Secrets of a Design Master with Jeff Leatham

Published On: March 3, 2014Article by: Staff 

Jeff Leatham is the artistic director of the iconic Four Seasons Hotel George V in Paris and has been creating a sensation with his floral designs and arrangements, and voted Best Hotel Florist in Europe for three consecutive years. He stopped by The Queen Latifah Show to share his secrets for finding the perfect floral arrangement.

        
“It’s all about creating a mood. It’s about taking things you love and going from there,” suggests Jeff. ”People don’t have a lot of money to spend on flowers. I do believe that we should at least have a small vase by your bed, or in the bathroom. Our lives are so busy that sometimes those are the places where we spend the most time. Treat yourself and at least have them there.”

What are the best flowers to buy anywhere that will always work and look beautiful?
Jeff says roses are the best. You can find them in the grocery store or the farmer’s market. They always work.

 

What is the ideal floral bouquet someone can easily pick up to bring to a dinner party?Orchids, Jeff recommends. You can also find them at farmer’s markets. You get more for your money because they last a while. They grow back so you can have them from 6 months to a year.

What about color choices? Clean, simple and classy as possible. With design, it’s all about knowing when to stop, suggests Jeff. Pick one thing, if you really love color, being color crazy is fine but keep it all in one color scheme. It’s also important to keep things separated and blocked. One of the biggest mistakes is choosing too many colors.

 

           

You work with thousands of flowers, do you have a personal favorite? Yes! Magnolia. It grows on the street. It’s that giant big white flower with a beautiful citrus flower. It’s like life you have to take advantage of it while its beautiful, says Jeff.

                    

Floral Design Video Demonstration: Bloomtube DIY From our Spring floral trend "Graphical Layers" Spring bouquet

Video of the Day: How to Arrange Flowers: The Short Cut & Longer Lasting Roses! & Rose Sphere Table Centerpiece!

 

 

 

Published on Feb 10, 2013

J shares the secret to Longer Lasting Roses... "The SHORT CUT"! Cutting Roses Short and 'basing' them into a container creates a FUN Alternative to Long Stemmed Roses... and the roses LAST Longer! J shows you step by step how to create this unique (and EASY) stylish look!

 

 

Published on Dec 7, 2012

J shares how to create a STUNNING Rose Sphere centerpiece with NEW Varieties and Colors of Roses. This is a Great BIG Project that could be used for a Wedding or Special Event!

 

 

J Schwanke’s love of Flowers began at birth during a  Snowstorm at a State Flower Convention in Nebraska.  J’s career grew and blossomed… as he joined his family’s  Flower business: Green’s Greenhouses Inc. in 1976 and  directed the Flower Shop and Garden Center operations...
starting in 1981.

 J is Certified Flower Designer, a member
of the American Academy of Floriculture (AAF),
the American Institute of Floral Designers (AIFD),
the Professional Floral Communicators International (PFCI)
and the National Speakers Association (NSA).

 In 1994 J began his independent career as a flower design consultant, Flower Industry Spokesperson and THE Foremost Flower Design Expert in the American flower industry. J is the CEO of uBloom.com, the Free on-line community for flowerclovers, both professional and enthusiast. As the HOST of the World’s First Web Broadcast Flower Design Show, JTV, J is the most trusted voice in the Flower Industry, offering Flower Lovers everywhere the opportunity to learn and experience the FUN of Flowers and Flower Arranging with J, 24/71! J’s Passion for Flowers is far reaching and infectious. He gives Flower demonstrations in every State in the Union, Canada, and throughout Europe. Critics, sponsors and Flower loving attendees agree, J is one of the most sought after experts in the World of Flowers.

Floral Design Video Demonstration: Make a Ranunculus, Hydrangea, and Garden Rose Bouquet - Blooms By the Box

The Wholesale Flower Superstore™ dedicated to providing the public with premium quality flowers and customer service. With overnight shipping, the smallest minimum quantities, and premium flowers Blooms is the perfect provider for DIY flowers for weddings and events.

 

BloomsByTheBox.com's Youtube channel is made to serve those who need guidance with DIY flowers. Ordering wholesale flowers online and making event arrangements can be intimidating if you have never arranged flower before, this channel serves to ease nerves and help you create your dream arrangements on a budget.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Flower Arrangement Tutorial: Whole Foods Market Flower Chef - Many Small Arrangements

The Flower Chef - Sarah Pollaro

 

 

Creating your own floral arrangement? View our Whole Foods Market video tutorials featuring "Flower Chef" Sarah von Pollaro. We have episodes on various techniques and arrangements with more being added all the time!

 

Join the Whole Foods Market flower chef and owner of Urban petals, Sarah von Pollaro, for an inspirational class on flower arrangement. Sarah's designs have adorned the Kennedy Center and multiple embassies. Her work has been featured in multiple publications and on PBS. The class fee includes everything you need to create an arrangement, hands on instruction with Sarah and complimentary wine and cheese.

 

http://www.wholefoodsmarket.com/store/event/flower-arrangement-101

  http://urbanpetals.com/portfolio.html

 

Business Infographic of the Week - Infographic: See 35 Habits of the Most Productive People

www.entrepreneur.com

 

SBA INFO: When and How to Register Your Business as a “Small Business”

http://www.sba.gov/community/blogs/when-and-how-register-your-business-%E2%80%9Csmall-business%E2%80%9D

 

Own a small business? Perhaps you’ve heard about small business certification, but do you actually need to certify your business as small?

 

For most small businesses, the answer is no.

But if you want to take advantage of business opportunities such as selling to the government (a.k.a. “government contracting”), then you have to obtain some form of certification. Why? The federal government sets aside a variety of contracts for competition among small businesses, women-owned small businesses, service-disabled veteran-owned small businesses, and disadvantaged small businesses. To qualify for these “set-asides,” certification is a must.

So how do you go about certifying your small business to qualify to compete for the nearly $100 billion worth of goods and services that Uncle Sam buys from small businesses each year? Read on.

Does Your Business Qualify as a Small Business?
Your business isn’t small just because you think it is. The government maintains “size standards” that define the maximum size that a company (and its affiliates) can be to qualify as a small business.
A size standard, which is stated in either the number of employees or average annual receipts, represents the largest size that a business (including its subsidiaries and affiliates) may be to remain classified as a small business by SBA. Generally, most manufacturing companies with 500 employees or fewer and most non-manufacturing businesses with average annual receipts under $7 million will qualify as a small business. However, there are exceptions by industry. They’re listed here: Summary of Size Standards by Industry.

To help you assess whether you fall into the SBA’s definition of small business, check out SBA’s table of small business size standards.

These size standards also apply to service-disabled veteran-owned small businesses, women-owned small business and small disadvantaged businesses (such as Native Americans). However, it’s important to note that these businesses must also meet specific eligibility criteria in order to compete for exclusive government contracts that are set aside for these groups. Read more about these set-aside programs and eligibility requirements here:

• Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Business Concerns
• Women-Owned Small Business Federal Contracting Program
• 8(a) Business Development Program for Disadvantaged Businesses (this blog also does a great job of explaining how to get certified for this program: 8(a) Certification & Minority Business Certification—How Does a Business Get Certified?)

Certifying Your Small Business
Now that you’ve figured out whether you qualify as a small business, you can get registered as a government contractor. This is a fairly simple process and involves applying for a D-U-N-S number and registering in the government’s System of Award Management (SAM) (SAM replaced what was formerly known as the Central Contractor Registration (CCR) database on July 29, 2012). SAM is a repository of all businesses that sell – or want to sell – to the government. Read more about this process here.

Certifying as a Disadvantaged, Women- or Veteran-Owned Business
Businesses that qualify for government contracting programs and contracts under these categories follow the same certification process as small businesses described above. When you register your business in SAM, you can self-identify yourself as belonging to one of these groups.

Other Government Contracting Set-Aside Programs to Know About
In addition to offering set-asides to disadvantaged businesses as well as service-disabled veteran- and women-owned businesses, the federal government also has programs that help small businesses in urban and rural communities compete for government business. One of these programs, known as HUBZone, has its own certification process. If you think this might benefit your business, read more about it here: HUBZone Certification—How Does a Business Get Certified?

More Information
For more information on how to sell your products or services to the government, visit the Government Contracting Guide and take advantage of the online courses in the SBA Government Contracting Classroom.