Understanding The Client’s Vision
Listening and understanding is key to your client’s happiness. When I meet with a couple, I ask them about their event vision, floral and design likes/dislikes, and their love story to create a one-of-a-kind wedding look specific for them. I believe in inspiration however as a floral artist it is up to us to create a custom design for our clients utilizing their dreams.
Listening and understanding is key to your client’s happiness. When I meet with a couple, I ask them about their event vision, floral and design likes/dislikes, and their love story to create a one-of-a-kind wedding look specific for them. I believe in inspiration however as a floral artist it is up to us to create a custom design for our clients utilizing their dreams.
Give them what they want….
This specific client requests were white floral, candlelight, multiple vessels, gold, glass and romance. Of course, my answer is YES, I would be happy to incorporate their vision into the final designs.
This is going to be a stunning wedding!
Picking the blooms….
For this tablescape I selected Playa Blanca roses, white peonies, white spray roses, silver dollar eucalyptus, and ruscus. The shades of white and guaranteed to add to the romance of the day.
I choose all round shaped blooms as I wanted a round compact floral arrangement for this centerpiece.
Playa Blanca are my go-to roses for wedding design. They open beautifully and are a strong rose choice.
Element by element the design comes to life….
Accent Décor Athena Candle Holders provide the visual weight for this tablescape. They are visual luxurious and the perfect shade of gold.
When selecting elements for the centerpiece I always take into account the room they will be going in. This specific room is luxurious with gold accents.
Glow….
I incorporated candlelight by adding pillar candles enclosed in cylinder vases to two of the candlesticks (tall and short). A beautiful floral display will be placed on the third candlestick.
You need to be educated on venues regulations when designing within their spaces. Example: many venues require all candles to be enclosed in glass.
Keep adding elements….
As the tablescape continued to come to life I will added 3 various height cylinders with pillar candles around the design. The success of this tablescape is the various levels being created by the vessels.
Bringing it down to the table….
The final hardgoods added to this tablescape was 8 votive candles. 4 will be mercury gold and 4 will be clear glass. I have grouped the candles (1 gold, 1 clear) around the display.
When the guests walk into the room they will be greeted by various heights of candlelight and floral. A perfect visual welcome!
Bringing in the green….
I prepared the floral elements by greening two arrangements with ruscus and eucalyptus. I utilized a 4” and 6” liner to hold the designs. For event work I prefer to utilize Oasis Midnight Floral Foam. I highly recommend this foam as it is easily covered and takes less product to create the final look.
Pretty petals….
Next, I added the floral elements. The Playa Blanca roses, white peonies, white spray roses were designed in a round and compact style. I wanted to ensure I did not block the candlelight with the floral. It ia all about enhancing each element to complete the final cohesive look.
When designing for a wedding I prefer to have the floral elements hydrating for 4 days prior to designing. This will ensure the blooms open and are healthy for the final designs.
It all comes together….
I loved utilizing all the couple’s requests for this design. By listening and understanding you will be sure to create the dream day the couple envisioned.
LOVE….
This is a picture of the sample floral. I can not wait for the wedding day to fill the room with floral!
Reimagine, Reuse, Repurpose
How often do you reimagine your rental items? Have you thought about a different design you could create to increase rental? Take time to create a new design for your existing rental items. By renting items you will increase your bottom line and be more successful.
How often do you reimagine your rental items? Have you thought about a different design you could create to increase rental? Take time to create a new design for your existing rental items. By renting existing items you will increase your bottom line and be more successful.
Client comes first….
A client reached out to me for their annual holiday event. They were in need of a floral display for an estate table. Their requests were candlelight and a spin on traditional holiday decor. Of course, the answer is always “yes, I would love to design for your event”.
Understanding client needs/vision and incorporating them into the design has always been a top priority for me. Without our clients we can not do what we love to do!
Inspired by your surroundings….
As I looked around the design studio, I was inspired by a structure I had designed previously. I had created this base for a YouTube video we created earlier this year. I knew it would be perfect for the event.
I started by weaving chicken wire through the pipes at the base. This would ensure the arrangement would be secure.
Enhance your elements….
The next step was to enhance my foliage. I utilized Design Master Copper to color enhance the ruscus and eucalyptus. I sprayed a light mist of copper onto the foliage allowing some of the natural color to shine through. I chose copper as it would coordinate with the metallic color already on the structure and be enhanced by the candlelight.
Adding the star elements….
I then inserted the foliage, roses, astrantia and Knud Nielsen pinecones to the structure. I utilized small water tubes for the roses. The chicken wire held everything in place perfectly.
Soften the design….
As I looked at the design, I felt a softer texture needed to be added. I found the perfect solution… Oasis Wired Wool! I cut 10” strands of the wool and inserted it into the design with a bit of Oasis Floral Adhesive. By cutting the wool I had more control over the desired placements.
Time to celebrate….
Once completed it was the perfect showstopper to the event. My client loved it as much as I did. I had created an unique design utilizing a custom base that the guests admired throughout their event.
Does It Have To Be Traditional?
Does it have to be traditional is a question many of us deal with. I tend to believe that you can pay homage to tradition yet modernize the design. When a fabulous client asked me to create autumnal design in a modern way I said of course YES.
Does it have to be traditional is a question many of us deal with. I tend to believe that you can pay homage to tradition yet modernize the design. When a fabulous client asked me to create autumnal design in a modern way I said YES.
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What to start with….
The design was to be a floral runner for a 8’ rectangle table consisting of foliage and white accents with lots of candlelight and metallic elements. I knew right away I wanted to start with white pumpkins. They are the perfect focal to this tablescape.
Enhance your elements….
Because I wanted to add a moment of shimmer to the pumpkins, I decided to gold leaf sections of the pumpkins. The gold leaf added a metallic element to the design and the candlelight looked fabulous reflecting off of the gold.
Glow….
By mixing metallics you provide a visual interest to your design. The mercury gold and copper candles greatly enhanced the final design. You will notice in the final images I utilized some of the copper candle holders as pedestals for pumpkins.
Texture….
Because I was not planning on using much color I counted on textures to play a huge role in the final design. This gorgeous Reindeer Moss from Syndicate Sales in white was perfect for the design!
Unique Elements….
I wanted to use oak leaves in the design as it is a traditional autumnal element however I did not want the traditional colors. These fabulous Transparent White Oak Leaves from Knud Nielsen were the perfect answer!
Moments of green….
Every time I bring green dianthus into designs people love it. The question I often hear is “are they real….what are they?”.
By utilizing unique elements in your design it will ensure people stop and admire your work for longer periods of time. It is all about appreciating the art of floral!
All about the layers….
The tablescape came to life by layering:
podocarpus
gunni eucalyptus
green dianthus
white oak leaves
reindeer moss
candles
pumpkins
It was a perfect setting!
Remember to think outside of the box. As a floral artist it is up to us to create unique designs to be admired by our clients. Pay homage to the past by utilizing elements to create a bright future!
ChicagoStyle Weddings Designer Challenge
To photoshoot or not to photoshoot—that is the question for today. This post will show you the outcome of industry leaders coming together to create one amazing editorial shoot. This is the time to design for you and your team. Show what lies within yourself.
A local bridal magazine, ChicagoStyle Weddings, invites a team of wedding professionals to create to photo spread for the magazine. Then the voting will begin to select crowd favorite. Our challenge was to be a bit different than the others. Our setting was not a ballroom… it was a moving glass boat down the Chicago River! This was going to be challenging but oh so fun. YES, let’s do this!
We all worked together to create the look we were going for. It was going to be a play on elegant tropics called “Modern Tropics.” The color palette we selected was to be mixed metallics, white, ivory, shades of peach and toffee.
Floral tablescape design
The first item we completed was the tablescape. The palm fronds and aspidistra were color enhanced with rose gold. The pampas grass gave the centerpiece drama and softness all at the same time. We displayed the floral on top of an Accent Décor Biltmore stand to provide height without blocking the fabulous view of Chicago as we sailed down the river. The floral consisted of orchids, pincushion protea and roses.
How to design floral for a photo shoot
When designing a photo shoot remember every angle counts. Make those little moments pop by grouping items together. We chose to group mixed metallic votive holders along the table. Some held candle and others held florets to base the design.
All hands on deck
The deck of the ship was to have two functions for the shoot. One function would be the ceremony and the other function would be the cake display. We designed a moon gate that would consist of coordinating floral from the centerpiece. The Quintessential Cake designed the most beautiful cake we adorned with fresh floral and Coqui Paperie created stunning signage that was hung from our moon gate. Overall, the look was breathtaking.
Behind the scenes note: we could only have the gate up when not moving as it obstructed the view for the captain. So, it was moved many times during our shoot up the river and held up perfectly.
Bridal bouquet design
The bridal bouquet consisted of orchid florets, pincushion protea, roses and color enhanced foliage with a pampas grass collar.
Always bring extra floral!
Always bring extra floral to a photo shoot to enhance other items. Nothing is a better to accent than floral.
Remember when you agree to take part in a photo shoot design something different and unique. Take this moment to be creative and create something beautiful with your team.
Design for the love of design!
Thanks to the incredible companies that made this photo shoot possible: