Fresh Cut Friday

I've been wanting to resurrect Fresh Cut Friday for a while.  Well today, my husband provided me with the perfect opportunity to do just that.  He came home with flowers...just because.  Doesn't happen often, people.



A mix of pink and white, "for his two girls".  What a sweet (& smart) guy he is.

Fresh Cut Friday ~ Bridal Shower Edition

This week's Fresh Cut Friday features flowers from the bridal shower we hosted for my cousin last weekend.

I bought a mix of roses, mums, and carnations in shades of pink and purple, along with some purple wax flower and dusty miller (the white stuff).

I created three little arrangements and scattered them around.

And here are a few shots of the rest of the shower decor...

You can see the banner I made in this shot.  And if you look closely, you can also see a big wad of bubble gum in the bride-to-be's cheek.  She was asked several questions, all of which her fiance answered prior to the shower.  She had to put a (large) gumball in her mouth for each question she answered incorrectly.  After about 4, she was having a little trouble getting her answers out!

It was a pretty fun little game for a bridal shower.  Not sure she thought so...but we all did.  Side note: that's my little sis asking the questions.  She's a cutie, huh?  ;)

And finally, here is Kristen in the obligatory "pose with the cake" shot.  The cake was a cheesecake from Hank's, and it was delicious. 

A big congrats to Kristen and Jake.  I cannot believe you are even old enough to walk down the aisle.  Was I not just babysitting you girls, and watching The Little Mermaid on repeat, like yesterday???  Time sure does fly.  But exciting times are ahead.  Looking forward to the big day, and to seeing you as a beautiful bride!

Fresh Cut Friday

Long time, no blog.  I have been a very busy girl.  Hosted another Wreathfest (which I will post about soon), hosting two wedding showers, and working on lots of fun little projects.  One of which is extra special.  I will share that with you soon, too.

For now, let's get back on track with Fresh Cut Friday.  I got a lot of mileage out of the two bunches I picked up at Schnucks a couple weeks ago.  They were burnt orange mums and flat leaf eucalyptus, which may be my favorite greenery.  Though I'm sure I've said that about other greenery ;) 

I made two good sized bouquets out of my $12 worth of flowers...

And I had enough flat leaf eucalyptus (aka: silver dollar eucalyptus) left for my little bud vase...

 

On a floral side note, I went to my favorite florist today to buy flowers for the shower I am hosting tomorrow.  I got some really great stuff which should make for some beautiful bouquets - I'll share those next Friday!  Have a great FALL weekend.  I know I will!

Fresh Cut Friday

Any idea what these are?

They're called floral frogs.  Not sure how that name came to be.  They're great for creating tight little flower arrangments.  You just cut your stems pretty short and stick them in the holes.  I bought these two at an antique store earlier this summer.

Here is this week's FCF, using one of my new froggies.  Just 4 jumbo yellow mums.

Looks like a big yellow pom pom.  Sitting in a pretty crystal bowl.

Happy Friday, and Happy Labor Day weekend!  I am headed to Memphis for a little bachelorette fun on Beale Street.  Watch out!

Fresh Cut Friday

My FCF bouquet for this week is a cheery bunch of sunflowers. 

They came home with me from TJ's yesterday, for just $3.99. 

I cannot remember the last time I bought sunflowers.  It's been years. 

I've never noticed how neat the center of a sunflower is.  The most impressive things come from nature, don't you think?

Have yourself a great weekend! 

Fresh Cut Friday

Guess who's back for this week's FCF???  My old friend, Alstromeria.  I picked up a bunch of pink ones, for just a few bucks.  I split them up into three stemless wine glasses. 

I tried them grouped together on the dining room table...

then I broke them up and tried them in a couple different spots...



I loved the little splash of pink everywhere I put them.  And since these blooms usually last a long time, I'll have plenty of time to enjoy them...wherever they end up!

Happy Friday to you!

Fresh Cut Friday

This week's FCF looks like it could be a bouquet of wildflowers, picked from a hillside in a quaint rural town. Not so. But I can pretend. And actually, I did snip those little orange flowers from my "wildflower" pot in the back yard. They were the only three blooms in the pot. I hesitated cutting them because that meant leaving the pot totally bloomless. But Lord knows we're not spending any time outside in this hotness, so I decided I might as well bring them inside to enjoy! The rest of the bunch came from Walter Knoll. And they only cost me around $7. So maybe not free from a hillside, but not bad for a bouquet as fun and summery as this.

A happy Friday to you!

Fresh Cut Friday

This week's Fresh Cut bouquet is just a big bunch of alstromeria, from Trader Joe's. It was only $5. That's a whole lot of blooms for $5...check 'em out:

Alstromeria is kind of my go-to flower if I want flowers, but don't want to spend a lot. You can find it anywhere, and usually in a variety of colors. I actually planted a couple of alstromeria plants, aka: "Peruvian Lilies" in the backyard this spring, and they were looking pretty good until we had a little dry spell. Which conveniently took place while we were on vacation and unable to water anything. Awesome. Hopefully they'll pop back. But if not, I know where to get a bunch for next to nothing - good 'ole TJ's.

Fresh Cut Friday + I'm Alive

Wow. I just read my last post...from a month ago! Has it really been a month? Yikes. What can I say? I guess I've been a little busy. And I've definitely been having some fun. Much of that fun was had on a recent trip to South Carolina. I have some photos to share, mostly from the lovely streets of Charleston. Hopefully I'll get around to sharing those soon. For now, I think I'll get back into the swing of things with a Fresh Cut Friday post.

Our bushes in the front yard had gotten a little out of control. I finally got around to trimming them on Sunday. Instead of just tossing all of the clippings away, I salvaged the pretty ones and brought them inside.

These are from my spirea bush. I love the delicate leaves and little bursts of purple.

Definitely a no-fuss arrangement. It's just about bringing some of the outdoors in. Have a great weekend!

Fresh Cut Friday

I'm back from my little blogging break. Blogger was acting up, so that made posting difficult, and then I just got a little lazy/busy. It happens.

It's been a few weeks since I had a proper Fresh Cut Friday . This week's arrangement is my favorite kind - the free kind. Last night, I noticed my knockout rose bush was in full bloom, and the rain had made it all dewey and gorgeous. So I just had to clip a few and bring them in. Knockout rose bushes don't produce the most beautiful or impressive blooms, but they are blooms all the same!

I put them in my new favorite pitcher. Picked it up at a little antique store a couple of weeks ago. I clipped some holly branches and fern leaves, too. Gotta love quick (and did I mention free?) arrangements from the yard!

Fresh Cut Mother's Day {aka: 2 posts in 1}

I had my family over for a Mother's Day brunch yesterday, and these fresh cut flowers served as the centerpieces...

Set up on the patio...
{Side note: scored those aqua stackable vinyl chairs at an estate sale last summer for $4 each!}

We had the same simple quiche I made for Wreathfest 2010. One of them was filled with asparagus, prosciutto, mushrooms, basil, and a blend of fontina/mozzarella/parm. The other had bacon, red + yellow peppers, mushrooms, green onion, and swiss. They got a little brown on top, but they were still delish.

We also had mixed berries, and banana muffins. For the muffins, I used this recipe, but added walnuts and chocolate chips.

We had mimosas, too. Because it just isn't brunch without them!

My sister Mallorie, and my lovely momma.

The guys - The Mr., my brother Mike, and my dad.

My mom and her three kiddos. We're lucky to have her as our mother. She's done so much for all of us, and she's a great friend. Pretty darn funny, too. Which is one of the best qualities a person can have, in my book. Love you, Mom!

Fresh Cut Friday

Time's been tight this week. In fact, I didn't even get around to picking up fresh flowers for this week's FCF. Luckily, my parents came to the rescue and sent me a picture of their lilacs, fresh from their backyard.

I'm envious of anyone who has flowering bushes & trees in their yard. I'm hoping to get some of my own planted this spring. After two springs/summers in our house, we have yet to landscape the backyard. It seems there was always something above it on our "to do" list. But I think we're finally ready to get some roots in the ground, and better yet, some homegrown bouquets on the table. Can't wait. In the mean time...thanks, Mom & Dad! And feel free to bring some of those lilacs on over.

Fresh Cut Friday

This week's arrangement is a mix of pink alstroemeria, cream roses, yellow freesia, and a few sprigs of mint from my little herb garden. Which, by the way, is already off to a great start thanks to all of the rain we've been getting. I arranged it all in a pretty blue & white bowl with floral foam.

Between the roses, freesia, and mint...this is probably the best smelling bouquet ever. Have a great weekend and a very happy Easter!

Fresh Cut Friday

OK, so technically these arrangements may not be "cut", but it doesn't get any fresher than still growing. So I'm considering these two arrangements my Fresh Cuts of the week. Last weekend, I picked up a nice variety of herbs and a few flowers to get a start on my spring planting. The tulips and hyacinths were on clearance for $1 per bulb. So I grabbed a few of each, knowing they would make great centerpieces, in one form or another. I ended up planting the tulips in this yellow bowl and topping it off with some moss. They've gotten super tall over the last few days. They should be opening up soon.

Guess who was lurking nearby again? Like a jungle cat ready to pounce.

Here are the hyacinths in a small urn, also topped with moss. See how the leaves are yellowing? Yeah, I don't think it's doing so well. In fact, the blooms were so droopy I had to stick some skewers in the stems to keep them upright.

Before skewers...

Yep, not much time left for these guys. Oh well, they were pretty while they lasted!

Fresh Cut Fraturday

Just a little late with this week's Fresh Cut bouquet. Hence the "Fraturday" in the title. I'm clever, I know. Side note: is it just me, or does that made up word make you think of frat boys out on their lawns tossing the football around on a sunny Saturday? Takes me back to my days at Mizzou. I won't say how far back. Because it makes me sad. And I am in denial.

Back to this week's bouquet. I went simple and classic. Got this bunch of hydrangeas at the grocery store for $7. Not bad for such big beautiful blooms.

And as always, Quincy needed to be right in the middle of the action.

That smile tells me he likes hydrangeas, too.

Fresh Cut Friday

This week's FCF features one of my very favorite flowers...ranunculus.

I got these pretty blooms at Trader Joe's. They're lookin' good and adding lots of color to the dining room table.

I snagged this vase at Value Village for $.80 this week.

I also got this tiny goblet from VV. See the pink band at the top? (What is it with me and pink lately?) So I plopped a few ranunculus blooms in it, too.

Oh, and did you notice the little greenery tucked in there, from this arrangement, AND this arrangement? It's still going strong. Talk about an overachiever.

Fresh Cut Friday

This week's blooms came from Dierbergs. I dropped in to pick up lunch, and thought they would have a decent selection of flora to choose from, for this week's FCF. Not so much. Talk about slim pickins'. I was disappointed, but I had to find something because I knew I wouldn't have time to stop anywhere else. So I decided on this bunch of miniature roses for $8.99.

I thought the color was pretty and figured I could break them up into a couple different arrangements. Plus, I knew the greenery and spider mums from last week's arrangement were still going strong, so I had those to work with, too. Gotta love flowers that can do double duty! So here they are, divided into two small arrangements.

{one for the dining room}

{and one for the coffee table}

I think I'll return to one of my more trusted sources for flowers next week. But all in all, I'd say these mini grocery store roses did OK for themselves.