Thursday, September 13, 2012

Elegant Camellia Blossoms

Hello Sweethearts,

Ive been floating around etsy this morning. My first treasury was created yesterday. I featured Camellia blossoms as my theme. I mean, what else would Camellia Cottage create? If you love the elegant blossoms as much as me, take a moment and visit our favorite etsy items: (click below)



Photo Credits: 
Camellia Photo: GeorgiannaLane
Camellia Dress Pin: GBILOBA
Camellia Pendant: ThePrettyPendant

Wednesday, April 11, 2012

Caring For Your Flower Arrangement

Flowers do a lot to brighten up a home. They look great sitting on your table for a while, but eventually silk flowers do collect dust. And real flowers start to fade. All flower arrangements do need a little bit of care. Have you ever wondered how to care for a flower arrangement once you bring it home? In this article you will learn the basics of caring for silk flowers, fresh flowers, and dried flowers. With a few simple tricks you're flower arrangements will be looking brighter and happier.

Silk flower arrangements are the easiest flowers, and require almost no maintenance. Collecting dust seems to be the largest concern. We recommend buying a silk floral cleaner, which can be purchased at most craft stores. It should be sprayed onto the arrangement following the directions on the package. For silk plants, try dusting leaves with a slightly damp cloth.

To keep real flower arrangements looking their best the longest, change the water often (every other day, if possible) and re-cut the stems at an angle. Add a little bit of a commercial floral food/preservative. Some of my clients seem to swear by a half an aspirin, some sun drop or a little bit of sugar. This is not recommended. I have found that flowers in commercial preservatives last longer. Distilled water works better than tape water. Never allow leaves or any foliage under the water, because this helps harmful bacteria grow.

Dried arrangements allow real flowers to be dried and keep for many years. Although they will eventually dry out to the point of becoming crumbly, there are a few ways to prolong their life. As the flowers continue to dry out, they often become brittle, which leads to breaking or crumbling. To avoid this, never leave your arrangement in direct sunlight. You can place them in a bathroom, where steam from your hot showers will keep them from becoming too dry.

Try these tips on your own flower arrangements and watch as your silk flowers look cleaner and your real flowers stay fresher. These tips are a simple way to care for your flowers and improve their lifespan of brightening up your house.


Tuesday, March 13, 2012

Cherry Blossom Boutonniere

This is the matching boutonniere to last week's bouquet. Isnt it just too cute? Its made out of lovely pink cherry blossoms.




Thursday, March 8, 2012

Pink Cherry Blossom Wedding

Here are some images of my latest project, a cherry blossom bouquet complete with feathers. The stem was wrapped in a lovely ivory ribbon with pink overlay and pearl pins. Enjoy!




Friday, February 17, 2012

Vintage Wedding Dresses


Looking for a lovely Vintage style Wedding Dress? Here are some great links to check out:
(The beautiful dress pictured above is from Recapture Vintage Bridal.)

Recycled Bride
Recapture Designs
Wedding Dress Fantasy
The Frock
Ellana Couture
Vintage Vixen

Know of any other great Vintage style wedding sites? Leave us a comment to be added to our list.

Tuesday, January 31, 2012

Share Your Pinterest Link

Hello lovelies,

Do you pin? Are you on pinterest? If so please do share your link. I would love to follow your pins. Here's something I pinned this morning on my very first board. This is such fun...I just might get addicted. haha!

Source: etsy.com via Shannon on Pinterest



Thursday, January 19, 2012

New Etsy Items

Happy January!

I've added some new items to our online etsy shop! Isn't this exciting? We have several new grapevine wreaths, just waiting for you to embellish them with flowers and ribbons. We also have several new flower arrangements! Here is a small sample:



Visit our shop to order or view more:

Tuesday, January 10, 2012

White Elephant Sale


Good Morning Lovelies,

Its time to sale the white elephant!!! (That's what everyone has nicknamed my latest huge white arrangement). The arrangement in the photo above is for sale in my booth at the Depot. If you're interested, shoot me an email and I'll make you a very good deal on it! ;) Or if you prefer I could always rent it out as an altar arrangement.

Camellia Cottage's brand new website is up and running now. I'm super excited about this! I just know you'll love it. As for our blog, the "blog makeover" has begun. I deleted some older posts, and added both facebook and twitter to our side bar. This blog got a new background. I'm telling you, getting new graphics for your blog is almost as much fun as buying a new dress! I do have one complaint...the header image isn't quite right and I think one more dress fitting is in order to tweak that.

I started back to school yesterday. On my way to a real degree this time and not just a certificate. I'm pretty excited about the horticulture classes.

Sunday, January 1, 2012

Happy 2012


Good morning lovelies,

Here's to wonderful new year, filled with promise and hope. I wish each one of my blog readers a very safe and wonderful 2012. I have a feeling something wonderful is going to happen this year. I know, I know... I say that every year. But this year it really is true!

In case you haven't noticed a lot of exciting things are happening around Camellia Cottage. To start with we are getting a brand new website layout and design. Then our fabulous blog gets a makeover too. I've decided to open a second etsy shop and split up my merchandise. The Camellia Cottage etsy will only feature flower arrangements, and wedding goodies. While our newest venture shall be filled with all of my favorite vintage finds...like teapots, linens, dishes, shabby roses, and antiques. Are you excited? I know I am!