Kali and Jeff love beer. And more importantly - local Atlanta beer. So, they decided to hold their wedding reception at Sweetwater Brewery. When I met with Kali, we of course discussed our favorite Sweetwater brews and then moved on to the details of her wedding.
She wanted white peonies for her wedding bouquet. And her mother wanted Kali's baby bonnet/handkerchief keepsake wrapped around the stems. Kali had worn the baby bonnet at her christening and now wanted to use it for her wedding day. I added a bit of blue ribbon for her 'something blue'.
Her girls wore gorgeous gowns of grey and white and Kali requested a floral palette of blues, purples and greens...
'Cool water' lavender roses, purple hydrangea, lavender scabiosa, blue delphinium, purple stock, blue hyacinth and huckleberry foliage comprised the bouquets.
Now, here's where things get really interesting. It just so happens that my husband makes bottleopeners and has made one for Sweetwater (which they sell in their gift shop). He also sells his bottleopeners at the Great American Beer Festival in Denver every year. I have experienced the GABF several times and had recently discovered these beautiful flowers made from beer bottle caps.
Naturally, these were a perfect fit for Kali's wedding! First, I visited Sweetwater to ask for caps. They were very generous and gave me a ton! I then sent them to Minnesota where Cathy at Trinket Foundry flattened them and turned them into beautiful pieces of art using beads and buttons. I used one in Jeff's boutonniere. (He was very psyched to be wearing a Sweetwater cap on his lapel.)
The ceremony was held at St. James United Methodist Church which has a beautiful altar.
It was a gorgeous sunny day and guests were excited to head over to the brewery for the reception. I believe they had just renovated their event space.
Guests had the option of doing a brewery tour during the reception. How cool.
Zest Atlanta was the caterer and they always do a fabulous job. I'm kinda partial to them because they are a Decatur vendor too.
Guests signed the beer poster (very educational) and were directed to their tables by escort cards. Each table was named after a Sweetwater brew.
Now, for the centerpieces. As well as using the bottlecap flowers - I also chased down some hop foliage. I randomly called Crosby Hop Farm in Woodburn, Oregon, explained what I was doing, and they graciously agreed to send me a whole garbage bag full of fresh hop vine. It was a strange and sweet coincidence that the guy who answered the phone out there in Oregon had attended the same tiny college that I had in Tennessee! (He however, had just graduated - me, a WHILE ago....).
Here's a closeup of the hop foliage - it was so wonderfully twisty and green!
And here's a few more centerpiece images with the beer signs that were used to label the tables.
The second centerpiece design featured a large Sweetwater beer bottle with a fresh gardenia (Kali loves gardenias) and a few of the wired bottlecap flowers. The space smelled of fresh gardenias the entire night.
Kali and Jeff most appropriately provided Sweetwater beer glasses as their wedding favor as well as water bottles with their wedding label.
Not surprisingly - this has become one of my favorite weddings. I wish I could have been a guest!
Unfortunately - Kali hired a photographer that decided to quit the business right after her wedding so she has had a terrible time getting her wedding photos. The above photos are mostly from my iphone. Even though I feel that flowers are important to a wedding, the MOST important thing is having a good photographer that you can rely on. You can see who I recommend back on my website at bloom floral design under "Vendors".
Cheers!
