What's the Theme?
Giving Your Party It's Own Personality
People go to parties to have fun and socialize. What better way to show your creativity, add character
to your party and dazzle your guests than through a theme. Following are a few ideas to jump-start your imagination. ENRIGHT FLORIST can offer additional suggestions.
Consider any of the following themes or party ideas:
Backyard
Barbecue
Patio/Garden Party
Hawaiian Luau
French Country Dinner
Mexican Fiesta
Wine at Nine
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Backyard Barbecue (back)
A backyard barbecue has a
special "flavor" of it's own. The feeling is usually relaxed, festive and friendly and often includes children and adults. Flowers can help create the mood, whether relaxing or celebrating, or both. Since barbecues usually take place in the summer, ask
ENRIGHT FLORIST about what varieties do well in your climate.
Floral Decorating Ideas
Daisies are a great summer flower. Consider using Mason jars filled with bunches of daisies over checkered tablecloths. Drop a few candles into similar jars
if it is an evening meal. Or ask ENRIGHT FLORIST to make colorful arrangements in baskets, jars, or bottles.
Special Touches
Decorate pies and cakes with matching flowers and greens. Use bails of hay for extra seating, to decorate the yard or
to make a haystack. Use strands of raffia for napkin holders.
Suggested Flowers
Daisies, marigolds, roses, lilies, asters, sunflowers, scabiosa and ornamental
grasses.
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Perfect Patio/Garden Party (back)
As people have become more interested in nature, more outdoor living areas have been incorporated into homes and a
relaxed, casual entertaining style has emerged. The mood can be chic or "gardeny" but the focus is always on the beauty of nature.
Floral Decorating Ideas
For your next garden or patio party, make use of flowering or green plants in season.
Clay pots fit any decor and can be used for flowering plants, green plants or as containers for flower arrangements. Topiary designs look great in clay pots and can be created with ivy or flowers. (Be sure to weight the bases with sand if there is wind.)
Floating candles and flowers in crystal bowls is another idea that "weathers" the weather. Miniature vases each showcasing a different type of flower and placed all along the table is a real conversation starter and you can give one to each guest as they
leave. Most patio parties take place in the summer so roses are in season and a great value. Small clusters of roses in low containers with a sprinkling of rose petals on the table among votive candles can create a very elegant mood.
Special
Touches
Hang twinkle lights or lanterns from trees or place lights among flowering plants. Outline the patio with plants and twinkle lights at the ground level to create a defined space. Floral name cards or a flower on each napkin adds a personal
touch that is as friendly as this style of party.
Suggested Flowers/Plants
Roses, peonies, ranunculus, snapdragons, delphiniums, anemones, lily of the valley, lisianthus, heather, hydrangea, tulips, alstroemeria, begonias, geraniums, fuschias,
ferns, ivy and impatiens.
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Hawaiian Luau (back)
Summer fun - who doesn't love a luau? And with the vast variety of tropical flowers now available on the market it is
possible to create decorations that look like you're in a Hawaiian paradise.
Floral Decorating Ideas
Ask ENRIGHT FLORIST about a flower lei for each guest. They can usually be special ordered in advance and make a memorable gift. If leis aren't
available, provide a flower for each guests' hair? Since tropical flowers are so exotic, it is best to choose a style of arrangement that will really show off their features to guests. Containers might be simple (weighted) pots surrounded by fruit and
vegetables or covered with a Hawaiian print fabric. Or use hollowed pineapples or coconuts as festive floral containers. If there is a pool, fill it with inner tubes and display flowers in the centers or put flowers into chair cup holders. Ask ENRIGHT
FLORIST to create fun floral arrangements that will float.
Special Touches
Use tall torches in the ground or small ones placed into potted tropical plants. Make interesting votive candle holders by carving out fruits, vegetables or Protea (a
hardy tropical flower available at florists). Decorate platters and trays with flowers or palm fronds, and include the customary flower trim for cocktails. Ask ENRIGHT FLORIST if they rent props or tropical palms to enhance your theme.
Suggested
Flowers
Anthurium, protea, ginger, heliconia, birds of paradise, torch ginger and orchids.
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French Country Dinner (back)
Fine gourmet cooking and entertaining has
become a beloved pastime in the homes of many Americans. And who can think of gourmet cooking without thinking of France? An ideal complement to a gourmet meal is flower designs inspired by the European culture that inspired the meal. Creating the
ambiance of a French Country table at your next feast begins by taking a "stroll through the Provence" and into your nearest flower shop.
Floral Decorating Ideas
Designs that are fragrant, simple, bountiful and earthy are key elements. Strands
of rye grass in white or blue-washed pots tied with a French ribbon are simple and graceful decor for a serving counter or sideboard. Bundles of fresh or dried herbs like oregano or rosemary can be casually placed on the table, on serving platters or as
a garnish to foods. Galvanized metal buckets could hold plants or flowers.
Special Touches
Cover small pots of fresh herbs with French print fabric and tie with French ribbons for accent pieces (or place card holders) next to a bountiful
floral centerpiece in bright colors to match the fabric.
Suggested Flowers
Rye grass, delphinium, roses, spray roses, iris, sunflowers, flowering branches, dahlias, french tulips, hydrangea, solidaster, heather, and herbs such as rosemary and
lavender.
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Mexican Fiesta (back)
Everyone loves a fiesta. The word conjures up images of swirling, vivid colors amidst music and laughter. Bright, bold and fun are all
part of a fiesta and the flower decor that will enhance the event.
Floral Decorating Ideas
For a lively centerpiece, try mixing colorful Gerbera daisies in Mexican "bubble" glass or painted pottery. Make a flower punch float for the Sangria
bowl using a mixture of bright blooms (see Details That Make a Difference section under "Party Panache"). Suspend or display piņatas that have been opened on the top and have flowers arranged inside. Or place flower arrangements or plants in sombreros
for a fun conversation piece.
Special Touches
Create food displays using Mexican rugs or blankets as tablecloths. Scatter piņata candy and/or flower petals on the tables around centerpieces or candles. Decorate Margarita glasses with a
cocktail pick piercing a small bloom and a lime. A tray of these made up in advance also looks great as a decoration for the drink station. Ole!
Suggested Flowers
Vivid colors can be found in many flower varieties: gerbera daisies, gladiolas,
snapdragons, roses, carnations, chrysanthemums, various tropical flowers, ranunculus and lilies.
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Wine at Nine (back)
The casual yet elegant get together is an earmark of
the 90's as young professionals moved towards a later evening "happy hour" at their homes and the homes of friends. This is a perfect opportunity to showcase your style and sophistication through your choice of wines and flowers.
Floral Decorating
Ideas
To make an elegant presentation for wines, create your wine cooler (similar to punch float - see Details That Make a Difference section under "Party Panache") with flowers to hold each bottle of chilled wine. Ask ENRIGHT FLORIST to design
flowers in a champagne bucket or in a cluster of wine bottles. Decorate passing trays with flowers. When serving champagne, pierce a flower blossom and several berries with a cocktail pick and lay it across the top of the champagne glass. Create an
interesting and elegant effect for mingling guests by placing groups of flowers and candles around the room. For each "group," try using varied heights of clear or colored glass in several shapes and sizes and use a different variety of flowers in each
one (bowls, mini vases, tall vases, etc.). Taper, votive or pillar candles can be mixed in the group, preferably on levels to enhance the reflection. Ceramic, marble or fabric-covered wine coolers also make decorative flower vases. (If using terra-cotta,
line the inside with a plastic bag to hold the water.) Floating candles and fragrant blooms in a crystal bowl make a simple yet elegant centerpiece.
Special Touches
Decorate food serving trays with mini grape wreaths (lying flat) as "holders"
for serving bowls or plates on a larger table.
Suggested Flowers
A few interesting conversation starters might include cosmos, roses, lilies, anthuriums, orchids, freesia, lisianthus, callas, ranunculus, tulips, iris and gerbera
daisies.
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