• Flowers Of The World

  800-770-3125; flowersoftheworld.com

  If your corner office or classic six begs for something a little more dramatic than deli dahlias—and you’re not the type to get out the shears and floral clay yourself—a weekly floral-delivery service will keep you in blooms. In the business for 50 years, Flowers of the World owner Peter Grontas delivers weekly arrangements to the city’s best hotels (the Waldorf, the Ritz-Carlton) and corporations (Merrill Lynch, the New York Stock Exchange), as well as to the homes of stylish big shots like Tommy and Ralph. Grontas builds non-fussy, naturalistic arrangements: “We stay away from filler and greens,” he says. “That sort of nonsense detracts from the beauty and the simplicity.” (Grontas's hot selections right now: mini calla lilies, peonies, and hydrangeas.) Subscriptions start at about $75 a week for, say, a six-inch glass vase with hydrangea and calla lilies, and go up to about $450. The best part? Someone will come by at least once a week to change the water and replace early wilters.

From the 2004 Best of New York issue of New York Magazine