Some customers may not realize that all the extra greenery on the wreaths is not part of the standard base – every twig of white pine, juniper, cedar, and magnolia, among others, has been painstakingly tied into the ring by our decorators.  The result makes for a rich tapestry, and other decorations become almost incidental.  We have occasionally had someone say that their wreath wasn’t really embellished, but often the designer has chosen to let the greens be the main focus, such as in the wreath below, one of a matched pair.

We hate to be the bearer of bad news but we plan to charge a little more next season for our fully decorated wreaths. Ribbon prices are steadily rising, our materials costs are higher, and we continue to discover that area florists are charging more than double our going rate.  Our prices have remained steady for three years. The burden will be on us, however, to create consistently lovely wreaths that are well designed and crafted, to justify the hike.  Quality control will be even more vigilant. For instance, the beautiful wreath below was appreciated by the recipient and other decorators alike.

Sometimes a client delivers an accent to be incorporated into the wreath.  In this instance, a length of faux jewels had to be cut apart and, due to relative inflexibility, bent forcibly into place by the very talented designer, who ended up taking the wreath home overnight to wrestle with it.  We understand she was up until three in the morning and deserves her own award of distinction for the beautiful result.

We are always seeking ways to clarify the ordering process, and we received feedback this year from two separate clients that their deliveries did not match up to some of our pictured wreaths.  Their wreaths lacked a certain “bling” factor.  We have quite a few decorators, all with different approaches.  Some are masters using glittery accents, fruit, and paint, while others specialize in a quiet, natural style.  We’ve decided, starting next year, to reduce the “accent” options on our order forms to three: All Natural, Designer’s Choice, and Festive Bling.  There is always space to write in extra instructions (“no flowers, gold accents, traditional Christmas, winter wonderland, etc.”) but this change may help give our customers what they want, and allow our assignment desk to direct certain orders to decorators who are especially facile in one style or another. Below is an example of Festive Bling.