BLOG.JOSEDESIGNS.COM
Leaders, Never Followers!
Jose Graterol Designs is looked upon as an Industry Leader for custom-tailored event designs!!
Jose's videos on www.Youtube.com/josedesigns have been viewed by more than 540,000 people around the world!
Lately, we have become aware that vendors from right here in South Florida, as well as around the world, are copying Jose's arrangements, Chuppah designs, event designs and even his custom-designed tables, containers and centerpieces! Jose and Steve recently attended an industry show in Las Vegas where Preston Bailey gave a presentation about his own success. When he was asked about people copying his arrangements, he said that he hoped he "inspired many people to create." We feel the same way, inspirational...but not direct copies!! Preston Bailey said that people can only copy what you have made in the past, not what is in your head or ideas for the future! We all know that adage "Imitation is the Best form of flattery!"
Here is a 9' High entry arrangement that Jose "Dreamed up", right on the spot, during the set up of an amazing birthday party we did this season.
This birthday party was all black, white flowers, silver accents! Elegant and chic!
Jose designed unique lamps and lamp shades for some centerpieces! Floor length mirrors, a Mirror stage set, Cocktail Tables, all of the draping, lighting, floral arrangements and linens were designed and specified by Jose Graterol for this event, too! The Black-Twinkle dance floor was imported from Orlando! The room was sparkling and striking!
Patty Nash Photography took amazing decor shots for us! Check out her work on www.pattynash.com !
The linens were custom-made for Jose Graterol by Over the Top, Ft. Lauderdale, FL, www.overthetopinc.com
The lighting and custom draping is from Jose Martinez, www.jmlightingandfabric.com
Turnberry Ocean Colony, Sunny Isles Beach, FL, was the venue for this unforgettable night! A special "Thank You" goes out to the staff at Turnberry Ocean Colony for their support!
Bubble Miami, www.bubblemiami.com and Nuage Designs, www.nuagedesigns.com provided the chairs.
The dessert room was luxurious and spectacular! Contrasting colors, textures, flower types and a custom mirror made the setting extra special!
Jose Graterol designs events infusing your personality and his infinite creativity! Unlike other floral designers, Jose is not "married" to a singular style! Every design, every event, every arrangement is made to incorporate your personality into it! That's why we never repeat arrangements, parties or weddings!
When you are ready to have Jose help you design your unforgettable special event, call us on 305-788-0562!
Sincerely,
Steve & Jose
"Artists First!"
We are Artists First! Jose Graterol is known as a mover and a trend-setter! He is truly "Ahead of the Curve!"
Jose Graterol Designs has declared that:
"Bling has Blung!!" Bling is out, old, so 2008! Even Walmart and IKEA are carrying the Bling-Bling, so it is time to discover the next trends! If your favorite floral or event designer is still pushing-selling-specifying Bling, it is time to RUN!.....FAST!! ...and directly to us!
We are in a New Year, 2012! We are looking toward the future and into the past for what's "HOT!" and what's "NOT!"
The Apple Green "pops" when combined with Black, Silver, and White! The backdrop was enhanced with beautiful, pleated black draping and lighting.
Bold Patterns, Greens, Metals, Rich Textures, Layering, Undulating sight-lines, Repeated patterns, Purples, Black is back!, Gold, Bright Colors, individual special touches are all in fashion, events, and interiors now!
Unique ways to seat guests are more popular than ever! This client wanted a fun, active party rather than guests sitting at big tables all night long!
Dessert Displays are bigger than ever, too! Here we incorporated bookshelves, cabinets, even drawers of the buffet into the dessert extravaganza! Flowers are strategically placed so that your eyes dance around the treats, too!
All of our events incorporate the client's personality into the arrangements and layers. Every personality is different, so every event and arrangement is unique!
Jose Graterol's floral arrangements and event designs are truly original!
This is the table for the sushi display! Elevations which coordinate and add light are the rage now, too! Jose is proud to consider every detail in the event's design!
We appreciate all of the vendors who helped us on this event: BubbleMiami, Crafty Events for Desserts, Hitched Event Rentals, Jose Martinez Light and Fabric, Over The Top Linens, and Patty Nash Photography, Turnberry Ocean Colony!
For your upcoming event, kindly call us on 305-788-0562. We are ready to help you in every way we can!
Steve & Jose
Acqualina Resort Wedding!
Jose Graterol Designs, http://www.josedesigns.com had the best time working on this wedding! The bride and groom were as detail-oriented as Jose Graterol, so he attended to every design aspect! The weather prediction was for rain, so a clear tent was constructed to protect everyone from the elements. Saturday was warm, then rainy, and our production team added all the finishing touches to what was deemed the BEST wedding at the hotel! The Acqualina Resort's workers came into the tent provided by www.regencyparty.com/ just to peruse its pure beauty! Susan Wesselhoft was extremely helpful in her role as hotel liaison and Director of Catering. Jose Graterol designed the wedding based on the dreams and desires of the bride and groom: sophisticated, elegant, organic, orchids, purple, succulents, modern and unique...all rolled up into an amazing night! The planner, Mariel Ruiz with http://www.eventsbymariel.com/ was great! Patty Nash of http://nashweddings.blogspot.com/ provided her photography expertise for this wedding!
3,600 White Roses with deep Purple Orchids along with stunning Manzanita branches with orchid plants hanging in natural formations created the backdrop for the ceremony and d.j. during the reception. Vision djs, http://www.visiondjs.com supplied his own color-coordinated screen to the reception!
The bride's bouquet was a unique piece of floral art!
The Place Card display was unique and provided an idea of what the reception was going to show~
The reception was breathtaking!!
A special "Thank You!!" goes out to Jose Martinez of J.M. Lighting and Fabric Design for his amazing work on this wedding! Todo Dulces provided the cake, http://www.tododulces.com/
If you want a custom-designed event made especially for you, then contact us! We never repeat events or arrangements! Also, we are not an event or flower factory and do not sign more than one client per day! Jose Graterol is with you every step of the way!
Keep up to date with us on Facebook, too!
Steve & Jose 305-788-0562
What's New?
We have been super-busy with lots of new and exciting projects! Jose Graterol has been hired to design a new restaurant in Lighthouse Point, FL!
It should open in late November!
We participated in an exciting networking event created by photographer Jonathan Scott www.jspstudio.com, held at Bubble Miami's Aventura, FL, warehouse, www.bubblemiami.com. Jose redesigned their showroom making many room settings to showcase the modern rental furniture collections. Here are a few photographs from this event and the showroom, too!
Jose Martinez spent days hand-pleating his custom drapes for the entire showroom! His pleating, draping and lighting are beyond compare, www.jmlightingandfabric.com !
Jose Graterol designed many exciting floral arrangements to highlight several of the room's vignettes! The Farm Agency, Miami, FL, provided the flowers for Jose's use, www.thefarmagency.com .
Jose featured many of his newest accessories to design the stunning tabletops and ceiling, too! Our new showroom and warehouse are full of amazing, special candleholders, lanterns and the best in tabletop items for every type of event!
Jose featured many of his newest accessories to design the stunning tabletops and ceiling, too! Our new showroom and warehouse are full of amazing, special candleholders, lanterns and the best in tabletop items for every type of event!Jose Graterol Designs is imparting perfectly executed events in many South Florida venues! We have received great praises from managers of the Ritz Carlton Ft. Lauderdale, www.ritzcarlton.com/en/Properties/FortLauderdale/Default.htm, Mandarin Oriental Miami, www.mandarinoriental.com/miami/, Aventura Turnberry Jewish Center, www.atjc.org/, Acqualina Resort, www.acqualinaresort.com, and the Riverside Hotel, www.riversidehotel.com. These venues agree that Jose Graterol designs the most unique and best events ever in their respective venues!
Here are a few arrangements from Aventura Turnberry Jewish Center for a recent Bar Mitzvah! The planners were Ivonne and Pierina of Flornaments, www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1467146191. They attend to every detail and are great to work with for any type of event!
A round of applause goes to Patty Nash, pattynash.com/, for capturing the spirit in her photography!
For your next Special Event, call us! We guarantee that it will be unique and memorable!!
Jose & Steve
New Trends! Old Values!
Clients and industry professionals are asking us, "What do you see as new trends?" The answers which Jose Graterol and Steve Levine give are varied, according to which part of an event the client is interested in discussing.
For example, food has shifted from traditional sit-down meals to more interactive food experiences, smaller plates with samplings of many exquisite flavors, modern-chic cocktail parties replacing heavy dinners...
For decor, the shift has been towards mirrors, different metals and natural patinas of metals, vibrant colors, strategically-placed floral designs, great design in accessories, and interior design-meets-event decor. There is more movement around a room than in the past. With our media, cell phones, and computers, society expects everything to change quickly, so people are out of their seats more, to enjoy every inch of the space!
However, the traditional values have become important more than ever! These are the qualities that elevate Jose Graterol above all of his competition: Infinite imagination and the ability to translate it into great event experiences, never repeating arrangements or parties, amazing customer care, non-factory attention to detail, unique design, custom-tailored events, actual client personalities infused into each event, offering the newest and best quality flowers in the marketplace, precision in every aspect of the event, ability to finesse the flowers into extraordinary masterpieces...These are the high standards in which Jose Graterol Designs excels and our clients expect! Jose Graterol Designs offers a new service which is unique to our company alone: "White Glove Service"! Our team members oversee each of our events prior to its "grand opening" donning white gloves to polish, shine, clean, remove fingerprints, so that the tables and accessories are immaculate! Our original motto which we defined more than 7 years ago is timeless and rings true to our beliefs today:
Passionate Artistry,
Attentive, Personal Service
Sophisticated Environments
Stylish Table Settings
Innovative Floral Design
Original Custom Style
Nature's Inspirations
Jose's sheer enthusiasm and passion for his work are contagious! Everyone can attest to that fact!
So, when you are ready to believe in the unbelievable, give us a call!
Steve & Jose, 305-788-0562
We extend a special "Thank You!" to our photographers here, NeoArt, Patty Nash, and Jose Graterol!
Below is the table Jose Graterol designed for Jamie Lipman of Absolute Events for the W Ft. Lauderdale Beach Hotel's WowVows evening. The W Hotel has unique, gorgeous spaces! http://www.starwoodhotels.com/whotels/property/overview/index.html?propertyID=1522
One guest stated: "Jose Graterol put the WOW! in WowVows!"
Here are two recent tables Jose designed exclusively for La Gorce Country Club, Miami Beach, http://www.lagorcecc.com/
For a special client, Jose designed a centerpiece that can live forever! The white phalaenopsis orchid plants will be attached to the trees in the yard, and the succulents will be planted in the ground!
BizBash Expo Booth, Ft. Lauderdale, April 12
All eyes were on our booth at BizBash Expo, in Ft. Lauderdale, April 12!!
The booth was shared by:
Jose Graterol Designs, www.josedesigns.com Jose designed the entire booth, tabletop design, floral designs and mirrored containers for the table.
Bubble Miami, www.bubblemiami.com Bubble provided the tables, sofas, chairs, dance floor.
J.M. Lighting & Fabric Design, www.jmlightingandfabric.com Jose Martinez hand-pleated on frames, all the fabric for curtains for the booth. He also provided pin-spotting and LEDs for the booth, too!
Virgin Farms provided all the flowers for Jose to use, Joe Pruna can be reached here~ www.virginfarms.com
The booth was photographed for live feed on Twitter and other places, too! Here are some talented photographers who sent us images!
Patty Nash Photography did stunning images for us, www.pattynash.com![]()
Jose designed the napkin treatment, boxes instead of plates, mirrored obelisks which hold the butterfly centerpieces and specified the candlelight options! Jose Graterol Designs also cut the purple mirrors for the tables!
The overall effect is fun, delightful, a feast for your eyes, tons of details & above all, ORIGINAL!
NeoArt also took some great shots of our table, too! Jason and Ela do wonderful work, www.neoartphotography.com See the photos below here!
Let Jose Graterol Design your next event to complement your personality! Call us on 305-788-0562.
Steve & Jose
New Website & Tons of Thanks!
We are pleased to announce our New & Improved Website, http://www.josedesigns.com
We hope you will view it and leave comments for us! Please share it with your friends, contacts, families, clients!
Of course, we have to extend our heartfelt "Thank You!!!" to many people and businesses who have made our new website possible! We share our contacts with the world and are happy to refer each one of you! You may visit the website and/or Facebook page of each of our contacts!
Christopher Vazquez is our talented artist-web designer who is able to meld the images, ideas and copy into an amazing format to convey our messages! http://www.christophervazquez.net
Nicole Henry, who granted us permission to incorporate her meaningful tracks as our music options! http://nicolehenry.com
Photographers: We appreciate your images showcasing Jose Graterol's vision and talent in each event!
Catalina Ayubi, Sharon Eliasi, Gastelbondo Photography, InFocus Studios, Roy Llera, Alain Martinez, Pep Menendez, Munoz Photographers, Steven Arrow
Planners: We are grateful you choose to work with us!
Victoria Chase, Cymbidium Events, The Event Production, Flornaments Planners, Forever Events
Vendors: We and our clients believe you are the best at what you do!
BubbleMiami, Mayela Camacho, GoDaddy.com, Granada Printing, Jose at JM Lighting & Fabric, Panache Linens, Niki at Papery & Cakery, Christian V. Siriano, Tina's Original Cakes
Venues: Our clients, along with our guidance, have chosen you for countless reasons!
Bath Club, Brazilian Court, Fairmont Turnberry Resort, Four Seasons Miami, Indian Creek Country Club, Mandarin Oriental Miami, Mar-a-Lago, Paris Theater, Safra Temple, Viceroy Miami, and many private locations, too!
Call us to arrange an appointment and discuss your upcoming event!
Sincerely,
Steve & Jose
305-788-0562
Bank of America, Miami, FL, Wedding
For this wedding, the bride chose Jose Graterol, http://www.josedesigns.com to design the entire event. The Bank of America Tower provided the tables, linens and chairs. Due to impending rain, the wedding reception was located inside rather than outside the Sky Terrace at the Bank of America Tower. The canvas is vast with white carrera marble and oversize columns. Jose designed and custom-made the lamps on the tables which served as the tall centerpieces. Rose balls were used around the room to advantage! A mix of Fuchsia Orchids and deep Red Roses were the only flower types here. The space exuded an air of glamour with the rich colors! The Bar Arrangement and Place Card Table are two of Jose Graterol's most recently designed pieces of art! Orchids seem to transform into fluttering butterflies in the place card arrangement! For the Bar, the sculpture is reminiscent of a canoe, although made of acrylic! Niki Kantor-Rubin of http://www.paperyandcakery.com designed the embroidered table numbers! We would like to thank the talented photographer, Sharon Eliasi, http://www.sharoineliasi.com for working his magic here!
Call us to discuss your next event!
Jose & Steve, 305-788-0562
Brit Milah, Aventura, FL
If you need any arrangements, ideas or want to discuss your upcoming event, call us on 305-788-0562
Traditions! Classic Design!
Jose Graterol is often asked if he can produce Classic arrangements, Classic Floral Designs, Classic events. The answer is a resounding "Yes!" Most floral designers begin with classic and traditional style design. The challenge is to branch out into uncharted waters of design or modern design which cannot be placed into a single style or category. So, in this blog, we reach into our photography records to showcase Jose's traditional styles, some with a modern twist and some strictly classic!
For this event in Palm Beach, Jose combined traditional elements and floral arrangements in keeping with the architectural style to create a memorable party produced by Rafanelli Events, www.rafanellievents.com
Jose states "Every floral designer can produce traditional arrangements. But, not every traditional floral designer can invent modern and progressive arrangements."
Jose also recently produced impressive, traditional-with-a-twist floral designs for a wedding at Vizcaya, the winter home for James Deering. Its architecture and natural, lush gardens provide a stunning backdrop for special events! Thank you to Cristina and Gloria of Cymbidium Events, www.cymbidiumevents.com for choosing Jose Graterol Designs!
Low and high arrangements mixed Spanish traditional elements with a nod to the modern elements, too!
For an event in Washington, D.C., Jose copied the still life painting in the dining room! He combined fruit and flowers in the arrangement. That is a real art and very difficult!
In honor of the upcoming Thanksgiving holiday, we leave you with a traditional table setting with a buffet piece on the buffet. This is Jose Graterol's design, purely interpreted in the colors of the season!
We wish everyone a beautiful Thanksgiving! We have so much to be thankful for this year!
Call us if we can help you out for upcoming holiday decorating, Christmas/Hanukkah/Thanksgiving/New Year's or any upcoming event!
Steve & Jose, 305-788-0562
