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It's no secret that Philadelphia puts on a big green show for St. Patrick's Day and between the parade and all the "crawls" everyone is Irish for the day in the City of Brotherly Love. This year kick off the Madness with a St. Patrick's Day Green Carpet for Philadelphia celebrations and get all your decorations from CeremonialSupplies.com. Aside from being the best one-stop online shop on the web for crafted quality groundbreaking shovels (available in gold, chrome and... green!), grand opening ribbons and ceremonial ribbon-cutting scissors (also in green), stanchions and rope, awards and plaques, corporate wear, military medals, flag display cases and many more items, CeremonialSupplies.com has budget friendly prices that are easy on the wallet, and prompt and efficient shipping anywhere in Philadelphia (and the rest of the world) in time to turn your venue... a little jealous on St. Patrick's Day!

For those who want to celebrate the luck of the Irish on St. Patrick's Day in Philadelphia but are tired of having no recollection of any previous Shamrock Crawl adventures and are looking for something a little more intimate, create your own crawl! CeremonialSupplies.com has everything you need for a crawl with a touch of class in your own home, or community venue where event organizers can host hundreds of their most intimate friends and colleagues. Company-employee bonding is usually best during the 4th of July with a wholesome family picnic and evening fireworks, but companies and businesses are also known to gather the troops and their significant others during holidays like Christmas, Hanukkah, Halloween, and yes, St. Patrick's Day too! Whether you've been tasked to decorate the company's conference room, a ballroom venue, or simply the dining room in your home shop CeremonialSupplies.com for everything green you will need:

Decorate the entry way with CeremonialSupplies.com green ceremonial carpet runners. Our 3' wide by 10' long Kelly green aisle runner is on special NOW for $50! This carpet runner is a beautiful Irish accent to any event but particularly perfect for St. Patrick's Day. The 3' X 10' carpet runner is the best size for your average home party, but we also have the deluxe green carpet runner 4' wide carpet runners with lengths of 10, 15, and 20 feet and if you need a customized, bigger size CeremonialSupplies.com has those too. Use classic stanchions either brass or chrome to frame the entryway, or to set up a line queue to the green libations bar! Stanchions and rope can be used for strictly ornamental purposes, or as a crowd management tool to avoid bottle necking at any spot in the venue. Tip: it's usually a good idea to set up the bar at the end of the room - not as you walk in, or in the middle. You want the traffic of people to flow effortlessly. CeremonialSupplies.com also has plastic, weatherproof stanchions and although these hitching post style stanchions don't come in the color green, they are available in white, yellow, and black which can be embellished with green ribbon to match the green carpet and the green cupcakes! To make your official photo area complete, install a step and repeat backdrop where everyone can stand in front of - while they still can - for a photo keepsake of the celebration.

If you're looking to recreate the World Cafe Live style for your St. Patrick's day celebration, you will need a band, all wearing green jackets. We can't help with that, but we can help with silky Irish green ribbons for bow ties! Ribbons are the most versatile decorative items and they can adorn and embellish anything from the ceiling to the furniture and even double as keepsakes when you print them. For ceiling draping you will need a circular disk where you will attach your extra wide ribbons (our favorites!) of your choice of width: 6, 8, 10, or 12 inches wide. The disk is then attached to the ceiling in the center of the room and the wide ribbons draped outward and the ends are either attached and bowed at the corners, or the walls of the room, or allowed to flow freely down from the corners. Either way, silky soft Irish green extra wide ribbons will turn any room into a Celtic dream! To decorate chairs you can either attach the green ribbons to decorate the frame of the chairs, or if the chairs are covered, a green ribbon around the back of the chair, pinned with a green bow will inspire the Leprechaun soul of all the guests!

Whether you are celebrating St. Paddy's Day at home, at a venue, or at the Conshy Corner Tavern or any of the other warm and inviting pubs in Philadelphia during March Madness, shop CeremonialSupplies.com for all your decoration accessories, Go Green! And don't forget to advertise in the Philadelphia Tribune, The Philadelphia Record, The Philadelphia Weekly or any other local paper to spread the word! We ship fast and efficiently anywhere in Philadelphia and the world. Click here for a shipping quote.

Looking for a special gift for a special VIP? What do you get for the construction company's owner, president, or foreman to acknowledge their commitment to an upcoming groundbreaking project? CeremonialSupplies.com has the perfect selection of mini groundbreaking shovels to present to builder's VIPs at a groundbreaking ceremony. CeremonialSupplies.com is the best online shop on the net for groundbreaking shovels, hard hats, shovel display stands and cases, grand opening ribbons, ribbon-cutting scissors, event carpet aisle runners, stanchions and ropes, award plaques and trophies, military ceremony items and many, many more ceremonial supplies. It is here where you will find a wide selection of mini groundbreaking shovels that make a perfect keepsake gift for the construction company or the builders VIPS as part of the acknowledgement presentation at the ceremony.

A groundbreaking ceremony is a big deal! It represents an important landmark in the life of a company or business and just like a grand opening ceremony, it requires detailed planning and a timely checklist for a flawless execution. (For more information about organizing a groundbreaking ceremony click here). This ancient architectural ritual has now become cool again and event planners and organizers are receiving more requests for arranging groundbreaking ceremonies than they did ten, or even five years ago. The rising popularity of groundbreaking ceremonies is directly related to its advertising and promotional value. It is yet another event that when planned and executed correctly, will yield an enormous marketing edge, especially when the media is involved. CeremonialSupplies.com understands this and we take great pride in providing all the essential items to make a groundbreaking ceremony an event at the level of a grand premiere. From groundbreaking shovels, hard hats, groundbreaking kits, and shovel stands and cases to grand opening ribbons, ribbon-cutting ceremonial scissors, event carpet aisle runners, military medals, flags, and flag display cases and more! Including mini shovels to present to builders, owners, or construction companies VIPs as a keepsake memento of the grand event!

After all the prerequisites have been completed, including land purchasing (or even leasing in some cases) and completing the project's financing, the next part is selecting a contractor or builder. Some companies request a bidding process, others know exactly who they want erecting their structure, either way, the responsibility of building is a serious one. Construction management companies such as Turner Construction, AECOM Tishman, New Line Structures and Development, and Gilbane Building Company - all headquartered in New York, NY, are reputable companies that have established a complete network nationally, and in many cases internationally. The groundbreaking ceremony may be something the builder or contractor will take on, but regardless who throws the groundbreaking ceremony, people who were instrumental in taking the project from paper to materialization, should be honored.

Mini groundbreaking shovels are perfect keepsakes for those VIPs! The they stand 26" H x 6" W (at the blade) and can be customized. The mini customized shovel can show a logo or commemorative date on the blade and presented to one or more VIP as an acknowledgement, along with a plaque, or by itself. Full size ceremonial shovels (42" H x 9" W) can also be customized and presented as keepsakes, especially if these are the shovels actually used at the sod-cutting. Choosing the right keepsake, souvenir, or memento of the groundbreaking ceremony is all a matter of taste, and budget. CeremonialSupplies.com offers top of the line quality, at budget friendly prices to make your event shine, and the mini shovels are priced to be accessible to everyone. The mini shovels can be ordered in a variety of colors, as well as the traditional chrome shovel head. The color mini shovels are particularly popular for company's whose logo or brand are easily recognized by their colors, as in Coca Cola red and white, or BMW's blue and white, etc. The color associated with the product, brand, or company is used to further the promotional impact of the event through photographs and videos.

Using mini shovels to present to the key people responsible for carrying out the project is a great way to recognize the value they've brought to the project, and acknowledging this fact. Shop CeremonialSupplies.com for the best quality mini shovels for groundbreaking ceremonies gifts and souvenirs. You will love our product selection, our friendly prices, knowledgeable customer service and our fast and efficient shipping wherever you are in the world! Click here for shipping quote.

They are 26" tall with a 6" wide steel blade shovel head and available in red, blue, yellow, orange, green, pink, black, and teal from CeremonialSupplies.com. The mini groundbreaking shovels are a hit in South Florida events and we think we know why.

South Florida is not just the playground of the Rich and Famous. The hot sun and fun waves attract tourists of every walk of life and from all corners of the world - especially from right here in our own good ol' USA where young families' first vacations take the path South to Orlando and the beaches from Cocoa Beach and famed Daytona, down to West Palm, Boca, Ft. Lauderdale, Hollywood, and Miami Beach. The general idea is for the family vacation not to just end as far south as Orlando but to feel the attraction of Miami Dade County! For this, there must be worthwhile enjoyment for young children and kids. Leadership in Miami Dade County has identified this need and children's attractions have been popping up everywhere in the Magic City. From the Miami Children's Museum, Parrot Jungle Island and the Seaquarium in Virginia Key, to Wynwood Walls, Venetian Pool, and Zoo Miami, kids attractions in South Florida are quickly gaining on popularity over adult entertainment. We think it's great! In fact, we're hoping for more!

With every new attraction or new development that has kids in mind there will surely be a groundbreaking ceremony - considering that Miami Dade County does love traditional ceremonies, protocol, and the like. So far in the last couple of years we've seen the groundbreaking ceremony for the Miami Dade Public Library system brand in Hialeah Gardens, the transformation of the Miami Beach Convention Center surface parking lot into a 5.8-acre park featuring open lawn spaces, shade areas, walkways and bike paths, a veterans memorial and public art, and the upcoming groundbreaking ceremony on February 26 for the Overtown Youth Center in historic Overtown, Miami. This is where CeremonialSupplies.com comes in with the best, hands down, groundbreaking mini shovels available online! You heard right. Why are our ceremonial groundbreaking mini shovels the best? It has to do with the quality of the materials and their budget friendly prices, and the colorful assortment to choose from! Not just that, but you can have the mini steel shovels customized just like the full size ceremonial shovels. When digging first ground in children's attractions and parks, you can be sure there will be plenty of little hands ready to strike dirt and toss it around. CeremonialSupplies.com mini groundbreaking shovels are the perfect size for the little folks and with our variety of colorful shovel heads in red, blue, yellow, orange, green, pink, black, and teal, you can have a rainbow effect coupled with color matching bows and balloons, or you can pick and match as you wish. The many children's attractions in South Florida are certainly a factor in the popularity of our mini groundbreaking shovels, but here's one more thing we've been noticing too:

Mini Groundbreaking Shovels Are A Great Keepsake For VIPs!

A groundbreaking is a momentous occasion in the life of a company or an important public building structure. The main persons involved, be it the Owner, CEO, top-tier management, Developer or the Construction company, (or all) will most likely receive an award or a plaque - and we have those too! - or a similar memento to keep and display in recognition of the event. Mini groundbreaking shovels are a great keepsake for VIPs because they can be ordered to represent a miniature replica of the full size ceremonial shovel (which measures 42" in height with a 9.5" shovel blade) and can be customized with a commemorative message, and displayed in an office or conference room as a lasting keepsake of the important event.

Mini groundbreaking shovels can be customized on the stem and on the color blade and the look is stunning! Which is exactly what you want for photos and videos. As South Florida continues to grow both for tourists and locals, shop CeremonialSupplies.com for the best mini groundbreaking shovels that will be a hit with kids, and are the ideal size for a keepsake to be presented to important VIPs. You will love our quality, our budget friendly prices and our prompt and efficient shipping wherever you are in the Sunshine State! Click here for a shipping quote.

Business apparel and corporate clothing for ceremonial events are not just for big brand names anymore! It used to be that polo shirts with branded logos and similar corporate clothing hand-embroidered with the company or brand logo for conferences, conventions, or sales meetings were presented to each participant as a special gift and worn on special occasions. Today, the process of machine embroidery for corporate apparel as well as refined printing for lighter materials such as safety vests and t-shirts makes it possible for small businesses and global conglomerates alike to use branded apparel for efficiency and team building. CeremonialSupplies.com understands this and as the best online store supplier of quality corporate branded wearables, our selection meets all the exacting demands of business professionals by offering top quality, comfortable and elegant items to enhance a corporate wardrobe. Hand embroidery has been around since ancient times, but the process was costly and time consuming. Today, automated embroidery machines have put a new spin on logo or brand embroidery and have opened up the benefits of Corporate wearables to small businesses and large corporations alike.

The Ceremonial Deluxe Oxford Non-Iron Shirt for Men is elegant, lightweight, and 100% cotton. This cotton material has a wrinkle-resistant finish with pucker-free taped seams and rounded adjustable cuffs that makes this sharp, long sleeve shirt perfect for a ceremonial groundbreaking event. Emphasizing a company or brand embroidered logo using state of the arts embroidery machines and digitizing software, the ceremonial deluxe oxford non-iron shirt for men combines the distinctive oxford style club shirt with the stylishness of embroidery - which is still perceived today as a staple of corporate class. Add to that the convenience of wearing your shirt right off the hanger without the need to iron, and look sharply tailored as you confidently step up to the groundbreaking shovels to dig first dirt and be photographed and videotaped for the company newsletter as well as any media coverage the event will receive. Where in the past suits and ties and pant suit or skirt and blazer sets were the traditional dress for a corporate groundbreaking event, a high quality, comfortable and elegant deluxe Oxford shirt with an embroidered company logo will have the benefit of uniformity, and promotional value with the company's or brand's logo featured in photos and videos. And ladies, the Ceremonial Deluxe Oxford Non-Iron Shirt for Women has all the fine points and qualities of the men's shirt, but with tapered pleats that favor a woman's curvier figure. The women's Deluxe pinpoint Oxford shirt is light and comfortable and features pucker-free tapered seams, shirttail hem, button-down collar, a left chest pocket and back box pleat as well. Ladies, look like the boss while wearing a fine quality Deluxe Oxford shirt with embroidered logo and hold a ceremonial groundbreaking shovel for photos and videos, feeling as fresh and comfortable as a daisy!

The Oxford Look at an Efficient Price!

CeremonialSupplies.com understands that when it comes to supplying dress shirts for an entire workforce, pricing is an important consideration. Many business and companies shy away from the benefits of corporate wear because this is perceived as a costly exercise, however the benefits of corporate wear far outweigh the apparent drawback. For those who want the Oxford look at an efficient price, CeremonialSupplies.com has the Ceremonial Personalized Classic Oxford Shirt for men, and for women. This long-sleeve shirt has the same elegant cut as the Ceremonial Deluxe Oxford shirt, with wrinkle-resistant material blend of 60/40 cotton and polyester. This long sleeve traditional club shirt is a great piece for all professionals and is perfect for use during conventions, conferences, and any group event where a team is seen as a whole. The color of the shirt with the embroidered logo make the personnel stand out and this is a strength for any business or company. The traditional, classic Oxford clue shirt is stylish and elegant and can be worn either with classy slacks, or a skirt and works great for groundbreaking or grand opening ceremonies too!

Outdoor Summer Corporate Events? Here's What to Wear!

There's no denying that stylish corporate clothing creates unity and confidence when professionals participate as a team in industry conventions, sales conferences, and ceremonial events like an official groundbreaking or grand opening ceremonies, but when you're outdoor holding a groundbreaking shovel or ceremonial ribbon-cutting scissors, you'll want the same stylish elegance in a comfortable polo shirt! If you're wondering what's the best corporate attire for an outdoor summer corporate event, here's what to wear:

CeremonialSupplies.com is proud to offer the Ceremonial Personalized Nike Polo Shirt for Men and Women, made specifically to keep you dry and comfortable outdoors in the heat of summer. The material is the proprietary Nike Dri-FIT micro-pique technology, 100% polyester. These classy polo shirts can be embroidered for customization for maximum impact and the men's polo shirt has a flat knit collar with a three-button placket and open hem short sleeves. The women's Ceremonial Personalized Ladies Nike Polo Shirt features a tailored fit with a Johnny collar and open hem short sleeves. The personalized polo shirts from CeremonialSupplies.com have a Dri-FIT fabric that provides maximum moisture management technology to keep you cool and comfortable for any event where you must look your best! match groundbreaking shovel color or grand opening ribbon and giant scissor handles color with your company or brand colors and unify the entire theme by matching your slick and stylish personalized polo shirt! The Personalized Nike Polo Shirt pairs perfectly with casual khaki slacks or skirt for a groundbreaking or grand opening event, and with Bermuda shorts for more casual corporate or business events like a family picnic.

Printed Ceremonial T-Shirts and Safety Vests

All good companies and corporations understand the value of a good team. This is the reason why so many businesses organize events such as company picnics, corporate marathons, and special days when employees and their families get together. For these events, CeremonialSupplies.com offers the printed Ceremonial T-shirt in styles for men and women. The fabric is 100% ring spun combed cotton combined with polyester and is light and airy while maintaining long-lasting quality. The slimming body, short sleeves and rib knit neck with shoulder to shoulder taping provides a great fit and a company logo or brand name can be prominently displayed in the front and back.

Most ceremonial groundbreaking events are organized by the developers or the construction company that will be building the structure, and at these events you not only have the principals in attendance, but also many of the project's overseers, foreman, and other on-site supervisors will surely be present. To identify personnel at a groundbreaking ceremony and use during the actual construction, CeremonialSupplies.com has a selection of Dual-color Safety Vests that are made from 100% polyester ANSI/ISEA 107 Class 2 certified safety vests with contrast binding, vision zipper and 2" wide reflective taping front and back. These durable and sturdy safety vests are available in yellow with orange trim, or in orange with yellow trim and include 2 chest pockets and 1 lower left pocket and can be customized with your brand or logo on the back of the vest. In addition to the dual-color safety vest we also offer the Lightweight Standard Safety Vest which is super lightweight at 6oz, and the fabric is a breathable mesh of 100% polyester in neon yellow with vertical and horizontal reflective silver grey tape and an outside left pocket and an inside pocket on the bottom right side of vest. This lightweight standard safety vest can also be customized with the company logo on the back.

Whatever your corporate wear needs are, shop CeremonialSupplies.com for the best quality long sleeve deluxe and classic Oxford club shirts, dri-FIT embroidered polo shirts, lightweight t-shirts and safety vests, all at budget friendly prices and shipped efficiently and promptly wherever you are in the world! Click here for a shipping quote!

February 14, Valentine's Day, is celebrated in the US and in Australia, Canada, France, Mexico, the United Kingdom and other parts of Europe. The origins of the day are muddled and obscured since the original festivity, which is seeped in an ancient ritual of rebirth, fertility, and growth clashed strongly with the traditions imposed by the Catholic church during the "christianization" of Rome. CeremonialSupplies.com, the best one-stop shop on the web for all things ceremonial - groundbreaking shovels and hard hats, shovel display stands and cases, ceremonial ribbon-cutting scissors, grand opening ribbons, military decorations and gifts, corporate clothing, and many more, is proud to bring you this brief and concise history of Valentine's Day.

Valentine's Day Started With The Festival of Lupercalia

The festival of Lupercalia was an annual festival celebrated in ancient Rome and was held between the 13 - 15 of February. Some scholars claim Lupercalia is a pastoral festival, meaning it is related to pastures, land, and farming and very likely originated even before the founding of Rome when early man experienced the coming and going of the seasons and held rituals he believed would influence the weather patterns. The month of February falls in the peak of winter. Anyone who has lived outside the tropics understands the barren landscape of winter - a season associated by the ancients with death and rebirth. The Lupercalia was a major organization that operated like a cult, with its own priesthood called 'the Luperci' who was formed by men between the ages of 20 and 40 and divided into two religious associations; the Quinctiliani, a patrician family of Rome whose members held high offices in the State, and the Fabiani, the most ancient family of Rome. It is interesting to note that during the time of Julius Caesar in 44 BC a third institute was created and called Juliani in honor of Julius Caesar and its first magistrate was Mark Antony. The Juliani was disbanded after Caisar's assassination. The priesthood of the Luperci conducted with great pomp, a sacrificial ritual that entailed the killing of a male goat and a dog at the Lupercal altar. The ceremony was carried out under the supervision of the chief priest. When the blood sacrifice was completed, two members of the Luperci were anointed on their forehead with the blood from the knife used to kill the animals, and then wiped clean. The two chosen members were then expected to laugh. This ended the ritual and opened the official feast during which the Luperci men cut strings or pieces of hide fiber (called februa) from the skin of the sacrificed animals and ran naked (and most assuredly drunk) within the city limits while whipping women who would literally line up for the men to hit them as they believed this would make them fertile. The celebration included a matchmaking ritual in which unmarried men drew the names of unmarried women from an urn and the two were paired for the duration of the festival, or longer if the match was successful. Some of these matches ultimately ended in marriage.

Pregnant women would get in the way of the naked men to be struck with the bloody piece of animal skin as a way of assuring a safe delivery. We know this through the writings of the ancient historian Plutarch who describes Lupercalia: "...many of the noble youths and magistrates run up and down through the city naked, for sport and laughter striking those they met with shaggy thongs. And many women of rank also purposely get in their way, and like children at school present their hands to be struck, believing that the pregnant will thus be helped in delivery, and the barren to pregnancy."

The Catholic Church Outlaws Lupercalia

Pope Gelasius was the head of the Catholic Church from AD 492 to 496 a time considered as the cusp between late antiquity and the early middle ages. He is responsible for banning the festival of Lupercalia and instead combined the martyrdom of at least four men - supposedly all named Valentine and executed by Emperor Claudius around the year AD 270, with the debaucherous festival. According to the "Acta Sanctorum" or "Lives of the Saints" there were several "Valentini" named men who were killed during this time. One was a priest who married Christian couples and helped Christians who were being persecuted and was beheaded by order of Emperor Claudius for refusing to denounce Christ. Another is said to have died in Africa; the third was beheaded for performing a miracle upon an aristocratic family named Asterius, and yet another one was the bishop of Terni who also cured and converted an unbeliever and was also beheaded. Throughout history scholars have dissected the story of St. Valentine's and have suggested there was actually just one Valentine who was beheaded but different stories surfaced about him. There are others who are skeptical that any Valentine ever existed at all and the observance of St. Valentine's day on February 14 was a way for the Catholic church to put a somber note and discourage the reckless sensual pleasures of Lupercalia. Regardless, none of these legends are remotely romantic.

Thank Chaucer, Shakespeare and Cadbury for the Romance in Valentine's Day

More than a thousand years after the festival of Lupercalia was outlawed by the church and replaced instead by the observance of the gory death of one Valentine who may, or may not have lived, the English poet Geoffrey Chaucer, author of "The Canterbury Tales" mentions the February feast of St. Valentine's in connection with the mating of birds and wrote, "For this was on seynd Volantynys day. Whan every bryd comyth there to chese his make." in his poem called "Parlement of Foules." Apparently, birds in England mated during February and this inspired European nobility to send love notes during bird-mating season and in fact, in February of 1415 the Duke of Orleans during his imprisonment in the Tower of London wrote to his wife calling her his "very gentle Valentine." The connection with love birds and February 14 continued and even Shakespeare includes it in Act IV, Scene 5 of "Hamlet" as Ophelia, already losing her mind sings: "To-morrow is Saint Valentine's day, all in the morning bedtime, and I a maid at your window, to be your Valentine."

As time passed St. Valentine's day made its way to the New World and had now become a bit more sweet than its origin, while becoming increasingly popular throughout Europe. February 14 became a day to exchange love notes, poems, and handmade paper cards until eventually in 1913, Hallmark began mass production of Valentine's Day cards and ushered the commercialized big business that the holiday is today.

Dropping the "Saint," Valentine's Day is celebrated today in a big way. As soon as New Year decorations come down, Valentine's Day ones come up. Businesses, shops, office cubicles, and homes everywhere bring out the hearts, the cupids and the red and pink bows as gifts of cards, love notes, candy, chocolates, jewelry and sexy undergarments fly off the shelves. Ironically, over the passage of time, there is more of a trace of the sensual paganism with which the holiday originated and less of the gory details, which have survived. We at CeremonialSupplies.com love the idea of celebrating Valentine's Day in grand style! We'll provide the red carpet and stanchions, the red and pink ribbons, banners, and bows, a step and repeat for your official photo of the event, and you create the version of Valentine's Day that inspires you most! See our other blogs for ideas on ceiling draping, ribbon banners, extra-wide ribbons colorful table runners, and much more! Happy Valentine's Day, with love, from CeremonialSupplies.com! Contact us here for questions or shipping quotes and let Cupid's arrow fly!

The history of Valentine's Day is muddled and confusing - a bit like Love, the emotion associated with red, hearts, and Cupid drawing his bow. It's celebrated every February 14 in the United States and in other places around the world as loved ones exchange candy, flowers, chocolates and gifts - all tied up in silky red ribbons, romantic soft pink ribbons, or energetic and vibrant hot pink ribbons! Florida is known as a lovers paradise and cities like St. Augustine, Orlando, Ft. Lauderdale, and Miami are favorite destinations for tying the pink (or red) knot or to honeymoon. CeremonialSupplies.com, the best online one-stop shop for ceremonial ribbons, grand opening scissors, groundbreaking shovels, military decor, and many more ceremonial supplies, is shipping enough ribbons to the magic city that red and pink ceremonial ribbons will shower Valentine's Day in Miami!

But, who was this mysterious saint and how did these traditions develop? We do know that February has long been celebrated as a month of romance and St. Valentine's Day as it is today contains traces of Christian and pagan traditions of ancient Rome. The Catholic Church recognizes three different saints named Valentinus or Valentine and many people believe Valentine's Day commemorates the martyrdom of one, or all three of these saints. However it is more likely that the church, in order to "christianize" the pagan celebration of "Lupercalia," a fertility festival dedicated to Faunus, the Roman god of agriculture celebrated on February 15 (in the middle of barren winter) created St. Valentine's Day.

Lupercalia included a ceremony where unmarried young men and women would be paired through a lottery-type ritual and would go on to spend the following year together, usually ending in marriage. Christians were of course, appalled, but the festival was so popular that even though it was outlawed during the rise of Christianity, the Catholic church ended up declaring February 14 St. Valentine's Day and during the Middle Ages the day became associated with love. During the rise of South Beach in the 1980's, St. Valentine's reverted back to its original pagan mating ritual and since then Miami has laid out the red carpet to promote events and festivities surrounding St. Valentine's day decking businesses, shops and public streets with red, pink and white banners and ribbons advertising these.

The Versatility of Colorful Red, Pink and White Ribbons For Valentine's Day

CeremonialSupplies.com has every ribbon color under the rainbow, but for February 14 the versatility of colorful red, pink and white ribbons are in hot demand! Whether to drape the ceiling of a venue, to use as table runners, decorate dressed chairs, personalize and attach to balloons, or simply to wrap around a box of flowers or a box of chocolates, a red ribbon or pink ribbon will allow you the creativity to decorate at your creativity's desire! Our silky Red and Hot Pink ceremonial ribbons have the perfect shades to symbolize love, passion, romance and desire and combining these color ribbons in extra-wide size for ceiling draping a room or ballroom will bring the decor tightly together. If the goal is to create a shower of ribbons, you can hang 2.25 inches width hot pink ribbon with white and red 4 inches wide ribbon and by spacing them in a 4 foot line formation say, over a dance floor, or around the perimeter of a room, you will create a different effect that is still colorfully symbolic of St. Valentine's theme colors.

Top Off Your St. Valentine's Day Celebration With a Red or Pink Carpet Runner!

There's no better day to roll out the hot pink carpet than on Valentine's Day! Create your own step and repeat and stage a fully decorated area for official photos or videos of your event by setting up a step and repeat backdrop with your choice of message of love, or the monogram of the celebrating love birds, and place a red or hot pink carpet in front - completely decked out with classic stanchions and rope, balloons, bows and all the trimmings! Shop CeremonialSupplies.com for red carpet or hot pink aisle runners, classic stanchions and rope, and 8 x 8 or larger step and repeat backdrop. In addition to your decorative St. Valentine's Day ribbons throughout the venue, an area for the official photo can be creatively set up for an unforgettable St. Valentine's Day celebration in Miami, Ft. Lauderdale, Orlando, St. Augustine, or any other love destination in the world! Click here for a shipping quote, and let Cupid's arrow fly!

Valentine's Day is a big theme every year in the city that never sleeps and CeremonialSupplies.com has the most versatile red and pink ceremonial ribbons to decorate Valentine's Day events in New York City. Ribbons, the most versatile decorative items in existence, are essential for the embellishment of any theme. From draping the ceiling to bring together an area, to table runners, keepsake mementos, and ornamental touches to bring out a theme color on a flower bouquet, and many more uses, ribbons consolidate the color theme of an event. This is why red and pink ceremonial ribbons are indispensable when creating a Valentine's Day themed event in NYC or anywhere else in the world!

The color red falls in the category of warm colors that suggest fire, sun, action, and excitement. Red is symbolic of passion and drama and associated with strong emotions such as love and anger. It's a stimulating, exciting and vibrant color that inspires desire and is strongly linked to sexuality. The color red represents luck and prosperity in Chinese culture, and overall it is the color most associated with love and passion - the emotions that we relate to Valentine's Day! CeremonialSupplies.com has the truest, brightest red color ribbon ideal to convey the sentiment of Love, and NYC's nickname "The Big Apple," which came about in the 1970's with the visual of a big, red apple - considered a special desirability (again red, symbolizes great desires). The Red Grand Opening Ribbon comes in widths of 4, 6, and 8 inches which can be customized for a grand opening ceremony with a repeated logo, text, or message throughout the length of the spool of ribbon that can be 12, 25 or 50 yards. The larger the grand opening entrance, the wider the ribbon should be so that the text can be easily read on photos and videos. We also have the red grand opening ribbon in extra-wide size of 10 and 12 inches, and this size ribbon can also be personalized and used as vertical ribbon banners because of their extra-width. Valentine's Day takes place during the winter month of February, and velvet, which is a wintery material is popular for adorning gifts. The Ceremonial Red Velvet Grand Opening Ribbon is a beautiful touch of embellishment for decorating the day of love - it is 4 inches wide and 25 yards long and can be personalized. The 2.25 inches Ceremonial Decorative Ribbon in a rich Hot Pink is a silk ribbon with the perfect width for wrapping a box of lusciously decadent chocolates, sexy undergarments, a box of roses, or any other gift item celebrating the day of love! It's also our most popular ribbon for printing a keepsake message or a commemorative date on the ribbon which will double as decoration for flowers, balloons, and the like and also a keepsake that guests can take with them.

Ceremonial Red & Pink Ribbon for Ceiling Ribbon Draping

Love and romance are exquisitely symbolized with the colors red and pink, and extra-wide ceremonial red or pink ceiling draping ribbon of 8, 10, or 12 inches are perfect for draping the ceiling of any room, including ballrooms, to create a total, tight ambiance. To drape ceiling, you will need a ceiling draping hoop where the extra wide ribbon is attached to and then flows outward from the center of the room. A red, pink, and white combination of 6 or 8 inch ribbons will create a wonderful illusion in a smaller size venue, and the same combination in 8 or 10 inch ribbons will be impressive for a ballroom.

The 8 and 10 inch ribbons are also used to decorate the backside of covered chairs, further emphasizing the themed colors of the event. Mixing and matching among the three color ribbon red, pink, and white add a lively touch to the overall room decor. The 12 inch extra-wide ribbons are used for ceiling ribbon draping of large grand ballrooms. This brings the room ambiance together nicely. The 12 inch extra-wide ribbons are also customizable and can be used as a heraldic flag or gonfalon style banner sporting for example, the monogram of a newlywed couple (Valentine's Day is a favorite wedding day all over the world and not just in NYC!)

Valentine's Day is right around the corner and NYC is a top destination for lovers honeymoon or proposals, and you can bet that every area from Manhattan, Brooklyn, Staten Island, Queens, and the Bronx will be steeped in red passion and pink romance decorations to celebrate the day of Love. Red ribbons, pink ribbons, white ribbons and more; easily customized and shipped anywhere you are in NYC or the world! You will love the budget-friendly prices, attentive customer service and our fast and efficient shipping (Click here for a shipping quote). Shop CeremonialSupplies.com for the finest decorative ceremonial ribbons available on the net and let your love flow!

Whether you're Irish, a Leprechaun, or just love the luck of the Irish and want to be one for a day, "Go Green" in Chicago this St. Patrick's with green event carpets and more when you organize a St. Patrick's Day celebration! Everyone loves a good St. Patrick's day party, especially Chicago! The holiday is so big in the windy city that it is a week long celebration that includes the green dyeing of the Chicago river just in time for the parade! The parade runs on two sides of Chicago and the Chicago Tribune is the best source of information for route, times, etc. However, if big crowds aren't for you but you still want to feel Irish, or if you're organizing a private or corporate event in Chicago that happens to fall on St. Patrick's Day, have we got plenty of green for you at CeremonialSupplies.com!

St. Patrick's Day is just around the corner and it's time to bring out the green and dress up the venues! Whether you are planning an intimate rowdy celebration at home or you'll be taking the party to a venue, CeremonialSupplies.com is the best place on the net to find all the products you need for traditional ceremonies such as groundbreakings, grand openings and ribbon-cutting events, military ceremonies, proms and graduations, and supplies for other celebratory events. The holiday began originally as a religious celebration in observance of the death of Saint Patrick, the patron saint of Ireland credited with driving away all the snakes from the plush green island. Although the holiday was originally celebrated in Ireland, the US has celebrated St. Patrick's Day even before its independence from England. The first St. Patrick's Day in North America took place in Boston when some 40 people who had emigrated from the north of Ireland gathered to honor St. Patrick and establish the "Charitable Irish Society" meant to assist the Irish in the city of Boston. The Charitable Irish Society is the oldest Irish organization in North America and still holds an annual dinner every St. Patrick's Day! Today the holiday is celebrated all over the world, from Canada to Argentina, Germany to Montserrat, and Mexico to India. However, the largest St. Patrick's Day celebration in the world takes place in Chicago, with over 2 million people in attendance. If you're going to "Go Green" this March, shop CeremonialSupplies.com for all the trimmings!

Step onto a luxurious green carpet that features a filament of 100% nylon threads and dazzle your guests as they make their way into the celebration. CeremonialSupplies.com offers the choice of the Deluxe Green Ceremonial Event Carpet Runner available in widths of 3' - 4' and lengths of 10' up to 50' - and if your event requires larger or more customized dimensions, CeremonialSupplies.com can make that happen too. Another choice is the Standard Green Ceremonial Carpet Runner in bright, Irish kelly-green, pre-cut and trimmed in widths of 3' and 4' and 10, 15, and 20 feet length. Plush and elegant, the Deluxe and Standard green carpet runners available from CeremonialSupplies.com will give your St. Patrick's event a glamorous look!

Go green with the versatile green ceremonial ribbon available in spools of 2.5" width up to 12" and customize with a St. Patrick's Day message stamped across the entire length of the ribbon - 10, 12, 15, 20, or 25 yard spools! Every special event deserves special decorations and ceremonial ribbons that feature a special message printed repetitively throughout the ribbon's length. Ribbons are incredibly versatile decorating tools and only your imagination will be the limit to what you can do! From ceiling streaming to table top runners, different sizes or extra-wide size green ribbon will bring unity and continuity to your St. Patrick's day celebration!

Lucky a corporate event that falls on St. Patrick's Day! You'll love the green carpets, green aisle runners and the stanchions and rope that go along with these, the green ribbons for decorating a room, a table, the refreshment station, or even as a sash across your chest - with up to 25 yards spool available you'll have plenty of green ribbon to make everything Irish! Are you holding a groundbreaking ceremony? Well, you're in luck! Our colorful groundbreaking shovels with green blade and handle are perfect for your St. Patrick's groundbreaking celebration.

Whatever your event is on St. Patrick's, whether a corporate function or just an Irish shenanigan for your closest best one-hundred friends (who are Irish too - at least for the day!) shop CeremonialSupplies.com for all your green needs! And to make your posh St. Patrick's Day celebration complete, include a step and repeat banner and create a beautiful photo staging opportunity. Don't forget to advertise your event in the Chicago Tribute or the Chicago Sun-Times, and have the revelers make a crawl stop at your event. For unbeatable prices, crafted quality products, great customer service and fast and efficient shipping get all your ceremonial decorations at CeremonialSupplies.com. Click here for a shipping quote.