Mountain Views News          Saturday, January 1, 2011

13

HOMES AND PROPERTY

 Mountain Views-News Saturday, January 1, 2011 

One Of A Kind: Featuring unique homes and gardens and the people whoe create them Story By Chris Bertrand 


The King of Roses...Jacob Maarse

Last week amidst the busiest season for 
Maarse Florists, Sierra Madrean Jacob 
Maarse, 82, passed away after a short illness. 
Well known to townsfolk, Tournament 
of Roses aficionados, as well as the 
global flower world, Maarse will be missed 
in many quarters.

With the Christmas holidays and round 
the clock Rose Parade preparations in full 
swing, the memorial for Maarse will be delayed 
until 1 p.m. on January 8, to be held at All Saints Episcopal 
Church, 132. N. Euclid Avenue, Pasadena.

Maarse was born into a Dutch flower growing family in the Netherlands 
city of Aalsmeer, the famed site of the world’s largest flower 
auction house, which today sells 20 million flowers daily from 
Monday through Friday.

After a 1940’s horticultural stint in New York, Maarse made his 
way to Pasadena in the 1950’s, working first as floral manager for 
Preble’s Produce, a San Gabriel grocery chain. After fifteen years 
there, he opened his own shop in 1966 at a Green Street location 
now the site of the Pasadena Convention Center. The shop moved 
moving to its current location, 655 E. Green Street, in a building 
that once housed the local Cadillac dealership.

Jacob Maarse left his personal 
stamp on everything he did, 
even growing his own roses for use at the business beginning from 
approximately April to December, each year. Maarse owned three 
acres on Highland in Sierra Madre, and each spring, 500-1000 blossoms 
were cut from his home stock daily during rose season.

Maarse’s distinctive style provided an upscale signature to local 
weddings and events, Hollywood doings, using those “home 
grown” roses plus additional flowers from Ecuador, Holland and 
other flower growing locales… though it was often Maarse’s homegrown 
roses that repeat customers asked for… Jacob’s favorite, the 
fragrance of the Yves Piaget, a peony-like pink frilly rose or the 
knock your socks off red of the Dolly Parton rose or the Bride’s 
Dream. Maarse knew the talents and idiosyncrasies of each, like 
they were his own children. The company stressed that his Sierra 
Madre grown roses, harvested in the early morning, would last longer 
than those shipped for three to four days from other counties 
or countries.

As soon as Maarse landed in Pasadena, he was enchanted by the 
huge scale of the January Rose Parade. He soon set his sights on participation, 
and became an integral part of the floral presentation at 
the Parade and its surrounding festivities for the last three decades. 
Each year, the Rose Parade Court carries Maarse rose bouquets. 

Superlatives abound for the company and persona. LA Magazine 
named him the “Tiffany of the stem world” while Zagat deemed his 
the place to “Buy flowers when invited to the boss’s house. Fabulous. 
Imaginative” Accolades from publication after publication spoke of 
his unusual and exotic designs and offerings, with roses “with heads 
as full as cabbages and stems as big as tree trunks” from the “best 
of” issues of LA Magazine.

Bill Flinn, COO of the Tournament of Roses Association was 
quoted in the LA Times saying, “That was probably the success of 
his business, that his business had his personality in it.”

Maarse transitioned the business to his son in recent years, but 
stilled remained active. Though the signature PT Cruiser “Special 
Delivery” vehicles from Jacob Maarse Florists will continue to 
crisscross southern California filling the big garden clogs of Jacob 
Maarse, he will be very missed. 

For more information on Jacob Maarse Florists, visit their website, 
www.JacobMaarse.com or call 626-449-0246. 

 


Photo courtesy LA Times


Photo by Chris Bertrand

 By Jill Doughtie


The Buyers 
Blueprint

Once you find a home you love and are ready to make the commitment, consider the Offer 
To Purchase as your blueprint for executing a successful transaction. Your real estate 
representative will present your offer to the seller’s agent, and the ball will be rolling.

The most critical elements of your purchase agreement include your proposed offer 
price, what property will be included in the sale, inspection and financing contingencies, 
provisions for the disclosure and repair of any defects, requested seller concessions, your 
deposit or “earnest money” amount, and finally the expiry date of your offer.

Your real estate agent will draft this document with you, explaining all of your options 
and what will happen once the offer is presented. Once the seller reviews your purchase 
agreement, the seller may accept, reject or counter your offer. Any changes that the seller 
or the buyer make to the agreement will be initialed, and the Offer To Purchase will not 
become binding until all parties have signed the document. 

If you don’t want to pay full price, but also don’t want to risk rejection of a low offer, propose 
other terms that will reduce your bottom line, such as a quick closing or offering to buy “as 
is.” Your agent will explain your options and help you present an offer that is most likely 
to be accepted.


Essential Tools For Everyday Repairs

 
(NAPSI)-No matter the age of 
your home, regular maintenance 
is essential for keeping your space 
comfortable and future repair costs 
down. It’s better to address minor 
repairs as they come up, before 
they become big problems. The 
good news is that you don’t need 
a lot of professional tools to get 
the job done. Here are a few favorites 
from Timothy Dahl, founder 
and editor at Charlesand Hudson.
com, which come in handy for 
most home repairs. The website is 
an independent resource for do-
it-yourself enthusiasts seeking the 
latest in home improvement tips 
and techniques as well as the finest 
tools and hottest news in the home 
building industry.

Tool bag-An essential for storing 
your tools so they are protected 
from the elements and easily accessible. 
Searching through drawers 
and boxes for the tool you need 
ASAP isn’t fun. A military-grade 
tool bag from an Army/Navy surplus 
store has plenty of pockets and 
is lightweight and made of durable 
canvas material.

Flashlights-You can’t fix what you 
can’t see, and the Energizer Hard 
Case Professional Inspection Light 
keeps your work space properly illuminated. 
Its white LED is intense 
and the housing is lightweight and 
easy to maneuver into tight spaces. 
With a diameter just over •••”, 
it doesn’t take up a lot of space in 
your tool bag, but is tough enough 
to get jostled around and dropped 
without breaking. 

The company also recently introduced 
the Energizer Hard Case 
Professional Area Light, which 
can mount above workbenches or 
anywhere you’d rather not have to 
run electrical wiring. It also comes 
with a magnetic backing for easy 
mounting under the hood of a car 
or on any metal surfaces.

Screwdrivers—You should have a 
set that includes a variety of lengths 
and diameters of driver heads and 
slot sizes. Choose quality name 
brands such as Stanley or Craftsman 
and make sure the handles are 
comfortable and easy to grip.

Pliers—There is a wide variety of 
pliers designed for various home 
improvement projects, but needle-
nose pliers do the trick most every 
time. Make sure the grip isn’t too 
large to open and close with one 
hand, and a spring-loaded mechanism 
can help for quicker, simpler 
opening.

Hammer—Like pliers, there are 
a multitude of hammers for every 
job. Select a basic eight-ounce 
model that’s easy to swing and has 
a steel head and wood handle for 
better vibration dampening, such 
as those from Estwing. 

Measuring tape—For repairs and 
decorating projects, a measuring 
tape is one of your most important 
tools. A good 24-foot tape should 
handle all your applications. The 
ones from Komelon are especially 
durable and lightweight.

Preparing yourself with the appropriate 
tools before tackling home 
repairs can help you get the job 
done right and with time to spare. 
For the most up-to-date information 
about DIY tool recommendations, 
visit www.charlesandhudson.
com, and for the latest in 
innovative work lights, check out 
www.energizerlights.com.