I know everyone is excited to find out who the overall winner of the Summer Design Challenge is, but you will have to wait one more day.

Our design challenge coordinator (Mandy Maxwell) is out of the office. Since she worked so hard on the challenge (coming up with fantastic inspirational photos), we couldn't make the announcement without her.

So sleep tight tonight and look for the announcement tomorrow.

If you've followed FSN on Twitter or Facebook you should know one thing – the people of Flower Shop Network like to PARTY!

Maybe it's one of our 5 trees, and 40 different stockings? Or it could just be the giant disco ball we have over all the offices? Whatever it is, I am glad this is my work home. It really feels like a family here and I think that's why I love it so much! The Christmas lights all throughout the building give the entire atmosphere a festive glow you can only find during the holidays, and if I can't be at home I am really glad I am here. I'm sure you will see it to when you take a look at these photos!

Find more FSN Christmas pictures in our Facebook Album.

Apple Blossom Florist, a flower shop in Winter Haven Florida, was recently struck with a personal loss. The founder of Apple Blossom, Pat Fisher, passed away this week. Flower Shop Network wishes to extend our deepest and most sincere condolences to Mrs. Fisher's family, friends, and coworkers as we strive to honor the memory of this wonderful woman.

We can't help it. We like videos. It gives us the occasional opportunity to take a break from the workday and get a quick pick-me-up. That's why Flower Shop Network created these fun videos to enjoy, send or share.

But wait. There's more.

We'd like to know which one of these videos is YOUR favorite. Your vote is very important to us and will help us choose our favorite as well. Take a second to vote! There are four really easy ways to vote. Just pick one and have a blast. You can vote as many times as you'd like. Here's how to vote for your favorite Flower Shop Network video.

(1) log in below and comment on your favorite FSN video.

(2) Tweet your vote with the tag #FSNVIDS.

(3) Vote for the videos on the FSN Facebook page.

(4) Check out FSN on Myspace and tell us what you think.

Thanks and enjoy the videos!

"Local Florists Make The Difference"

If the video box does not appear on your screen, visit the "Flower Shop Network Local Florists" video on YouTube.

"Flower Shop Network on The Balancing Act (Lifetime Television)"

If the video box does not appear on your screen, visit the "Flower Shop Network on Lifetime TV" video on YouTube.

"Give Some, Get Some" (Mature)

If the video box does not appear on your screen, visit the "Give Some, Get Some" video on YouTube.

"Random Acts of Kindness With Flowers"

If the video box does not appear on your screen, visit the "Random Acts of Kindness With Flowers" video on YouTube.

Happy Thanksgiving from Flower Shop Network!

"Peanuts®" is a registered brand of United Feature Syndicate, Inc

Flower Shop Network is catching wind of the newest trend in florist talk. The holiday gift-giving season is back which means there are a lot of fraudulent orders and scam orders floating around. Don't be alarmed! We've heard the rumors too and want to make sure that you're protected from sending/receiving a fraudulent order. Here are tips that will help keep you safe from scam this holiday season.

• Scrutinize unusually large or hurried orders. Almost all fraudulent orders tend to be larger than average. Though some appropriate instances call for large orders, note particularly large and hurried orders.
• Verify sender contact information. Make sure that the sender has listed a contact phone number, physical address (which can be verified on Google Maps), and other information that lets you know you are dealing with a REAL person.
• Pay attention to the signature on the credit card. Make sure that the signature on sender's credit card matches the signature of the sender. Also, make sure that the signature is a real name and not an obvious nick name.
• Do not accept foreign (Non US or Canadian) credit card orders. Approximately 30% of all foreign orders are fraudulent.
• Note the email address and corresponding mail server. Take particular note if the account is a setup under a free server such as Yahoo! mail, Gmail, and others or a very strange server as these can be obtained by anyone anywhere.

You may also be interested in these posts:

Quick and Easy Ways To Spot Fraudulent Orders
FSN Applauds Tennessee's Consumer Protection Efforts
Why Sending Flowers Online Is A Good Idea

Doubt it. However, I'm not Jewish. I'm unfortunately very Gentile (goyum) but have a fascination with Jewish people, customs, traditions and holidays. They are quite enthralling! If you're like me, you'll love what I discovered when browsing the new features on the Flower Shop Network website. We recently added the ability to add Jewish holiday pages to florists' online websites. How cool! Now I won't have to get terribly creative when the Jewish holidays roll around. I can simply click, browse, buy and be done with it. Sweet!

These cool pages definitely pique my interest. What do you think? I've included a link to the pages (just click on the title of the holiday below) as well as some information about each holiday for the rest of the Jewish-loving gentiles among us flower folk. I greatly encourage you to read more about each of the holidays. The history behind them is full of richness and intricately woven with passionate, scriptural detail. Enjoy!

**Interesting note, all of these holidays are celebrated from the sunset to sunset rather than midnight to midnight. This means most Jewish holidays span two days on the Caesarian calendar commonly used today.**

Rosh HaShanah (ראש השנה) — Rosh HaShanah is the Jewish new year. It is a holiday that occurs ten days before Yom Kippur, another major holiday. These two days are known as the "Days of Awe" in Hebrew. In English, they are called the "High Holy Days". Officially the day falls within the seventh month of the Hebrew calendar because it is believed that God created the world in this month (Tishrei). The start of the Hebrew calendar is the month of Nissan which marks the date the Jews were freed from slavery in Egypt.

Rosh HaShanah is a peaceful holiday. Similar to a New Year's resolution, the Jewish people believe that God will use the two days of Rosh HaShanah to decide who lives and who dies in the coming year. Therefore, the Hebrew people are encouraged to reflect upon their lives and their habits and give thought to what they will correct in the future. They are also encouraged to make amends with anyone who they have caused to suffer wrongdoing in the previous year.

(Send flowers for Rosh HaShanah or view the new Rosh HaShanah eCommerce website for florists)

Passover (Pesach) — Passover (Pesach) commemorates the establishment of the Jewish nation, or rather the birth of it centuries ago. Passover is celebrated on the fifteenth day of Nissan, the first month of the Hebrew calendar. Christians and Jews alike recognize passover, or at least the story of it, as the story itself is a huge part of both Judaism and Christianity (which recognize the same God).

According to the story, Moses was commanded by God to ask the Pharoah of Egypt to Continue reading "Do You Love Jewish Holidays As Much As I Do?" »

The contest is over. Winner will be announced on an upcoming blog. Thanks to all who participated! Keep following @FSN for more contests and fun!

All you have to do to enter is retweet this post with the hashtag #FSNTHX. That’s it! Just retweet this post by midnight Monday, November 23th and you will be eligible to win an Autumn Bouquet from YOUR LOCAL FLORIST for delivery in the USA or Canada (valued up to $50).

Wanna play? Get tweeting.

Now I've seen a lot in my short lifetime but this arrangement beats them all. How cool is this? For those who can't get the thumbnail to expand, it's an arrangement of flowers coming out of a pair of fake female legs. The whole thing was placed in a shower and used as a fun decoration for an otherwise empty space. Leave it to Hope Floral to come up with something this fun.

I should probably let you in one why this photo was submitted for our viewing pleasure. Competition was dying down in the weekly FSN Facebook photo contest so we decided to ask a fun question instead. When asked "where's the most creative place you've seen flowers used", this photo was Hope Floral's reply. We should've known. *wink*

Hope Floral, one of our favorite florists in Hope Arkansas, is always pushing the envelope. They know when to stick their toe in the water for a little test and when to jump in wholeheartedly. This sexy flower arrangement (can I say that?) proves it. Bitsy Carter and the rest of the awesome florists at Hope Floral are that kind of team. Need something fun to fill an empty space? Need something romantic to get her in the mood? They're the florists to call.

Want to see the other photos that were submitted this week? They were all SO wonderful that it was hard to choose a winner. Check them all out at FSN's Facebook page and tell us which you like the best. Don't forget to vote for this week's favorite and submit your own. Who knows? The winner next week could be YOU!

Congratulations to Vicky Carlson ( @t42vek20 ) for winning blood red roses in the Flower Shop Network Halloween Twitter contest. We're so excited for Vicky and thankful for all of her wonderful tweets!

Guess who's providing the roses? One of our awesome Shreveport LA florists, Special Occasion Flowers, will be delivering a bouquet of blood red roses to Vicky to kick start her Halloween celebration. Flower Shop Network would like to thank all who tweeted, retweeted, and followed us for this inaugural FSN Twitter contest.

Special thanks to the following:

@HorrorQueen 13
@Khara 
@Mtlgrl4evr
@Vampire Pulse
@geeksmakemehot
@hminnesota
@cjchirico
@hikermom13 
@zanvia
@mandyish
@katmagick
@JCausby
Continue reading "The FSN Halloween Twitter Contest Winner is Vicky Carlson!" »