NYC Centerpieces That Won’t Break The Budget

Cymbidium centerpiece
White cymbidium orchid with silver sprayed curly willow

Planning a wedding reception on a budget can be disheartening. But it doesn’t have to be! There are a host of options for couples with refined taste and a restricted budget. One area of the budget that can grow quickly is the tabletop centerpiece. These pieces come in all shapes and varieties and are generally placed at the center of each dinning table. The best centerpieces are designed to coordinate with the rest of the events décor; appropriate centerpieces will help your event’s theme suffuse the space and fill your guests with festive feelings.   Many floral centerpieces are selected for their color, texture, or the time of year. They sometimes include decorative items like colored wire, glass beads, or river stones. The size and shape is also variable and sometimes an event may include a number of sizes to represent the guest’s status; the wedding party and family tables are pretty much always identifiable based on the size of the centerpiece.

Starbright Floral Design suggests following a few simple steps to create a stunning tabletop without breaking the budget.

Consider the size of your container

Think about Goldilocks when selecting the size of the floral container. Too small and the flowers may feel insignificant, too big and the flowers will just get in the way. Not sure what size you need? Ask you florist! Starbright’s design consultants and client satisfaction representatives will help guide you to success. Many styles and concepts can be scaled easily to just the size you’re looking for. One such arrangement from Starbright is Give Me Tomorrow. This arrangement features roses cut to fit and fill a square container.

Rose centerpieces
Cut roses look good in any size container!

Consider the flowers

Centerpieces should mimic the overall floral direction. A great way to maximize the consistency is to select one standout bloom from the arrangements that captures the color and feel of the rest of the floral styling. Some of our favorite blooms for this purpose include cymbidium orchids, calla lilies, and amaryllis.

Green cymbidium  centerpiece
Green cymbidium orchid in small glass cube.

Or, for the adventurous and openminded, consider the unexpectedness of carnations. For outside weddings with a lot of green, one of our favorite potential centerpieces is this guy:

Green Trick
Green Trick makes for an unexpected twist on the classic centerpiece

Consider the style

Another way to keep your centerpieces elegant, on-theme, and within a budget is to consider modern styles; modern arrangements often have a clean look and fewer blooms than traditionally lush arrangements. These pieces can be soft and romantic…

Calla lilies
Clean looking callas arranged to fit a small round container.

…or edgy and directional.

Boys like flowers too
Apple Lime Ice from Starbright Floral Design

If you’re planning an event or wedding and thinking about centerpieces, give us a call today!   Starbright Logo       Looking for flowers in New York City? Visit our Event Gallery for inspiration. Or see our daily selection at Starbrightnyc.com.

The 2012 NYC Hotel Experience Awards-A Time to Stop and Smell the Flowers

Centerpieces by Starbright

NYC Hotels and beautiful NYC hotel flowers, go together like peas and carrots.  Valentine’s Day in NYC is like the Super Bowl for florists, restauranteurs and hoteliers alike. Two weeks before the big day, only an event that is dear to our hearts can drag us away from our preparation.  That event is the Hotel Experience Awards.   Starbright Floral Design, for the eleventh year running, was a major sponsor of the Hotel Experience Awards.  In this annual event, the best of the best in the hospitality industry are awarded and recognized for their efforts.  It is considered “The Oscars” for New York City’s hospitality industry.

In the year that past, New York City had over 50 million visitors.  A goal that was set for 2012 was surpassed in 2011!  Only in New York… The City that Never Sleeps!  Thanks to the amazing efforts of everyone in our great city; from the taxi driver to the bartender and the convention planner… Everyone played a huge part to help keep our city vibrant during challenging economic times and to make sure that all of us had work and played our part.  Congratulations to all.

Entertainment was a preview of Ghost - The Musical

Starbright provided the floral decor for the event which was held at Cipriani’s Wall Street.  There were over 650 in attendance.  We hope to capture the flavor of the event with the attached photos.  It was truly a spectacular evening! Nic Faitos (Senior Partner – Starbright Floral Design) presented the award for the Best Concierge Service (in the less than 500 room category). The Ritz Carlton Central Park won that award!

MVP's Adeline Tafuri

The event was hosted by MVP (Morris Visitor Publications) which publishes IN New York Magazine and WHERE.  The two premier in-guest room resource guides.  Here is the press release that was issued after the event by MVP:

 

 

For immediate release

Hotel Excellence Awards Honor Hospitality Industry Achievements

January 31, 2012 (New York, NY) On Monday evening, January 30, 2012, the 2011 Hotel Excellence Awards (HEA) program was held at the iconic Cipriani Wall Street and hosted by MVP|NY (Morris Visitor Publications), a multi-media travel-publishing company—in cooperation with the Hotel Association of New York City, Inc. The HEA program
recognizes the qualities and characteristics that define superior service and achievement in New York City’s hospitality industry. The night saw a record turnout of more than 640 of the hospitality industry’s finest.

Nic Faitos of Starbright presenting the Concierge Desk of the Year Award

Comprised of the Hotel Experience Awards, selected by the readers of IN New York magazine; and the Silver Plume Awards, which honor exemplary customer service of concierges and managers, as chosen by their peers, HEA winners included:

Hotel Experience Award Winners

500 Rooms or More
Best Concierge Service: New York Marriott Marquis
Best Room Amenities: The New York Palace Hotel
Best Hotel Restaurant: The London NYC
Best Family-Friendly Hotel: The Waldorf=Astoria
Best Business Services: InterContinental New York Times Square
Best Overall Hotel Experience: The Waldorf=Astoria

Fewer than 500 Rooms
Best Concierge Service: The Ritz-Carlton New York, Central Park
Best Room Amenities: W New York – Union Square
Best Hotel Restaurant: The Setai Fifth Avenue
Best Family-Friendly Hotel: The Plaza Hotel
Best Business Services: Mandarin Oriental, New York
Best Overall Hotel Experience: The Setai Fifth Avenue

Silver Plume Winners

Chef Concierge of the Year: Frederick Bigler, The Peninsula New York
Concierge of the Year: McKinley Winston, The St. Regis New York
Best Supporting Manager of the Year: Heiko Kuenstle, The Pierre, a Taj Hotel

The night also saw Tim Tompkins, president of the Times Square Alliance, receive the
prestigious Lifetime Achievement Award, which is given each year to an individual who demonstrates exceptional achievement in their field and outstanding contributions to
New York City’s hospitality industry. Actress and humanitarian Whoopi Goldberg received this honor in 2010.

Merrie Davis - Publisher her finest hour!

“One of the very best things about leading the Times Square Alliance is knowing and working with so many amazing people in the travel and tourism industry,” says Tompkins. “So being honored by them is truly a special treat; I in turn tip my hat to all of those who make tourism an incredibly and ever more important part of New York City’s economy.”

The Hotel Excellence Awards’ presenting sponsor, jcpenney, presented the jcpenney’s Hotel Excellence Award for Community Service to James Lamboglia, concierge at The Plaza Hotel.

Entertainment for the evening included selections from Ghost the Musical, which will make its Broadway debut on March 15 at the Lunt-Fontanne Theatre, as well as a charitable Silent Auction—containing hundreds of luxury items—to benefit the Les Clefs d’Or Foundation, the New York City Association of Hotel Concierges’ Charitable Fund, the Hotel Association of New York City Scholarship Fund and the ITM Hospitality Fund.

About MVP/NY:

Presenting all the winners...

Morris Visitor Publications New York (MVP/NY) is a division of Morris
Communications Company. MVP/NY’s market-leading visitor publications include IN New York and Where® New York magazines, QG: New York City’s QuickGuide, Where GuestBook® New York and IN New York Map. Reaching every segment of the visitor market—from leisure and family to business and luxury travel—MVP/NY products appear at more than 300 of New York’s most distinguished hotels, visitor centers and high-traffic
attractions, private clubs, airports, on New York Water Taxi boats, Amtrak trains and Acela VIP lounges and in upscale corporate housing, generating an annual readership in excess of 34 million. For more information, log on to www.mvpny.net

Starbright would like to congratulate all the winners and thank everyone in the industry for a job well done.  NYC is again the destination capital of the world, in no small part, due to your efforts.  Now lets fill all those NYC Hotels with beautiful flowers!

Starbright Floral Design is the “Official Florist of Romance”.  We deliver flowers, love, passion and smiles everywhere in Manhattan and worldwide.  Sometimes we deliver messages of appreciation like the within scribe.

Passionately yours,

Your NYC Valentine’s Day Florist

Starbright Floral Design

Located in the heart of New York City’s Historic Flower District

150 West 28th Street, Studio 201.

T. 800.520. 8999

Web: www. starflor.com

E-commerce portal: www.starbrightnyc.com

Opening the Eventi Hotel

On the 08th of June it was a very special day in the history of hotels and hospitality for New York City.  The newest hotel opening in our city took place.  The Eventi officially opened its doors with a spectacular opening bash and a party for the press and everything travel, tourism and hospitality.  The hotel opened in the center of New York City’s historic flower district and the property naturally has a flair for “everything flower”.

On the opening day, we were involved with many areas of decor throughout the hotel.  Here  are some examples of what we did:

There was a “Flower Garland” cutting ceremony instead of a ribbon cutting ceremony.

We supplied thousands of flower blooms that were on display in compositions throughout.  The lobby of the hotel, the meeting rooms, the suites and even the spa were all decorated…

The front sidewalk of the hotel was converted into a public flower market where the general public walking past the hotel was  welcomed with rare seasonal blooms.

The hotel ballroom was decorated with flowers, balloons, champagne and votive candles in the theme of a New Year’s party to depict the start of a New Era in hospitality for New York City and beyond.  We want to thank our partners who invited us on the team to be a part of this historic day at the Hotel.  The Eventi (a Kimpton Hotel) and M. Silver Associates (msilver-pr.com) the PR agency that we worked so closely with to make so much of this happen and to make it a reality.

Here  are some photos of the day – enjoy!

Starbright Floral Design (www.starflor.com) is a full service floral design studio in New York City.  We carry the most amazing seasonal blooms and deliver gifts daily (seven days) up to 8PM.   In addition to local flower deliveries, we also handle worldwide flower requests, special events, press junkets, plant care and much more.  Give us a call (1.800.520.8999) or visit our website (www.starflor.com) to learn more about our organization and the work that we do.  We look forward to hearing from you and to meeting you soon!

%d bloggers like this: