Fleur Du Jour

Getting Ready for the Holidays

2011-10-05T16:25:00.003-05:00

Our floral design classes are back in session! We had such a great response this summer with our basic, ikebana, and wedding classes, and now we've decided to do a fall series to get everyone ready for the holidays! We have several class options available with different dates, price ranges, and arrangement choices so you can join in on the fun, and get your home decked out in time for the guests to arrive:

Tuesday, October 11th - Basic Class, 6 - 8pm

Fresh fall flower centerpiece {$55}

Wednesday, October 19th - Fall wreath class, 6 - 8pm

20" wreath with Autumn-themed embellishments {$75}

Tuesday, November 15th - Holiday wreath (Christmas) and Door tutorial, 6 - 9pm

24" wreath with Christmas-themed embellishments, followed by a lecture-style door decorating tutorial. Door decorating products will be available for purchase after the class. *Students are encouraged to bring their own pieces from home to incorporate in their wreath. {$160}

Monday, November 21 - Thanksgiving centerpiece, 6 - 8pm

Thanksgiving-inspired centerpiece perfect for your holiday table {$75}

Interested in doing a more intimate class with just your friends? We also are booking private parties at our location......or yours! Let us know what type of class you are interested in, and we provide all the necessary tools. You and your guests will go home with a great arrangement and new knowledge you can use for all your upcoming holiday parties!

Classes are limited to 10 participants, so be sure to reserve your space soon. We kindly ask that you book your spot and make your payment at least 48 hours prior to the class, however, if space permits we will try to accomodate you as best we can. Registration and inquiries may be handled by stopping by our shop at 640 Main Street in downtown Baton Rouge, by calling us at 225.334.9300, or by emailing us at info@fleurdujourla.com.

Students are welcome to bring their own refreshments and wine, so grab a friend and make a date out of it! Be sure to subscribe to our blog and newsletter to hear about the upcoming promotions we'll be offering in connection with our classes! And check us out on Facebook and Twitter.

Lani, and the Fleur du Jour staff

TGIF!!!

2011-09-30T09:50:00.003-05:00

The day has finally arrived! We have been so excited to announce our new Friday special and now it's here! Starting today, September 30th, we now offer "Flower of the Day Fridays!"

As many of you know, we post and tweet our "Flower of the Day" each morning, showcasing one of our fabulous flowers or floral pieces, and letting you see the amazing varieties we carry here at Fleur Du Jour. Now, with our "Flower of the Day Fridays," we go even further by offering our first five "Flower of the Day" orders at 20% off! This means that not only can you get one of our signature arrangements, but you can take advantage of these special savings and fill your home or office with the freshest blooms available!

Gentlemen, want to start the weekend off right with your special someone? Let us design a beautiful arranged piece to surprise her when you get home, or a special presentation bouquet for that big date tonight!

Ladies, are you secretly wishing the he would shower you with romantic blooms? Message us his twitter handle and we'll tweet a little hint his way.....

Whatever the occasion, we can create a fantastic piece that will be sure to impress. Call us at 225-334-9300 and let us know you want to take advantage of the "Flower of the Day Friday" special. But hurry, only the first five orders will be able to get this deal!

Lani, and The Fleur Du Jour Staff

P.S. Want to find out about our other exclusive specials and events? Sign up for our monthly newsletter or subscribe to our blog!

Coming into Bloom

2011-09-26T16:30:00.000-05:00

Just a quick note today to announce that there will be LOTS of changes in the upcoming months. As you may know, Fleur du Jour has been located at 640 Main Street in downtown Baton Rouge for the last couple of years, and we are bursting at the seams! We have so many great products to offer you, but we feel our showroom doesn't give us the opportunity to showcase them all. After careful consideration, we've decided to move into a much bigger location. This means not only will we still have the great items you've come to love in our shop, but we will be able to offer you even more!

We have been talking with great vendors to bring you the best, most original, unique items we can find, and we are so excited to reveal all the new products, we can hardly stand it! Follow us on facebook or twitter to get sneak peaks of what's in store! And of course, we'll be revealing more hints here on our blog and through our newsletter. Not a subscriber? Click here to get exclusive deals and updates on your favorite downtown florist!

Also, because one big change just wouldn't be enough: We are moving our blog to a Wordpress format. Please pardon our construction as we make our blog better for you!

Have a particular product you'd like to see in our shop? Let us know in the comments!

Lani, and the Fleur du Jour staff

Creative use of flowers

2011-09-08T11:18:00.000-05:00

Amanda put together these awesome creations! Above, a cake made of hydrangeas and ribbon, with a rose nestled on top! Click "Read More" to see what else she came up with...

This puppy dog with a big green bow is adorable - look how expressive his ears are! We don't have a name for him yet, but we're open to suggestions! ;)

Another look at Amanda's cake:

Nottoway Plantation and the Hilton

2011-08-26T11:15:00.000-05:00

Table setting at Nottoway Plantation

Last weekend, we created arrangements for a rehearsal dinner at Nottoway Plantation as well as a wedding and reception here in downtown Baton Rouge. Enjoy these pictures, and please stop by to tell us what you think in the comments! Click "Read More" to see the rest...

An arrangement of hydrangea, hanging amaranthus, Bells of Ireland, orchids and calla lilies greets guests in the hallway at Nottoway Plantation.

A low, spreading centerpiece ties together all of the arrangements that run down the table, incorporating mixed flowers from each of them.

Up on the mantle, hanging amaranthus creates movement and fluidity.

Tall pew markers, with asparagus fern and other flora spilling out in contrast to a neat bow and glass-encased candle.

At the Hilton Baton Rouge Capitol Center, we decorated the wedding cake with spider mums, phalaenopsis and dendrobium orchids, wire balls, and veronica.

The sign-in table gets a mod arrangement with green button poms suspended in the curly willow. The bride's silk toss bouquet is resting with it!

Last weekend's wedding: green and purple extravaganza!

2011-08-19T10:32:00.000-05:00

Last weekend's wedding was full of green orchids, purple veronica, purple lisianthus, purple hydrangea, and green coffee bean! The bride's bouquet, pictured above, was wrapped in a very special material - the vintage veil worn by the bride's mother at her own wedding. What a lovely and heartwarming way to incorporate "Something Old"! Click "Read More" to see the rest of the wedding flowers...

A grandmother's wristlet corsage, with green button mums and green coffee bean.

An usher's boutonniere - green coffee bean, green button mums, and aluminum wire for a modern element.

A groomsman's boutonniere, made with a showy green spider mum, willow and aluminum wire.

The groom's boutonniere! A green dendrobium, green coffee bean, and lisianthus buds with willow.

A bridesmaid's bouquet, with hydrangea, hanging amaranthus, and green spider mums...

As well as white mums, green coffee bean, and a deep purple wrap ribbon.

A closer look at the bride's bouquet. Blue thistle is what's peeking out just above the veil!

Love that full-blown purple lisianthus on the right!

Which floral element of this wedding is your favorite? Let us know in the comments!

Orchids and Crystals: Table Arrangements and the Reception

2011-08-15T13:43:00.000-05:00

As promised - the rest of the photos from our fabulous wedding this past summer, brimming with orchids and crystals! Click "Read More" to see the pics!

Orchids and Crystals

2011-08-10T10:27:00.000-05:00

A bridesmaids' bouquet in purple and magenta hydrangea and lisianthus, accented with wire and pearl.

We created the flowers for a very large wedding this past July, and we've just been given the go-ahead to post some pictures from it! Because there are so many, we're breaking this up into multiple posts. Today, the hand-work: bouquets, corsages, and boutonnieres, in thrilling purples and lavished with crystals and wire accents. Click "Read More" to see pictures, and stay tuned for our next post from the reception ballroom!

A wristlet corsage, with wax flower and blushing orchids.

A lisianthus bud, a magenta phalaenopsis orchid, and a wire accent make up this broom-bearer's boutonniere.

A double-orchid design for a more elaborate boutonniere.

This one stands out with the addition of a mini purple calla lily.

A full-blown purple lisianthus maintains the style and color palette of the boutonnieres while providing distinction.

A bridesmaids' bouquet takes a colorful approach with purple hydrangea, pink roses and lilies, and a silky pink ribbon.

The bridal bouquet: stunning white orchids with mini hydrangea, studded with crystal drops and wrapped in crystal. The breadth of those orchid petals is awe-inspiring!

We'll be posting other arrangements from the wedding soon, including on-site photos of guest table arrangements!

Weekend Weddings: Green Tricks and Succulents!

2011-08-08T10:36:00.000-05:00

This bridal bouquet exhibits a tension between the formal and the fun, with a classic, subtle color palette yet a variety of modern textures. Green trick carnations, mini green hydrangea, succulents and coffee beans accomplish an entrancing balance!

Click "Read More" to see more pictures...

Another view of the bride's bouquet, revealing the flourish of feathers and calla lilies at the back!

A boutonniere, composed of a calla lily, a feather, a succulent and a Green Trick.

A corsage of roses and sprigs of Green Trick.

Green Trick Carnations!

2011-08-03T15:32:00.000-05:00

These newcomers to the floral world amazed us when they showed up in the hands of our distributor early this spring. They were made twice as mysterious and fantastic by the fact that our wholesaler couldn't quite remember their name - only that they were some type of carnation. But they were like no carnation we'd ever seen, and we took to calling them the "Dr. Seuss carnations" or trachelium (which does look similar, but goes on to bloom). Nevertheless, we used them every chance we got - click "Read More" to learn the rest!

After a little research, we found out the true name of the flower: the Green Trick Dianthus. It is indeed a type of carnation - one whose petals never form. Instead, the leaves that normally support petals form the globular shape that we like so much. The way it acts in the arrangement above, anchoring the orchids without weighing them down, is just one facet of its versatility.

In this arrangement, we made it more of a focal point - it's so boisterous and pillowy in bunches! Fountain grass, veronica and mums balanced it out, with a raffia bow in the style of a sailor's knot.

This flower varietal is only available for commercial clients, rather than home gardeners. It was bred by a Dutch grower in early 2010, and it's been sweeping floral markets in major cities worldwide (Source). We're excited to have it in stock so often here at Fleur Du Jour!

We especially loved putting it in a wedding this summer, along with succulents and spider mums - it made for an outstanding array of textural elements.

What do you think of the Green Trick carnation? Tell us in the comments!

Stargazer Lilies: An In-Depth Look

2011-07-29T13:39:00.000-05:00

Stargazer Lilies are one of our favorite flowers. With their proud breadth and vibrant color, they're not exactly wallflowers! We use them whenever we can, and choosing them for today's Flower of the Day got us thinking that such stunning flowers really deserve to be understood in greater depth. Click "Read More" to learn...

Lilies have been cultivated since the time of the Ancient Greeks, but the Stargazer Lily is a hybrid that was actually developed in the late 1970s. Leslie Woodruff of the Sun Valley Group flower wholesalers in California is credited as being the actual inventor of the hybrid. T

The Oriental lily family traditionally has heavy blooms that hang downwards, but this hybrid's flowers opened toward the sky - hence the name Stargazer. Since then, many cultivars have been developed that look up to the sun.

And just for fun, here's a tutorial for making an edible Stargazer Lily out of gumpaste!

Source

Last Friday's Class!

2011-07-27T15:25:00.000-05:00

We had a Basic Class last week, and our students rocked the house! They worked with sunflowers, blue hydrangea, ferns and variegated leaves and even incorporated butterflies to create summery garden arrangements in silver pails. Check out some of their work by clicking "Read More"!

Weekend Weddings in July

2011-07-18T11:00:00.000-05:00

We had a couple of lovely weddings this weekend, here and in New Orleans! Here are a few preliminary pictures to enjoy. The photo above is of a wristlet corsage for the mother of the bride. Click "Read More" to see the rest!

A purple lisianthus and an unopened bud, paired with folded bear grass and misty blue limonium.

A trio of arrangements at various levels adds depth and interest to a table arrangement.

Bells of Ireland intertwine with silver-painted curly willow, over bunches of hydrangea and roses.

Pink!

2011-07-15T14:46:00.000-05:00

Between baby showers, birthdays, and the blush-pink lilies that we've had lately, there have been a lot of pearly pink arrangements coming out of our workroom! We thought we'd showcase a few of our favorite pink arrangements for you. Click "Read More" to see more rosy examples!

To start with, a subtle few - the blush of those lilies is set off by natural greens and browns.

This one was for the birthday party of a 1-year-old girl. Pink mums, carns, lilies and gerbers with a twist of Bells of Ireland!

Then there was the summer baby shower, in pinks and pearls! We blogged about it in greater depth here.

And this might be the most unabashedly pink arrangement we've ever made - a thank-you from our friend Jenn of Jenn Ocken Photography to Stacy of Gala Productions, for watching Jenn's adorable, sweet dog Eddie!

Sweet retro Hipstamatic by Jenn Ocken

Our Basic Class rocked last night!

2011-07-13T09:58:00.001-05:00

Our students last night did a wonderful job, as usual. We made arrangements with blue thistle, purple hydrangea, statice bear grass, purple mini callas, spider mums and silver-painted curly willow. See more pictures after clicking "Read More"!

Here's another view of the arrangements they made!

Our students proudly pose with the arrangements they've made. Beautiful!!

Happy 4th of July!

2011-07-01T10:11:00.000-05:00

Happy 4th of July! We will be open tomorrow for our normal Saturday hours, 9 a.m. to 12 p.m., but we'll be closed on Monday to celebrate Independence Day. We wish you a safe and happy weekend!

Our Summer Garden

2011-06-29T16:10:00.000-05:00

Bamboo in our backyard garden

We don't have too much backyard space at Fleur Du Jour, but we love to grow our own plants nonetheless. Amanda is a student of horticulture, and she is the queen of our backyard greenery. Now that the heat and sun of summertime is upon us, we thought we'd share some glimpses of what she's been cultivating. Click "Read More" to see pictures...

A lively little clump of variegated pittosporum. The two-toned leaves add a lot of interest to arrangements.

Our purple fountain grass has been doing exceptionally well outside. Its feathery heads are fantastic for arrangements - they add such elegantly curved forms. You can see them used in some of the arrangements on our online shopping cart, like "Fountains and Thistle", "Blue Meadow", and "Solaris."

Our succulents haven't fared as well in general, so we're in the process of moving many of them to little pots. That way we can move them around to give them whatever they're craving - sun, shade, heat or respite. However, this little Hen-of-the-Woods is as jaunty as ever!

When I was out taking pictures, our garden was visited by this fellow! He stayed with us and rested his wings for a while. Good to find some shade from the heat!

If you have stories from your garden, we'd love to hear them. Or, post a link to a picture of your own!

Baby Shower and a Photo Shoot!

2011-06-27T12:59:00.002-05:00

Last week, Lani and her family took a well-deserved vacation at the beach! We were happy to hold down the fort for them, and our designers made some beautiful arrangements for orders. On Tuesday, we held a big photoshoot with Jenn Ocken. Click "Read More" to see some pictures!

This arrangement, along with the one at the top of the post, went out for a little girl's baby shower! I love the juxtaposition of the pale green cabbage with the bright pink gerber, accented with a dot of a pearl. Here's a close-up - the center of the gerber is worth appreciating in detail!

On Tuesday, we had our photo shoot. We've just started using an online shopping cart with FlowerShopNetwork.com, and we wanted to put up some of our own work among the ordering options. So, Jenn came over and took pictures of arrangements we would send out for various occasions - Baby Boy, Graduation, Happy Birthday, and so forth.

You can see them all if you visit our e-commerce cart. We'll be adding more as time goes on.

Thanks for reading - we'd love to hear what you think in the comments!

Out of the Box Giveaway

2011-06-15T10:57:00.000-05:00

The Out of the Box Bridal Show is tomorrow evening! We're going to offer a special giveaway for brides who visit our table. There are a limited number of entries, and the grand prize will be a free bridal bouquet! For details, visit us tomorrow at the Old State Capitol. Registration starts at 5 and the show starts at 6, but you can skip the line by registering in advance. See you there!

Our first Wedding Flowers Class

2011-06-10T15:06:00.001-05:00

Last night, we held our first class for Wedding Flower design! It was a small, intimate class, and our students learned to make hand-held bouquets, boutonnieres and corsages. We brought out bunches of flowers, but they decided what to put in their own creations. They came up with some fantastic ideas! Click "Read More" to see what they did...

With all of these supplies, our students assembled some creative bouquets!

And check out this video of Lani explaining how to attach aluminum wire accents:

We're so proud of our students! Our friend Sarah sent us this picture of her creations on her desk at work this morning. She wore her corsage all day!

Everyday Flowers

2011-06-09T13:35:00.000-05:00

We provide a lot of wedding flowers at Fleur Du Jour, and we truly love making them (as evidenced by the number of bouquets and boutonnieres we photograph and post!). But we are a full-service florist, and we do a lot of work for other occasions - birthdays, funerals, holidays, thank-yous, and "just because" flowers too. We often post our everyday arrangements to Twitter and Facebook, but it's about time for them to get their very own post! Click "Read More" for more pictures...

In this arrangement, green button mums are nestled in the centers of the deep purple carnations, with silver dollar eucalyptus leaves spreading out underneath.

This one was a staff favorite - subtle tones, with elegantly curved forms.

This photo is of an everyday arrangement made by our students in our Basic Class!

This large, colorful birthday design was a lot of fun! We took a glass vase and lined the inside with moss for a natural, textured effect.

This sweet pink arrangement was made for a newborn baby!

A vintage Dr. Pepper bottle was the inspiration for this offbeat arrangement. It was commissioned after we posted the bottom one to Facebook. For that one, a lady wanted a masculine, unusual arrangement for her boyfriend. We used red billy balls, blue delphinium, and our green "Dr. Seuss" carnations for a striking effect.

Those are just some examples of the non-wedding work we've done. I hope you enjoyed getting to see a different side of Fleur Du Jour!

Weekend Weddings - Colors and Classics

2011-06-06T13:29:00.000-05:00

We've had another beautiful weekend of weddings in Baton Rouge! The styles this weekend were divided between classic soft colors and whites, and lighthearted punches of color. The bridal bouquet above falls into the latter category, with its striking green spider mums, spiky green carnations (those are the little fuzzballs of green - Maranda refers to them as our "Dr. Seuss" carnations), and succulents. The spray of seeded eucalyptus hanging down gives it a nice finishing flourish. For more pics of this wedding and others, click on "Read More"!

Just for fun, here's a close-up of the bouquet. Dr. Seuss carnation in the top left, green spider mum on the bottom, and succulent in the top right. I like this picture because it really shows that texture can be just as expressive as color. These blooms are all within a small range of color tones, but they are very distinct from each other.

Here's one of the boutonnieres that went with this wedding!

Our next wedding was a lively smorgasbord of colors with a wildflower aesthetic! Here's a picture of the bride's bouquet:

Protea, yellow billy balls, orange ranunculus, blue delphinium, seeded eucalyptus and mini green hydrangea - with a twist of curly willow and rogue sprigs of rosemary! (The whole workroom smelled delectable while we were putting these wedding flowers together.)

Here's a bridesmaid's bouquet, with yellow coxcomb front and center! I loved this one because it's bold and full of visual interest. It's ultimately a simple bouquet, with only a small number of blooms - but each bloom is unusual and makes a strong statement. (Hopefully we'll get some pics of the bridesmaids holding them - I'd love to see how these complemented their dresses, wouldn't you?)

And here's the groom's boutonniere, with a billy ball, an orange ranunculus, a delphinium and a fragrant sprig of rosemary. Love the vibrant color!

This picture is of a bridal bouquet from one of our more classic weddings this weekend, with creamy white peonies and garden roses. Like the previous wedding, it had a wildflower feel, but with more delicate coloring. The wild element is even more acutely expressed in the bridesmaids' bouquets:

Lots of dried elements mix with fresh in this bouquet - again, an intriguing interplay of textures is present. The flat-topped circle in the center is a dried lotus pod, and the red berries are actually part of the little white waxflowers. In the front bottom is a lisianthus, next to a gorgeous dahlia.

Here's a close-up of a boutonniere with waxflower and succulents:

And last but not least, a fitting finale - a bridal bouquet of all. White. Peonies. *swoon*

This turned out to be a weekend of diversity, and it was a lot of fun expressing such a range of styles for our brides. We'd love to hear what you think in the comments!

Our first class!

2011-06-03T11:06:00.000-05:00

We had our first Basic Class last night, and this is the arrangement we taught! Of course, learning how to make one particular arrangement entails learning the skills to put together an infinite variety of them - and one of our students went right home and did just that. Click "Read More" to check it out...

This is Sophie's own creation! She took home her arrangement from the class, and then used what she'd learned to arrange the flowers she had at home. We're both proud and excited - it's good to know that we're teaching usable skills, and it's so exhilarating to be spreading a love of floral design to our students.

The next class is coming up on June 7th, and it's going to be slightly different - it'll be a wedding class! So instead of everyday arrangements, students will learn to make bouquets, boutonnieres and corsages. We'll still teach the basics of care and conditioning, so it doesn't matter if you're a beginner or an advanced student. We hope we can inspire more people like Sophie!

Showroom Art

2011-06-02T16:24:00.002-05:00

With so many talented local artists joining our showroom, we thought it was about time to dedicate a post to them. The photo above is of earrings by Mimosa by m.e., who uses vintage fabric to make earrings like the ones at right. Click "Read More" to see some more of our artists' work!

These bow barrettes were actually fashioned by one of our own floral designers, Becky Soulier! She also makes ribbon keychains. Check out our friend Stacy Parker of Gala Productions wearing one of her creations in harlequin blue!

Recently, we welcomed a silkscreen artist into our showroom. Her name is Allison and she sells her products under the name Circular Accessories. We're happy to house her beautifully made t-shirts and flour sack cloths.

On our jewelry tree, Mimosa by m.e. shares space with Indie Heroine, who makes delightful necklaces and earrings with a vintage patina.

Finally, another member of our team is creating a line of knitted and crocheted baby items called Arkadia. Soft and stretchy blankets, hats, and toys!

We love supporting local craftspeople, and we're always hoping to let our collection grow. Thanks for looking at what we have to offer!

Weekend Weddings - Glam and Pizzaz

2011-05-31T10:48:00.001-05:00

We hope you had a breezy, sunny Memorial Day weekend! Our brides this past weekend were all about classic whites, greens and glitz. Click "Read More" to see pictures!

A stephanotis boutonniere for the groomsman at right, flanked by a groomsman's bout on the left.

For another wedding, a bridesmaid's bouquet with roses and gerbers.

The bride's bouquet shared elements like the gerbers, with Star of Bethlehem and a peony for a heightened fragile elegance.

Another bride went with a diamond-wrapped rose-and-orchid bouquet. Love the splashes of purple!

Her toss bouquet - simple and sweet.

And finally, her bridesmaid's bouquet makes a big splash of purple, pink and green to round it all off!