Bridal Timeline: Years Down the Road

Lisa and I have been working together on her flowers for a long time, almost 2 years! She contacted me in 2008 to get some initial pricing and information for her August 2010 wedding. I didn't hear from her for a while until she e-mailed me again last November. While time had marched on, Lisa knew she was still marching down that aisle, and she was going to do it with ivory and pink flowers.

Her flowers of choice were roses, orchids, and peonies, so we got to work finding great looking fresh touch orchids, perfectly pink peonies, and crisp, open garden roses. The orchids were going to be the flowers to tie everything together, but Lisa wanted her bouquet to stand out. We chose ivory roses with ivory and pink orchids for her bouquet, while the girls carried light pink peonies and bright pink orchids. We then decided which flowers would be for the bouts and corsages and then I got to work.

Here are a few shots of the final products:Groom's Bout: Ivory and Pink Phalenopsis Orchid

Groomsmen Bouts: Hot Pink Phalenopsis Orchid--these are incredibly lifelike!

Grandparents Bout and Corsage: Ivory rose, Ivory rose with ivory and pink orchid

Bridesmaid Bouquets: 3 Large light pink Peonies and hot pink orchids

Toss Bouquet: Ivory roses and ivory and pink orchids, ivory ribbon wrap and pink tails

Bridal Bouquet: 13 Ivory garden roses, pink and white Phalenopsis orchids, and an ivory ribbon wrap with pink criss-crossed ribbon and pearl accents.

In Lisa's case, she had lots of time to work with me to find the perfect flowers, designs, and colors. What we ended up with are arrangements that were Lisa's style two years ago as well as today and she'll have the same flowers to celebrate with at her 50th Anniversary. Congrats Lisa and thanks for including me in this wonderful time in your life!

Bridal Timeline: Expedited!

Local bride Rebecca contacted me with some important details--her colors were red and ivory, she wasn't too picky about types of flowers, and oh yeah, her wedding was in a week and a half!

Knowing that she wasn't picky, I set out to find great flowers to fit her budget that were available immediately. Callas were in the realm of flowers she liked, so I quickly sent her pictures of callas that I had on hand. She loved them and so we made a plan.

Rebecca's gown had red details in it and she wanted her bouquet to be mostly red with just hints of white. Her bouquet turned out to be a stunning collection of large red and smaller ivory callas with a red ribbon wrap. The shape was exactly what she was looking for.

She wanted her girls to carry a simple but elegant bouquet of just ivory callas, tied off with an ivory ribbon wrap. The two styles of bouquets were a great compliment to each other.

The bridal party flowers matched each other, with the groomsmen wearing ivory callas and the groom wearing a red calla.

A cake topper was also a part of the bigger picture, and since the cake was going to be ivory, I created a 3 calla topper in red with bear grass accents.

For what little time we had, it was a quick and easy process for both Rebecca and myself. She got to see the flowers as they were coming together and she wasn't surprised by what her last minute order was going to be. Best of all, it was completely in budget and perfect for her style. Thanks Rebecca for finding me, trusting me, and being a great asset to my creative process!

July Jewels - Flowers in Yellow and White

Bride-to-be Gretchen called me up looking to get some information for her fast-approaching nuptials. Her style was clean, simple, and sunny--yellow and white roses. She gave me some of her ideas and from there I walked her through some different options for the bouts and corsages. What we came up with was a nice set of summery flowers, perfect for a July wedding.

Her son's bout: small rose bud and mini yellow roses

Mother's wristlet: mini white and yellow roses and butter colored ribbon

Groom's Bout: Open rose with mini yellow roses


Bridal Bouquet: 6 yellow and 6 white roses with pearl accented ribbon wrap

Gretchen set up a time to come over and see the flowers part way through their construction. We took that time to talk about ribbon ideas and finish the final design details together. She picked up her flowers with a few weeks to spare and was thrilled to check one more thing off her to-do list. Thanks Gretchen for working with me and allowing me to help make your wedding a little extra special.

Tropical Heat and Bright Summer Colors

I don't know what it's like where you're from, but around here it's HOT! What better way to get into the spirit of embracing the high temps than with a few pics of a lovely tropical themed wedding?

Kathryn, a local bride, wanted a bright colored bouquet for her simple wedding. Her's would be the only bouquet and she needed a handful of extra flowers for her groom and family members. I sent her a picture of a grouping of flowers and she was able to choose the colors and styles she liked--essentially building her own bouquet. From there it was easy to come up with designs for the bouts and corsages, basing them on the flowers that we had already chosen. So grab a glass of iced tea, crank up the AC and take a look at Kathryn's luscious tropical treasures.Yellow Hibiscus, Ivory Callas, Flame Callas, Magenta Peonies, Dark Purple Orchids

Groom's Bout: Ivory Calla with mini flame Calla

Bouts: Mini Flame Calla lily

Corsages: Yellow Hibiscus with mini flame Calla.

Thanks Kathryn for working with me to create your fun and gorgeous wedding flowers.

Feature: Altar Arrangements

Occasionally I get brides who are only needing one or two of a specific type of arrangement for their wedding. My sister-in-law's neighbor, Jenna, originally contacted me regarding the Carlson Craft Invitations that I sell, but came back when she decided she wanted two altar arrangements for her outdoor wedding. She had already created the bridal party flowers herself, but didn't want to take on a larger arrangement. She e-mailed me this picture from another florist to show me the style and composition that she was drawn to:

I could tell off the bat that while this picture was helpful for conveying the idea, it was going to be way too small for what Jenna needed. She wanted arrangements that be floor-standing and designed to be a focal point of her ceremony site. Her budget was $100 per arrangement and while two of these small tabletop arrangements could have been hers from this other designer for $81.50 each, I knew I could creatively design  significantly larger pieces within her budget. So with the basic design ideas from her original picture, I created these two beauties:

View fullsize

Each arrangement has 13 Ivory Calla Lilies, Ivy, and Bear Grass. They are gathered in matte Ivory Rectangular vases with a single band of Latte ribbon to bring her other color into the arrangement. Standing over 3 feet tall, the pair will make a great frame for her altar, enhancing the natural beauty of her outdoor location without taking anything away from it. And for only $90 each, she received the wow factor she was looking for!

Thanks to Jenna for trusting me to create arrangements that were right for her!

Welcoming New Brides!

I've been so busy this month that I never got a chance to say welcome to my newest brides: Amabelle, Amanda, Gretchen, Kathryn, Jenna, Dominica, Kelsey, Rebecca, and Jennifer. While each bride has a very different style and different needs for their arrangements, 5 out of these 9 brides have chosen the ever popular and always classy Calla Lily to be included somewhere in their wedding flowers. The Calla is classic and versatile--it works great on its own or mixed with other flowers, in pretty and feminine corsages, and as stand alone boutonnieres. I'm looking forward to sharing the finished product pictures with you, but for now, I just need to get back to work!

Surprising Color Combos

I recently was talking with a friend who's early October wedding wasn't jiving with the classic fall colors . Her girls will be wearing "Sangria," a dark purple/burgundy, but she wanted to tie in oranges and greens that would work with the Sangria. I wanted to help her come up with some ideas, so while picking up flowers for another bride I browsed the warehouse and showroom of my supplier for inspiration.

I came up with this little collection of an Orange rose, Orange Ranunculus with a green center, Green/Brown Hydrangea, Sangria Button Mums, and Sangria Mini Callas. This combo is great because the vibrancy of the colors brings attention to each of the unique textures of the flowers, but it still falls within the parameters of what most people consider fall colors. My friend is from my hometown in Michigan where the beginning of October can be more like the end of summer. The idea of doing variations on the classic burnt orange, wine red, golden yellow, and moss green is really fitting for an aisle walk that might still be backed with green grass and full trees rather than brisk air and crunchy leaves.

While my friend (Hi Erin!) ultimately decided on fresh flowers, I had fun working with her to come up with some ideas outside of the typical Autumn landscape. I know it's trendy right now to come up with out-there color palettes, but before you go too extreme, try adjusting tones and shades before scrapping the whole color scheme. You never know what you'll come up with!

Beth + Bryan: May 15, 2010

Referrals are so great for those of us serving brides and grooms. Not only is it a boost of confidence for me that someone would pass on my name, but it also helps reassure the potential bride that Love Is Blooming really is here to provide the most beautiful flowers she could ask for.

So on that note, I'd like to introduce Beth and Bryan! At the beginning of April, Melissa, one of the very first brides I ever worked for called me up with a request. Her younger sister Beth was getting married in a month and needed some flowers. Melissa had gone through this process with me before and was hoping I could do the flowers in time and create something unique and special for her sister. Over the course of a few conversations, we decided on red roses and perhaps a red filler for a monochromatic look. With a few creative suggestions from my end, we ended up with this:

-Red rose buds, dark red orchids, bear grass, raffia on the stem-

Beth absolutely loved her flowers. The grass loops and raffia really fit in well at their park ceremony. Being near Lake Michigan and the vineyards of Southwest Michigan gave me the inspiration to add in natural elements for a more rustic bouquet -- fitting for the farm-raised couple.

Thank you Beth and Bryan for the opportunity to make your day a little more personal, and thanks to Melissa for helping Beth choose flowers that fit her personality, her budget, and her wedding. Also a huge thanks to Ben Pancoast for these wonderful images of the happy couple!

And with that I bid adieu with a few more breathtaking photos.

Spring Pieces - The Multi-Use Prom Bracelet Corsage

It's always fun to try new things in flower design. I recently had someone call and ask for a boutonniere and corsage for prom. These smaller projects are fun because I can get my creative juices flowing and whip up some fun little arrangements. Conor called me to say his girlfriend would be wearing a turquoise/teal dress and his vest would be light blue and turquoise. I knew finding flowers in that hue would be tough, so instead I started looking for a way to bring the color in with a non-floral embellishment. He liked the idea of a white flower so I used that as my "canvas" and went from there.


His bout was a single open Ranunculus with some grass accents and silver ribbon. I wanted to keep this stylish but masculine--I didn't think fru-fru is what this high school athlete was going for. The grass keeps it interesting without being over the top.

For the corsage, I found a beautiful silver and turquoise beaded bracelet; the perfect pop of color. I used a single larger Ranunculus and buds, adding in more grass to frame the flowers, a little bling to add sparkle and a ribbon bow to fill it out. The great thing about the bracelet concept is that it becomes more than a corsage. She has the option of removing the flowers after the event and having a beautiful bracelet to remind her of their magical evening together.

At less than $30 for the pair, these personal flowers have all the look of fresh without the price tag. If you are interested in learning more about what I can create for your special event, send me an e-mail with the details and I'd be happy to work with you on designing the perfect flowers.

Designer Invitations Made Easy!

I'm excited to announce another way I can help you get custom designs that fit your style and personality -- Love is Blooming is now a designing consultant with Carlson Craft invitations!

Carlson Craft is a well known, top quality, trusted source of Wedding Invitations and accessories. Their invitations and accessories are stunningly beautiful, just like Love is Blooming wedding flowers. 

And right now you may be eligible for FREE Thank You notes and 100 FREE personalized napkins.

Their beautiful stationery is not only available at great prices, but you also have a great selection of styles, colors, fonts, and even some eco-friendly invitations made of 100% post-consumer fibers. But what you really want to know is what they look like right? Here is a peak at just a few of the available styles:

So whether you are looking for colorful, contemporary, embossed, or formal items, Carlson Craft products from Love Is Blooming are the way to go. To set up a meeting to browse through the huge selection, contact me . Or if you'd rather shop and order online, head on over to my Carlson Craft Page to take care of it right from home.

Nicole's Reveal: Spring is in the air!

Last week I welcomed some of my newest brides, including Nicole, a local gal who saw my flowers at her sister's wedding. During our consultation, Nicole mentioned that she wanted bright colors, flowers that brought Spring to mind, and some chic Bare grass detailing. I'm proud to present Nicole's finished flowers for her April 17th wedding.

Bridesmaid Bouquet

Bridal Bouquet

Groom's Bout

Groomsmen Bout

Personal Attendant Corsage

Mother's Corsage

Thank you Nicole for including me in the preparations for your big day!

Centerpiece Collection 1- Events Empire

Here's just a sneak peek at the collection of centerpieces I've been working on with Leilani of Events Empire. I'm in love with the romance of the white, hint of greens, and the sparkly mosaic vases. Brides who choose Events Empire will have beautiful pieces like this available to them for their reception decor. I'm so happy to be working with the Events Empire team and look forward to sharing more of my creations with you!

Lily of the Valley:

Gardenia and Grass:

Mini Roses

Welcome to my newest 2010 Brides!

Just wanted to say a quick hello to my newest 2010 Brides: Nicole, Lisa, Brittany, and Nikki! I am excited to be working with these fun and creative gals who all have interesting stories and, of course, beautiful designs.

• Nicole came to me after seeing the flowers I did for her sister's wedding several years ago. (thanks for the referral!) Her fast-approaching April wedding is going to be bright and fun with daisies, roses, and mini carnations in pink, yellow, orange, and ivory. Here's the rough draft I sent to Nicole to give her the basic idea of the color combination. She loved it!

• Lisa contacted me waaaay back in October of 2008 as she was starting to research and plan for her August 2010 wedding. She held onto the prices and ideas I sent her and got back in touch with me a few months ago. Her white and pink color scheme is going to be full of romance and some lovely orchids, peonies, and roses. Can't wait for you to see it!

• Brittany, local student, saw my blog post with Natasha's funky and fun purple, green, and white flowers and fell in love. With her blue-ish purple take on this design (see above), we'll be making it her own for her June aisle-walk.

• Nikki called me in January to set up a meeting and talk about flowers. We got together and got to work coming up with some designs for her purple, green, and coral wedding. I can tell you this, these bouquets are going to be hot! The colors work so well together and yet they stand out and say, "Hello, I'm awesome!" While her initial design has undergone some revisions, there's been no stress as we have plenty of time and the ability to make changes easily. I'm super excited about creating her flowers.

If you are considering silk flowers at all, let's chat about your ideas and the many benefits of imitation flowers.. For a free, quick quote, fill out my bridal checklist, or contact me to set up a free consultation.

Sunny with a chance of...Happiness!

There's just something about sunny, yellow flowers that brightens a person's mood! So when I picked up these gorgeous yellow roses for bride Nicole's April wedding, I couldn't help but smile each time I walked past them on my shelf. Then, on another trip to pick up flowers for a bride, a charming little stem of Memosa called out to me. Knowing they would look so great with the yellow roses currently in my possession, I had to buy some for a temporary design session. It's no secret that I love a good monochromatic bouquet, so bringing my little goodies home and throwing this bouquet together was much fun. It's simple and yet a little surprising!

If you have some great flower ideas for your wedding but don't know where to start, contact me to set up an appointment or to hear a little bit more about how I can help. Until Nicole's roses are ready for their big moment in her bridal bouquet, I think I might leave those Memosas right where they are in their sunny little home.

P.S. Wrote this post a few days ago and then proceeded to paint my work area "Sunbeam" yellow at 10 p.m. that night. Crazy? I know.

Seconds Please! Check out these cake flowers

I love working with other vendors in the wedding industry. There is a comraderie, a fun factor, and of course it's a great way to contribute to even more weddings. When Mary of Cakes For Your Occasions asked me to design flowers for another cake, I jumped at the chance. It was a free-style design, as she wasn't feeling too picky, but she did request a cascade affect. Our 4-tiered creation turned out awesome and is something we are both so proud of.

If you are interested in talking with Mary about her tasty creations, head on over here to see more pictures and to get in contact with her. Thanks again, Mary, for allowing me to be a part of something so beautiful!

Announcing new relationship with Minneapolis-based Wedding Planning veteran "Events Empire."

You may remember me mentioning the Maple Grove Wedding Expo I was a vendor at in January, or maybe you met me there. Well, not only did I meet many wonderful brides, mothers, and bridesmaids, I also met one very talented and enthusiastic lady who is tearing up the wedding scene in the Twin Cities.

I'm very excited for Love Is Blooming to be the silk wedding flower partner for Leilani of Emfra Events - Events Empire. Leilani offers full-wedding planning including services such as catering, decor, even jewelry. Having been in business in the Minneapolis area for over 20 years, Leilani has a great wealth of resources at her fingertips and she's ready to help you create the wedding of your dreams.

When meeting with Leilani, I was so impressed by the gorgeous decor at both ceremony and receptions sites. Check out some of the impressive draping and table-scapes Leilani and her team have created:I am thrilled to be able to contribute to such beautiful events. I look forward to sharing some of the upcoming designs I will be working on for the 2010 wedding season with the Emfra Events-Events Empire team!

A Ceremony in Paradise!

Iman contacted me in July to help her come up with some romantic designs for her destination wedding. She loved Pomanders and had some very specific colors she was working with. To help find the perfect flowers, Iman came up with the brilliant idea of heading to her local home improvement store to pick out the correct shade of paint swatches. She dropped those in the mail and within a few days, I had exactly what I needed.

The pale green hydrangea we chose was a perfect match and the Amethyst satin ribbon was the shiny version of color perfection. We worked together to figure out the perfect proportions of pomanders and the right ribbon length.

In addition to the pomanders, Iman wanted to bejewel the gazebo altar with jewels and orchids. We found the perfect way to combine the two to give it just a bit of sparkle and a whole lot of awesome. The result was a subtle embellishment to an already breathtaking locale. So feast your eyes on these beautiful photos from Iman's big day.

Isn't she beautiful? Thanks again Iman for giving me the creative reigns to add a little bit of flower lovin' to your amazing ceremony.

To find out what other destination brides have to say about working with me, head on over to my recommendations and read for yourself.

Have your Cake...and Flowers too!

Is that not the biggest, most lickable, mixing beater you've ever seen? Delish! I recently had the pleasure of working with Mary of Cakes For Your Occasions in designing some lovely cake flowers. The bride provided Mary with some pictures but was looking for a combination of a few designs. So I started my search for the perfect dark red roses to complement Leah's wedding cake. Mary was going to be putting black ribbon around each of the 4 square layers, so my flowers needed to match the classy cake they would adorn.

The final product was not only beautiful, but I hear it tasted great! If you are interested in a delicious custom cake for your wedding, contact Mary to schedule a meeting and even a tasting. Having tasted most of Mary's flavorful creations, I can personally tell you that you won't regret having one of these beauties gracing your cake table.

Like the flowers too? Contact me to find out pricing, styles, and availability for the perfect topper for your wedding cake.

Purple Wedding Flowers Take 3

Local students Stephanie and Michael came to me last fall with some color swatches and a vague idea of what they wanted for flowers. They were hunting for a shade of purple to complement their color scheme that showcased a teardrop cascade bridal bouquet.

Stephanie wanted to blend in some hints of blue, so we started by finding purple roses in deeper shade, then hydrangea in a purple/blue color, and rounded out the scheme with some blue rock cress. It provided a nice palette of color without being too matchy-matchy. We tossed in some cute mini-dendrobium orchids and voila!

For the bridesmaids, they wanted a simpler design, so we cut out a few of the types of flowers and pared it down to roses and orchids. With some purple satin ribbon, we "tied" everything together for the finished look.

Many thanks to Stephanie and Michael for including me in their dream wedding!

From the Expo: Caribou Coffee Winner!

A week and a half ago, I had the pleasure of participating in the Maple Grove Wedding Expo and what a great experience! On a freezing cold day (-7 degrees) we saw so many glowing brides-to-be and their entourages coming to meet vendors and get inspired. Being right by the entrance to the show, I had a prime position to meet most everyone who walked by. It really thrilled me and made me do an internal happy dance everytime I heard someone say, "Wait, these aren't real flowers?" The look of shock made me giggle every time, because yes, artificial flowers can look that good! They aren't often given a fair shot in the wedding industry because of past notions that you are getting cheap, gawdy flowers. But let's be serious, would I ever do that to you?

Every bride walking by had the chance to sign-up to win a Caribou Coffee gift card. And as promised, it's time to announce the winner!

And the winner is: Shauna Chelte! Shauna shoot me an e-mail with your address and I'll be sending you your prize.

Thanks again to everyone that took the time to come to the show. I had a great time talking about everything wedding and meeting so many fun gals. And remember, if you are interested in receiving a free and quick quote, just fill out the Bridal Checklist and send it in.