In memorium...

I'd like to share a story today of an event that occurred at one of my weddings several years ago. The ceremony and reception were held in the backyard of the groom's parents' home which was situated on the banks of a tranquil lake. They had placed an arch in front of a small alcove for the vow site.

There was a small stone wall that lined the property at the edge of the lake. Along the wall we placed over 25 glass bubble bowls with floating candles. These were to be lit upon nightfall to add sparkle onto the water.

I had learned through our consultations that the groom's father had passed away about a year prior to the ceremony. The bride and groom had asked if there was some way we could light a 'memorial' candle and have it float out on the lake to honor his memory. I devised the idea of wrapping a styrofoam wreath with satin ribbon and then placing a short pillar candle inside a large glass bubble bowl. The wreath would provide support and allow the bowl to float on the water. The groom then figured out how to rig a pulley across the alcove so that the wreath could be attached and moved into position in the middle of the alcove.

The bride and groom performed this sacred memorial after their vows and before the reception. All the guests were witness to the placing of the lighted candle out on the water.

Now, as the evening wore on a storm started to blow in. It was very windy and we tried in vain to keep the candles lit that lined the stone wall. It was quite a challenge. We had also planned a festive way to end the reception by floating hundreds of tiny glass bubble bowls with tea lights out onto the lake. These were small enough that the wind didn't affect the tea lights and it was a beautiful sight to see as they all drifted off into the darkness.

The next afternoon, a beautifully sunny day, I had to return to the house to pick up some things. The backyard was covered in debris from all the wind and the fairly heavy rain that had fallen after midnight.

The groom's mother looked exhausted but happy. She led me down to the lake and the alcove. Perfectly situated in the middle of the alcove was the wreath, the glass bubble bowl and a pillar candle with its flame still burning bright...

bloom floral design in The Knot Georgia

So, I'm flipping through the latest edition of The Knot Georgia (fall/winter 2009) and stumble across a photo of one of my bouquets! How crazy is that! I had no idea it was in the magazine!

It is a bouquet I did for a wedding at The Atlanta History Center a while back. I'm waiting to receive a pdf from the magazine but I just had to go ahead and post! Yay bloom! Here's what it says:

earthy elegance

Twigs give this hydrangea and ladies mantle bouquet an organic edge.

There is so much more than just hydrangea and ladies mantle however. The bouquet also included dendrobium orchids, stock, ranunculus, and scented geraniums. It is one of my favorites!

Lindsay and Ben

Fabulous photos of Lindsay and Ben at the chapel and The Trolley Barn from 9.12. Her bouquet consisted of pink nerines, poppies, astilbe, montbretia, sweet peas, freesia, snapdragons, fiddlehead fern, bells of ireland and rosemary.

A very cool couple...creative, easy to work with and photogenic! (click on image to enlarge)
Photos courtesy of Christine Gallager photography.

More Lindsay and Ben

Again, photos courtesy of Christine Gallagher photography. Beautiful shots of all the details. bloom created three different centerpieces for the reception. The small one in the upper left was outside on the patio. A glass vase, wrapped in burlap and moss ribbon and filled with sword fern, fiddlehead fern, sweet pea, ranunculus, bells of ireland, snapdragons, montbretia and poppies.

The image underneath that is a wrought iron candletree. These were used inside The Trolley Barn and along with the 10 votive cups at the top of the tree, three additional votive cups were hung from its branches to bring candlelight to all levels of the room. Smaller votives were nestled at the base of the tree. (click on an image to see larger size) And of course, butterflies were everywhere! They even had a package of live butterflies that were released when Lindsay and Ben arrived at the reception.

First pics of Lindsay and Ben

Here's a photo montage of the first pictures released from Lindsay and Ben's wedding on September 12. They were married at the Decatur United Methodist Chapel with a reception at The Trolley Barn. Lindsay is a true creative soul and her handiwork is evident here in the fabric flower hair clips worn by some of the bridesmaids. She handmade lots of other things as well, as you will see...

If you look closely at her bouquet, a tiny turquoise butterfly is perched amongst poppies, freesia, snapdragons, sweet peas, astilbe, nerines and rosemary. I'll admit that she cried when she saw her bouquet! She's gorgeous and doesn't her groom look like Dave Matthews?

Photos courtesy of the fabulous Christine Gallagher Photography.

Poppies

Poppies are the china doll of the flower world, in my opinion. They are so gorgeous in their papery delicateness that you must handle them with extreme care. Sometimes they even need help to open up and you can do that by gently pulling open their little hairy buds.

Once open, they don't last very long and their wispy petals fall one by one. Their pollen sprinkles and dusts everything around it.

They are so beautifully delicate...

One of nature's finest.

Fall Dahlias

Three weddings kept bloom very busy last week. Our congrats go out to Laura and Brian at the Emory Conference Center, Millie and John at the Houston Mill House and Lindsay and Ben at Decatur's First United Methodist Chapel and the Trolley Barn.
All were a success and that is thanks to an army of folks who helped - Alvin, the "Carols" (Carol S. and Carol H.), Irene and Jenna. Thanks for working so hard!

Now, if you are a bride that loves dahlias - this is the time of year that they look spectacular! I used them in the weddings this past weekend - beautiful deep burgundy ones, ivory and lavender-edged ones as well as a variety I had never seen before - orange with an ivory tip. Simply gorgeous.

The way their petals curl and touch to make a sort of "honeycomb" effect is nature at its best.

Last part, Erin & Blake

Ok, so here's the finale of the Erin and Blake story. Remember I told you they both loved to dance...well, obviously all their friends and family do too!

All kinds of crazy going on!

Even the father of the groom was gettin' down...note the lack of shoes.

The happy couple - Erin and Blake, thank you for letting ME be a part of this dance. I wish you all the best!

Erin and Blake, Married

Erin and Blake, saying their vows.

Married!

It was a sprinkly day so the umbrella was a good idea.

Back to where it all started...the magnolia.

I told you they were sweet.

Erin and the boys.

Fred and Ginger? No, Erin and Blake!

Bright blue linens and hot pink napkins brightened up the marble courtroom.

Cupcake tower.

Salads out...ready for guests. Badda Bing (in Decatur) provided the catering. Erin and Blake had a funk band for their reception. Did I mention these people love dancing....wait until you see those photos.