Floral Fridays: Orange and Gray Bridal Bouquet

It's September, and autumn is teasing us already - hints of rain, leaves falling... Autumn has always been a favorite season of mine, I love the crisp air, the smell of the leaves, and most of all, the stunning colors: I am pulled towards the joyful, warm hues like deep yellow, burnt orange, persimmon and ruby red...ah, the composition of it all! So inspiring. Gray was a really big color this year still (I LOVE gray), and I like how the gray plays with the orange hues in this bouquet - even though gray has usually been seen as more of a wintery color (especially when next to burgundy or cream). The bouquet has contrast, but in a unique way, not as harsh as red and cream, for example.

For all you wedding professionals joining me at "Engage09, the Encore" (A luxury Wedding Symposium), this one's for you - inspired by the "Poppy and Cement" color palette of this year's event!



I think the gray next to the orange adds a nice sophistication, and an element of surprise. What do you think? What new color palettes do you want to see this fall?

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Floral Fridays: The Scented bouquet

Ah, summer bouquets.  Often, when trying to get the perfect color combination, we floral designers use flowers created just for us in the floral trade - roses that last longer, orchids grown hydroponically (in water versus soil), etc.  In the summer, we have the opportunity to use flowers fresh from the garden, and what we gain is that amazing, intoxicating scent of romance.  This particular bouquet was the best smelling bouquet I have ever created! The bride, albeit in her 20's, wanted something old-fashioned, yet timeless; soft, gardeny, with gardenias, garden roses, sweet peas.  We were happy to oblige!  We called this our 'tea-stained' wedding, since she wanted everything with a just a hint of color; a blush of pink, a hint of beige, warm ivories and eggshell.

What stood out though, beyond the color palette, was that scent - the summery sweetness of the garden roses (that no standard rose can ever compare too!), the heady, rich perfume of the gardenias (my all-time favorite - hint to my husband!) the spiky scent of the sweetpeas and then that exotic tone of jasmine, which we wound through the edges of the bouquet, and which opened, bloom by bloom, throughout the wedding day.  I was worried that all these scents would compete, but mother nature knows best, and just like a perfectly layered perfume, this bouquet was complex and elegant in both hue and scent.  

We finished the bouquet off with our signature pleated ruffle, out of pink duppioni silk, since the brides gown had pleated ruffles on the bottom. Perfect!

Daniela

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Before and After: Pink Pink and Pink!

The wedding this weekend is a fun one - Melissa, our bride, doesn't love roses, so they were to be used minimally (except for garden roses in her bouquet), and she LOVES Dahlias. Okay, so it's June, and the Dahlias that were shipped in to our wholesaler here were NOT looking so good. That's the thing with out of season flowers, even though we can often get them from a warmer place on the planet, that doesn't mean they look good. Dahlias like August. (I won't mention that all my August brides WANT peonies, which of course are incredibly stunning this week). Sigh!

Even though we have fabulous connections with wholesalers and growers in Los Angeles, Holland and Ecuador, pink dahlias weren't meant to happen in Seattle this weekend. Design-oriented as Melissa is, we came up with some alternatives.

Instead of Dahlias, we came up with some fun Chrysanthemums that had a similar feel. I think these get a bad rap, along with carnations. It's all in how you use them! All greens and filler flower with a few roses and mums? Ick. But a lush design of all one flower, or these Mums as a showcase, along with peonies, is different and refreshing.
Melissa also wanted some Stargazer lillies(we found a view variations on this theme), so I obliged, although I am NOT a fan of lillies usually! (I'm actually allergic to the white Casablanca ones, but so far, so good on these Fuchsia beauties.) They require way too much babysitting! From the moment they arrived tightly closed, you place them in warm water, and out in the sun if possible, to get them to open up. Coaxing them along, as they each open at different times, you place each open one immediately in the cooler to keep them at that aperture. Not to mention taking out the stamens! Melissa, if my hands are stained yellow this weekend, it's because of those lillies!! :)

They are also incredibly fragile, creasing terribly when bent. So, no one crash into my delivery truck please! (Good general rule, actually, lillies or not!)

The lillies did provide a nice shade of pink, as we ended up bringing in some other lillies to replace some of the not yet blooming pink dahlias we had wanted. Melissa wanted various shades of pink, with accents of white, and a background of slate blue (ribbon/bridesmaids dresses/ties).

Here is a bucket with flowers for one type of centerpiece, waiting to be arranged. How will it all turn out? Check on Monday to see!

Daniela

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Floral Fridays: Lilacs

Ah, the scent of lilacs. If you are looking for fragrant wedding flowers, look no further than these sweet, delicate blooms. For me, lilacs flood me with memories: despite living right in the middle of a big city like Berlin (Germany), our little street was lined with tree lilacs, in every possible lilac hue from the palest lavender to deep pinky plum, and of course, crisp white. In the spring, the air was infused with their heady scent - absolute magic!

Right now, when I open the front door of my house on an early May morning and the wind stirs my lone lilac bush just right, those memories of childhood come right back, and I can't help but smile.

Lilacs aren't the hardiest of blooms, but with proper conditioning they should make it through the day as a bouquet and in a vase as centerpieces, although they do not seem too fond of oasis (floral foam that many of use for more complex designs).
For everyday, buy them when they are fresh and plentiful at your farmers market. For your wedding or special event, I suggest late April through mid to late May, depending on your location and that year's weather. Lilics are fabulous with fluttery blooms such as sweet peas and peonies, I prefer them monochromatic in tone when mixing textures.

image from martha stewart weddings

image courtesy of Kathy Wright and Company, a fabulous Sand Diego designer!

Daniela

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Floral Fridays: Garden Roses - Caramel Antike

I LOVE garden roses. Although in general my tastes run more to the clean and modern, I love ruffly petalled blooms, from peonies to ranunculus and the amazing garden rose.

Caramel Antike smells heavenly (which is one of the reasons I love garden roses so much - they actually smell like roses!)

The other amazing feature of this roses besides it's unique color and fragrance is that it holds forever once cut - almost ten days, which is unheard of for many garden roses. Enjoy! This rose will be available in the next few weeks!

Daniela

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Floral Fridays: Peonies are here!!

Yes, peonies are here! Here at Bella Signature Design we are always watching for when flowers come in to the season in various parts of the world. Many of our brides LOVE peonies, so it is always on our list of blooms to watch out for!

Although official US season for Peonies is last week of May into early June, other parts of the world are offering these luscious blooms already! Although not as inexpensive as the two week period when they can be purchased locally (when they tend to be $2-$3 a stem), these large, amazing blooms pack a lot of WOW factor, and are a great value for their size and impact in anything from bouquets to centerpieces. Their fluttery, lush feel looks great in nostalgic or deconstructed pieces that are so hot right now, as well as working fabulously in modern pave designs and garden-inspired arrangements. In colors from white and light pink, to stunning maroon and my favorite, coral, peonies are simply fabulous. And they are here! Want some? Contact us!

Coral Sunset

I can't wait to get my hands on some of those yummy "coral charms"

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Daniela

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