Flowers by Special Arrangement 243 West 60th Street, Manhattan, New York,

"We used this florist for our wedding last spring, and it was a truly awful experience that left us deeply disappointed and feeling completely ripped off. Our initial impressions of Shula were very positive – she was prompt and attentive, and seemed understanding of what we wanted, which was specifically an installation of greenery to go over a railing. We sent diagrams showing exactly where and how it should be placed. Shula went to the venue and met with our coordinator specifically for the purpose of discussing the logistics of how to attach the installation to the wall. But then she apparently decided that she could not in fact do what we discussed, and did not ever communicate this to us. Not one word. Instead, I had to be blindsided on my wedding day. Upon arriving at our venue, I was in complete shock. My first thought is that she had gotten us confused with another wedding, because there was nothing about the awful arbor there that resembled what we were expecting. Not the right structure, not the right greenery, not the right flowers. I cannot imagine how she could possibly have thought it was acceptable. There was never supposed to be a free-standing structure at all. We wanted a natural feeling installation of mostly greenery that climbed over the railing and hung down over both sides. We explained that we wanted to get married in front of the railing, and needed guests on BOTH sides to be able to see us. The structure she placed COMPLETELY OBSTRUCTED the spot where we planned to say our vows. And the arbor frame – made of tubing covered with scrunched white satin that looked like something from a cheap Las Vegas wedding chapel – was absolutely not discussed and not something we would ever have agreed to. It was in fact my literal worst nightmare. I cannot emphasize enough how tacky this was – the excessively visible tubing structure stuck into what looked like two upside down buckets draped in even more tacky fabric. I was so embarrassed to have this at my wedding. I paid to have it edited out of our wedding photos. I would have paid even more to have not had it there at all. The flowers and greenery she did provide where not at all what we had discussed. Most disappointing to me was the lack of any eucalyptus, both in the installation and especially in my bouquet. That is the one thing I was clear about from the beginning that I wanted, and it was included on our quote, on our invoice, in the photo of a sample bouquet, and then on my wedding day there was not a stem in sight. We have never received an explanation for this. In fact, Shula has provided no explanation for any of this, and beyond an initial “sorry you were disappointed,” has not replied to emails sent by my husband and me or answered any of our direct questions regarding what happened. Apparently once our check cleared, she was done pretending to care. At the end of the day, the words from our invoice state: “Installation designed along the railing.” If this was not something she was able to do, she should have NOT have agreed to do it. This was a total bait and switch. She absolutely should have communicated with us beforehand that she could not execute our vision and given us the opportunity to decide what we wanted to do given her limited abilities. I feel completely robbed, both of an obscene amount of money, and of the aesthetic I dreamed of for my wedding. We paid a total of $8,000 – for the installation (that never happened), my bouquet, my father’s boutonniere, and my mother’s awkward, unwearable wrist corsage. For that amount of money, I would expect a superior experience. What we received instead was no communication prior to the wedding that our expectations would not be met, and no communication afterwards answering any of our questions or making any effort to do anything to make up for the complete disaster that was our customer experience. I would advise anyone considering giving this florist your business to run in the opposite direction."

"Your money would be better spent at a bodega than this florist. My partner came in here stating that he wanted to spend $50-70 for a bouquet for me. The clerk agreed and went to grab a few stems. When he rang it up the total was over $100, for 3 wilted sunflowers and a few branches. To completely disregard the customer’s budget is already unacceptable, but to sell the attached for double is insulting. I went back and they replaced with an improvement but inappropriate for the occasion. They looked like get well soon flowers and lasted only 3 days, but I couldn’t be bothered to return."

"Im a plant lover and i went to this shop for 1 orchid they where 25 but i ended up getting 2 one if them had mealybugs it spread too the second one i should have returned it but i was leaving the next day back too florida so i didntt i personally think there is more better florist and healthier orchids without any bugs."

"What a lovely locally-owned flower shop on the upper West side (near Amsterdam Ave) and just a quick walk from any nearby subway stop. Their selection is exquisite and the staff is incredibly helpful and kind. Ask for Shula, as she’s extraordinarily knowledgeable, a great conversationalist, as well as exceptionally kind. This is a wonderful local establishment in Manhattan, and I will be back for any floral arrangements needs in the future!"

"I ordered arrangements for my engagement during the pandemic. First, i want to say that I got incredible customer service, it really went above and beyond (great attitude, working with me on budget, personalization of the arrangements, flexibility on delivery, and arranging the flowers in my apartment!!!). Second the arrangements were absolutely stunning - my fiance was floored when she saw them!!! Shula, thank you very much for the incredible service and arrangements! Look forward to working together in the future."