Maybe you are not a big Valentine’s Day Fan, but one must admit getting flowers on any other occasion sure makes my day. There is such a big push on buy fresh and buy local, and purchasing flower arrangements is not different. I was provided a product to review to facilitate this review, but all the opinions about sending an arrangement through BloomNation is 100% my own.

What is the first site that comes to mind when you want to order flowers for Valentine’s Day? 1800Flowers.com? Teleflora.com? FTD.com? These may have been the best options in the past, but with BloomNation.com as one of the hottest start-ups, things are changing. It considers itself the Etsy of Local  Artisan Florists.

Don’t you love new and innovative start-ups. I wish I got in on the bottom floor of some of these investments. BloomNation just received millions in funding, led by Andreessen Horowitz, and cuts out the middleman in sending flowers, such as 1800Flowers, so the customer can work directly with the local florist. Which means better value to you the customer.
 

Why is this a better route than ordering from a big name brand?
 

• Buying from local for flowers this Valentine’s Day means less money spent and better service,
• Finding unique flower arrangements that can’t be found anywhere else (over 32,000 to choose from) and are unique to your area. 
• Supporting your local florists will get you better bouquets in the future,
• Ever order from  sites like FTD and they  never look like what you ordered? No longer, you get what you order. 
  Well almost but the florist was straight forward that some of the flowers pictured on the arrangement I picked were not available seasonally so they had to substitute. IT was so beautiful I did not notice. And they weren’t carnations which always seemed to be the flower of substitution with other brands.

With BloomNation, you are going to one florist that you know and can trust. You are seeing their work on the website and not that of the commercial site.

BloomNation is a very easy website to navigate. You just input your zip code and the florists that are available appear.

Here in Richmond VA there is only one participating florist, Flowers Make Scents.  Love the name

As you can see these are not stock photos but photos taken from the local florist, Flowers Make Scents.

Check out the gorgeous flower arrangement that arrived at my house.

I love the vase too. This one I will actually use a lot more than the plan ones you get from other florists. (you all know what I am talking about you probably have a few in a closet somewhere.

Here is another side view of this flower arrangement.

I was not home the first day they tried to deliver and they were still this nice 2 days later.

My house smells amazing and it Flower Makes Scents was a great option and now my husband is off the hook for Valentines Day.

Here is a shot 3 days after delivery. Looks just like the first day and the house still smells amazing.

So whether you are buying a flower arrangement for a party or for a friend, first check out BloomNation.com. If you are in RVA be sure and see the amazing options from Flowers Make Scents, based in Midlothian.

Just got back from a long weekend and this is the flower arrangement after 1 week.

 Where do you purchase your flower arrangements?