CategoriesHolidays, In the Media, Uncategorized by

Can’t Go Wrong with Flowers from Tipton & Hurst – as featured on AJ Wears Clothes blog

Tipton & Hurst was recently featured in the Valentine Gift Guide article on the popular fashion blog AJ Wears Clothes.

blog_photo

When listing the best presents to give for Valentine’s Day, Tipton & Hurst was the only florist mentioned:

“Flowers are always the ultimate Valentine, and now that Tipton Hurst has joined The Promenade, it’s easier than ever to pick up a bouquet. They have cash & carry in store, or you can order ahead of time and pick up – or better yet, have them deliver! They also have an impressive selection of gift baskets.”

Read the full article here.

CategoriesEvents, Party by

Evolve 2015 “Winter Nights”

We were honored to be the official florist of Evolve 2015 at the Little Rock Marriott Saturday, January 24th.

The event was put on by the Centers for Youth and Families. This year’s theme, Winter nights, included centerpieces with ivory branches and gorgeous white hydrangeas accented with hanging candles.

The Center for Youth and Families in Little Rock provides assistance and care for at-risk families and troubled children.

CategoriesEvents by

2015 Woman of the Year Gala

We were honored to be the official florist of the 2015 Woman of the Year Gala. Not only were we able to put together some beautiful centerpieces, but the fruit was donated after the event!

The board of Women & Children First, the state’s largest shelter for survivors of domestic violence, held the gala Jan. 17 in the Little Rock Marriott Grand Ballroom downtown.

See the full album here.

CategoriesTips, Uncategorized by

National Rose Month!

Did you know that  June is national rose month?

In fact, in 1986 President Ronald Reagan signed a resolution making the rose the national floral emblem. As a part of that resolution President Reagan said “Americans have always loved the flowers with which God decorates our land. More often than any other flower, we hold the rose dear as the symbol of life and love and devotion, of beauty and eternity.  For the love of man and woman, for the love of mankind and God, for the love of country, Americans who would speak the language of the heart do so with a rose.”  With that said, Americans have communicated feelings via roses for a number of years. However, did you know that different colors of roses mean different things?  Here are just a few:

Red : Love, Beauty, Courage and Respect

White: Purity and Innocence

Pink : Appreciation, “Thank You” and Admiration

Yellow: Joy, Gladness and Friendship

Yellow with Red Tips: Falling in Love

Orange: Desire, Enthusiasm

Peach: Appreciation, Sincerity and Gratitude, Closing The Deal

Lavender: Love at first sight

Could you imagine showing up to a final business meeting with lavender roses instead of peach roses? That would just be awful.

So once you’ve bought the correct roses, how do you arrange them?

Look no further, our own Chris Norwood was on television this past week giving advice. Check it out!

 


CategoriesPhoto Essay by

Chris Norwood: AIFD Fellow

Chris Norwood, AIFD, CFD, Vice President at Tipton Hurst Florist was recently recognized by the American Institute of Floral Designers’ (AIFD) National Board of Directors with the Award for Distinguished Service to AIFD.  The announcement was made on July 14th during the Institute’s 2012 Awards Ceremony held in conjunction with the 2012 National Symposium in Miami, Florida.

Now recognized as a Fellow of the Institute, Norwood, a past president and CEO of the AIFD Foundation, received the award for his tireless and continued support of AIFD as a leader, mentor, supporter, promoter, volunteer and friend.  This is the highest award offered in the floral industry.  Chris became one of the youngest Fellows in the organization’s history as well as the first person from Arkansas to ever receive this designation.

This award is only given when the Board feels there is someone deserving of the honor.  Chris attended the event unaware that he was going to be receiving an award.  The commentator began making references to the honoree in basic ways, however eventually Chris realized the remarks being made were directed at him.

“I was completely shocked and in awe that I was being recognized by the Board,” Norwood said of the experience.  “I was even more shocked to turn around and realize my family had secretly flown to Miami to be there for this honor.  To receive the highest award in the industry was a dream, but to have my family and friends there made the evening even better.”

Chris began his florist career at the age of 14 working in a small flower shop in his hometown of McCrory, Arkansas.  He relocated to Little Rock to attend the University of Arkansas at Little Rock and worked at several local florists.  In 1990, Tipton Hurst President Howard Hurst recruited Norwood to come to the company as his Vice President and Lead Designer.

“I recognized Chris’ fantastic design and merchandising talents early in his career.  What I didn’t know was his incredible work ethic and business acumen,” says Hurst.

“Howard gave me an opportunity to try new things and integrate new ideas into the business.  What we have built today is a mix of old and new,” says Norwood.  “We are still a true design company, however by adding accessories and gifts to our showroom we are able to offer a full variety of services.”

“We all know Chris Norwood as a great designer here in Little Rock, but outside Arkansas, Chris is a leader in the industry,” says Hurst.  “People from New York to Los Angeles, Dallas to Atlanta, even Europe and Asia, call on Chris to pick his brain about floral design, party planning and merchandising.  He has really made his mark on the industry and the awards and honors he receives are well deserved.  All of us at Tipton Hurst are extremely proud.”

“I am truly blessed to enjoy what I do,” added Norwood.  “I don’t think of my job as work, but more as an opportunity to share my talents with others. I have built a career on complete customer satisfaction and the offering of timeless and beautiful flowers.”

Chris Norwood has been with Tipton Hurst for 22 years and is the past National President of the American Institute of Floral Designers, as well as the past CEO and Chairman of the AIFD Foundation.  He is very active in community affairs in the Little Rock area, and has enjoyed working with the Arkansas Cancer Research Center, the American Heart Association, Alzheimer’s Arkansas, and the Arkansas Symphony Orchestra.  Chris’ work has been featured in Flowers &, Florists’ Review, and numerous wire service publications.  National Publications have included Southern Accents and Veranda.  Chris is also featured weekly on KATV Good Morning Arkansas

CategoriesSpecials by

My Loving Louise

Tipton Hurst has long given back to charities in the Central Arkansas area.  Often the charities we choose are dear to us for personal reasons.  Tipton Hurst Vice President Chris Norwood, AIFD, created a beautiful arrangement to commemorate his mother, Louise, who suffered from Alzheimer’s disease prior to her passing.  20% of the sale of the “My Loving Louise” bouquet go to Alzheimer’s Arkansas.

Featured in the bouquet are daisies, lilies, roses, stock, dahlias, and solidago in shades of pink and yellow.

“My mom always loved bright colors,” said Chris.  “She was an avid gardener along with her mother, in fact, they were really involved in garden clubs.  I just always think of her when I put together these arrangements because of the bright, fun colors.”

The Alzheimer’s Arkansas site provides some information which we wanted to share with you, including the starting statistics that 100,000 Arkansas are living with this disease and at least five-million Americans.

As the disease attacks the brain, memory, thinking and behavior are impaired.  The rate of progression varies from case to case, which means that some will live with the disease for only a few short years where others can feel the effects slowly over 20 or more years.  Sadly, the end result is the same.  The person with the disease is no longer able to care for themselves often relying on family and caregivers.

“We were so fortunate to have Briarwood to care for mom, but especially my sister, Gala, who showed up every day,” said Chris.  “Gala was a great source of comfort to us.”

We’re all aware of memory loss and “Oh, I lost my keys!” (forgetting where you put something) as symptoms of Alzheimer’s Disease, but carriers can also suffer from disorientation, poor judgement, problems with abstract thoughts, difficulty performing familiar tasks, changes in mood, behavior and personality, as well as loss of initiative.

If you or a loved one are exhibiting any of these symptoms, visit with your doctor. While there is no one test which can definitively determine if you have Alzheimer’s, early intervention and some drugs can help treat many forms of dementia.  This will also help your doctor prepare for treating common side effects such as anxiety and depression.

“Having experienced the disease first hand with my mother, I wouldn’t want anyone to have to go through this with their loved one,” said Chris.  “I just really encourage people to continue supporting Arkansas Alzheimer’s so that we can find a cure for this dreadful disease.”

To order the My Loving Louise Bouquet click here

CategoriesTips, video, Wedding by

Modern Bouquet

The second in a series of three wedding-bouquet tutorials.
Chris Norwood, AIFD and VP of Tipton Hurst, creates a “modern” bouquet that focuses on the concept of “color blocking.”
Next in the series: a bit of a twist on the “traditional” bouquet.

CategoriesTips, Wedding by

Diary of a Bridal Bouquet

Generic BouquetHave you ever wondered what goes into creating a beautiful bridal bouquet?  We recently followed one bouquet designed by Tipton Hurst’s Chris Norwood, AIFD, from the cooler to the photoshoot.

“It’s great to give your florist guidelines and inspiration photos, but let the experts be the designers so that you get the freshest flowers arranged in the most artful way for your special day,” suggests Chris.  “Our bride wanted all white flowers with one caveat, no roses.  Those are perimeters I can certainly work with!”

Chris peruses the assorted white flowers available, looking for the right textures and color contrasts.  Lilies, carnations, mums, daisies… so much to choose from!  That’s be beauty of the Tipton Hurst cooler.  Our wonderful Ms. Freda keeps it stocked with all the good stuff.  Chris selects creamy white hydrangeas, peonies, lisianthus, and white orchids.

Cooler white

Hydrangea BaseIf you’ve never seen Chris work, try to catch him on one of his live TV segments on KATV or KATV.com or one of his great video blogs here at tiptonhurst.com.  He is fast!  Quickly assembling a base of hydrangeas into a round mound, he has the form for his bouquet.

“I like to start with a hydrangea base on round, clutch style bouquets because it gives you a structure for supporting the rest of the blooms,” Chris explains as he works away bringing the bouquet to life.

The designer then adds in peonies, a favorite of our bride.  These peonies are in various stages of bloom so the ones that are fully blown out are frilly and show faint hints of pink inside while the ones that are still tight look more ball-like, giving a completely different contrast to the white hydrangeas.

inserting bloom

Opening DoorThe lisianthus also benefits various stages of bloom.  The tighter the bloom the more green you can see in the flower, but the more open ones have an ivory tone to them that’s charming.  Bright white orchids are plucked individually off the stems and wired and wrapped.  Orchids are long lasting blooms and are lovely in an arrangement such as this white-on-white textural mix.

Chris finishes with a collar of greenery and an ivory ribbon wrap before the bouquet is loaded in the delivery truck and taken to the salon where the bride is having her hair done before her photoshoot.

Moved to tears, the bride receives the bouquet and expresses her delight.  Thumbs up!Thumbs Up!

Then it’s off to the photoshoot (and no, we’re not giving the dress style away).

Only a few days left until this young lady’s big day and Tipton Hurst is so proud to be a part of her wedding.

 

Bouquet Photoshoot