floresdelsol

new in shop: craspedia cluster in white

noreply@blogger.com (Christina- floresdelsol) — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 14:50:00 +0000

craspedia cluster in white is designed with lovely bright yellow dried craspedia flowers (aka billy buttons, billy balls) in a simple white ceramic cylinder vase. So bright, so cheery, and natural (much like the wonderful weather we've been enjoying!). It will be going into the shop's more permanent collection. The original petite craspedia cluster will be retiring as soon as the last two sell. New designs will be tricking in this season... sorry it may take a while though. I cant seem to get much done quickly with three wee ones !!! stay tuned :)

genealogy fan

noreply@blogger.com (Christina- floresdelsol) — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 11:11:00 +0000

from here

I have always loved looking at my family tree and learning about my ancestors. Hearing their stories, looking at the old sepia toned photos and seeing the links between them and me really gives me a great sense of family and heritage. I find it intriguing. Facebook has made it even more amazing, meeting a distant cousin who has linked back my great grandmother Rose's line a few generations in Italy. Now instead of pages and pages cataloging your family tree, there is a family fan that you can see all your ancestors linked to you on one page. I can't wait to fill mine in and maybe even hang it up!

Photo 1: My great grandmother Rose (whom i get my middle name from). Doesn't she look so loving and warm? Photo 2: and my mother and my gorgeous grandmother.

dont know your family history or where to start? start somewhere like family search.org (free) or ancestory.com. You'll be surprised at how much you will find. Watch out! Its addicting once you start....

flower id: cyclamen

noreply@blogger.com (Christina- floresdelsol) — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 16:00:00 +0000

Cyclamen persicum, or Florist’s Cyclamen, is a common winter flowering plant found in many stores and florists. It is a tuberous plant native to the Eastern Mediterranean area. They come in a variety of shades from white, to red and many hues of pink. My favorite thing is their heart shaped leaves (above) which is perfect for a valentine's day gift. Cyclamen are a breath of fresh spring air in the dead of winter. Their flowers are very fragrant and showy. So fragrant that my girls wont stop sniffing them.

Blooming: Plants will bloom from mid-winter to spring. Cyclamen like bright indirect light while flowering. They go through a summer dormancy when they do not flower and prefer to be kept out of bright light. You can the break dormancy and stimulate it's winter flowering period again starting in the fall.

DIY Valentine's day gift!!!
cyclamen potted in vintage milk glass

... create your own valentine's gift by dressing up a common cyclamen from the store. Add a little sheet moss (available in most craft stores) and pot it up in a thrifted vintage milk glass planter like my hobnail one. If you don't have the time for thrifting, you can find many vintage milk glass planters on etsy here.

flores del sol is also celebrating the 600th sale! Take off 10% today by using the code 600sale at check out!!!! not valid on custom orders.

my winter garden and girls

noreply@blogger.com (Christina- floresdelsol) — Mon, 23 Jan 2012 18:15:00 +0000

the dead of winter. plants are dried and dark. my girls' cheeks are rosy and plump. little penny loved watching her sisters run and make snow angels, i did too. After, we sipped frothy hot cocoa from our cocoa latte and warmed our frost bitten fingers back up. I keep thinking about the bulbs raquel and I planted in the autumn. They are nestled in the soil frozen and waiting for the warmth of the sun. It's kinda how I feel too.

inspiration: Clare Elsaesser

noreply@blogger.com (Christina- floresdelsol) — Wed, 18 Jan 2012 15:11:00 +0000

a little valentine art I found when Clare from tastesorangy made a purchase from my shop. Her work is superb. It brings on feelings of nostalgia from my own romance. I adore how the red flowers in this bottom piece, honeymoon, look like hearts. Do you make big plans for valentines or are you more of a celebrate our love all year type? I undoubtedly will be working and my hands will be sore from all the thorny roses that will pass through them. Felipe and I usually end up celebrating valentine's the weekend before or after due to it.

check out this yucca piece she's made and this succulent too. im a sucker for a succulent.

favorites: 2011

noreply@blogger.com (Christina- floresdelsol) — Wed, 11 Jan 2012 12:00:00 +0000

2011- A wonderful year! I was blessed with my third baby girl, Penelope. Two of the good books I read turned into great movies and many creative fellow indie etsy artist never ceased to amaze me.

1- Books: The Hiding Place by Corrie Ten Boom (so uplifting) and The Help by Katherine Stockett. Music: Bon Iver's new self titled album... mellow, relaxing and playing on saturday night live on feb. 4th!
2- boot socks - not sure where these are from but I found mine at h&m for $6.
3- aden and anais muslin swaddling blankets . The best blankies with multiple purposes. I wish I had these 2 babies ago!
4- new jersey wooden baby teether by little sapling toys. Little Pea is sprouting two bottom toothers and likes gnawing on this dirty jersey.
5- beeswax antique bottle shaped candles- by pollen arts
6- modern decorative wall clock- by decoylab

7- tier necklace by odette, ny a girl can dream right?
8- cover girl outlast double lip shine in candy apple red. I love it, it lasts all day and doesn't get on my girls cheeks as I smooch them all day.
9- white birch forest topography, organic wood wall art- by urban plus forest
10- gold zag tray- by up in the air somewhere
11- Downton Abbey drama series. Amazing. More I posted about it here. Are you watching the new season?!??
12- Persian rug pillows- by old new house
13- New Girl tv show, kinda like a new friends. I find schmidt funny funny and jess "adorkable"
14- Jane Eyre, the movie! I had just finished reading the classic Jane Eyre last winter and found out there was a new movie coming out! It was very well done, a fun girls night out and I highly recommend it.

inspiration: chris villacillo

noreply@blogger.com (Christina- floresdelsol) — Mon, 09 Jan 2012 14:53:00 +0000

gorgeous photos from photographer chris villacillo at longwood gardens in pennsylvania

I am back from a wonderful vacation and ready to hit this new year full on! Yesterday I finally put some goals down on paper for the year which is something that I normally don't take part in. This year I felt like I need some welcome change and what better way than starting at the new year to help motivate myself. I will be back soon with my favorites of 2011.

-christina

happy 2012!

noreply@blogger.com (Christina- floresdelsol) — Mon, 02 Jan 2012 05:21:00 +0000

me and 3 out of 4 of my sisters

happy new year from the red rock desert of southern utah!

im still on vacation. :)

merry christmas

noreply@blogger.com (Christina- floresdelsol) — Mon, 26 Dec 2011 04:00:00 +0000

from my family to yours :)

teacher's christmas gifts

noreply@blogger.com (Christina- floresdelsol) — Mon, 19 Dec 2011 16:00:00 +0000

I am new to this whole teacher gift giving thing with having my daughter Raquel in school for the first time this year. We planted some Amaryllis bulbs for teachers gifts a few weeks ago and have been watching them grow like we did last year. I found the bulb kits on sale at the grocery store and purchased cuter pots for them at a local greenhouse. Raquel loves planting anything with me and was so delighted to make her gifts for her teachers. The bulbs have sprouted now sitting in the sun in the window and are ready for gifting tomorrow.

I will be light on posts now for the next 2 weeks as we take a little vacation out west and enjoy the holidays with family.

enjoy this wonderful christmas week!!
-christina

know your christmas greens

noreply@blogger.com (Christina- floresdelsol) — Thu, 15 Dec 2011 11:00:00 +0000

it seems as though each year as the Christmas season sneaks up, my mind draws a blank when naming a few of the different cut evergreens. Know your Christmas greens. Impress your boyfriend's mom by commenting on the lovely scent of cedar from her wreath or ask your friend where she acquired her centerpiece with juniper berries.

My favorite green this year are magnolia leaves. I love there deep, broad leaves and the soft velvety brown tones underneath. Here are some Christmas container plantings I did for a client. Test yourself, can you identify what's in them?

the glass house

noreply@blogger.com (Christina- floresdelsol) — Tue, 13 Dec 2011 14:32:00 +0000

glasshouse by lucy and stephen marr found via the selby.

One of my biggest wants in life is to have a little glass house. A quiet green place to slip inside and feel the warmth and growing things in the winter. I saw photos of this unique one made from recycled windows and had to share it with you. A greenhouse... someday you will be mine!

flower id: ilex berries

noreply@blogger.com (Christina- floresdelsol) — Fri, 09 Dec 2011 16:42:00 +0000

Ilex berries, also known as winterberries, are gorgeous holiday berries used in Christmas arrangements by floral designers at this time of year. They are grown from a shrub that has copious amounts of red berries in late autumn. Once cut, the ilex berries stay on the branches for a long time. I love to use them in outdoor planting too. You can find them at a flower market, florist and (sometimes) the grocery store.

the winner of the blossom buddies book giveaway this week is domestic diva! congrats!

penny's first christmas

noreply@blogger.com (Christina- floresdelsol) — Mon, 05 Dec 2011 14:30:00 +0000

It's my little Penelope's first Christmas this year! I like to get each of my girls a first Christmas ornament to hang on our tree which we will be putting up tonight. I started looking around etsy a few weeks back and stumbled upon the cute penny keychains that pat from patsdesigns makes. Pennies! How perfect for my lucky little Penny. I asked her if she could make a custom design for me as an ornament and she did a great job! She also makes necklaces, dog tags and more with pennies showing your lucky year (year you met, anniversary, children's birth dates etc). Check them out here.

dont forget to enter the blossom buddies giveaway here. not many have entered which makes your luck of winning high! it ends wednesday at midnight.

giveaway: blossom buddies book!

noreply@blogger.com (Christina- floresdelsol) — Wed, 30 Nov 2011 15:35:00 +0000

Do you remember this post I did not too long ago? Well, like I said in it, my little girls adore this book, Blossom Buddies by Elsa Mora. Actually, I adore it too! Elsa has taken natural elements and made them into different characters and photographed them. The publisher teNeues, is giving one lucky flores del sol reader a copy! Just in time for the holidays and perfect for children or anyone who appreciates creativity.

What to do to win?

Just leave me a comment with your email (or a link to it).

additional optional entries (leave a comment for each thing you've done):
- follow flores del sol blog (link is on the sidebar)
- like flores del sol on facebook here
- tweet this giveaway
- share it on fb

giveaway ends december 7th at 12pm est, US residents only

new in shop: thistle mound

noreply@blogger.com (Christina- floresdelsol) — Mon, 28 Nov 2011 15:55:00 +0000

thistle mound in wood:

a mound of thistles (dried echinops) tucked into a wooden vessel. For sale in the shop here.

and just in time for the holidays, pine & fern:

soft preserved princess pine and preserved fern in a green ceramic tumbler. A perfect little touch of green. found here in the shop here.

come back soon for a giveaway this week...

and for cyber monday use the code cyber2011 for 15% off today only!!

-christina

twilight wedding flowers

noreply@blogger.com (Christina- floresdelsol) — Tue, 22 Nov 2011 15:00:00 +0000

This past weekend I may or may not have gone out for girls night to see breaking dawn. Ok, I'll fess up... I did. I am no twihard, but I did read the books 3 years ago and enjoy seeing the movies with my friends who first got me to read the books. So we giggled like little girls, sat packed in a full theater and of course discussed the movie afterward in comparison to the book. Bella and Edward marry in this movie. A Twilight wedding? You better believe it was huge and beautiful. It was held almost as much a secret as the royal wedding. The whole feel was very organic, woodland and romantic with the canopy of white wisteria cascading from the trees (40- 50 feet in length!) and moss covered stumps flowing with white flowers. The floral designer in charge was Tammy Polatsek.

So I put together a collage of the flowers used in the wedding:

Bella's bouquet:

I still can not even find a photo of Bella's bouquet so from what I remember it had all mostly white ranunculas, stock, freeshia and possibly roses and sweet peas mixed in.

Boutonnieres:
I believe they were small freesia florets. It was hard to tell though without getting up close.

The cake:
5 tier, sweet peas, cream roses and green viburnum.

Centerpieces:
Green viburnum, white delphinium, stock, white ranunculus and sweet peas with moss and ferns and manzanita branch-like candelabras.

so if you want to go-ahead and comment that I am a huge dork and you've lost all respect for me... or that you vomited in your mouth upon seeing the title of this post... or confess you saw the movie too ;)

images 1, 2, 3 , 4-floresdelsol

found friday: flowers by bornay

noreply@blogger.com (Christina- floresdelsol) — Fri, 18 Nov 2011 14:51:00 +0000

If you like flowers (well, I know you do because you are reading this blog) then you will like flowers by bornay in barcelona, spain. They take different objects like planets, an actress, the bride of frankenstein or a robot and create designs inspired by them. They use lots of 'color tool' (aka flower spray paint) to get the perfect hues to match. Here are two of my favorites:

movement on the moon-

and flowers from mars

they also have a rad tumblr here.

happy fin de semana :)
-christina

favorites: downton abbey

noreply@blogger.com (Christina- floresdelsol) — Wed, 16 Nov 2011 11:00:00 +0000

Have you seen it? I am obsessed with Downton Abbey. A Masterpiece mini series that has won 6 emmy awards. I was quickly hooked last year when it first aired and so upset that I would have to wait a whole year to see what happens next. I re-watched the first season over the summer with my sister Sherri and got her hooked. I am so excited that the second season will be premiering on January 8, 2012 here in the US. I am so jealous of those living in England who are watching the second season on BBC now.
The set is beautiful, along with the costume design (modern yet still traditional) and it also has a great plot with some romance mixed in. The show entered the Guinness book of world records as the 'most critically acclaimed television show' for the year, becoming the first British show to win the award. It beat American shows Mad Men and Modern Family to the title. Have I convinced you to watch it yet!?

You can catch up and watch the first season through net-flix, on dvd or it will be re-airing on PBS in december. Or if you live by me you can borrow mine. A great thing to watch over the thanksgiving holiday. They also just confirmed that there is a third season premiering in September 2012!

Oh and if you haven't seen masterpiece's emma yet, I highly recommended that too a few years ago here.

melissa loves pop-up shop

noreply@blogger.com (Christina- floresdelsol) — Mon, 14 Nov 2011 15:37:00 +0000

I had such a wonderful weekend! Thanks to Melissa and Marichelle for hosting the pop-up shop. It was beyond gorgeous. Everywhere I looked was fabulous eye candy. I was Ooohing and ahhing all day over the variety of artists and their work! Not to mention munching continuously on delicious treats made by Brandi. It was great to also meet so many new faces and hear the tales of how they create their work or how they started. It was a wonderful day in maplewood :)

beautiful photos taken by jennifer of odette new york

soft blooms centerpiece

noreply@blogger.com (Christina- floresdelsol) — Fri, 11 Nov 2011 11:00:00 +0000

Pin It

a new dried flower centerpiece i've made for the pop-up shop tomorrow! It's called soft blooms centerpiece. It is made with wood chips, soft cream hydrangeas, white tarrow berries, cream balsa roses and dried mangrove fruit designed in a low vintage wooden bowl.

think about coming! please?!

oh and I almost forgot! The winner of the sea and asters terrarium giveaway is #115 "all wired up too"!! congrats and stay tuned for more giveaways.

have a happy weekend friends

-christina

--- update it is now for sale in my shop here!~

local pop-up shop II

noreply@blogger.com (Christina- floresdelsol) — Wed, 09 Nov 2011 14:34:00 +0000

the rest of the lovely artists I will be with is weekend at melissa love's pop-up shop:

odette new york:

hadley hutton:

stepanka ceramics:

leah duncan:

secret holiday:

local pop-up shop

noreply@blogger.com (Christina- floresdelsol) — Mon, 07 Nov 2011 14:52:00 +0000

good monday morning dear readers! I am happy to announce that I am taking part in an awesome pop-up shop, Melissa Love's Pop-Up Shop, this saturday November 12, from 12- 4. I have been invited by lovely bloggers Melissa and Marichelle to take part in it at Melissa's beautiful home in Maplewood, New Jersey.
This week I will be highlighting the other artists involved in hopes to get you (if you are local) to come out and enjoy an afternoon shopping by the fireside with warm drinks and treats. Support local artist and get some holiday shopping done early! Also please consider taking a lovely fall day direct train out of the city to visit! If you plan on visiting, please email melissa directly for the address.

Shanna Murray:

Susy Jack:

and Clementine Jewelry:

gorgeous sellers huh! Stay tuned for more!

ps- dont forget about the sea and asters terrarium giveaway going on until Wednesday.

new in shop: tallow berries

noreply@blogger.com (Christina- floresdelsol) — Fri, 04 Nov 2011 13:52:00 +0000

Pin It

i've actually had a little bit of time to make some new arrangements for the shop! Tallow berries is a design of dried white tallow berries mixed with dried natural button flowers and natural soft reindeer moss. available in the shop now here.

have a happy weekend!!!
-christina

sponsor giveaway: sea and asters terrarium

noreply@blogger.com (Christina- floresdelsol) — Wed, 02 Nov 2011 12:45:00 +0000

Today's giveaway is from flores del sol sponsor Sea and Asters. Monica is giving one lucky reader a $25 terrarium of choice from her shop! Aren't they gorgeous? A mix of lovely natural textures. Her terrariums are perfect gifts too as the holidays will soon be here.
I love air plants (see a DIY centerpiece I made here). They remind me of the sea sponge harvesting town on the gulf of mexico, Tarpon Springs in Florida. They have all different types of air plants (aka tillandsia) hanging and for sale everywhere. I was in heaven. Its a must visit if you are ever around Tampa.

Giveaway participation (leave a comment for each thing you've done with your email or a link)

mandatory: check out Sea and Asters shop here and tell me your favorite piece.

additional optional entries:
- follow flores del sol blog (link is on the sidebar)
- like flores del sol on facebook here
- like sea and asters on facebook here
- tweet this giveaway
- share it on fb
giveaway ends november 8th, US residents only