Behind The Scenes: The Bakanas Flowers Edition Vol. 10 05/02/2011- Mother's Day!

So moms, right? *Shrug* I don’t know where I was going with that… So, yeah… Mother’s Day! It’s just around the corner. What did you get your mother? Seriously, I need your help. What do you get the woman who owns the very shop everyone else frequents for his or her Mother’s Day flowers and gifts? I’m open for suggestions; feel free to comment some ideas. For those of you whose mother’s do not own flower shops, we have some treats for mom on our website.

Mother's Day is a time to say “Thanks Mom”! Thank you for bringing me into this world, and not taking me out of it. For always loving me, no matter how many stupid things I do. For making sure I had every possible opportunity to succeed in life. For shaping me into the person I am today, I am pretty awesome. (My mom’s humility clearly did not take).

Happy Mother’s Day to all the moms and maternal figures out there!
-Liz
Tune in next week for coverage of Prom!

Behind The Scenes: The Bakanas Flowers Edition Vol. 9 04/24/2011- Mad Men

“Nostalgia - it's delicate, but potent. Teddy told me that in Greek, ‘nostalgia’ literally means ‘the pain from an old wound.’ It's a twinge in your heart far more powerful than memory alone. This device isn't a spaceship, it's a time machine. It goes backwards, and forwards... it takes us to a place where we ache to go again. It's not called the wheel, it's called the carousel. It lets us travel the way a child travels - around and around, and back home again, to a place where we know are loved. ”- Don Draper, Mad Men

I confess I have been in a two-year love affair with AMC’s “Mad Men”, from the very first episode I was hooked. I especially wouldn’t mind having a love affair with Jon Hamm who plays Don Draper; he is charming, funny, and easy on the eyes. The very dapper Draper is a king amongst ad men; an ad genius. To be able to look at the Kodak Carousel and come up with the above sales pitch is nothing more than awe-inspiring. He moved grown men to tears… but he is a terrible boss. It seems as if he can’t go a single episode without firing or seducing his current secretary. He goes through these young women faster than he goes through his pack of Lucky Strikes. Needless to say, he would never remember Secretaries’ (or as it is now referred to as Administrative Professionals’) Week. 

Don’t be a Draper. Bakanas Flowers is offering several specials this week so you can say thank you to the man or woman who keeps your life in order. The “Dancing Flowers Mug” will make a beautiful edition to any desk. Or let the “Thanks a Buzzillion! Bouquet” say the ultimate thank you.

-Liz

P.S. Remember the two floral images are also links! Have fun!

Behind The Scenes: The Bakanas Flowers Edition Vol. 8 04/21/2011 Easter

Here comes Peter Cottontail, hopping' down the bunny trail. Hippity, hoppity, Easter's on its way. Boy, does that fluffy bunny have it right. Easter is a mere 48 hours away! Just two days until children everywhere will wake up and hunt for their Easter baskets of candy. If their parents are anything like my mom, it will be a challenge. How my mom thought up some of those hiding places, I’ll never know. One year our baskets were out in the car, another year mine was nestled in my closest (sneakily simple, right under my nose.) They were always in the best hiding spots. Then, after church, it was off to the family egg hunt. My most memorable years were spent hiding the plastic eggs because I had gotten to be too old to participate. I always enjoyed watching my brother and cousins scuttle around snatching up the brightly colored candy vaults. At the end, I would get to do a victory lap around the backyard gathering any woebegone eggs that may have been neglected. I remember the hardest egg to find was the infamous “name egg”. Each of the grandchildren had a giant egg with their name sharpied on it, instead of candy inside there was something better… money.

The Bakanas Flowers Family would like to wish Easter joy to you all, dear readers. Now get out there and make some memories.

-Liz 
P.S. Here's a fun thing I just figured out how to do and will continue to do from now on... If you click on the pictures they will take you to our website. So if you like what you see, order one today! Either would bring colorful touch to any Easter dinner.

Behind The Scenes: The Bakanas Flowers Edition Vol. 7 04/16/2011- Warning!

             There are many reasons people send flowers. Over the last three years of working “at the shop”, I’ve probably heard them all: get well, congratulations, I’m an idiot, I love you, happy birthday, happy anniversary, happy (insert random holiday here) just to name a few. The one thing all of these occasions have in common is… the BIG smile on the receiver’s face when I come to the door bearing a beautiful bouquet of flowers. Whether receivers were expecting me or it is a complete surprise, there’s always a smile.

                We at Bakanas pride ourselves on creating the highest quality, smile inducing arrangements and fruit baskets. Be aware: There are businesses out there that don’t care about your smiles or your flowers. “Order Gathering” services only want one thing: your hard-earned cash. They jack up their prices with extra charges and service fees; then forward your order to a real florist at a discount of what you paid for your order. That is, if your order actually makes it to a real florist and isn’t made in some warehouse or shipped without water and unarranged in a box. The convenience of online ordering from these types of organizations can be tempting; but lots of reputable local florists have websites as well, and they can benefit from your business and will deliver much better service than these order collecting corporations. Non-affiliate order gathers with big ad budgets steal business from honest, hard-working local florists. They are the swindlers, spam, and pop-ups of the floral realm. Protect your local florist, they protect your smiles.

Find out where your money goes with these faceless Order Gathers and how to avoid falling prey to their scams at: http://alwaysupward.com/blog/a-rose-is-a-rose-is-not/        

It is an interesting an interesting article, well worth your time.

-Liz

Behind The Scenes: The Bakanas Flowers Edition Vol. 6- St. Patrick's Day

                Saint Patrick’s Day is upon us. Now that might not mean much for a lot of people, but it happens to be a little holiday I enjoy. I feel that often this holiday gets over-looked, caught between the humdrum bustle of Valentine’s Day and Easter. In order to get us into the “St. Patty’s Day” spirit I have prepared some fun facts:

1. St. Patrick’s Day began as a Catholic Holiday, but gradually became a secular celebration of Irish culture.

2. St. Patrick used a shamrock as a teaching method to explain the Christian doctrine of the Trinity to the Irish people. 

3. Originally, the color associated with St. Patrick was blue.

4.      4.Saint Patrick's parades are now held in 9 locations across Japan. The first parade, in Tokyo, was organized by The Irish Network Japan (INJ) in 1992. Nowadays in Japan, parades and other events related to Saint Patrick's Day spread across almost the entire month of March.

      5.Each year the Chicago River is dyed green to commemorate the holiday. In 2009, in keeping with the Chicago St. Patrick's Day tradition, at the request of First Lady and Chicago native Michelle Obama, the White House fountains were dyed green to celebrate St. Patrick's Day.

 

That was our dose of Irish knowledge for the day, now on to the flower world!   A few weeks ago, I was asked  if we sold a lot of St. Patrick’s Day flowers.  The answer is yes, especially this beauty…The Irish Daffodils Bouquet. This vase arrangement comes straight from the fields of Ireland; our daffodils are accented by long lasting green and white flowers, making this arrangement pleasing to even non-Irish eyes!

We at Bakanas Flowers & Gifts would like to wish everyone a Happy St. Patrick’s Day, no matter how you celebrate. I for one am looking forward to listening to “Flogging Molly” and shooting pool. To all those in Tempe, Arizona who are going to the St. Patrick’s Day Flogging Molly concert I just want to say good luck and enjoy the experience, and I am jealous.

Sláinte!

                                        -Liz

Behind The Scenes: The Bakanas Flowers Edition Vol. 5- Valentine's Day

Valentine’s Day is just two days away, that’s 48 hours, fellas! If you haven’t gotten your special sweetheart anything yet; you might want to get on that. Seriously… right now. Pick up the phone and dial (856) 983-0055, we’ve got you covered! We’ve got roses galore! Everyone here has been working long and hard to get through this holiday as painlessly as possible for you. Which is why we present to you Bakanas Flowers’ very own “Passionate About Roses” arrangement. This stunning arrangement of 18 premium Long-Stem red roses in a Ruby Keepsake vase is one of our most popular Valentine selections. We also have roses by the dozen and half dozen in shades of red, white, pink, hot pink, and yellow.  You may pick them up or have them delivered locally. 

                In my sparse down-time between extra hours and Shakespeare/Anglo-Saxon poetry reading assignments I managed to sneak in a little “Modern Family”. Valentine’s Day was in full swing at the Dunphy residence. The parent’s, Phil and Claire, were preparing to embark on a quiet dinner date. The kids were left at home where Alex, the middle daughter, settled down to a “Love Actually” phone date with her boyfriend. I’ve always thought “Love Actually” to be a Christmas movie (my favorite Christmas movie, actually) but thinking about it, it’s also a great Valentine’s Day movie, and would make a fantastic date; second to pizza, Finding Nemo, and Mario Kart (who could say no to that?). So if you’re looking for something to do Monday night get some roses, a nice bottle of wine, pop in “Love Actually”, and listen to the eternal words of Hugh Grant, “Whenever I get gloomy with the state of the world, I think about the arrivals gate at Heathrow Airport. General opinion's starting to make out that we live in a world of hatred and greed, but I don't see that. It seems to me that love is everywhere. Often, it's not particularly dignified or newsworthy, but it's always there - fathers and sons, mothers and daughters, husbands and wives, boyfriends, girlfriends, old friends. When the planes hit the Twin Towers, as far as I know, none of the phone calls from the people on board were messages of hate or revenge - they were all messages of love. If you look for it, I've got a sneaking suspicion... love actually is all around.” So many times we get wrapped up this holiday that it becomes almost a chore. So let’s get the love back in Valentine’s Day. On Monday, love actually will be all around. To all those couples out there, enjoy your day! If you’re single, embrace it! Love is just around the corner.

     -Liz

Behind The Scenes: The Bakanas Flowers Edition Vol. 4- Snow Day!!

      On a frigid January day there is nothing like sitting in my director’s chair (a subconscious homage to my high school hopes and dreams) my feet on my desk, with a cup of tea and a good book. It’s even better after a snowstorm! A feeling of relaxation over takes me as I glance out the window at my world blanketed in white and the few later-than-me starters digging out their vehicles. The knowledge that my work is done makes the rewards of my toils much more satisfying. This is the only time I love snow. Most of the time I am required to venture out into the tundra and that is when I look to the sky and curse the heavens before begrudgingly hacking through the frozen crust that entombs my poor little car. However, on a day like today, when I have no responsibilities other than digging my house out and procrastinating writing an essay on Edgar Allan Poe’s emotional effects (I agree, it is as dull as it sounds) I find my sleepy street to be quite tranquil. Snow brings people together. Whether it’s helping a neighbor shovel her walk or just shooting the breeze as we fling shovel full after shovel after shovel full of endless powder into the street for the plows to scoop up I love that sense of camaraderie. We’re all friends here in the trenches.

Alas, times moves on and soon the snow will be gone with January. Which will bring us to February and more importantly… Valentine’s Day. But for now it’s still January, why not send that special someone flowers just because? Allow me to introduce the “Victorian Romance” bouquet. Romance blossoms beautifully within this elegant bouquet. The serenity and innocence of a dozen white roses is in delightful juxtaposition with lavender waxflower and soft greenery. It's as romantic as a stroll through the English countryside. I very much like this arrangement. It reminds of what I speculate the scenery in Oscar Wilde’s “The Importance of Being Ernest” looked like. (Wilde happens to be my favorite Victorian Era author.) You don’t have to saddle up your Tauntaun and trek out into this frozen Hoth that used to be Marlton, this lovely ode to Queen Victoria can be ordered online at bakanasflowers.com. Hurry! This special won’t last long. Before I return to my book and further procrastination I’d just like to remind everyone to take a moment and look at the natural beauty snow beholds, before it turns black and mushy.

-Liz