Showing posts with label wedding bouquet. Show all posts
Showing posts with label wedding bouquet. Show all posts

Tuesday, June 12, 2012

What's Your Wedding Flower Style? DIY Wedding Flower Classes / Sacramento / Folsom / Placerville

DIY Wedding Flower Class, Wedding Bouquets, Sacramento Folsom Placerville Lake Tahoe

Are you wanting to DIY your wedding flowers?  Maybe thinking about a wedding flower business?  A Special Day Designs offers wedding flower classes for the beginner.  My student Joan created a lovely vintage style wedding bouquet of cream roses, pinky peach stock, white lisiathus, queen anne's lace, and pale peach carnations.  This was only her second class....but I think she's well on her way in learning floral design, and with her love of antiques, I see her vintage vibe here!  She even had a lovely cut crystal trumpet vase to display her bouquet in.

Learn how to make DIY Wedding Flowers.  Classes in Sacramento, Shingle Springs, Placerville, Lake Tahoe


Joan's friend Wave decided to be daring and try a crescent-shape bouquet for her second bouquet.  I think she did a great job!  Quite lovely, and she really liked having more fern showing, maybe she will find she is a naturalistic designer, or maybe modern high-style.  I see the crescent shape, do you??

Vintage wedding bouquet Folsom, Sacramento, Auburn, Foresthill, Garden Valley wedding flowers

One thing about learning floral design is that it is an art, and you are the artist.  You have to find your artistic "voice".  My artistic voice, above, and below, tends to be modern - grouping of flowers (in fashion, it's called color blocking) and not "polka dotty."  I emphasized the dusty miller, and I like a naturalistic look - not a perfect moundy-roundy. What about you?

Vintage wedding bouquet blush tones Shingle Springs, Coloma, Camino, Sacramento wedding flowers florist
Vintage bouquet of queen anne's lace, succulent, cream roses, dusty miller, lisianthus, peach carnations


Wednesday, October 19, 2011

Woodland Wedding At Nestldown Los Gatos / Placerville Lake Tahoe Wedding Flowers Florist

Woodland bouquet details - cymbidium orchid, raspberries, dahlia, spray roses, hypericum berry, and maidenhair fern

 We are well into autumn now, and my season has wrapped up, which means I now have time to post lovely weddings on the blog.  Ashley and Brandon were married in September, and she definitely had a woodland / bird style going on.  What I loved about their wedding style was the great details, yet things were understated, elegant, and very authentic.

Blue thistle, dahlias, spray roses, raspberries, and callas were details in her woodland wedding bouquet for her ceremony at Nestldown in Los Gatos

I worked with Ashley for a year on her bouquet....it started out as peach roses and safari sunset with hypericum berries, to emerge into a wonderful woodland bouquet.  Ashley gave me the freedom to create something beautiful....sometimes I can't be sure of what is at market, and I don't know until I actually order and then pick up the flowers.  She even decided to have me add some peach tulle, which you can see under the dahlia above, as a nod to her many years of ballet lessons.



Woodland wedding bouquet for Nestldown ceremony.

 My bouquets are very authentic....I do not try to create a perfect roundy-moundy Martha-style bouquet that has been quite in fashion for the past decade.  My bouquets are like the topography of the foothills I live in....there is always something interesting around every corner.  Here is Ashley's bouquet.

Woodland bridesmaid bouquet with pompon mums, naked petals, safari sunset, hypericum berries, and peach spray roses
Ashley had a small intimate wedding. She and Brandon both had just one attendant, who wore clothing of their choice to match the blue and green color theme.  Above is the Best Lady's bouquet - I just love that Ashley chose to call her a more modern name....

Brandon had a cymbidium orchid and blue thistle bout.

 I caught up with Ashley and Brandon at the top of the gravel road before they made their entrance.  Both look quite serious in these photos...they are listening to directions from someone...they're about to get married!  Brandon looks quite handsome, and the orchid perfectly matched his handsome blue shirt and patterned tie.

Ashley rocking her vintage woodland look!  Quite a gorgeous bride!
As a florist, I don't always get the best photos of my wedding couples....Ashley was just so gorgeous, this photo doesn't do her justice!  So we continued down the path to set up the ceremony decor, which were two of Ashley's metal candleholders of two different heights.  I loved that they weren't matchy-matchy.  She had me set them up at the back of the aisle.  Here's a tip...if you don't need ceremony markers (I call them markers, because really, there's no "altar") at the front - and she didn't because the arbor is so fantastic - consider putting flowers behind the last row of chairs, at the aisle.  All your guests will see them when they come in...
Woodland ceremony marker flowers

 I love this sweet photo of Ashley's dad helping put her train out...and I don't understand how Ashley walked down those many, steep stairs in heels!

Lovely bride at lovely Nestldown!

 Here's the lovely arbor and our lovely wedding couple...there's a pond with a fountain behind them, in full sunlight.  Guests sat in a lovely shaded woodland clearing.

Exchanging vows at Nestldown.


On to the reception!  Ashley developed her ideas for the reception with me over the year....she pretty much knew what she wanted, and I made suggestions on flowers and based on her thoughts and inspiration photos, I was able to recommend and carry out what she wanted for her tables and cake pedestal.

Rosemary and menu in napkin at each place.
Submerged wedding centerpieces of blue delphinium with floating candle; callas, and a ball candle with table number, all on a stained stump.  Not only were rose petals strewn about, but also hypericum berries, to add to the woodland feel.
I just love this ball candle in a short cylinder, with a wood table number...perfect!
There were lovely vegetarian appetizers at each table, for after the cocktail hour.
Wedding cake on unique cake pedestal of glass square vases with rose petals
The wedding reception was held at the lovely Hotel Los Gatos.  The hotel service and food was superb; my only complaint was that they booked the room right before her wedding, a couple of weeks before her wedding.  It was quite a challenge to set everything up.  When you book your wedding reception, make sure there is enough time for your florist, dj, and baker to set up (you really don't want your venue staff moving your cake...trust me!).  One hour is usually NOT enough time between events.  Don't forget that the venue has to clear the last event, set up for yours, and put fresh linens on before your florist and baker can set up.

I love to tuck flower heads in wherever I can!


The ceremony bouquet repurposed at the wedding reception buffet.
Details from the buffet table....
I love flower heads in votives or small containers.


A sweet bird-themed remembrance for guests to take home.
 Thank you Ashley & Brandon for letting me share your special day!  Best wishes on your journey through life together!


Tuesday, March 1, 2011

Wedding Bouquet Sizes / Lake Tahoe Sacramento Placerville wedding flowers florist

White sweet pea and lavender petite vintage rustic bouquet via A Special Day Designs
Rather than calling bouquets by whom I think will be holding them, I much prefer to name them by their size.  After all, would a client choose something named after an attendant?  In the interest of keeping things simple, my hand-tied bouquets (with the stems showing) are based on the approximate number of stems in the bouquet.  Never an exact number, though, because as anyone who designs knows, sometimes you need to add that extra rose or take out a stem to make the design balanced.

And please note this:  size is relative to the type of flower that you are using.  As you will see, 10 very small lavender stems makes a very very petite bouquet, compared to 10 stems of spider mums.

The sweet white sweet pea and lavender bouquet above is an example of a petite bouquet.  My petite bouquets have 10 to 12 stems.  Designer's Choice bouquets are your choice of colors, my choice of seasonal flowers and does not include premium flowers such as (but not limited to) peony, mini posy calla, garden roses, or orchids or other pricey flowers.  This example is tied with sparkling wire, and is embellished with a vintage piece of jewelry (not included in price). The photo below, of simple lavender, and the is also a petite bouquet.

Lavender petite vintage rustic herbal bouquet via A Special Day Designs
 The Mono-Floral (one flower type) bouquets in Petite size is 10 stems as well (excepting, when available, football mums, arctic white callas, green goddess callas, and dahlias which are 5 stems).  An example is shown in green spider mums, and arctic white callas, below. 

Green Spider Mum petite bouquet via A Special Day Designs


White arctic calla petite bouquet via A Special Day Designs
 
Designer's Choice medium size bouquets have 14 to 16 stems.  The bouquet below, of pink peonies and dahlias, surprised a lucky bride!  By allowing me freedom to buy the nicest flowers...sometimes you might be very surprised and get premium flowers if they happen to be on special at the time of your wedding!  See the difference in size compared to the "medium size"  white sweet pea and lavender bouquet.  Because the sweet peas and lavender are smaller stems and smaller heads, the bouquet tends to look smaller.

Pink peony and dahlia and gerbera medium size bouquet via A Special Day Designs

Vintage glam white sweet pea and lavender medium size bouquet via A Special Day Designs
Purple kale and pink tulip eco medium size bouquet via A Special Day Designs

Mono-Floral medium size bouquets are ~15 stems.

Designer's Choice full size bouquets have 22 to 24 stems.  The example below is of white scabiosa, white tulips, white spray roses, and white sweet peas.

White tulip and white scabiosa full-size bouquet via A Special Day Designs
Mono-Floral full size bouquets are ~20 stems.

Please visit my website at http://www.aspecialdaydesigns.com for wedding flowers for Lake Tahoe, Placerville, Shingle Springs, Folsom, Sacramento, and other nearby areas in the Sierra foothills and greater Sacramento area.

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Sunday, October 31, 2010

European Style Cascade Bouquet with White Gardenias, callas, and roses / Placerville Wedding Flowers Florist

European style cascade wedding bouquet by A Special Day Designs, serving Lake Tahoe, Placerville, El Dorado County, and Sacramento
My passion in floral design is a modern and streamlined look.  I spend many hours poring over the internet, seeing what's new and exciting in floral design.  When great designers come to town, I take classes to continue my education, and go to design seminars.

I was fortunate this month to attend the California State Floral Association yearly convention, and when I saw that they were offering a class with Tony Alvarez AIFD, CCF, and Reina E. Sumabat AIFD, I signed up.  What a great class!  Tony and Reina taught us some great techniques and gave me some great ideas, and I learned a lot of construction techniques.

Yes - flowers from an educated floral designer will cost you more than DIY flowers, or flowers you buy over the internet that are shipped on a hot or freezing brown truck.  But you WON'T be seeing the streamlined, modern cascade like the image above arriving from them, either.  It's your one special day - there are no do-overs. You can't drop-ship the artist.

Keywords: Shingle Springs wedding flowers, squaw valley, Placerville wedding flowers, Placerville florist, Lake Tahoe wedding flowers, El Dorado Hills wedding, alternative wedding, eco-chic, nature wedding, white roses, Sacramento, florist, Folsom, Cameron Park, gardenia, stephanotis, Coloma, eco, modern, streamline, European

Friday, June 4, 2010

Meet me at a Wedding Open House Sunday June 13, 2010

Join me at a wedding open house on Sunday, June 13, 2010, at:

Créme de la Créme Paperie
7625 Sunrise Blvd, Suite 211
Citrus Heights, CA 95610
(916) 996-4020

 Not only will you get to visit with Creme de la Creme Paperie for fantabulous invitations and paper goods, come meet me and see what the difference is between a hand-tied bouquet and a bouquet arranged in a holder!  There will be a swag bag of goodies for one lucky attendee, and I will have Color Style Sheets for every wedding couple that visits me, Monique Wilber of A Special Day Designs (floral designer), serving the greater Sacramento area, Placerville, and Lake Tahoe and Squaw Valley.

My designs are modern and fresh, streamlined, alternative, and eco-chic.

Come meet select boutique vendors from 11:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.  I look forward to seeing you there!




Sunday, May 2, 2010

Lake Tahoe Wedding! A Little More...

Just a quick note before I go get some sleep....I caught a 2-hour catnap last night after putting together Danielle & Kris' wedding flowers for today's Lake Tahoe ceremony.  Danielle was gorgeous, looking very vintage-glam in her ivory dress and birdcage veil.  Her bridesmaids were all in black dresses and shoes of their choice.  Kris and his guys were so dapper, all in black, with felt fedoras and black/gray Vans deck shoes.  They got married on a pier on Lake Tahoe, and the weather was wonderful up there today, which was fortunate considering there was a snow storm last week (Tahoe couples - be prepared for any kind of weather, even in the summer - there are often thunderstorms!).

For the ceremony, she had friends hang up pinecones on the aisle chairs, the pinecones of which she had gathered during snowboarding trips to Big Bear in Southern California, which she tied together with a silver ribbon.

For her reception, she had a beach-meets-the-forest eco kind of decor, which I loved.  Her centerpieces were break-away centerpieces, made of several elements. Tall dried grasses and straight willow in heavy and thick glass cylinders, with polished pebbles, made me feel like I was at the beach, surrounded by Mason jars with moss and a candle inside (forest), and a succulent on the table (like iceplant at the beach!).  When I got to the reception, her friends had put interesting wood doo-dads on the tables...you'll see photos soon (yes, I'm old school and have a 35mm film camera!  The pics above are shots with my lil do-nothing digi).

Danielle's bouquet was so unique!  I was thrilled to have a chance to design something so fashion-forward, yet vintage and glam, too. I love love love the wood flowers and skeleton leaves in her bouquet. The stachys (lamb's ear) gives a softness to it, the pearl-like baubles give some vintage bling, and the dried lavender looks like preserved flowers from a romantic, remembered occasion.

The bridesmaids' bouquets were designer's choice.  That means that Danielle gave me her vision, I made some suggestions as to what might be in it, but ultimately I had to go with the flowers that were available.  Stellata pods were not available; nor were the great black and green kangaroo paws from a couple of weeks ago.  My wholesale flower rep subbed some "weedy brambly things" (lol Laura, is that an official latin species name??) for the pods that worked out great in these eco-chic bouquets.  Seriously, I can't tell you what they are....her buyer bought them from a non-English speaking farmer at a farmer's market!  But they were a great base for the bridesmaids' bouquets, acting just like a hydrangea base, giving me a base to place the other interesting flowers and foliage into.  I love the dog-eyed euphorbia!  It looks similar to the edible plant we have in the Sierra foothills commonly called Miner's Lettuce.  And the brake fern gives it that Art Nouveau feel that I love.

Both bouquets had handles wrapped in burlap, fastened with clear diamonte pins, and luxe satin ribbon bows (love that yin/yang feel - burlap, and satin).

The moral of the story, my dear wedding couples, is not to put such a stranglehold on your florist that you want to know that there will be exactly 24 Cherry Brandy roses in your bouquet, for example.  Sometimes because of weather (or volcanoes!  The recent eruption disrupted floral shipping around the world!) we can't get exactly what you want.  But we, and our vendors, will do our best to get something very similar that will give the same look and feel. Give your floral designer your vision, tell him/her your colors, and let them choose seasonal flowers.  Sometimes my vendors find great things, or might have a special that week on some premium flowers.  Let us and our vendors use our design talents and instincts to make you something that will wow you!

I'm looking forward to seeing the pro photos by Scott Andrew from the wedding.  I just looked at the photographer's blog and he just tweeted, 
  • Twitter Update... This photo may cause envy. Today's wedding is straight up amazingtron! http://twitpic.com/1khkeg 

     Click on the twitpic link to see the pier that Danielle & Kris got married on!  This photographer does amazing work...and Danielle has such style....I can't wait to see the photos!

Tuesday, March 23, 2010

Great WOOD flowers! / Lake Tahoe Wedding Flowers Florist


YES!  I've got them and they are sizzling HOT!  Wood flowers for your wedding bouquet...something to save.  Use them en masse for a great creamy white effect, or put them in your fresh flower bouquet.

Monday, April 20, 2009

Streamlined Bouquet Ideas for Victoria / Sacramento Lake Tahoe Wedding Flowers Florist


Victoria, these are not all in green and pink. I'd like you to use your imagination, and see if there is a type of flower you like, the shape/structure of the bouquet you like, etc. We can change the color of the flowers. I really love the carnation bouquets. Who would have thought that carnations could looks so chic?

And visit MY website at : http://www.aspecialdaydesigns.com/

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