Hello February! I can’t think of a better way to usher February in than with friends and flowers. I got home yesterday after spending the weekend in Massachusetts with two of my best friends, Sonal and Alexi. We were there celebrating my birthday and getting in some much-needed girlfriend time at our friend’s gorgeous new home (I still quite haven’t forgiven her husband for relocating their family from CT to MA). Once we arrived, they presented me with three envelopes. Each envelope contained a progressive surprise throughout the weekend and needless to say – I felt totally spoiled before we even walked out the door.

We started with lunch at Carrie Nation Restaurant & Cocktail Club at 11 Beacon Street in Boston. Over a bottle of prosecco, we sampled the Kalamata Olive Flatbread that was cooked to crispy perfection. And for lunch, I had the French Onion Soup and split a gourmet BLT. The soup is a new menu item made with a beef broth base, it was dee-lish-ous! If you are ever in Boston, be sure to stop in Carrie Nation – here is a link to their menu.

Immediately following lunch, we went to another part of the restaurant and joined about 20 other women to make tea rose floral arrangements that we got to take home – yay! We spent the next hour and a half in a fun and lively atmosphere where we exchanged ideas, got some hands-on experience and left with our arms filled with the prettiest flowers.

As an added bonus, during the workshop we were treated to a rose-inspired cocktail made with Hendrick’s Gin, fresh lemon juice, simple syrup, Pom (pomegranate juice) and finished with a splash of champagne. Here are some of the photos from the floral workshop and some quick tips I learned on making and preserving a tea rose floral arrangement just in time for Valentine’s Day!

{my very girly floral arrangement featuring pink tea roses, white hydrangea, white calla lilies and eucalyptus}

{we used a wide variety of flowers including, two types of roses, hydrangea, calla lilies, eucalyptus, and spray flowers}

{use fast acting oasis that absorbs water immediately, other types of oasis take hours to become saturated}

{no cutting required! simply push the oasis into the vase and the excess falls to the side}

{saturate the oasis until it is literally brimming with water}

(hydrangeas drink water from the petals! be sure to spray the flower in addition to keeping the stems in fresh water}

{a rose inspired cocktail}