Posts Labeled ‘flowers’

April 7th, 2013

Beautiful Orange and White Arrangement

I simply adore this arrangement featured on One Charming Party. As they suggest, it would be perfect for Mother’s Day. I could also see it as part of a Spring tablescape, a ladies’ tea, a bridal shower…. The bright orange color and the pops of citrus make it a happy addition to any table!

orange centerpiece via One Charming Party

December 21st, 2012

Beautiful, Simple Holiday Centerpieces

There are lots of ways to dress up your dinner table to impress holiday guests. Special china, unique glassware, pretty napkins… Adding a centerpiece, however, always helps to complete the tablescape.  Whether it be flowers, fruit, or even pinecones, a holiday centerpiece does not need to be complicated to be impactful. Check out these simple ideas from Martha Stewart for beautiful, do-it-yourself centerpieces.

Cranberry Flower Frog

Fresh cut flowers are a traditional centerpiece for any dinner table. What makes this beautiful centerpiece unique are the cranberries in the vase. The pop of red color is gorgeous against the white flowers and stay in the color scheme of the holidays.

Amaryllis Candle Centerpiece

This is another beautiful centerpiece for your holiday table. This time the flowers are red and the candles are white but you can swap out different colors to match. Depending on the length of your table, line up three to four of these centerpieces to brighten up the whole table!

November 1st, 2012

Oh My Gourd! Fall Centerpiece Idea

I recently helped on a team of women who worked on decorations for a women’s luncheon at church. We were inspired by this idea from Better Homes & Gardens which is perfect for fall.

We first cut off the top of the squash and then used a melon baller to scoop out a portion of the inside. Supermarket flowers were perfect to make the arrangements. In addition to butternut squash, we used acorn squash, as well. The whole process was actually very easy and the result beautiful!

 

gourd centerpieces via Better Homes & Gardens

 

May 5th, 2012

Flower Arranging by Vase

I am a loyal reader of Gwyneth Paltrow’s Goop newsletter. She always offers such interesting tidbits on topics ranging from cooking to travel to general lifestyle tips. Her most recent newsletter offered advice on floral arranging — particularly, what vase to use for what type of arrangement. It was so helpful, I just have to share it. Check it out here.

House Beautiful also suggests tips for making arrangements in various vessels — including coffee mugs. Martha Stewart offers great basic tips for floral arrangements. I am hoping these tricks-of-the-trade will help me the next time I am struggling to assemble an arrangement for a special occasion — and that they might be of use to you, as well!

Image via Goop


February 14th, 2012

Bridal Shoot inspired by a sweet nursery rhyme

Recently, I had a wonderful opportunity to work with Eli Weddings on a bridal photo shoot. Eli was a pleasure to work with and, as you will see, a talented photographer.

This Maryland-based shoot took place on a soybean farm as the Fall season was in full swing. We were inspired by a nursery rhyme from our youth, “Sing a Song of Sixpence” (remember, ”Four and twenty blackbirds, baked in a pie; when the pie was opened, the birds began to sing”?!) Hence, details of birds and pies were interwoven throughout the shoot.

A simple tablescape features “sunny” colors like teal, seamist, pale peach, and soft yellow. Iron bird napkin rings grace each place setting and flowers (by Sidra Forman) include dahlias and succulents that radiate the color scheme. A belfast linen tablecloth and natural wood chiavari chairs (courtesy of DC Rental) create a neutral foundation

The escort cards are anchored on an heirloom silver serving tray by vintage baubles-turned-magnets. A variety of bird silhouettes in the color scheme bear the names of the guests and their table assignments.

Another vignette features a pale pink MacBeth Evans hobnail pitcher circa 1930 and accompanying tumblers. An iron tray with bird handles hosts the setting, and an inviting piece of pumpkin pie waits for the bride and groom, who will partake with “Mr” and “Mrs” forks.

A dessert buffet features an assortment of mini pies and homemade coconut madeleines. A vintage pie server rests alongside the pie chest — each cubby containing a variety of homemade mini pies — a popular new trend.

The bride, in celebration, tossed bird-shaped confetti and looks stunning against the picturesque farmland, donning a dress from Punk Rock Bride.

 

 

Location: Sunny Ridge Farm
Art Direction and Design: Rex & Regina
Pastries: Rex & Regina
Photography: Eli Weddings
Model: T.H.E. Agency
Dress: Punk Rock Bride
Flowers: Sidra Forman
Hair and Makeup: Miranda Edmonds
Escort cards: Efrat Levush
Shoes: Anthropologie
Chairs: DC Rental

December 6th, 2011

Winter Bridal Bouquets

For winter brides, here is some inspiration for beautiful bridal bouquets. Each is unique and features flowers available in the winter season.

 

icy white wedding bouquet via Martha Stewart

bouquet featuring wheat and lotus pods by Holly Chapple

bouquet featuring cabbage roses and magnolia pods by Holly Chapple

winter greens bridal bouquet via Green Wedding Shoes

June 4th, 2011

DIY crafts with cupcake liners

I love when you can take something so ordinary and make it into something completely unique and clever. Here are some ideas on how to transform one ordinary object — a cupcake liner — into whimsical, decorative crafts.

gift toppers via Sunshine Everyday

cupcake liner tree by Paper Crave

Cupcake Wrapper Garland by Amy Atlas

jar covers from the kitchn

cupcake liner flower via Martha Stewart

cupcake liner lights via Rex & Regina

May 31st, 2011

Wedding Florist Petal’s Edge Shares Tips & Trends

I’ve had the privilege of working with Petal’s Edge, a wedding floral company based in Alexandria, VA, for a number of years now and always love working with them. Recently, I interviewed owner Gerry Rogers who, along with her business partner Rebecca Henry, has great insight into wedding florals and offers here some tips and trends for brides and grooms.

photo credit: Sandi Foraci

photo credit: The Observatory

 

1) Tell us a little bit about Petal’s Edge and your approach to floral design.
First off, we are a little different than the florist most people think of.  We are not a shop but rather we specialize in providing floral designs for weddings and events.  Since the very beginning, we have done weddings more than anything else.  We are also a small company, and so the person you meet with is also your contact through out the process, the person who builds or has direct oversight over your arrangements and often the very person setting up for the event. We like maintaining our fingers in all parts of our events as not only a quality control measure but because we like what we do!

 

In terms of our approach to floral design, what we do is help the couple choose flowers that will best reflect the look and style they want for their wedding.  For example, a modern style is characterized by clean lined flowers, monochromatic designs and often arrangements that use one type of flower.  On the other hand, more romantic styles use more rounded flowers – roses, hydrangea, lisianthus.  A traditional look tends to incorporate accents of greenery.  We don’t think of any flower as “filler”.  We generally advocate for a restrained color palette – either working tonally with 2-3 colors that are next to each other on the color wheel or with just a few contrasting colors.  Green is the one “free” color, as in flowers, it complements any color scheme.  We feel that these guidelines, along with specific flower choices, create a cohesive look.

 

2) What trends are you are seeing right now in wedding florals?
In a lot of magazines and on-line blogs, there’s a lot of talk about “vintage”.  Realistically, though, we do very few vintage looks primarily because we have predominantly city weddings.  Our couples are still looking for urban chic designs or DC-traditional looks.  When branching away from more modern designs, our couples embrace texture and classic garden looks.

 

3) What are the top things a bride should know about or think through before she meets with a florist to discuss her wedding flowers?
A bride (or groom!) should definitely know what the color scheme is for the wedding.  There are so many options that having this in mind helps us narrow down the possibilities and make tangible suggestions.  While we don’t expect anyone to know anything about flowers, it is also helpful to have a general sense for the look and style of the wedding.  And finally, while most people don’t have a strong sense of what flowers cost, it is important to either be flexible about what you want or spend some time researching what flowers cost.  We provide pricing information on our website for that purpose, but the rule of thumb is that flowers are often 8-10% of a wedding’s costs, with particularly large weddings or weddings with large bridal parties driving costs to the higher end of the range or above that.

 

Thanks for sharing, Gerry!
March 3rd, 2011

Escort Cards nestled in floral beds

I am working with a client who is considering using baby’s breath in large clusters at her wedding to create floral impact. When done right, baby’s breath can be a beautiful floral option.

This example of baby’s breath as a bed for escort cards is fabulous. It reminds me of a wedding I did where we used wheatgrass as a bed for escort cards and then again for favors later in the night. I could also see moss and stones as very natural, organic foundations for an escort card display. So many options!

Baby's breath bed - perfect for escort cards; via Style Me Pretty

escort cards on wheatgrass; photo by Holland Photo Arts

January 27th, 2011

My New Floral Obsession: Cabbage Roses

via Holly Chapple Flowers

My current floral obsession is cabbage roses. Several of my brides are using them in their bridal bouquets this year and I feel like I am seeing them everywhere. Holly Chapple’s photo above shows Patience cabbage roses that just arrived at her shop. While I love all the colors that cabbage roses come in, I have to say that Patience is one of my favorites. Cabbage roses remind me of peonies, so if you are a peony fanatic, cabbage roses can be a really nice complement as you’ll see in some of the bouquets below.

via Martha Stewart Weddings

via Alexa Jayne Weddings

via Blooms by Martha Andrews

via Everyday Minerals