare, this flower has a particularly short life span once cut, maintaining a fresh look for less than a day. This makes it a very fragile and unreliable material to use, but the thought of having a chocolate essence bouquet is rather desirable!

Orchid by Day, Flowering Beauty by Night...

For the first time, a night flowering Orchid has been discovered by Dutch botanists. Found on an island near the Papua New Guinea, the Bulbophyllum nocturnum is the first Orchid species to flower nocturnally out of 25,000.

The remarkable Orchid has a very brief flowering life, opening from just a few hours after dusk, lasting only until a few hours after sunrise, making it rather tricky to catch sight of the full bloom.

The reason for its peculiar flowering pattern is yet to be discovered leaving budding botanists intrigued and keen to investigate.

Incredibly, the flowers are thought to pollinate through miniscule flies, mistaking it for a fungi, as the Orchid flower mimics the look of the fungi. It is believed to hold a scent similar to the fungi to attract the insects whilst being undetectable by humans. Quite an incredible creation.

The unique Orchid was found in amongst a logging area, now thought to be holding an unknown amount of other undiscovered species tucked away in this secluded unexplored part of the world. Local environmentalists are desperately trying to preserve the area for further research development and protect the Orchids from being exposed to full sunlight, as this could potentially damage their flowering cycle. Exciting stuff and we’re hoping to find out more in the near future!

The Potted Option...

Want something different to decorate your home or event? Instead or as well as using cut flower arrangements, mix it up with a few potted plants. They can be suitable for parties, wedding receptions tables, restaurants or just around the house for a long lasting decoration. Water about once a week and they’ll stay looking fresh and beautiful!

Dotting them around the tables is perfect for a more rustic, organic wedding/ event. It also allows the guests to take the plants home at the end of the night which is quite a nice gesture and prevents wastage of flowers.

Marigolds are a lovely option, with that gorgeous uplifting orange and Bouvardia is also a really pretty plant to use with a slightly more feminine look. Cyclamen is also a fabulous option, coming in a selection of colours with a vibrant style.

Spring's Come Early...

Now that summer has passed and we’re creeping closer to the frosty winter ahead, the flowers will have shut down, preparing for rebirth in Spring. However, Spring seems to have come early! Due to the recent fluctuating weather, flowers are blooming for a second time this year. The cool August and warmer September and October, has shocked the flowers into thinking it Spring already. This temperature change means our beautiful blooms are having to adjust their natural cycle, altering their availability. We’re finding there are materials around that aren’t in even season! Bizarre.

Lush Hydrangeas!

Hydrangeas. A lush, beautiful and indulgent flower. They come in an array of vivid colours, from blues and pinks to greens and white and look fabulous in bulk. However, they also look amazing on their own as a single flower. They’re heads are made up of a mass of individual flowers making it look abundant and luscious!

The pure white works really well for a slick, corporate look, whereas the more vibrant colours can suit both the traditional arrangements and look equally good for a more quirky look. This variation of designs makes the hydrangea perfect for almost every occasion.

They last a good while if regularly watered and look fabulous on display for about a week. Once they’ve started to wilt, leave them to dry out and reuse them in a different arrangement. When dried, they work particularly well in Christmas wreaths.

Making your Home Festive…

Ordering the right Christmas decorations for your home can be a difficult decision. With Quintessentially Flowers we can assist you in making the perfect choice in the simplest and most enjoyable way possible.

We have a selection of festive wreaths on our website to help ease you into the Christmas mode. Quintessentially Flowers can also customize wreaths to fit your personal style and décor.

From traditional reds and greens to the more innovative icy blue and silver, we are able to bring the Christmas vibe into your home.

The Winter choice...

As winter approaches and we’re left with the Autumnal rusty coloured leaves, you may think that our wonderful blooms disappear for the winter seasons. However, as well as having access to gorgeous pines and sparkling baubles, there are some beautiful flowering blooms around in winter and with gorgeous scents too!

Of course the traditional rose is available in both Autumn and Winter along with the more delicate spray roses, which will always lighten up a room and have a positive enlightening effect on the atmosphere. Hypericums are a particularly Christmassy material. The little coloured berries, usually red or green, make a lovely accompaniment to a bouquet or design and add an alternate texture. Nerine is a beautiful flower and great for a slightly funkier option. It’s a more exotic looking flower with slender petals curled up like gift ribbon. Having not a hugely strong scent, its form and vibrant hot pink and pale pink colour, make this an eye catching and distinctive flower. It’s also available in pure white.

If you’re looking for a large headed flower with strong dominance and impact, the Dahlia would be perfect. With abundant layers of petals drawing your eye in and an array of vibrant colours, Dahlias ensure they attract attention and make any design stand out.


For best smells, dried lavender is always a favourite and perfect for a bathroom windowsill. Also, adding a few sprigs of rosemary to a bouquet will give it a beautiful natural fragrance! Mint is another alternative scented herb which will give off a lovely aroma good enough to eat! So there are lots of options for the coming seasons if you’re looking for something with a bit of colour and a splendid fragrance.

Sparkling Amaryllis

In every area of life there are those who stand head and shoulders above the crowd. Making a statement. Leading the way. Giving us that comforting feeling of safety. The flower kingdom is no different. For as we swiftly move towards the cold and darkness, that is autumn\ winter. Allow Quintessentially to ease you into defining luxury and to guide you into the strong bold statement that is Amaryllis.

Its name means to sparkle and OH how it sparkles. The true beauty of this flower comes in many guises. We are totally spoilt with the length of the stem, easily standing over 100cm, more or less depending on taste, so this gives you the option to make an impact with a tall arrangement in a larger vase that you may normally struggle to fill. However that’s not to say that this flower isn't going to have just as much impact being cut very short and placed in a small cube vase, it's completely your choice.

The reason behind its versatility is because of the flower itself... Starting off reasonably small, but once open the flower is bold and strong… So strong it doesn't look real… it’s the sort of thing you'd expect to see on a film set on some tropical location. Its presence dominates a room, creating impression and normally lasts a couple of weeks… the only downside is the brittleness of the stem. However our team of florists are skilled enough to arrange them into hand-ties as well as free standing dramatic arrangements.

Simplicity is sometimes key, that’s why we’d opt for 5 stems of deep rich red Amaryllis, 7 stems of Pussy Willow and finished off with some soft Ruscus. This would allow you to maximize the length of the stem. The most popular colours are red, white and pink, and as we head closer towards Christmas (which is only around the corner after all!), Amaryllis are one of those seasonal traditional favorites that add the WOW factor.

However you choose to display your Amaryllis, Quintessentially can guide you into making the right choice.

The Worlds Most Expensive Flowers…

Fancy going that little bit further for that special person? Here is a list of the top 5 most expensive flowers around!

Saffron Crocus - £600 per pound. Despite the Crocus being a fairly average priced flower, this particular variety is far from cheap. Hence the name, the Saffron Crocus makes the Saffron spice, the most expensive spice in the world, costing £600 per pound!

Bouquet consisting of white orchids, white lilies, moonflowers and the root of a 100 year old ficus. £80,000. As well as including luxurious flowers and antique ficus root, this bouquet also contains 90 two-carat red ruby facets, nine one-carat diamonds, and a 21.6-carat star ruby! This stunning pricey bouquet is available to view in the Ruby Plaza, Vietnam.

Gold of Kinabalu Orchid - £3,000 per stem. The endangered species of Orchid, only blooming in April-May, is found only in a specific cornered off area in a Malaysian National Park, making it an extremely rare and pricey flower!

Shenzhen Nongke Orchid - £160,000. This is a man-made Orchid from China, taking 8 years to perfect the variety. It was auctioned at £160,000 in 2005, making it the most expensive flower ever bought.

Kadupul Flower – Priceless! This gorgeous flower tops the lot. It holds a priceless beauty and lasting for only a few hours, even the natives of Sri Lanka rarely have the pleasure to view its beauty. Its short life span gives it an almost magical quality as its divine beauty perishes within hours due to its rare and fragile state.

Autumn’s here!

It’s that time of year again; the leaves are dropping from the trees, covering the streets with rusty orange. Winter jackets and scarves slowly creeping into your everyday wardrobe. That comforting, crisp feeling in the air. It’s a wonderful time for nature with gorgeous colours and textures coming out.

Physalis lanterns are a brilliant texture and shape in an Autumn bouquet or arrangement and fit perfectly with Halloween. Leucospermum, commonly known as pin-cusion, is also a great flower to use in Autumn, coming in shades of orange, red and yellow. And of course the typical plane tree leaf is perfect for creating that cosy, Autumn feel. Having the right colours in your home creates a good atmosphere and will get you into a positive mood for the coming winter.

Why do flowers make us feel so good?

Why do flowers make us feel so good? Even if your day isn’t going as planned, you open the door to a delivery of a beautiful bouquet of flowers just for you, you can’t help but smile!
The sight of flowers is proven to have a positive effect on our mood. Depending on the colours and flowers used, the moods can differ, so choosing suitable materials for an environment is important.
In a working environment, a focused and calm atmosphere is needed. A mix of greens and whites would create a calm vibe and should help with concentration. You could also use violet and purple as they also have a cooling effect. By adding a touch of red or a subtle pink, it would inject a boost of energy into the office.

Electric indigo enhances confidence and clears the mind of unnecessary fears and worries, making it an ideal colour scheme for a meeting room, guest room or waiting area for example, to help break the ice and relax the guests. Stunning Iris or gladioli would be perfect.

Flowers are a fabulous item to have in any environment. They release endorphins, making us feel happier, lightened and chirpy, which is never a bad thing!

General Conditioning for Longer Lasting Flowers…

• Remove packaging
• Cut about an inch off stems at a 45degree angle.
• Remove leaves below water level to avoid contaminating the water.
• Arrange in a suitable vase with appropriate flower food (usually attached to the bouquet)

Suitable conditions vary from flower to flower, for example, anthuriums prefer room temperature, but roses would wilt in warm conditions. (See earlier post for rose revival tips!)
So generally, when choosing the perfect spot for your beautiful flowers, it’s best to avoid direct sunlight, heat, cold draughts and air conditioned rooms. Flowers can be very sensitive to sudden changes in their environment.
Top up the water levels regularly and change the water as often as possible to keep your flowers fresh and lasting, removing any dying flower heads or leaves.

Keep an eye on their condition and you’ll be able to enjoy them in all their beauty for much longer!


Top tip: Avoid putting fruit and flowers next to one another. The fruits produce ethylene gas which affects the longevity of your flowers!

Bluebells in a bottle…

There’s something so magical about walking through the woods in early spring and stumbling across a field full of beautiful bluebells; the delicate blue-violet tone spreading as far as your eye can see. As well as being visually stunning, the bluebells signature scent, so delicate and light yet strong and memorable, is equally as gorgeous…

This fabulous scent is now available to wear! Jo Malone and master perfumer Christine Nagel, have created a Wild Bluebell Cologne in an attempt to preserve the endangered wild flower. Although seemingly abundant, the English bluebell is in fear of being wiped out by the Spanish bluebell. These bluebells have a lighter, less pigmented smell, are paler and don’t have such a delicate droop. The English bluebell’s endangerment is also due to people illegally collecting these beautiful droplets, trying to capture some of their sweetness. The Wild Bluebell Cologne is to be launched this Autumn and allows you to have their scent with you whenever you please so we can leave these enchanting flowers to flourish in their natural environment.

Gorgeous Amaranthus, caudatus

This fabulous draping flower, also known as ‘Love lies bleeding', comes in two beautifully rich colours, fresh green and rich burgundy red. Its natural cascading structure makes it the perfect material to drape over the edge of a large pedestal arrangement, giving the feeling of luxurious abundance. The vibrant pigment against the lime green foliage is an extraordinary contrast which adds to the beauty and unique appeal of the amaranthus flower.

Available in Summer and Autumn, it’s right in season and looks fabulous in a grand entrance hall or beautiful dining room. Although the amaranthus doesn’t have a strong aroma, its colour and indulgent style is enough to bring a luxurious atmosphere to any room.

Radiant Ranunculus...

In life we need pioneers to go beyond the norm pushing the boundaries and creating new trends… most people play it safe and follow the crowd allowing the status quo to dictate how we conduct our lives. I appreciate that everyone has their own opinion on their particular taste, but sometimes we need to be the ones who step over the fresh hold and create new trends. At Quintessentially we provide the perfect launch pad for you to do just that…

That is why this year the hottest flower is the Ranunculus. Just saying the word should be enough already, but for those of you who don't know about this, I will bring you into the loop of the flower-world’s best kept secret... we have only just started to see this year’s early crop available for us to buy. Therefore at the moment they are limited in size and colour, but do not worry, you are now entering into a long season in which to really enjoy this amazing specimen. In about 6 weeks when we start to receive the English and Italian variety, being patriotic it hurts me to say it, but the Italian Ranunculus are of another world their beauty is stylish... this flower can't properly be described in words and a photo also doesn't do justice to the magical sense you get when you’re able to enjoy it in the comfort of your own home. To start with they last about two weeks and in that time their appearance just keeps getting better. They have a layered soft delicate petal that has an endless sense of comfort. As they open the depth continues to add a density as the petals simply spread and grow to what becomes a heavenly vision. Like a fine wine they improve with age allowing you to really be able to enjoy the charm that is Ranunculus. They come in just about every colour and look great by themselves. When the English ones arrive shortly you can buy a mixture of colours and really enjoy a rainbow effect which will add real joy to any office or home.

Only true style guru's already know about this flower, that’s why I'm letting you in on it now, so you know early on in the season, so you too can claim some of their magic. You can have them tied up with green, with berries, as part of a bouquet, or simply by themselves. Whatever your choice, contact us with your order and we will be happy to send you some of this alchemy…

Rose Revival

Roses are renowned for drooping. This tends to happen when the water hasn't been changed regularly. Air travels up the stem causing an air bubble blockage just below the head and stopping the flow of water to the flower.

Great tip!

You can now revive your roses. Take them out of the vase, cut the stems at an angle and lay the bottom of the stems into boiling water. Leave them for about 30seconds to a minute. Then transfer them straight into cold water. Leave them for a couple of minutes. Re-cut the stems and arrange in a vase with fresh water. The heads should now be upright and brought back to life. The combination of the hot and cold water shifts the air bubble and works as a shock treatment. Now you can enjoy your beautiful roses for longer!

Snowberries

Snowberries grow in North and Central America and are part of the much loved honeysuckle family.

They are at their peak in September and look gorgeous when used with any white flower but in particular delicate roses. The contrast in texture adds an extra element of interest to a design. Alternatively, the berries look stunning in a bunch on their own, tied with pretty ribbon to cover the stems. Why not add some pearl beads or pins to decorate. The pearls mimics the form of the berries and enhance the look.

The Anemone

We are just starting the Anemone season, a delicate papery flower. A favourite that comes in around 120 varieties. Some of the best examples of colours are classic purple or a vibrant cerise pink. This is a flower that looks beautiful by itself, simply choose your favourite colour and fill a fish bowl or short cylinder vase with these rich, deep, velvet looking, ''relatives of the buttercup family,'' flowers. Please be aware that their capacity for water is massive so to get the complete shelf life you should top up the vase every 2 days with fresh water. They are beautiful at every stage of flowering - from its early stages as the deep dark stems, ends with a whispering soft leaf that magically holds the intense bud.. It opens to reveal, what can only be described as the essence of nature itself. For its hypnotic velvet centre, intense blackness that is the centrepiece of this flowery dream, displaying the paper like petals abundant in colour.

As it is very early season the stems are shorter and colours less varied, but over the next few months be prepared to be spoiled with this amazing flower. Its availability will be daily here at Quintessentially ready for you to enjoy

Meadow Flowers

Most of us get caught up in everyday life, work, family and friends and therefore are too busy to engage in the great outdoors, this is especially if you live in the city. It is important for our sense of well-being to incorporate nature in our day to day lives- from the flowers you have in your home, that add style and bring the amazement of nature inside, to our back gardens, local heaths and parks. all of these are ready for us to enjoy whenever we choose. Beautiful flowers such as larkspur, baby blue eyes, scabious, scarlet flax, cornflower and corn chamomile are all found in local meadows and heaths and are also available for you to buy here at Quintessentially.  

Meadow flowers are becoming more and more rare and unusual. In order to demonstrate our support for wild flowers and their conservation we have created a limited edition 'Support The UK Flower Meadows’ bouquet, which features a number of rare British flowers.

To read the full article please click here

Green with Envy

As we said last week you don't have to simply use traditional greens in your arrangements to increase the density of the look. Adding depth and character to the flowers can be created with with an abundance of alternatives from Blackberries to Chilies,to Baby Alliums and Heather. Lavender or Herbs, to Mints and Grasses.

All of these can be combined with traditional Salal and eucalyptus. Birch or Berried Ivy to completely alter the aesthetics of a desired look. You should use greens like accessories to enhance a particular theme and garnish it with a purpose.

As we all saw in this years Royal wedding the pure genius and simplicity of using greens and foliage, trees and country grasses to develop an understated look of breathtaking class.

Gladioli

Another top tip from Q Flowers -

Gladioli: These flowers are easy, colourful, bright and make great cut flowers.


They look fantastic in the office and in your home because they have a large presence and can make a big impression on a room.

As soon as the blooms start to open you will need to cut the steams at an angle to ensure they last as long as possible. The best time to do this is in the morning. Do not pick off too many leaves!

English Garden Dahlia's

We have the most lovely English Garden Dahlia's in today.

These beautiful flowers are very popular at the moment and will continue to be throughout the summertime, all the way into Autumn, and the first frosts of winter.

They look fantastic and make a striking addition to any arrangement. They come in wide variety of quirky and bright colours. View on the left.