playfull pampas

We've been seeing a fun trend that we LOVE and must highlight.  PAMPAS GRASS!!! 

The lovely blooms are the most gorgeous puffy grass that can add so much movement to an event.  This color is like nothing else in the repertoire of flowers that we have available to us. 

How do we use it?  From anything from boutonnieres, to bouquets to corsages these blooms offer large blooms as well as little small wisps that can be incorporated to anything.  

And to give it even more reason to love it, there is a lovely region in Argentina (my home country) that is known as the Pampas. This is where these gorgeous grasses originated from and have a large presence in that area.  

These bad boys can grow to anywhere from 6 feet to as tall as 13 feet tall!!! They are beauties like no other.  I have not personally gone to cut them, but rumor has it that the grass surrounding the bloom is sharp and very difficult to deal with, so take caution before you go foraging.

Let's get back to that 13 foot tall branch!! This has me day dreaming of an insane tall entry urn of nothing but pampas grass?  Anyone?! And please note, you guys, just because they are grass does not make them cheap! Oy vey! What a misconception!!  Grasses and greenery, can be deceivingly expensive. Why?  Because they don't have that gorgeous bloom that we are ok with spending money on.  It's JUST green.  

Well guys, someone is still growing it on their property, watering it, pruning it, and then cutting it and processing it for us.  This costs money, time and lots of labor.  One 3 foot stem of pampas will run you $4.50.  A STEM.  But don't fret, they have a great bang for the buck.  

Keep an eye out for the event we did with this arrangement bellow! We added those pampas blooms and so many more goodies for a gorgeous back yard affair.

we give thanks

"Our family os a circle of strength and love with every birth and every union our circle grows.  Every joyous meal shared adds more love."

Gorgeous Calligraphy work by Southern Scripts

This year I am particularly thankful for my adorable, gorgeous, feisty niece.  Aro.  More on her later.  You better believe we are going to flower crown her like a champ, so stay tuned for that!

bridesmaid bouquets are just that, bouquets.

We often get the line of " Let's just put the bridesmaid bouquets in a vase and use it as a centerpiece." While we are all for repurposeing flowers (heyyy, instagram!), we aren't the biggest fans of using bouquets as centerpieces. Why not, you ask??? Well, They never seem to look right in the vase, they almost always get messed up from normal wear & tear during images and all the excitements, and they simply weren't constructed as centerpieces. 

We totally get that it is a budget friendly option for some and while we are all for saving a few bucks, we have some ideas on how to achieve a gorgeous wedding without reusing bridesmaid bouquets. 

• CANDLES

Using candles and a few sprigs on greenery on your table is a cost-efficient alternative. Photo by: Danielle Nowak Photography.

A great way to utilize your budget is by tons of candles. They are fairly inexpensive and bring an amazing romantic feel to your event. Add a little bit of greenery around them and not a single guest will be missing the floral centerpiece. 

• FRUIT OR VEGGIES

Using fruit and/or veggies in your centerpiece is a fun & interactive way to wow guests. Photo by: Rebecca Hollis Photography

Y'all should know by now that the Maxit team LOVES fruits on the tables cape. I mean, we did an entire blog post on it here. You simply can't go wrong with choosing seasonal fruits to fill in your tables. Summer wedding? Think citrus! Spring? Berries. Fall soiree? Figs & grapes. Winter wonderland?? Cranberries and plums are our go-to's. Check out the whole feature on this gorgeous event at Style Me Pretty.

• SOMETHING UNIQUE TO YOUR SURROUNDINGS

Oyster Shell & Coral centerpiece in place of a floral piece. Use what you have in your surroundings. 

Are you getting married on the beach? Try a stunning coral & shell centerpiece instead of florals. Married in the Great Outdoors? A gorgeous piece of wood would be a pretty option. You can drill holes into almost anything to for candles. Candles = DIMENSION. 

There are so many budget friendly options that look that much better than re-using your bridesmaid bouquets. We would never try to steer you away from floral centerpieces, because well, we love them, but sometimes less is more. If you didn't find inspiration here, Pinterest has an endless amount of ideas!

what it takes to stay creative

With out a doubt this can be one of the harder elements of a creative business.  Staying Creative. 

No one told me it was going to be this difficult, this demanding. The need to be creative is an innate feeling, an insistent burning feeling that won't go away.  It owns you, and requires your attention.  But from one minute to the next... poof... it's gone. Writers have dominated this phenomenon by trademarking it as "writers block".  

But I am here to tell you, the block is not only REAL, it is a real thing for all creatives.  

We live for creativity, we have built our business around it and have given days, months, weekends, years, skipped birthdays, weddings, and more family gathers than I'd like to admit, just to pursue this. With out it, I wouldn't feel alive.  If fuels the fire.  

But when it leaves us, it feels like the break-up of your first love.  Everything slows down.  The quiet mind is deafening. So what now?  I have dealt with this issue for the last 12 years.  Some years more than others and some years it even skips me.  But inevitably it rears its ugly head.  But stress no more... I have found some trusted ways to get your groove back! And here they are.  My hand-dandy, sure fired ways to get that block and show it who's boss.

1.  Set a Lunch Date with Another Creative - Hanging out with your creative pals is a must.  Listen to them talk about their latest projects and see how you can help.  Helping others in their pursuit of passion does something to a creative's soul that is severely necessary.  DO IT!
2.  Read a Creative's Book - Like going out to lunch with your creative pal, reading a book and seeing what has lead the path of others, is crucial to success.  You'll see it was never easy for anyone. Not just you.
3. Travel - This one is my favorite.  Fill your life with inspiration, see how others live, watch the sunset in the opposite hemisphere, ignite that inner child that has built our inspiration from the beginning. No travel is too small.
4. Meditate - Be still.  I know when I get in a rut, I can give myself a hard time.  That voice inside my head is mean and one of the more important things I do to shut her up is meditate.  Sit still, remove all the noise and hit your mental reset button.
5. Just Do It- If it's been going on for a while, and you can't seem to get the ball rolling.  Just do it, your muscle memory will come back.  You'll get back in a state of flow before you know it and rock it even more than before.

Here's how I got creative yesterday after giving myself a kick in the butt that I needed after a couple of mentally slow weeks.

one of our favorite parts of the holiday's is...

Obviously, the food. -The End.

Just kidding...While we love the food, we also love a gorgeous tables cape. A pretty scenery can heighten any holiday experience. Who doesn't like sitting around a stunning table with the people you love the most? (We talk about the importance of event design in one of our previous posts.)

Since we love food AND flowers, we thought we would share a few ways for you to incorporate both into your design. We've researched, pinned and even reached into our floral archives to find you our TOP 5 FAVORITE ARRANGEMENTS HIGHLIGHTING FRUIT AND VEGGIES!        (Cue the applause.) 

Gorgeous feat inspired florals by Bare Root Flora. Photography by Sarah Box Photography. Check out the entire feature here.

We love this gorgeous, colorful set-up by Bare Root Flora. They incorporate stunning purple kale, pomegranates and berries. This design is perfect for the "farm-to-table" type Thanksgiving dinner. Why we love it: It is a super laid back approach that actually elevates the space. 

A private birthday party designed by Maxit Flower Design in the stables at Dos Brisas. 

Okay, we may be biased on this one...but did you really think we wouldn't include our favorite personal designs?! We were approached to design an intimate birthday celebration in the middle of the stables at The Inn at Dos Brisas a few weeks ago. We transformed an otherwise rustic space into something luxurious and elegant by using florals and fruit cohesive with their environment. Why we love it: We actually didn't spend a TON of money on fruits and they filled up a ton of blank space. Texture is one of our favorite things and this table has got it going on.

Stunning tables cape by Seed Floral including figs, grapes and pink florals.

FIGS ON FIGS ON FIGS on grapes.

Figs are an iconic fall fruit...at least it is in my mind. When I see a gorgeous plum colored fig, I immediately want to buy it, cut it & throw it on a place setting. While figs are amazing and gorgeous, they tend to get expensive. A good complimentary fruit is black or green grapes. They can really beef up your centerpiece while being fairly inexpensive. Why we love it: Seed Floral used an insane amount of fruit to play up an otherwise simple table. These centerpieces could almost serve as an interactive appetizer!

Gorgeous Grey and White tables cape by Maxit Flower Design at Tiny Boxwoods in Houston.

Oh heyyyy, Maxit Flower Design again. Really y'all?! Of course we are going to show off!

We actually just executed this styled shoot at the beginning of November. We worked an amazing team of vendors and killed this stunning table by Spell Events. We didn't use super obvious amounts of fruit for this design. We really just wanted touches of freshness throughout. Why we love it: Subtle touches of fresh fruit is the perfect accent to these arrangements. And you don't HAVE to use fruit in the arrangements, there are no rules. Try using it in a different way, such as the egg cups pictured above or as a cocktail embellishment.

Last, but never least : one more by our fearless leader Maria Maxit. She created this centerpiece  along with Flower Magazine. Maria used fresh kale, artichokes, and even an eggplant to execute this stunning fresh design. Why we love it: It really is centered around the freshness. Your eye is immediately drawn to the artichokes and greenery. This centerpiece is perfect for the person that loves a rustic Thanksgiving table. It kind of takes me back to what they may have used during the first Thanksgiving...I know, I have a very vivid imagination.

Our favorite place to shop for fresh fruits and vegetables is Central Market here in Houston...however, we have recently discovered Fiesta Market. They have a supply of exotic fruit almost year round. When picking out fruit, go for what stands out to you the most. I don't always necessarily choose something based on ripeness but on coloring. Dragon Fruit looks best when it is super fresh while Bosc pears look stunning when over-ripe. 

In case you need some extra inspiration, here are a few of our favorite fruits & veggies to incorporate into our arrangements:

• Figs
• Bosc Pears
• Crab Apples
• Ornamental Kale (Beware: some varieties don't smell so sweet.)
• Grapes
• Dragon Fruit 
• Seasonal Fruits (Think citrus for summer, squash for fall, use what you have!)
• Artichoke
• Hops (yes, the same kind used for beer!)

We hope you feel as inspired by fruit as we do. Enjoy creating beautiful spreads.

Happy Holidays to you & yours.