USU Bridal Faire Spring 2010

Bridal Fairs are very fun for me because I get to create whatever designs I want. Of course, I try to keep in mind the latest trends in color and style. But at the same time, I am also trying to be a little different so when a bride is walking past our booth, they just have to stop and see what we have! Now, one thing you have to understand is that I live in Cache Valley- the northern most part of Utah- which means that we are a little behind the times when it comes to the latest trends and such! So when you see these pictures you may not think they are that different or unusual or overly trendy, but for cache valley, we are definitely taking one small step out of the box!!
**Now, this in no way is to be offensive to any CV citizens that may read this. This is just merely an observation based on the "off the wall" trends I've seen in the big bridal magazines!
I really do like the style that CV has when it comes to weddings. I, myself, am into classy, simple weddings that are not over the top and gaudy like magazines think they should be. So I think I fit in quite nicely around here!!
So, without further ramblings, here are the pictures!

The "Crazy Daisy" Yellow and Green Wedding:

Daisies are probably the most loved flower of all-- or so it seems lately! So we went all out on this on! Yellow Gerbera Daisies, White Daisies, Green Hypericum Berries, Ming Fern and Bear Grass. This display was our "show stopper" girls would see this one from a distance and come over to get a closer look. So simple, yet the biggest hit- Go figure!!

The Regal Purple "Bling" Wedding:

Purple seems to be the color that never goes out of style. We always have a couple weddings a year that have purple as one of the colors. This year we seem to be having more than just a couple!! This design consists of: Lisianthus, Stock, Tulips, Spray Roses, Seeded Eucalyptus, Israeli Ruscus, and... Bling! We used big "table confetti" diamonds and various jeweled beads, strung them on decorative purple and silver wire and had them hanging below the bouquet and dispersed throughout the flowers. I loved this arrangement! I loved the untamed yet elegant/classy look! And it smelled so yummy with all the stock and roses in it!

The "Edgy" Shades of Magenta and Pink with Black Accents Wedding:

This is one of my favorites! I liked the spin off the traditional cascade look for this bouquet. And I loved the use of black in it as well. Black is one of those colors that is more often associated with death causing some people to think that it shouldn't be part of a wedding (except in the tuxes ;) ) Well, I am so not one of those people! I think black is oober sharp/classy/elegant/visually stunning, etc... and can be the most perfect backdrop for COLOR! It screams "look at me!" and demands attention! It is exactly why most every woman has that "little black dress" hanging in her closet!! Okay, I'll get back to the flowers!! For this design we wanted the pretty, classic, timeless colors: pinks and white, while adding the fun, modern twist of black. The flowers consisted of: Lisianthus, Dendrobium Orchids, Mini Cymbidium Orchids, Pixie Carnations, Calla Lilies, and Israeli Ruscus. Accenting with artificial black leaves and black wire bent into funky shapes. Due to the stand the bouquet is in and angle of camera, you are not getting the full view of it. There were more wire "leaf" designs, black leaves and flowers coming out the top giving it more balance.
This really isn't a great picture (I was/am still adjusting to my new camera and the background is terrible!), but it shows the whole cake, which was kinda fun! The middle layer was designed only with ribbon and black pearl pins. And it is also roughly 1.5 times taller than normal cake layers. Well, there will be lots more to come! I still have not figured out the trick to getting pictures off my phone (the easy way- I know the hard way and it takes FOR-EV-ER) and camera... I am technologically challenged so I require Morgans help! I have all the pics picked out that I want to post for Sherry and Andy's wedding so that will be my next post. I was going to try to do two post today but I have run out of time! Oops! Till next time...

Wedding Work

The whole writing part of blogging takes too long so I don't plan on doing a whole lot of it! I think most of the pics are self explanatory! If you don't get it, just ask!! This post contains pictures of arrangements that were done many moons ago, so don't judge the "less-experience" look... ;D

Bridal Faire Arrangements-
Cake Topper:

Self Explanatory...

Bouquet:

All the fruit was coated in a glossy sort of sugary stuff...

The oober bright bouquet- but oh so fun!:

The Cake to go with it!

Ok, so I will be honest, I didn't actually do the next two bouquets. But they are cool and I could totally duplicate them. They were made at a design show I attended, so I photographed them for future usage!

More Bridal Faire arrangements:

The blue is actually a vase ... not the handle!

The cake flowers were arranged in a mini terra cotta pot!

Random Cake... don't remember it's purpose or why it doesn't have a bouquet to go with it...

This bouquet was arranged in an Oasis bouquet holder (plastic handle with foam). It's not the most attractive thing so we covered it, and the ugly stand, with fabric for the display...

Eggplant Calla Lily Bouquet:

I made this one at my Advanced Design course in Seattle

And this one...

And this one... This is a composite arrangement- I've only done two in my life, both were in the classroom... need I say more?!

Some weddings we did at work, many years ago!
Groom's boutonniere:

Cake arrangement:

A Brides Bouquet:

A Food Table arrangement, if I recall correctly:

Her Centerpiece(s):

Well, that's all for now- I'm pooped! This is quite the long and arduous process so, please, bare with me! Anyway, more will be coming... My next post will either be "Friends Weddings" or "Sherry's Wedding"- She deserves a post entirely to her self! ;-) Till then...

Funeral Work

I have quite a few more pictures than just this, however, they are all floppy paper form. Meaning I'm going to have to spend a whole lot of time getting to know the scanner! I've been procrastinating this task because it means that I have to stay cooped up in our extra bedroom at a desk... That's so not my style! I enjoy my couch! Anyway, I'll get to it eventually!

This design was for a friends moms funeral. Her mom loved flowers and gardening so when she saw a similar picture in a book, she knew it would be appropriate for celebrating her mother's life. I then recreated it with her desired colors and flowers and added some gardening tools. To this day, this is probably one of my most favorite designs. I took 4-5" clay pots and broke them into pieces that molded to the wreath and made it appear like the flowers were spilling from them. It was so earthy and natural, I just loved it! I also took sand paper to the pots to give them an aged look. Another feature that added to the arrangement, something I didn't plan on but absolutely loved, was that the pots soaked up water from the foam like someone had just watered their garden! Ahh, I just love the organic-ness of it! I wish I could do it all over again!

This easel arrangement was also done for a funeral, but I can't remember for who or when. I do remember it was for a man though! Probably a farmer, it had millet, cat tails, some other wheat-like stalks, alstromeria, sunflowers, spider mums, liatris, rusty-red roses, bells of Ireland... I like doing the rustic look thing, and I get to do it a lot... We have lots of farm land around here!

Well, that's all for now! Little by little I will get all my pictures on here! Till then... I hope you keep checking on this and enjoy what you see! If anyone out there has any pictures of work I've done (anything from vase arrangements, corsage/boutonnieres, weddings, funerals, etc...) for them please send them to me via email... socalilily@gmail.com. I'd love to post them! Thanks a ton!

My New Blog

Here it is! Another blog that I probably won't be good at updating! But, like my other one, I am sure gonna try!
This blog is dedicated to my profession as a Floral Designer. I love what I do and am very passionate about it. I love it when I can be creative and design unique arrangements for my customers.
I am currently managing the floral department at Lee's Marketplace, a grocery store in Smithfield Utah. We are a full-service floral shop- meaning we do everything that a regular shop does: Weddings, Funerals, Dance designs(corsages & boutonnieres), Everyday arrangements, Balloons, Gifty Items, Fruit/Gift Baskets, Planter baskets and Blooming plants, etc... Being in a grocery store has it's ups and downs. Some ups: We order flowers from some of the same places that most of our competitors do, so we have the same quality and cost. Also, being in a large store, we have the benefit of not having to mark up our prices as much as our competitors (which our customers love- especially in our current economy) because we have the support of the high grossing departments like grocery, meat, produce, etc... Another upside is that we get a whole lot of traffic through the store so we get a lot of people stopping to look, which gets a lot of impulse buyers! One downside is that, being in a grocery store, people don't expect us to do the big stuff, like funerals and weddings! So we get to work hard to get our name out there! Word of mouth is one good way to get business. We have some great customers that are probably our best form of advertising! And word travels fast in small towns so we do get quite a bit of business through our clients. We still have to factor in a few other forms of advertising: We work all the Bridal Faires, we advertise in the local Wedding Directories, we have our own brochures, newspaper ads, etc... All in all, I like where I work. I have fun and I love the variety that our store gets! Keeps life interesting!
There you have it! Floral Designing is a big part of my life right now.
So, my plan for this blog is to display pictures and comments about my designs. I hope you all will enjoy it! But before I get too into this, there's one thing still looming... I can't think of a good blog name (besides the temporary one, BD Designs). I need one that could possibly carry over to a future shop/business name! I need suggestions... something clever, cute, catchy, fun. You know the drill!! So before I spend time posting pictures, I need help working on a name! Please help... no name, no pictures!! Incentive?! I sure hope so! ;-)
* These might be helpful in conjuring up some clever names... I like monkeys, orchids, the color green (the apple/kiwi/lime shades), lilies, the ocean and anything relating to it- esp. starfish, hydrangeas, palm trees, lilacs, jasmine (not from Aladdin, the plant/flower), etc... Put your thinking caps on my friends!! I hope to hear from you soon! Thanks!