Flower Power!

Wedding video blast from the (fairly recent) past!

Cruising through some digital files the other day I came upon a little video that the great folks atFocal Point Digital Media put together. It was a beautiful wedding in late summer 2010 at Beckenridge Vineyard in Dallas, Oregon, for a lovely couple who were a delight to work with.

Take a view  &  I hope you enjoy!

 

Royal Wedding Flowers... no pressure!

Wow. Really, that's the first thing that comes to my mind when I think about the florists who'll be designing the flowers for William & Kate. A friend commented to me, "Wouldn't you just love to get THAT job?"

Hmmm, that gave me pause. My first reactions was "YES!," followed by "wellll, maybe...", then "NOOO!" That's a LOT of pressure and scrutiny. Opportunity of a lifetime? Sure. Worth the stress? Not sure. The Middleton's family florist, Emma Sampson, has been working with Royal Florist Shane Connolly on the floral arrangements, but still...

(Here's a link to some photos of the flowers arriving at Westminster Abbey...)

From my perspective, a wedding is a wonderful, fantastic floral event, but there is pressure to make sure that you & your bride are on the same page, as far as the designs you'll be delivering. "Pink" means different things to different people and the last thing you want is a bride that doesn't like her wedding flowers because they're the "wrong pink." I cannot even imagine the thought of desiging for this particular bride, all the while holding your breath until she says she likes it. The best phrase I can hear when presenting the bride with her bouquet is, "I love it."  (*Whoosh!* Exhale of said held breath!)

So for now, I think I'll stick with my local princesses and helping them create the wedding of their dreams. That's enough pressure for me! :)

 

 

Gerbera daisies—a deux

Gerbera daisies continue to hold their popularity—I've had two weddings back-to-back with them, in fact. Here are some snapshots of the wedding this past Saturday, with a red/white/blue theme, as well as some from the week before where orange and wine (sangria) were the featured colors...

Paper Zone wedding show today! 11am - 3pm at the Salem Store

Wedding Ideas at Paper Zone-Salem -- this Saturday, Feb. 20

The PAPER ZONE is hosting a WEDDING IDEA SHOWCASE this Saturday, Feb. 20th, 11am - 3pm, inside their Salem store.

This is a great place to find inspiration for the invitation do-it-yourselfer, or anyone looking to add a personal flair to their programs, place cards, favors, thank-you's and MORE!

We'll have a little display with information & handouts, along with a wedding bouquet and a featured table (citrus, anyone?!).

For more information, be sure to call the Salem Store at (503) 364-9826 and ask for Tara.

Link to Paper Zone's site at:
http://www.paperzone.com/index.cfm

The recent Salem bridal show

I'm a little slow getting these up — the 2010 Oregon Wedding Showcase was January 23-34 at the Oregon State Fairgrounds in Salem. But better late than never, right?

Anyhow, here are a few shots from the recent bridal show at the Oregon State Fairgrounds. The show ran two days, with two fashion shows per day, and over 400 brides in attendance—WOW! I didn't have much of a voice left on Sunday.

We showed 10 different bouquets this year, and featured five of them in the daily fashion shows. The bouquets get a little beat up being in the shows, but I think it's important. The dresses show better with a bouquet and it also gives brides an accurate look at what their bouquet will look like at the end of the wedding day!

Below is a shot of one of the favorite bouquets from the show: a short cascade of purple, lavender & white flowers (bride on left).

Here's a better shot of it on the workbench in the studio—you can actually see the little crystal dragonfly in this shot! 

(FYI—I've had a couple emails on this: the gowns in the photos are from Bridal Exclusives in Salem, www.bridalexclusives.com)

Do you love those reveals on makeover shows, where they show you the "before" and "after" on a person/house/car? I do, so I'll try and do that a bit of that here. For me, it's one of the most satisfying parts of floral design: starting with buckets of flowers & ending with a beautiful bouquet!

For starters, here's an easy one as an example:
a clutch of orange spray roses and bicolor tulips, before... and after!

 

We'll have shots of all the wedding show bouquets on our website (www.ImageFloral.com) in a featured gallery (Jan 2010 Salem Bridal Show) in a day or so. Be sure to check it all out!

~ Michelle