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The Best Flowers to Gift for Any Occasion, According to Flower Girl

By Nina RuggieroFeb 8 2023
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Whether you’re celebrating a holiday or achievement, making a romantic gesture, offering sympathy, or just letting someone know you’ve been thinking about them, you can’t go wrong with flowers. It’s been scientifically proven that flowers make people happy: Rutgers University’s Emotional Impact of Flowers Study found that participants “demonstrated a higher sense of enjoyment and life satisfaction” and also benefited from increased contact with family and friends and “more intimate connections” after receiving them.

We all know beautiful, fragrant bouquets are pleasing to the senses, but what else is fueling the power of their positive impact? According to Denise Porcaro, founder of Flower Girl NYC, it’s the way their impermanence inspires us to live in the present. “They are a luxury that doesn’t last forever,” she said. “That makes them really special, because it brings you back to an of-the-moment, ‘I bought you these beautiful things, and they’re just there for the time to enjoy.’”

Porcaro has been delivering joyful moments to New Yorkers through flowers since 2004, when she opened her first Flower Girl outpost inside an Earnest Sewn denim shop on the Lower East Side. She has since opened her own shop and event space in Chelsea — where she hosts flower workshops, bloom-filled bridal and baby showers, and intimate dinners and cocktail parties — followed by a boutique on Rink Level at Rockefeller Center, where shoppers can browse both floral arrangements and giftable home goods such as hand-dipped candles, handmade soaps, smudge sticks, and incense. She also does arrangements for weddings, caters to regular clients at home, and works with everyone from magazines and fashion designers like Vogue and Stella McCartney to brands like American Express and ABC Carpet and Home.

flower display

“The world of flowers is so vast,” she said. “They’re seasonal, and you can mix it up so much. There are so many different combinations, and you can really create something beautiful with flowers depending on who you’re giving them to, what the occasion is, what the color scheme is.”

As for the one occasion she looks forward to most in her new shop at Rockefeller Center, Porcaro says there’s nothing better than Christmas: “What says Christmas more than Rockefeller Center?” she said. “It’s a whole season. I get to do all different sorts of things… people go all out for Christmas. Being able to decorate homes and offices and bring people’s Christmas ideas to life is my favorite.”

That’s not to discredit, however, the flowers that are bought for no real reason — Porcaro says “Just Because” flowers can be the greatest gift of all. “It’s the flowers you bring home on a random Tuesday,” she said. “It’s the flowers that are least expected, when it’s just, ‘I saw these and I was thinking of you.’”

We asked Porcaro for her top Flower Girl picks for holidays, special occasions, and unexpected moments throughout the year.

The Classic bouquet from Flower Girl at Rockefeller Center

The best flowers for Valentine’s Day: The Classic or 100 Times Over

“Classic roses always work well, and then if you want to dial it up, Valentine’s Day is the time to go big. 100 Times Over is over the top… for the ballers, if you will.”

Farm Bundle bouquet from Flower Girl at Rockefeller Center

The best flowers for birthdays: Farm Bundle

“These flowers come separated, so if you have a birthday person who loves to arrange flowers… they can put it all together and have fun with it.”

Flower-arranging workshop at Flower Girl

The best flowers for Mother’s Day: Opt for a flower-arranging workshop

“It’s a great way to spend time with your mom… something fun you can do together.”

Bouquet and Gal Candle bundle from Flower Girl at Rockefeller Center

The best flowers for housewarming parties: The Flower Girl + Gal Candle or a hand-dipped Apotheke candle (available in store)

“It’s seasonal, it’s what’s beautiful of the moment, and it comes in a mercury glass vessel that goes with any backdrop… this is also a great opportunity to add on a bunch of fun extras to make a housewarming gift pack a little more punch.”

How Classy bouquet from Flower Girl at Rockefeller Center

The best flowers for sympathy: How Classy

“It could be done in white, it could be done in color… some people want color to cheer that person up, while others stick to classic white.”

Kaleidoscope bouquet from Flower Girl at Rockefeller Center

The best flowers to buy “just because”: Kaleidoscope

“It’s cheery, it’s fun, it’s beautiful, and it’s unexpected… just like the ‘just because’ gift is unexpected. It’s arranged in this amazing geo-pinkish vase that I love. It’s the gift that keeps on giving.”

Earth Mama bouquet from Flower Girl at Rockefeller Center

The best flowers to say “I miss you” / for long-distance: Earth Mama or Blush Beauty

“They’re preserved, so they ship really well. It’s a gift that will last for a long time.”

Flower Girl is open Monday through Friday 10am to 7pm on Rink Level of 30 Rockefeller Plaza.

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