apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

photos by Stewart Isbell for New York Magazine

What $100 Gets

"We ordered five bouquets (anonymously) from a range of florists, giving only two directives: Use what's freshest, and keep it to one Benjamin." It wasn't clear if the differences in delivery fees were only because of distance to the delivery point or not. Fun to see everyone's take on seasonal, and how each shop's selections and styles differ.

Other articles:

• Cheap. Fresh. Near You.
  "A neighborhood mini-directory of bodegas, delis, and low-cost florists with beautiful blooms." The best part of the list is seeing what the prices are across the shops. Would have been great if they had showed us the goods, though.



• The Best of Buds
  Resources that come from people in the trade.



• The Deli-Flower Challenge
  "The players: David Stark, event designer; Paula Hayes, artist." Two very different approaches to the same project. The best technique was David Stark's creation of a flower 'carpet' at the level of the vase lip.


Illustrations by Jason Lee



• Make Your Own Flower Arrangement
  "How to transform corner-deli blooms into a good-looking centerpiece." Good tips to keep in mind for making a small posy-style arrangement. The best advice is to add to the arrangement stem by stem, slowly rotating it in your hand as you go.
• Dead in the Water
  Making your blossoms last longer. The surprising trick was coating tropicals in oil to stop dehydration.



• Where Have All the Flowers Gone?
  "The flower district keeps shrinking, but hope blossoms." A perennial worry (and story) here in NYC...

• Not Just a Pretty Vase
  "Flower-ready vessels you won't find at your neighborhood florist."

matt at apartment therapy dot com