Friday, January 29, 2010

First Anniversary Idea


Paper is the traditional first anniversary gift. A client wanted to give his wife something pretty, lasting and made with paper, following tradition. This is what I came up with. I used a sweet little trunk and filled it with hand made paper and button flowers.

I find these little suitcase/trunks all over the place from vintage stores to good will shelves.

I would love to use a sleek looking trunk/vintage makeup case or a very small, dark leather suitcase (the one seen here is only 12 inches long) for an order. I could use copies of wedding reception menus, your invitations, any paper! then create a simple and elegant little arrangement. The arrangement could be sweet and playful, like the one seen above or it could easily be made to look sleek and upscale by using a dark leather trunk with crisp, monotone papers and beautiful marble or shell produced buttons (I have those by the way ;)

I also have a vast collection of my own papers from abroad, vintage store wallpapers or even the newspaper from the day you were married! The possibilities are endless. Of course, the buttons are all from antique stores, thrift, etc., as well. Yes, I realize I have a vintage store shopping addiction.

Sunday, January 17, 2010

My Support Team

I would like to thank some very special people in my life who have made it possible for me to accomplish my dreams of having my own floral design business. Without these people, I would never be able to have this fantastic, creative outlet that brings me so much joy.


My Mom: Who has always supported my creativity from the beginning and who watches my two children as I design in the studio. I love my mom.


My Husband: I am the luckiest woman in the world to have you as a partner and father of our children. Your support has been immeasurable.

(no pic available) To my friend Doris, my floral assistant in spring/summer 2009: Thank you for your hard work, dedication and laughter and your green van was awesome.


To my friend Sarah (above), my floral assistant in fall/winter of 2009: Thank you for your knowledge, chocolate treats, laughter and speedy fingers. see more of her floral work at www.westvig.com

(no pic available) And to Tabithah: I don't know how you can stay up so late to take down all of the flowers after the weddings. Thank you so much for your hard work!

I love what I do and I am so thankful for all of my supportive friends and family who I could not list here individually, but you know who you are. I thank you all!

Saturday, January 9, 2010

A Winter Wedding, -9 on the 9th


As I sat in my van, about to make my first wedding delivery of 2010, I looked at the temperature reader near the driver's seat and it read -9 degrees outside. I took a deep breath, grabbed the flower box and made a run for the hotel doors. I did plan ahead. I packed the precious and delicate cargo of hydrangea, calla lilies and anemones in tissue and newspaper inside a cardboard box which was inside a plastic bag. A woman inside the hotel asked me "How do you keep those warm?!" My reply was (as any born and raised Minnesotan will tell you how to keep warm) "Layers."

Here is a fun idea for future winter brides: Have your floral designer create an outside bouquet. If you want to take any photos outside when it is below 32 degrees you cannot take your fresh flowers with you. They will freeze, wilt and turn brown. A bouquet especially created to withstand the winter chill would be a nice addition to outdoor photographs. Items that can be used in a winter hardy bouquet would be boxwood, any type of evergreen, blue privet berry and eucalyptus. I recently created an outdoor bouquet using some "floral leftovers" for a December 2009 wedding which had cedar, white tuber rose and unopened burgandy peony buds. Except for the cedar, the other items would certainly freeze, but we didn't mind. The bouquet would last long enough to take some photos and capture the moment.



bouquet top view

Ceremony flowers of submerged hydrangea.
There was another set on the other side.

For the centerpieces, the bride wanted purple, elegant and budget-friendly flowers. Two stems of purple vanda orchids looked soft, yet clean, very pretty. I also placed a single orchid on each guest's napkin. It adds more color and makes the guest feel really welcome at the celebration. Orchids, gotta love em'. I also gave the head table 10 stems of orchids adding more of the bride's color of choice to the day.

Saturday, January 2, 2010

Minnesota Nice, Part 2


I took the bride's idea for a MN outdoor theme and created woodland inspired arrangements using ferns, gold tip cedar, blue privet berry, small and large eucalyptus seed pods and red photina. These arrangements were at the base of the tall luminary trees on half of the tables. The small luminaries hanging on the trees needed to be lightweight. Birch branches are small and delicate, so my assistant and I made the luminaries ourselves (all 130 of them!) using paper mache' method. We placed LED lights inside and Voila! The result was a warm and romantic celebration at Nicollet Island Pavilion.



On the other half of the tables I used birch logs in clear cylinder vases. The birch was harvested from my in-law's woods at their farm in WI. These were a simple and easy way to create drama on the low table centers. Simple for me anyway, I just dropped the logs into the vase. My husband and his dad had to go out and cut it all down! On all of the tables I used many, many candles to create a warm glow.


Tiny moss, eucalyptus and cedar jars were placed on the birch vase tables to add even more color and texture. It's all about layering.


The place card table had a collection of apothecary jars and other clear vases with photos of weddings past within the bride and groom's families. I used moss, eucalyptus seeds and gold tip cedar to place inside the vases and "hold" the photos in place.


Thank you to Studio Laguna for the beautiful images.

Friday, January 1, 2010

Minnesota Nice, Part 1


Angie and Seth were married yesterday. I have never had the pleasure of meeting Seth, but I can tell you this, he married a wonderful woman! Angie is so sweet and nice, runs marathons and loves the outdoors. She wanted her flowers and decor to reflect her love of MN outdoors. My brain thought of lady slipper orchids, birch trees and ferns. You can see all of these elements throughout her bouquet. Can you find the brown birch seed pods? :)

She also had a "pieces of the past" theme to the wedding, with wedding photos of parents, grandparents and great-grandparents on the guest tables. In honor of this idea, and as a surprise, I purchased some gold and ivory colored, antique buttons at a shop across the street from where Angie purchased her dress. I found a button with intertwined circles for Angie's bouquet! Each of the 8 girls and the bride had a different (but similar color) button on their bouquets as a keepsake. It worked well and the end product was just right. I loved this wedding. More coming soon.




Here's a sneak peek at our prep work for the table center decor...