Blog – eden floral design

and it was all…yellow…

I confess. Yellow is not my favorite color. I know, I know, I love all the colors. But I was a little hesitant when I met with Megan and she told me about her yellow bridesmaids dresses…

I imagined blinding highlighter mustard yellow. I imagined the shocking yellow dresses you sometimes see overtake the beautiful complexion of a Hollywood celebrity on the red carpet. I remembered shopping with a friend recently, when she held up a yellow shirt and declared, “yellow looks good on no one.” I imagined the fluorescent yellows of my 80’s childhood. And I was so, so wrong. Megan had a really well-conceived, classy vision of soft yellow and mint green. Romantic. Soft. Pretty. But yellow? YES! YELLOW! Not mustard, not highlighter. Soft and summery, creamy and classy.

Once I got over my yellow issues, we started talking flowers. Megan loves roses and dahlias and “you know those little yellow balls.” Ah yes, those little yellow balls (Craspedia, commonly known as Billy balls) are an old favorite of mine and have recently reached hipster-wedding-fame on Pinterest and The Knot and everywhere else.

Craspedia is a great choice for boutonnieres. The color pops against a dark suit and the flowers have a clean, modern look. I really appreciated the mother of the bride’s concern that the little yellow balls look like -you know – balls! I assured Megan and her mom that the balls would not look like balls 😉

Lucky for Megan, the sun was shining on a beautiful summer day for her wedding. But she was radiating her own sunshine. Look at this girl! Her sweet smile, her soft curls, the dress… she reminds me of a throwback Southern belle. And how great is the bouquet with the glorious yellow garden roses and the soft foliage??? I couldn’t decide between Dusty Miller and Lamb’s Ear, so I used both. I love this bouquet, yellow and all! Very happy with the blend of the funky textures with the classic elements.

So it’s a gorgeous day, the bride is stunning, and guess what – the yellow bridesmaids dresses looked great on both the fair blondes and the tan brunettes (who knew??). I had embraced the yellow and was happily accenting the wedding ceremony and reception decor with yellow. And loving it!

Blue Skies

Today I am dreaming of blue skies. It is a dreary grey day with constant rain. I am at the beach with my family but instead of being on the beach today, we are bumming around indoors. I am catching up on work and seeing all these photos of sunshiny outdoor weddings and beautiful brides and bright flowers and blue skies. Sigh….

So here we have Claire’s wedding from a few years back….sunshine and blue skies….

I love so many flowers and so many color palettes, it is hard for me to pick a favorite. Claire had a clear favorite and a clear vision. She loves blue hydrangea. Well, who doesn’t? There is something really comforting about the big blue ball of loveliness. It is at once a kind of retro classic and a clean modern choice.

Using a single primary flower has the added benefit of being a cost-effective choice. It generally cuts down on the labor cost when making arrangements and bouquets featuring a single element vs. many different flower types. And although hydrangea is fairly expensive per stem, they are so large and full and dramatic that the price is easily justified. You get a big visual impact from just a few stems.

Claire had some awesome connections in the wedding industry. Most notably, her mother is a talented seamstress and created ALL of the bridesmaids dresses and Claire’s amazing wedding gown. The bridesmaids dresses were ice blue raw silk and the perfect backdrop for a classic hydrangea bouquet.

Claire’s gown was a classic, retro style gown with amazing beading and details. (Thanks, Claire’s mom!) She chose an all white bouquet with various foliage accents. The mixed greenery helped to make the sure her bouquet was not too formal or fussy. We used a combination of ranunculus, roses, freesia, and lisianthus. And of course there were touches of hydrangea in her bouquet as well. This is one of my favorite all-white wedding bouquets because even though it is only one color, it is still visually interesting – full of different shapes and textures and all such soft pretty flowers.

Everything except for the bridal bouquet featured the ice blue color. Blue bridesmaid dresses, blue boutonnieres, blue ribbon, blue accent lighting, and blue skies. Blue hydrangea in everything…and green and white hydrangea too!

Let’s talk about the details that make a wedding special… A small sprig of flowers at each place setting is such a nice, classy touch to make every guest feel like a VIP. Each guest was also welcomed at their seats with a tin of ice blue breath mints (a perfect wedding favor in my opinion) tied with a blue ribbon. The centerpiece alone would have made a nice table…but the small details here combine to make a substantial impact: the blue accent lighting, the favors, and the fresh flowers on the napkins.

I love wreaths. Nothing says “welcome” like a wreath. And I love having flowers outside of the venue, whether it is a front door wreath or garland on outdoor stairs or a small sprig on a sign that points guests in the right direction. Even if your venue has lovely gardens, including some of your wedding flowers outside of the venue is one of the first details that guests will see and will surely be appreciated.

I suspect blue hydrangea will always be a popular wedding flower. It is a classic. And it was a perfect fit for Claire and her beautiful blue sky day.

All photos courtesy of Balance Photography.

Trends with Benefits

Romantic. Bohemian. Trendy. Tricky to hit the mark on all of these aesthetic points….but check out Kelsey’s wedding. She had a unique vision and she pulled it off perfectly. Of course (all modesty aside) the flowers were paramount in creating this visually stunning wedding.

Photo courtesy of Sarah Culver Photography

Let’s talk about all of the trendy trends that Kelsey included and somehow nothing about this wedding felt “trendy.”

Different bouquets and dresses for different bridesmaids. Kelsey chose a simple hand-tied bouquet of one different flower type for each of her girls. We chose peonies, roses, stock, lisianthus, tulips, and ranunculus.

Photo courtesy of Sarah Culver Photography

Ombre. Need I say more? This word is everywhere. The concept is often misinterpreted and overdone. This, right here, dear readers, is how to do ombre. Subtle variant shades in a soft color palette. So very pleasing.

All lined up, and ready to go

Hand-held corsages for the moms is a great choice for a number of reasons: I think it feels a little younger and more progressive for the not-matronly mom types. Also, many fabrics don’t accommodate a pin-on corsage well or the moms simply want their dresses to stand alone. Wrist corsages make some people flashback to their high school proms and other women are more concerned about featuring special jewelry on their wrists. The hand-held corsage looks great in photos and can easily be set aide when the moms want to hold a drink or hit the dance floor.

Photo courtesy of Sarah Culver Photography

Bouquet embellishment is another trend that allows a bride to personalize her bouquets. Brides often give me a piece of their mother’s wedding dress, a special piece of jewelry, a locket with a photo of a loved one, etc. Kelsey bought these horseshoe charms to adorn her bouquet, all six bridesmaids, and the mothers’ corsages. They looked great on the bouquets and were a nice keepsake for the wedding party.

Photo courtesy of Sarah Culvert Photography

Chevron has gone from obscure to ubiquitous. Usually seen in a bright yellow or aqua and presented with a preppy aesthetic. Kelsey has her own spin on this trend with the bronze chevron table runners. One more carefully selected element in this eclectic feast for the eyes.

Photo courtesy of Sarah Culvert Photography

Submerged branches. We submerged flowering cherry branches with just the hint of their pink blooms emerging. A perfectly romantic accent for this perfectly romantic evening wedding. It is surprising how many flowers and branches can be submerged and their dramatic effects – some of my favorites: dendrobium orchids, tulips, calla lilies, curly willow, berries.

Photo courtesy of Sarah Culvert Photography

Wooden centerpiece boxes handmade by the groom. I have had several couples make their own wooden centerpiece boxes and I have been impressed with them all. Sure, you can buy these type containers on etsy.com but isn’t it nicer to DIY and select the perfect stain and dimensions.

Photo courtesy of Sarah Culver Photography

Homemade and DIY elements went far beyond the centerpiece boxes. Kelsey created this amazing sculptural heart that floated on her crepe paper curtain. She also created chalkboard seating charts, a gilded mailbox for well-wishers, hanging paper flowers, pennant bunting, and only about a hundred other spectacularly personal details.

Photo courtesy of Sarah Culver Photography

Etsy and Pinterest and wedding magazines have an overwhelming amount of ideas to offer. The key is in using these trends with your own original spin. Copying trends from a wedding website probably won’t reflect all that is unique and wonderful about you and your partner and your wedding. But using some of these trends as a springboard to personalize elements in your own thoughtfully created wedding is how to turn trends into trends with benefits 🙂

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Photo courtesy of Sarah Culver Photography

Wedding photos courtesy of the lovely and talented Sarah Culver Photography (http://sarahculver.com)

All the Colors!

I knew Vicki was my kind of bride when we first met. We were discussing color schemes for her florals and she just couldn’t decide…”I don’t know…I just love ALL THE COLORS!” And I just loved working with her.

The perfect bouquet for the bride who loves all the colors:

Photo courtesy of Ben Hallissy Photography.

We decided to give each bridesmaid an accent color: light blue, yellow, lime green, and darker blue. (This is what you do when you love all the colors.)

I think the girls liked them 🙂

Photo courtesy of Ben Hallissy Photography.

And the complimentary boutonnieres for the groomsmen made this bridal party into the brightest, happiest rainbow.

Photo courtesy of Ben Hallissy Photography.

The wedding took place at The Elkridge Furnace Inn, one of my FAVORITE venues, and a perfect backdrop of early April greens and blue sky and clear yellow sunshine. It was a perfect spring day for their outdoor ceremony.

Photo courtesy of Ben Hallissy Photography.

The bridal party colors were carried throughout the outdoor and indoor spaces of The Elkridge Furnace Inn. Vicki worked with her brother to create these sweet wooden boxes for the centerpieces and tiny potted succulents as wedding favors. They turned out amazing and were an excellent balance for the overspilling bright blooms in the centerpieces.

Photo courtesy of Ben Hallissy Photography.

I came up with the tagline “love is in the details” when I started Eden Floral Design 10 years ago….and it is weddings like Vicki and Joe’s that really illustrate that idea. Vicki and I talked about the shape and color and texture of the primary flowers… about how cabbage roses have dense fluffy layers that unfold in an almost hypnotic pattern, how the scent of peonies and roses speak to the romance of a wedding day, how the various foliage textures would frame the primary blooms.

Vicki is a pharmacist, so obviously details are pretty important in her line of work. She brought the same focus and attention to details for her wedding planning and it paid off big time. Her bold color choices and the romantic, gardeny style of the florals created…. the classic brocade textile accents…the personally crafted favors…the whimsical, fun elements (did I mention they had a cornhole game set up in the garden?)…this wedding was a joy to work on.

The bright and happy color palette matched this bright and happy couple perfectly.

Photo courtesy of Ben Hallissy Photography.

Wedding photos courtesy of Ben Hallissy Photography. Check out his blog of Vicki & Joe’s wedding at: http://www.benhallissy.com/blog/