The Hunt!

Happy Monday!

When we were kids our parents created a hunt for our Easter baskets each year throughout our house using clues.  I did something similar for my kids, and so did Kris, but at some point Kris got a little carried away and each year at Easter we now have the Easter Basket Hunt Eggstravaganza.  Where this hunt was once confined to our houses, it now takes us throughout Dekalb and Sycamore.  Each we have a theme and this year’s theme was, My Favorite Things.  In the past the clues have usually been hand-written or computer generated, this year’s clues were via text.

Here’s a few of our clues

It appears the bunny was laying down on the job when he posted this clue.  Maggie figured out that this was one of her favorite things, her bed! When we got to her bed we found a chocolate bunny and the next clue was texted to us!

The next clue was a favorite of all of us, but Lucy loves the bruschetta at Nat’s on Maple so we weren’t surprised when the bunny sent this clue.

Here’s Kent recovering the clue from Nat’s on Maple.

This clue through us all for a loop, but it helped that it came with the word, Fore!  Kent and Scott immediately figured out that this must be one of their favorites and we headed to Sycamore Gold Course.

And Scott found the chocolate bunny and then explained to us all what that footed thing was.  It’s used when replacing the spikes on the bottom of golf shoes.  You put the shoes on the feet and then replace the spikes… we even learned stuff on this hunt!

The bunny tried to trick us with this one that came with the clue, Shall We Dance, but Lucy, Maggie, and Maddie knew this was Holmes Student Center where their proms have been held.  What no one knew was that Lucy’s boyfriend, Mark, was already at Holmes Student Center dressed in a tux waiting to ask Lucy to their college formal.

Here is Mark in his tux, Lucy still in shock with her pretty flowers, and Kent who really dressed for the occasion!

It took us about 3 hours, but we finally found those Easter Baskets!   That rascally rabbit!!

Memories…

Hello,

Earlier this week we helped a family choose flowers for the funeral of their mom, grandma, and great-grandma. As they looked through our selection books of sympathy arrangements they shared how much she loved her gardens and when they thought of her they thought of her favorite colors of purples and lavenders. They chose some styles and designs that they liked and left the rest up to our design team. Here’s what our designers created:

Easter Gifty Ideas

Happy Monday!

Sure hard to get it through my head that this is Easter week, it feels like it’s Thanksgiving week instead!  Scott and I have gone from thinking we were Easter orphans without any Easter plans, which was kind of exciting, to now being in the crazy Easter mix. Kris and her family along with our Maggie were supposed to be Eastering in Florida with Mom and Dad and Kyle would be Eastering in Texas.  Sadly, Kris’s  Maddie has torn her ACL and in grounded from any beach or pool fun.  Now, Easter is back on and there’s is much planning to do!

** Confer with Easter Bunny on baskets

**Confer with Easter Bunny on Easter Basket hunt

**Easter breakfast and/or dinner plans and menus.

**Decorate for Easter

I need ideas. I need inspiration.

In case you are in an Easter quandary like me, here are a few ways to make your celebration Kar-Fre!

Maybe just having the big guy in the house would provide some much needed inspiration.  How cute is this adorable Easter Bunny figurine with his basket of decorated eggs?  Wouldn’t he perfect as a centerpiece for your Easter table or a an Easter egg coloring mascot?  Or simply to inspire you in the days ahead!

I would like to introduce you to Bashful Bunny, one of our Jellycat friends.  He’s as soft as he is sweet and would love to be tucked into a basket or snuggled during these cold, dreary days. He also has a storybook, Bashful Bunny’s Adventure.

This is another of our Jellycat friends, Quackers the duck.  Perfect for an Easter basket or as a reminder that, “You are just ducky!”

Sweet adorable little lamb from Jellycat and because this is how my head works and I love whenever you can have fun with words:

Mairzy doats and dozy doats
And liddle lamzy divey
A kiddley divey too,
Wouldn’t you?

How sweet is this gerbera daisy plant with an egg tree tucked into it?  Perfect for a hostess gift, an Easter touch for someone without much room, or someone who needs a bit of cheer during these chilly days!

Love these note card tins!  The note cards inside are the perfect size to tuck into an Easter basket and for a note to Grandma, a thank you, or just to catch-up with a dear friend.  Is there any better feeling than opening the mailbox to a card from a friend? A friend that isn’t Comed, Nicor, or Comcast!  Best of all each note card comes with a recipe on the back for the cupcake featured on the front…sweet!

I love this felted chick–she just makes me smile. We’re using her and her friends tucked into centerpieces, dish gardens, and as part of tablescapes. Just like I do at Christmas, I try to buy Kyle and Maggie a little Easter something every year that they can use in their decorating and have as a keepsake–I think this chicky would be just perfect!

Speaking of chickies, here’s another felted one tucked into a gerbera daisy plant in this cool plaid tin.

I know Easter baskets are supposed to be filled with fun and candy, but I like to add a little something extra-special and memorable.  Or maybe I’m planting an idea for some of the other events in our lives later this spring like graduation, but how perfect is this picture?  I love the message and the colors and the reminder

In case your Easter baskets aren’t just for kids anymore, why not tuck in a Yankee Candle?  This is Kar-Fre’s most popular fragrance–a mix of cloves, cinnamon, and love.  Also a great way to make your home smell fantastic when you’re entertaining this weekend.

Wow! I am feeling enthused and energized!!  I am off to create Easter baskets!

It’s The Weekend!

Happy weekend!

 

No matter what your plans are or what the weather has planned for this weekend, I hope you’ll take some time to stop and smell the roses.

A Breath of Spring

Hello,

Today was watering day and bird cage cleaning day in our conservatory and how wonderful to be able to spend so much time in such a springy spot.  The brilliant warm sun combined with our happy group of birds made me believe that spring is truly just around the corner. And if not, then we’ve captured it in our conservatory!

Here is a bit of spring to share…

 

As you enter the conservatory our sweet Miss Bun greets you.  Miss Bun has been an Easter Kar-Fre tradition every year since 1972 and she loves being included in family Easter photos.  She is surrounded by Easter  lilies and spring gardens ready to be given as gifts or taken home and enjoyed.

 

As you wander into the conservatory your met by our display of Easter lilies, cyclamen, kalanchoe, orchids, and peace lilies with variegated ivy and ficus plant intermingled.  The fragrance of the Easter lilies draws you further into the conservatory.

 

On your left as you wander into the conservatory is another selection of dish gardens and Easter lilies.   Even though so many flower shops across the country are going to buying pre-made dish gardens from suppliers that all look the same and lack any charm or creativity, we still believe that if it has the Kar-Fre Flowers name on it, it will be created at Kar-Fre Flowers.  Just like the fresh arrangements you find in our cooler, all of the dish gardens in our conservatory have been lovingly created by our talented designers.

We often hear such nice compliments on our selection of blooming and foliage plants.  We’re fortunate to be able to work with growers that have the same passion for what they do that we have.   This is one of my favorite display areas… I love the mixed pink cyclamen, pink reiger begonias, African violets, the first geraniums of the season, and mixed in are heart-shaped ivy, Hawaiian Holly, and pepperomia plants.

The number one question we’ve been asked these last few weeks is, “what is that pink plant in your conservatory?”  That plant is a bougainvillea and it actually seems to glow when the sun shines on it.  While bougainvillea love our hot summers, they are not winter hardy so they can be enjoyed outside throughout the growing season, but then will need to winter in a sunny window in your home.  This particular bougainvillea is already sold, but we’ll have more as we get closer to the warm days of May.

 

Everyone visiting the conservatory exclaims over the colors and beauty of our orchid display. Orchids may look fragile, but they’re a fun, easy-to-grow plant with stems of blossoms that last quite a long time.

On a sunny day like today it’s fun to peruse all of the different types of plants and their textures.  We realize that life can be stressful and we don’t want to add to it by having plants available that are difficult to care for. Our selection of plants is hardy and with good bright light and moderate watering will thrive for you.

A mix of ferns, pothos, ivy, corn plant dracenas, and reiger begonias are spotlit by the sunshine.

A quiet spot to sit and enjoy the spring day…at least inside.  And we always have a pot of hot coffee to enjoy, too!

A festive mix of red geraniums, gerbera daisies, and begonias mixes with croton plants and an orange kalanchoe and begonia plant as we wander back towards the main flower shop.

Before you wander back into the main flower shop, be sure to say goodbye to our bird friends… we have 3 parakeets, 2 canaries, and a fire finch to add to the spring-like atmosphere.

 

Please won’t you come visit in person?

 

Drab Door Rescue

Hello!

Although the weather is definitely not giving us any indication, we all know spring is just around the corner and the last outside decorating any of us did was back in those wonderful warm days of November and December.  How does your front door look? A little sad and forlorn compared to all of the fun it was having during the holidays?  Is your door doing its part to make your home look warm and inviting? If not, the creative Kar-Fre Flower designers have oodles of ideas to take your door to a-DOOR-able!

 

We know it’s been a long winter, so we’ll start small to ease you into sprucing up your drab door.  This is a 6″ diameter twiggy wreath that’s been decorated in sherbet colors of pinks, peachies, and soft fresh greens with pretty accents of berries and a pretty sheer bow.  This wreath is pretty for spring, but could work itself right into the summer season.

 

This is one of our natural branchy wreaths made by our friends the Caniks in Butternut, Wisconsin.  We’ve decorated this wreath with a happy mixture of sunny yellows and whites with some pretty greenery, and a neat mixture of ribbons for the bow.  Already have a wreath stashed away in your basement, attic, or garage?  Why not let us revamp it?  Bring your wreath in and let our designers customize a look and style that reflects your style and colors.  You can choose the colors, flowers, ribbons, and placement of the flowers on your wreath or share just some details with us and our designers will work their magic.

 

Ok, I admit at Schulz House we’re not a real flowery bunch.  Some of the people at Schulz House like things simple, natural, tailored. They don’t have patience for wreaths or decorations that get in the way of retrieving the mail or newspaper, getting the pizza from the delivery guy, or opening the door for company.  This wreath would be what we like at Schulz House.  A thicker, naturally woven, twiggy wreath simply decorated with some orangey-rusty berries and a burlap bow that complements the overall look.  This wreath would be further appreciated because it would be pretty from now until it’s time for our evergreen wreath in December.  No muss, no fuss is what I think you might call the overall decorating theme at Schulz House.

 

I hear you saying that you are so over wreaths.  Wreaths are so yesterday.  Oh, don’t  you worry!  We have ideas for you!

How about this door decoration featuring a piece of natural birch bark decorated with a pretty mixture of chestnuts, cantaloupes, and goldenrod?  Isn’t the accent of the bird and nest as a focal point darling?  Think how happy your door would be sporting this piece!

 

I guess with this door decoration, you might say we’re kicking our ideas into high gear!  For this door piece we’ve taken an adorable metal boot and filled it with a natural arrangement of pussy-willows  branches, and silk flowers that complement both the boot and the coming seasons.  Don’t you love the playful ribbons for the bow?  I suppose if you had one of those No Solicitors signs by your door, this might give the added impression that you mean business.

 

I love coming to work each day, but this door decoration has just made it even better!  This door decoration greets me each day and I can’t help but smile.   Our designers used a Jellycat flamingo as the star of this decoration and added some pussy-willows, silk flowers, and a sassy bow and streamers to complete the look.  Doesn’t your door deserve to make a statement this spring?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Feelin’ the Love!

Happy Monday!

This week is not nearly as much fun as last week was with Valentine’s Day.   In case you were wondering Valentine’s Day is our busiest single day holiday.  Where Christmas tends to be a month long celebration and Mother’s Day and Easter tend to be week long celebrations, Valentine’s Day is all about that one special day– the 14th!  This year we did notice that we were super busy the afternoon of the 13th with lots of our customers purchasing gifts to take home and surprise their Valentine’s with first thing on the 14th.  We thought that was a pretty sweet tradition and it’s one we’d love to see continue!

The great thing about our computer system is that it tracks everything for us and I love going back through some of the things it picks up on.  Our phone lines were hopping between 9:00 and 11:00 each morning and it seems that was also the most popular time to visit Kar-Fre.  Although between 3:00pm and 5:00pm was a close second in folks visiting Kar-Fre.  Our online store, karfreflowers.com, had more visitors Valentine’s Week than ever before!  Many of you placed your orders there, while others visited our online store for ideas for your Valentine and then either called us or visited us in person to place your order. Last year almost 1,200 folks visited our online store, but this year over 4,000 came to visit! Wow!!

At one point on Valentine’s day we had sold out of a specific arrangement and I went online behind our website to deactivate this arrangement so we wouldn’t disappoint anyone.  After I completed the deactivation process I went to our website to verify that the arrangement was gone and was greeted with this:

 

Yikes!!  If you received this message, our apologies, this issue was beyond our control.

 

Valentine’s Day also means we call in all of our “buds” for their help!  Our friends, David and Sarah, joined us to be sure all of the deliveries were done in a timely manner.  Kris’s Lucy and her boyfriend, Mark, joined us for the day.  Lucy was an amazing help waiting on customers here in the shop and on the phone and Mark did deliveries and ran errands for us.  Miss Maggie and Maddie joined us to help with deliveries, clean-up, and provide some of funniest moments of the day.   Now that Kyle has his grown-up job in Texas he was unable to join us, but he did check in on the phone to be sure the cooler was being cleaned and organized as he has always done it.  The best surprise of all came after work-

Kyle knows I adore Pizza Villa’s taco pizza and surprised me with this heart-shaped delight along with pizza and nuggets for our whole family!

We were humbled that with all of the options there are for Valentine flowers and plants, you chose Kar-Fre Flowers and Gifts.  You truly were our special Valentine!!

Hugs, Michelle