Corsages and Bouts $

[Tuberose]

Glad to know others are still doing wristlets. I would like to know how these arm things work and what wires are used, but have no idea. if anyone has any tips. Also, how do you sell your wristlets to the kids? By color or by flower? What is your sales pitch. Seems like the girls get to picky and want white roses which just bruise right away. Any tips would be great. We need a new design this year!

Someone posted previously posted a link to a site last year or so that I found very helpful with a new design of a wristlet. We have had quite a bit of luck selling new designs with the wires and Florist Review (?) recently had more ideas as well. I'll add a few other things we have done or found that might help. I can't remember exactly where or how we came up with the wire design we use now. It's formed like an X with two longer loops and the ends are curled in a circle for an additional element to the design. The green wristlet is with the wire X and the purple orchids are the armband.

http://www.floraldesigninstitute.com/page004.11.02.84.13.htm

Trish

Fogot to add that it's the thicker deco wire we get from our wholesalers that we use.

 

[ctherose]

Another technique when using wire is to take a yard of deco wire, roll it around a broomstick. Smoosh it all together and then take it off the stick. Use rounded tip pliers to spiral the ends and then flatten the whole thing. Take ribbon and weave it between the links, leaving extra to tie around the wrist for extra stability. The spiraled wire ends are bent so that you can clasp them together as well. This can be cinched up around the wrist or stretched to fit a bigger wrist. I then make a bow and tie it around the center point. Cold glue a small felt rectangle to the underside of the bow to prevent scratching and glue my flowers in. The girls loved these last year! The picture I'm attaching (blue & silver) shows this design only the bracelet is flattened out to fit in the box. The second picture is the wrap-around style. Check out the first JH prom & homecoming book--it has detailed instructions on using wire as a base.

 

[dfisher]

Thanks for sharing your designs for everyone to see. Great looks.

 

[floraldesignson99th]

To echo what Mr. Fisher said about the types of glues.......LOOK AT YOUR GLUE TUBE SHANNON. IF IT SAYS 'LOMEY' ANYWHERE ON THE TUBE......STOP !!!!!!!!!

That glue is for glueing plastic to plastic...namely lomey trays to pedestals, tubes, etc.


The attached picture shows what the glue looks like you SHOULD be using.

if you use the can/bottle setup......keep the leftover in the bottle in the cooler when through using....let warm to room temp before using...it will last indefinitly..(for added insurance we also keep the can in the cooler, also )...we've used every drop this way...tubes are great for a 'quickie'....prefer the glue pot for assembly line production.....

 

[Cory Brown]

if you use the can/bottle setup......keep the leftover in the bottle in the cooler when through using....let warm to room temp before using...it will last indefinitly..(for added insurance we also keep the can in the cooler, also )...we've used every drop this way...tubes are great for a 'quickie'....prefer the glue pot for assembly line production.....

I never use a glue pot. I understand if you have had luck with it, but if the temperature of the glue is off a little when gluing, or when it gets put in the cooler, or if the cooler is set at the wrong temperature, the glue pot glue will crack and fail.
If you use Oasis Floral Adhesive, you will not have to worry about all those variables. The easiest way to use the Floral Adhesive is similar to using a glue pot. When you use the Floral Adhesive, pour or squeeze a pool of it out onto a disposable sheet, such as cello from your fresh flowers that came in from the wholesaler. This does two things. It allows you to use a familiar motion of dipping into the glue like you do in a glue pot. The other thing it does is allows the glue to begin drying before it goes on the flower. This is a good thing because it will shorten the time you have to wait for the glue to dry while designing your corsages.

 

[ctherose]

corsage prices--wow!

Our prom is just over a month away. I already have 3 corsage/bout orders and for two of them, the corsages are around $38.00 each! It has really helped to have a few of the Fitz bracelets handy for show, but what has really helped is having the Fitz/Milton Adler booklet of designs/products handy. I priced all of the bracelets in the book for the girls to see and they love looking through it to find their favorite. Once they see something they like, they don't seem to care too much about the price. (Hopefully I will have no problem getting them in once it's time to order!) I have also sold a couple designs from the new JH prom book. I thought it was too "out there," but the kids seem to like it!

 

[dfisher]

ctherose - Thanks for your post. At Fitz, I specifically design the catalog to be used just like you are using it. Our goal has been to create a Selection Guide the florists can use as a sales tool.

Here is a strategy we suggest, and I think you are doing this based on your comment.

Sell the bracelet first and then sell the flowers to go on it. We have had a number of florists tell us this strategy has helped them raise their average price of their corsages by as much as 30%.

We also love the JH prom book - we are fortunate that we are shown in their 46 times.

Here is another quick add on idea - after you have sold the corsage and bout, try selling a single Shimmerzz - our Jeweled Tattoos. With a little bit of floral add on, these are a very nice add on to the sale and they don't take away from the corsage sale.

Thanks for sharing