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Fall/Thanksgiving Decorating
Last year Ro blogged this great idea for a wonderful Fall/Thanksgiving decoration piece.
“Use any uncarved pumpkins from Halloween and make a beautiful Thanksgiving decoration.
Cut out the top, clean out the inside, and use it as a container for a flower arrangement. Cattails, branches and berries can make a long lasting arrangement. Closer to thanksgiving you can always add more perishable products like fresh flowers.”
It’s such a wonderful seasonal idea I wanted to post it again and add the photograph for another creation like this we just produced.
A great decoration or centerpiece and you can use the leftovers to make some pumpkin pie!
Another Wonderful Good Neighbor Day in Farmville!
I met a lot of great people and got to see all the wonderful smiles. I also got a few hugs and some of the ladies gave me one of their roses!
It was an amazing opportunity to meet lots of people that I had not seen in many, many years.
Rochie and I had a great time giving all the roses away and lots of people donated money to Meals on Wheels. Meals on Wheels is a great cause and helps many people in our neighborhood.
They are also on Facebook, like them and learn more about their great work – http://www.facebook.com/scopemow.
Lancer Pride!
When I was approached to hand out flowers on the side of the road on a Sunday I was not so enthusiastic!
I reminded myself making people smile with our flowers is what we do at Rochettes, and decided to show up. When the students of Longwood started to march up the hill to the first soccer game of season, after their pep rally, their bright smiling faces and the appreciation in their thank-yous, made me so glad I was there. EVERY single person that received a flower said thank you!
It was truly a wonderful experience and so I say to all of you…
… Thank you! and see you next year! Go Lancers!
Awards Make for a Special Birthday Present
Sunday July 31st was a special day for me. Three members of my staff and I went to Charlottesville to compete in the designer of the year competition “BLOOMONOPOLY” at the Virginia Professional Florist Association (VPFA) meeting.
27 other florists were present and 2 members of my staff Rowena and Julie won 2nd and 3rd place in the state. Ro won 1st place in the centerpiece competition among 11 entries. The centerpiece competition was titled “Save the Souls” and the theme was based on shoes.
This made my 75th birthday a very special and proud day for me.
And a Peacock in Christmas Tree…
My mom has always been real good about keeping up with “the kids these days”. For nearly 42 years she has always taken a hands on approach to this industry. She regularly attends workshops and seminars always encouraging her staff to participate.
Recently we went on one of her bi-annual buying trips to the merchandise mart in Atlanta. This enables her to see the latest trends in floral decor.
She was very excited this trip, seems everywhere we turned there were peacocks and more peacocks.
I really can’t wait for all the loot to come in, mom is gonna put together I’m the most amazing peacock christmas tree.
Edy’s Bringing FarmVille to the REAL Farmville
The folks at Edy’s know how to throw a tree planting party! And they know a good place to throw a tree planting party.
This was a fun event for which we got to provide flowers. Not only did we get to enjoy it all of those delicious frozen treats, we succeeded in exceeding our customers expectations.
Today, mother nature was on our side too, the temperatures were agreeable and the event was well attended.
Our out of town guests realized something the natives around here already know, the real farmville is WAY better than the virtual one.
Lynchburg Grows Provides the Perfect Mothers Day Gift
I had a wonderful, heart-warming visit last week to a project called Lynchburg Grows. The mission of Lynchburg Grows is to help all disadvantaged persons enjoy the healthy benefits of gardening and have access to such spaces. The project came in response to a story about a local man with mental retardation who witnessed the destruction of the garden he loved and cared for as the result of a communication error. The project has expanded well beyond that initial response and covers so much more.
The group found an abandoned rose farm, formerly operated by the Schenkel family in downtown Lynchburg, which was once one of the largest rose producers in Virginia. The farm had been abandoned and left unattended for years. The Schenkel roses are deep rooted in the history of Rochette’s Florist and my family so this project has strong significance for me. The Schenkels were approached with this project plan and thus Lynchburg Grows was formed and the farm renamed the H. R. Schenkel Urban Farm and Environmental Center.
The original greenhouses and roses have been recovered thanks to the help of many dedicated volunteers. Unfortunately only a few rose species were recovered. Most had died but those at the edges of the greenhouses were able to expand their root systems to reach rain water from outdoors. A few others were able to survive due to some broken glass panes allowing rain to come through.
Now the disabled and disadvantaged can come and garden side by side with the unimpaired in this amazing setting. Fresh vegetables are being grown and donated to the local food pantry as well as being sold to local restaurants and farmer’s markets to raise funds for the project.
It is warming and comforting to know that something so amazing is coming from an agricultural business that had to be shut down and was left unattended for so long. It has been recovered, regenerated, and is now being taken in a direction that benefits so many people of different backgrounds and capabilities.
I found that some of the original Schenkel roses were going to be made available for sale for Mother’s Day this year and jumped at this opportunity to provide Mum with an unforgettable gift. This will provide a great start to her rose garden.
This project is not currently well known or publicized in Virginia but I am now on a mission to change that and make sure they get the support needed to continue long into the future. Scroll down and click on the link to become a fan of their page on Facebook!
We at Rochette’s hope to develop an ongoing relationship with this project and support them going forward.
Stop and Smell the Roses
Doesn’t it make you sad when you go to smell a rose and are only able to catch a barely detectable hint of that familiar perfume. Years of hybridizing and developing new species for commercial sales has come at the cost of the fragrance.
Well look what we found… Fragrant Garden Roses!
This variety of rose is very delicate so I was extra careful in processing these flowers. From the moment I cracked open the box the divine aroma had me smiling. I placed the roses in warm water allowing them to drink for about an hour before unwrapping. Each time I walked by I literally had to stop to smell the roses.
Our grower has limited quantities of these available for Mother’s Day so that does mean a higher price tag. I am working very hard to secure some so keep your fingers crossed for our Mothers next week.
The red rose is called Hearts, Orange is Free Spirit, light pink is O’Hara, and the dark pink is Yves Piaget.
Prom Season is upon Us!
This year, for the first time, I can truly say I am excited about Prom Season. Corsage work is very delicate and my hands are BIG so I’ve never excelled in producing the type of corsage I would truly like.
Mom sent Ro and I to an excellent workshop focusing on corsage work and we are now up to date on the latest techniques for producing superior corsage work. Our new custom fitted wristbands are very light weight and extremely comfortable. We’ve already had rave reviews!
So bring on the corsage work we are excited and ready to produce some beautiful custom corsages to help make your Prom night extra special.
Our Talented Designers
At the Gala with one of Ro's designs in the background
A few weeks ago our designers had a fun and exciting opportunity, Rochette’s Florist llc provided floral decorations for the bi annual LCVA (Longwood Center for the Visual Arts) Fund Raising Gala “the Party of the centuries”.
Upstairs, the showpiece flower arrangements were featured at the entrance and throughout the galleries, beautifully positioned to accent the wonderful gourmet food presentations of ARAMARK Services.
A large portion of the floral and plant decorations for this event is a “Gift In Kind” from Rochette’s. My Mom’s generosity allowed us to really showcase the incredible talents of our designers, Mom included!
Mom with her design for the LCVA Gala
Each of us had a painting to interpret with our flowers. My girls were all very excited and it was contagious, I had a lot of fun working with them and ordering lots of fun flower species to decorate with.
I am so proud of Alicia, Julie, Ro and Mom. They hit a home run with their mad talents and hard work, our flowers were a huge hit!
The floral decor on the lower level was loads of fun too, Ro stepped up for this job. She was inspired by Hitomi Gilliam, lecturer, author and famous floral designer. Ro and I attended her lecture at the VMFA last fall, those ideas and thoughts are still fresh. Ro’s designs of all white flowers were breathtaking!
I am very thankful to work with these wonderful artists. They truly love being floral designers and this was obvious to everyone who attended the Gala.
Ro looking beautiful beside one of her designs
Julie looking gorgeous beside her creation
One of my Creations and my tux with flowery accents!
