Pollen Nation

For love... and mummy

She's given you her best days, her sweetest love, her kindest words, her tenderest hugs. It's only fair that, on one day a year, you give her the best you can in return.

Celebrate the woman who's been your rock, your role model, your mum.

Free delivery on all Mother's Day flowers and Mother's Day gifts on Friday 29 March (Saturday delivery is £4.99).

Calling all you last-minute lovers

Planning to explore your sweetheart’s florogenous zones on 14 February? Remember, it’s no good sending flowers if they can’t compete with the ones the floozy on the second floor receives. Discerning lovers know better -- and head straight for the Serenata Valentine Flowers range.

All about Christmas wreaths

Doors, walls, table decorations — whatever way you decide to display your Christmas wreath, there’s no denying its design has come a long way since the olive-leafed diadems used to crown Olympians.

So vastly different are today’s wreaths, in fact, you may wonder whether such a comparison is even fair. Sure, the laurel crown was green and round, but isn’t that about where the similarity between those pagan coronets and our Christmas circles ends? Not so fast… there’s more between these wreaths than meets the eye.

The word wreath comes from an old English word that means band or ‘that which is wound around’, and the circular shape of wreaths is central to the messages they are said to connote: eternity, continuity, and cyclicality.

In the run-up to Christmas, many homes display an Advent wreath — a circle of evergreen leaves decorated with three lilac candles and a rose candle, and a central white candle. This last candle is lit on Christmas Eve and symbolises the birth of Christ. The choice of evergreens is said to connote the everlasting nature of Christ.

Yet, records show that similar evergreen wreaths were popular in the pre-Christian winter folk traditions, where candles symbolised the hope of the coming spring and the evergreen leaves alluded to the constant changing of the seasons.

Whether the beliefs behind your wreaths are Christian, pagan or pure decoration, it’s interesting to know the rich history of symbols that go into making wreaths.

Our Christmas collection of wreaths ranges from the traditional Pomander with its kiefer base (eternity) and cinnamon scrolls (smell delicious!) that is perfect for adding that ‘real Christmas’ flavour to your home, via the sparkling silver Salim Ice for the glitter princess in your life, to the trendy Black Beauty of dark cones and golden highlights which wouldn’t look out of place in a minimalist’s pied-à-terre.

Now, it’s up to you to find the wreathy meanings that matter to you most…

Tags: wreaths, flowers, Christmas, Serenata

Send flowers that are useful as well as beautiful

Mothers’ (and others’) necessities have inspired the invention of a range of flower-shaped presents at Serenata Flowers.

New babies, new homes and new beginnings are some of Britain’s top flower-sending occasions, but many of our customers have told us of their desire to include a little something useful along with the beautiful blooms they’ve chosen. Now there’s a new kind of ‘bouquet’ that offers utility and beauty in one.

For baby, there are beanies, booties and bodysuits cleverly rolled into blossoms to create fabric flowers, which are then arranged with ribbons, bows and silk buds and tied together in stylish cellophane wraps. For those who’ve just moved to a new abode, domestic bliss comes in the form of a bouquet of flowers made from household essentials such as dishcloths, dusters and rubber gloves. And for those that are tying the knot, there’s a bouquet of 100% cotton napkins folded to create an arum lily effect — bring on the dinner parties!

 

Tags: gifts, flowers, Christmas, Serenata

Bears, but no sore heads for online shoppers this Christmas

If you surf down to the florist today, you’re in for a big surprise, for every bear with huggable fuzz has gathered there for certain because that’s where you can order them from for Christmas…

With the festive season just around the corner, we've expanded our traditional offering of fresh-cut flowers to include a selection of quality children’s toys.

From traditional teddies that boast all the requisite characteristics of the collector’s classic of tomorrow to resilient plush playmates ready for toddler-style rough-and-tumble, our new range is fully CE and EN71 certified and machine washable.

Prices start at just £19.99, and the toys can be ordered online for next-weekday delivery to any mainland UK address — to be sent on their own or with a bouquet.

And because we know that lovable, huggable new best friends aren’t just for Christmas, we’ve made it possible for you to grow your ursine circle of friends whenever you fancy — the range of fuzzy buddies will be available to purchase on our website throughout the new year.

Tags: teddy bears, flowers, Christmas, Serenata

Send blinging blossoms without breaking the bank

Introducing a brand new range of flowers for the budget-conscious who are also image conscious... great value bouquets for under £30, including next-weekday delivery to any address in the UK.

Tags: flowers,  budget flowers, Serenata

Send same-day flowers from SerenataFlowers.com

Need flowers today? No problem! We've teamed up with our preferred floral partner Flash Flowers so that you can order their bouquets for same-day flower delivery directly through the Serenata Flowers website.

There's a super selection of birthday, celebration and funeral flowers that can be delivered to anywhere in the UK or Northern Ireland for a charge of £4.99 if you order before 2.30 p.m. The bouquets will be made up by select local florists in the town where the recipient is staying.

Of course, if it's something extra special you're after, remember that patience is a virtue. And not even that much patience is required... the superlative items in Serenata's in-house range which boast finer, fresher flowers and inspired artistry (not to mention a 100% satisfaction guarantee) are all available for next-day delivery to any mainland UK address.

Tags: flowers, same-day delivery, funeral flowers, Serenata

Serenata Flowers offers a 'great retail customer experience'

Self-confessed flower-choosing dunces they may be, but they're no fools when it comes to usability and customer experience. Together, these things make the chaps at Experience Solutions our toughest type of customer... so we're thrilled to have been given 'full marks' in their recent review of Serenata Flowers.

As regular visitors to our website know, we work hard to respond to feedback and implement changes in our bid to make sending flowers as fun and hassle-free as receiving them. And it looks like we're on the right track, given these usability gurus' good words about our nifty navigation, 'help me choose' feature and suite of chirpy transactional emails.

But never ones to rest on our laurels, we'll be sure to stop by at the Experience Solutions blog for some extra ideas on how to keep our customers smiling.

Tags: flowers, user experience, website review, Serenata

Anniversary flowers: only the best will do for those who've said "I do" to you

Paper for the first year,
Tin for the tenth,
China for the twentieth,
And for fifty: rubies red.

Traditional anniversary gifts get more lavish as the years go by, but why wait until you’re grey to show the colour of your love? Rekindle the passion of that first kiss with an amorous arrangement suggestive of your heartfelt devotion.

As someone who knows how to pick the best of the bunch when it comes to people, you've probably got a fairly good idea about what constitutes a top-notch bouquet: fresher flowers that last longer and that are groomed to perfection and arranged with passion and inspiration. Flowers from SerenataFlowers.com tick all those boxes, plus come with a 100% satisfaction guarantee (not something many spouses can boast!). But for such as special occasion as an anniversary - be it your first, your fourth, your tenth or your fiftieth - you really don't want to get it wrong. You want to make it that little bit more personal than just a fantastic bunch of flowers. Well, here are a few tips to sending anniversary flowers that really mean something special:

A new take on tradition
Every anniversary has a traditional gift associated with it. Take a look at that, and then consider how you could add a twist to tradition. A hand-tie of pearly lilies (30th), a vase of candy-coloured tulips (5th) or a mass of golden roses (50th) will prove an inspired reinterpretation of those customary tokens of commitment.

Traditional Anniversary Gifts
First	Paper
Second	Cotton
Third	Leather
Fourth	Flowers/fruit
Fifth	Wood
Sixth	Candy
Tenth	Tin
Twentieth	China
Twenty-fifth	Silver
Thirtieth	Pearl
Fortieth	Ruby
Fiftieth	Gold

Flower of the month
Present your partner with flowers traditionally associated with the month of your union.

Anniversary Flowers
January	Carnation
February	Violet
March	Jonquil or Daffodil
April	Sweet Pea or Daisy
May	Lily of the Valley
June	Rose
July	Larkspur or Water Lily
August	Gladiolus
September	Aster
October	Calendula or Cosmos
November	Chrysanthemum
December	Narcissus

High on emotion 
Choose a bouquet that mirrors your emotions... "These flirtatious cool blue roses remind me of the sparkle in your eye the first time we met", "All-singing, all-dancing, all-grinning gladioli... these flowers look as extravagant as you make me feel".

Fond memories
Can you remember the bridal bouquet and the boutonnieres from your big day? See if you can find something with similar flowers and colours for that fond-memoried personal touch. This one gets plenty of bonus points!

Tags: flowers, anniversary, send anniversary flowers, Serenata

Want to send roses? Make sure you know your stuff.

The meaning of roses
Roses are the ultimate romantic gesture. And who better than the French to turn to for elucidation on this tricky matter? According to a saying from la republique, white roses are for love, red roses are for passion, and yellow roses are for friendship. If you’re a victim of love at first sight, express your enchantment with lilac roses. For happiness, choose pink roses, which connote grace, gentleness and gratitude, and tell recipients they’re a joy to behold.

A brief history of roses
Fossil evidence suggests that our friend the rose is over 35 million years old.  Originating in China, roses are now grown around the world, and are believed to have first been cultivated in Europe in the 18th century.

In the mid-18th century, Lady Mary Wortley Montagu documented the use of roses as a means of covert communication in Middle Eastern harems. In this silent language, a red rose declared that the sender was full of love and desire, a provocative white rose in bloom asked "Will you love me?”, while jaded lovers questioned the interest of their partner with a yellow rose.

The rose is also England’s national flower.

Rose varieties
Roses are one of the best known and most loved flowers in the UK, and are available all year round in a wide range of colours. Throughout the northern hemisphere, there are around 150 species of plants within the genus Rosa.

Gorgeous deep red Grand Prix roses (the champion of champions), soft pinky-lilac Aqua roses and plump, snow-kissed Avalanche roses are just some of the exclusive varieties that you can find at SerenataFlowers.com if you’re looking to order roses online.

How to care for roses
Every rose bouquet sent from SerenataFlowers.com comes with a helpful care instruction card with top tips for making your roses last even longer. But just in case you didn't get to read those in time, here are a few little extra tricks to perk up some droopy blooms:

• If your roses are looking limp, revive them by moving them to a cool room and standing them up to their necks in lukewarm water.
• Unless they’re part of a hand-held posy, don’t remove the thorns, as the lesions are an open invitation to bacteria.

Tags: flowers, roses, sending flowers, Serenata