As I’ve said many times that having flowers in your home or office is just plain good for you. It’s such a simple thing to do and yet makes such a difference. Take advantage of the different floral varieties that are available each season. Dahlias will only be around for a little bit longer, so don’t miss out on them. They are so dramatic and visually interesting and come in an array of extraordinary colors. Don’t fuss – just fill a vessel with warm water, snip the ends of the stems, and drop them in.

Happy Fall!!

This original papier-mâché pumpkin from the 1950’s is my favorite Halloween decoration. My mother-in-law gave it to me a few years ago. She finds the best stuff and knows my style to a tee!

With a few cuttings from your fall garden – here I used dahlias and asclepias – this old pumpkin becomes the happiest jack in town!

You can carve more than just a happy faced Jack-o-Lantern into your pumpkins. Why not use these ubiquitous fall orange squash to spell out a special message? I set this vignette up to congratulate my niece and her then fiancé on their engagement.

Sweet Treat Indeed

Who says that a floral arrangement should be just a feast for the eyes? This arrangement not only looks great but satisfies your sweet tooth too. I placed a smaller vase inside of a larger vase and filled the space between the two vases with Halloween M&M’s. Another great seasonal candy choice is candy corn. The arrangement features chartreuse speedier mums and purple statice.

Here’s a “spider tree” that is very simple to make and will look great in a picture window, on a table in the foyer or as a centerpiece for a Halloween party. I started with a store bought tree made from papier-mâché and pipe cleaners. Then I just glued black feathers, green millet and green spider mums to the pipe cleaner branches. I used a floral adhesive for the spider mums and it looked great, without water, for over a week!

If you want to turn the creepy scary up a notch wrap the entire tree with spider webs. These spider webs are so easy to make and can be put almost anywhere. Just take two small pieces of Styrofoam – just about 3” – 4” in size – and put a dollop of hot glue on one of the pieces. Put the two pieces together and slowly pull apart. You will see the spider strings start to form. Take your arms and go around the tree and press the two pieces of Styrofoam together again and then pull apart and bring your hands back around the tree and meet again in the front. Continue to do this until you are satisfied with the amount of spider webs you have created. To remove the spider webs, just spray with a hair dryer and they will melt away!

From now until the end of the year is a crafters dream. From Halloween through Thanksgiving and right into the holiday season, there are more reasons to decorate and create than any other time of the year. So let the creativity begin!

Candy Corn

This ubiquitous Halloween candy was the inspiration for this floral centerpiece. It is made entirely out of carnations with a floral foam base. Since carnations come in so many beautiful colors, including orange and yellow, and are long lasting they were a natural choice for this project.

Remember to check back on a regular basis, because I will be sharing many ideas for decorating, gifting, and creating with flowers for all of the upcoming seasonal celebrations.

I recently attended a luncheon at The Palm Restaurant in New York City where my brother, Jim McCann, CEO of 1-800-FLOWERS.COM was introduced as the newest Brand Ambassador and Spokesperson for this legendary restaurant. Both Jim and Bruce Bozzi Jr., the great grandson of one of the original owners of the restaurant, spoke from their hearts about their respective companies and the synergy between the two businesses. 1-800-FLOWERS.COM and The Palm are about connecting and celebrating everyday occasions and both place a priority on offering their customers unparalleled service.

In addition to launching The Palm Italian Gift Basket, which includes a $50 gift card to The Palm and an assortment of Italian delicacies, Jim’s caricature was unveiled at this event. The Palm has been decorating their walls with caricatures of their loyal customers and well-known celebrities since first opening their doors over 80 years ago!

The luncheon was a lot of fun! I enjoy the beautiful environment, delicious food, and time with friends. I even had my caricature done! I thought I would share some photos from the event and encourage you to have a meal at The Palm. It’s the perfect place to start a tradition or memory of your own. Don’t forget to look for Jim’s caricature on when you visit (it’s in the private dining room)!

I was so excited to have participated in the Cupcakes for a Cause event at the Brooklyn Flea this year. We had a great turnout and wonderful support from CancerCare for Kids, 1-800-FLOWERS.COM and Cupcakes Take The Cake.

More great news…
1-800-FLOWERS.COM was able to reach their goal of 6,000 Facebook fans and will be donating $2,000 to CancerCare for Kids.

Take a look at these great pictures from the Brooklyn Flea. I’m looking forward to next year!

Mmmm…good!


Nichelle from Cupcakes Take the Cake


Mandy, Tina and Erin

The Cherry on Top

This super-size cupcake makes the best centerpiece for a young person or a person who is young at heart. Made with carnations and football mums it not only looks super, but it lasts a long time too. It’s a fun way to tell someone that they are the cherry on top of your life!

Strawberry Shortcake

Strawberry shortcake cream on top, tell me the name of your sweetheart! This floral cupcake makes me feel as nostalgic as that jump rope song that we used to sing. Remember, you would call out the letters of the alphabet and whichever letter you were up to when you stepped on the rope was supposed to be the first letter in your sweetheart’s name? Here’s to the good old days!

Chocolate Soufflé

If chocolate is your thing, you’ll love this chocolate soufflé with pink icing. Okay, I know that soufflé doesn’t have frosting, but work with me here. If you already have a soufflé pan why not use it in a unique way and just have some fun with it!!

As if a cupcake wasn’t a great thing already, along comes Cupcakes for A Cause by CancerCare for Kids. I first learned about this wonderful cause from my friends at Cupcakes Take The Cake. We first met at the launch for the 1-800 FLOWERS.COM Cupcake in Bloom event, and then I caught up with them again at the Brooklyn Flea for the annual Cupcakes for A Cause Bake Sale. It was a delicious experience!

I will be at the bake sale again this year (Sunday, Sept. 19th), but this time I will be helping Cupcakes Takes the Cake, CancerCare for Kids and 1-800-FLOWERS.COM. We will be selling the popular 1-800-FLOWERS.COM Cupcake in Bloom and the best part is that 1-800-FLOWERS.COM will be donating 50 of their Cupcake in Bloom arrangements to be sold at the event. In addition, 100% of all Cupcake in Bloom sales will benefit CancerCare for Kids. It just doesn’t get any better than that!! So stop by if you can and say “Hello!”

If you can’t make it to the Brooklyn Flea you can still be a part of Cupcakes for a Cause. When you make a purchase from the Cupcakes for a Cause collection, 10% of the proceeds will be donated to CancerCare by 1-800-FLOWERS.COM to this worthy organization.

And to get you in the cupcake mood (as if that’s a hard thing to do), here are some creative and fun ideas for using flowers to create cupcake inspired centerpieces and other designs.

Red Velvet

Take a traditional red velvet cupcake, with its delicious cream cheese frosting, and turn it upside down! These luscious red roses with their velvety soft petals look elegant and beautiful nestled in a crisp white ceramic pleated bowl.

Dinner for Six

The black silicone cupcake holder was the inspiration for this trendy tablescape. I love a black and white decorating theme with a splash of lime green. It’s such a fresh look! It was easy to create using prado carnations to create the “cupcakes” and topping them off with tall green candles.

Celebration Centerpiece

Cupcakes for everyone! Creating a magical cupcake centerpiece is much easier then it may seem. By using a large cupcake pan as the base, fill each section with a white carnation, trim with wired ribbon and top it off with sprinkles and candles. It’s a fun festive look for any celebration.

If you are looking for more fun ideas, take a look at my past cupcake posts!

The Traveling Grandma!

Grandma and Grandpa are always willing to help baby-sit for the grandchildren whenever they’re in town. You’re really happy for them. They’ve worked hard all of their lives and deserve it, but that doesn’t mean you’re not a little bit jealous! So, surprise grandma with a new travel bag perfect for her sunscreen, sunglasses, and great book. Make it more of a “WOW!” by filling it with beautiful and exotic cymbidium orchids.

Grandpa’s Deserve Flowers Too!

Grandpa never look for any recognition, but give it to him anyway! I found this silver loving cup trophy at a church thrift shop. The engraving says that it is a trophy from a Pro-Am golf tournament in 1983 at Pebble Beach. Gramps may never get to play at Pebble Beach, but to you he’s the best Grandpa in the world as well as the best golfer! The “blue ribbon” is an image downloaded from the Internet and a customized message added in Photoshop.