Thoughts on DIY bouquets and arrangements

Although most of my clients are not DIY-ers in the floral department, I have come across 2 extreme scenarios that I want to share with you. The first scenario, the DIY bride did a good job of planning on floral assemble requirements; the second, not so much.

Bride #1 had very minimal floral needs. She wasn't big into flowers and they were not high on her priority list. She was not doing flowers for the centerpieces so she really only had a few bridesmaids bouquets, some boutonnieres and simple arrangements for the church. She practiced making her flowers a few months before her wedding. Once the yellow roses arrived on the Thursday before the wedding, she got to working on them all day. By Friday morning, only a few bouquets were left to do. She was done in plenty of time for the rehearsal. No rushing around. She really did a great job and there was so little floral setup.

Bride #2 was a designer so she clearly had a good artistic vision for what she wanted. There were a lot of flowers to put together though. There were 15 tables worth of centerpieces, bouquets, bountonnieres, corsages, ceremony arrangements, chair posies, cocktail table arrangements, etc. The red roses arrived on Thursday. Came Saturday morning, the bride had to go to her hair and makeup appointments and left the remaining arrangements to her sister. Her sister was clearly stressed. The centerpieces came out great - half short arrangements and half tall (trumpet vases). However, the tall arrangements took forever to set up because they had to be filled with water which took many trips to the bathroom (kitchen was too crowded). The boutonnieres were huge and lacked the refinement a professional would have been able to do. Also, some of the thorns were not removed so they were a hazard to anyone handling them.

Before you commit yourself to doing your own personal flowers and arrangements, ask yourself these questions:

• Why do you want to do your own flowers? If you are not a flowers person, why have any flowers at all? There are plenty of other decor options. Is it because of budgetary reasons? There are plenty of options at any budget level.
  
• When will you be putting the arrangements together? Will you have enough time? Will you have time to practice? Will you have any help? Do your helpers have any experience in flower arranging?
  
• Do you have a place that can be kept very cold when the flowers arrive from the wholesaler? (like the freezer at the flower shop)
• Do you know how long it will take to put the arrangements together?
• How will you transport the arrangements to your venue? Flowers kept in buckets of water? not in water?Who will transport the arrangements?
• Once at the venue, do they require assembly? Who will assemble them? Is this person reliable? Most venues will not do this for you. How long will it take to assemble them? Does the person you have designated know how to assemble them?
• What if a vase is broken during transport? What if you forgot a vase? Forgot an arrangement? Realized you miscounted? Short a boutonniere.
  
• At the end of the night, what will become of all the flowers and vases? Are you taking them all home? Who will break them down so that they can be transported?

If after looking through this list of questions you are able to come up with a plan that makes sense and will not cause more stress, here are some pointers to consider:

• Aim to have everything else you need to do for the wedding DONE by the weekend before the wedding. I mean EVERYTHING - programs, table assignments, escort cards, packing. Couples underestimate how hectic the week before the wedding can get. Once your relatives and friends are in town, they ALL want to see you. They ALL want to have drinks, dinner, lunch, breakfast with you every day. Maybe you have to make some runs to the airport. Think hard about how you want to spend your time the week of the wedding.
  
• It always takes longer to do the arrangements than you realize. Allot AT LEAST one and a half days for this. Allow time for making mistakes, or trying a different method.
  
• ALWAYS do practice bouquets, boutonnieres, and arrangements ahead of time. Buy flowers from your local grocery story and practice. Have someone with some experience of arranging flowers and doing bouquets look at your work. Maybe take a class. Don't forget to account for the cost of the trial runs.
  
• Choose flowers that easy to work with, forgiving, and hardy. Roses are the most DIY friendly.
• Keep your floral requirements to a minimum. And I mean the fewer the better.
  

Activities for Your Guests

A Washington Post Sunday Source article from a few weeks ago talks about scavenger hunts, sports games, welcome parties and midnight snacks.

Daily Candy Fall 2007 Wedding Guide

Click here to read.

What do you do with all my stuff? What do you do all day long?

What do I do when I'm not on the phone, at a meeting or pounding away at my laptop? Here is a peek. Enter at your own risk!

My desk during wedding season :) Looks messy but I know exactly where everything is. And yes, that is my cat Mick to the right of the desk. He is the best paper weight!

You give me a box of menu cards and a heap of candles. What do I do? I put the exact number of menus and candles I need per table and put them in individual bags. This helps me to do setup as quickly as possible on the day of the wedding.

More pre-event packing.

My foyer. In a constant state of packing and unpacking.

Wine Registry

Tired of the traditional gift registry? Me too. Especially today, many couples might already live together or getting married later in life, it seems silly to register for china or linens. For your oenophile friends, Best Cellars in Clarendon offers a wedding registry. Here is the flyer I picked up.

Green Scene Series: Reuse and buy local

Another in the Green Scene Series
Sometimes it feels like wedding decor are full of one-use items. Try thinking eco-friendly and it can not only help the environment but also help your wallet! Here are some ideas we've tried/seen:

• Use potted plants or a cluster of smaller potted plants as centerpieces. These can be given to guests and can be planted in the ground or kept as potted plants for years to come.
  
• Reuse whatever decor items you can from the wedding for the day-after get-togethers. Floral arrangements can definitely be kept in good shape overnight.
• Reuse ceremony decorations at the reception. I've used chair posies from the ceremony and rearranged them to decorate the bars, escort card tables, bathrooms, etc.
• Especially in the fall, I love to do a farmers market food station where the chef would serve whatever vegetables were in season from local farms. We've done this a few times and we acknowledge such either on a menu card or on little signs by the stations. Local farms = less transportation.
  
• How about supporting the local economies by serving Maryland or Virginia wines?
  

Green Scene Series: Biodegradable Confetti

We are starting a new series of blog entries on "green" wedding ideas called the Green Scene.
I found out late in the game that we were not allowed to use sparklers to send the bride and groom off to their wedding night. So we decided to use white confetti (something that would show up on film at night). Along came Ecofetti from Ecoparti. It is biodegradable and water soluble! There are lots of colors and each bag comes with a spoon. Liz at Ecoparti really helped me out since I only had 3 days to get the product before the wedding!

Congratulations Sarah & Jordan

Sarah, Jordan and their families are the kindest people, which makes my job so much more enjoyable. They were so thankful and appreciative of all the hard work I put into making their wedding something to be proud of.

Sarah & Jordan met in high school playing basketball. They are both really tall as were the members of their bridal party, which is great because I can always spot them from across a ballroom! During the past 7 months, there were lots of changes. Sarah changed careers and became a teacher in Fairfax High School teaching marketing. I have such admiration for her courage to switch careers and for becoming a teacher. Jordan is a USCG reservist.

Sarah wanted a "modern classic" style for her wedding. Her flowers were all white, very classic bridal. The calla lilies had very clean and modern lines. Her colors were navy, gold and white - a very subtle hint at the water view location and Jordan's coast guard ties. Sarah ended up working with a graphic designer friend for her invitations, save-the-dates and programs, but assembled using Paper Source products. We carried the color theme through to the escort cards, the gold beaded garland on the tables, and the bridesmaids dresses (a beautiful navy dress from J. Crew that could definitely be worn again.)

eaTip: Remember the old saying "Keep it Simple Stupid?" I think it can apply to weddings also. Nobody says that in order to have a beautiful wedding, it needs to look like one of those celebrity weddings you see on TV or in the magazines - overflowing with "stuff." I really liked that Sarah chose to keep things simple and uncluttered. Spend your money on 1-2 items that can make the biggest impact visually. For Sarah, it was on floral centerpieces and on renting gold chivari chairs. Something as simple as replacing average looking conference chairs with chivari chairs made a big statement, especially when you have 200 of them. Contact us and we can help you decide what will make the biggest impact at your event!

Venue & catering: Catering & Conference Center at the Washington Navy Yard - The CCC is situated just on the water.
Photographer: Lori Love Photography - first time working with her and her assistant Andrea. Both really laid back and easy to work with.
Ceremony music: Nore Harp & Violin trio - I first met Emily & Ben Jung when they played at one of my first client's weddings in November 2004. They then hired me to be their coordinator in July 2005. Here we are again! They are just the nicest people and very talented musicians. Emily plays the harp and Ben plays the violin. They brought a 2nd violin since we were outside.
DJ: Bob Artman of Artman DJs - Bob played at Kristin & Tuong's wedding last August. He did a great job with the music as usual. He also has a great MC voice :) Sarah & Jordan did a new twist on introductions. Since they are all so tall and played basketball, the fashioned the intros after the starting line intros just like in a basketball game. It was hilarious.
Cake: Creative Cakes (part of the package)
Floral designer: Philippa Tarrant Floral Designs - I just love Philippa's style. So modern and interesting. I knew she would be a great fit for Sarah. Sarah met Philippa and that was the end of the story! Philippa and Dawn came for a site visit and steered us into a better visual direction. (See more photos below).
Limo: Always a Pleasure Limo - We only needed a transfer from Sarah's hotel to the Navy Yard. It was tough to find a company that would do it. Lisa Douglas came through! I met Lisa back at the November 2004 wedding where I met the harpist/violinist. She was so great that I kept her card for 3 years! On time, courteous. Never a problem.
Hair & Makeup: Perry Warren of Frizzles Salon, Springfield. Perry did Sarah's hair and makeup and hair for 3 bridesmaids. He came to the hotel and was a whole lot of fun (and funny)! All the girls looked great.

We used orchids as the cake topper. It had a simple but elegant gold dots along the bottom of each layer.

Escort Card table. We used different color cards to indicate entree choices. In lieu of favors, Sarah & Jordan donated to breast cancer research and pink ribbon pins were given to each guest.

Sorry for the blurry picture. Shaky hands. Mix of short and tall arrangements with white calla lilies and dendrobium orchids.

Ceremony on the patio with Nore Harp & Violin trio on the left. We had a sword arch at the end. Very cool!

Another great candy bar for goody bags to-go.

Congratulations Peter & Barbara!

Peter & Barbara are friends of Greg & Anita who got married last year in DC. Thanks for the recommendation guys!

These two are crazy because they are also in the middle of a full-blown house renovation. When I went to pick up their decorations, there were contractors everywhere! Crazy! Barbara designed her own gown. It was gorgeous and she could take off the whole bottom piece to reduce the dress to a shorter length (about the knee) for all the crazy partying! I wish I have a photo.

The ceremony took place on the lawn of the GW Masonic Memorial in Alexandria, while the reception was inside the Assembly Hall. This was my first time here and the facility guys were awesome! So incredibly helpful. More notes below.

eaTip: Lighting is an effective design element that people often don't think about. The GW Masonic Memorial Assembly Hall had marble column surrounding the perimeter. To highlight this architectural element, the groom installed uplights himself with amber-colored gels to cast a soft glow on the columns. You could certainly go without the lighting but it really does add dimension to the whole look. If you are not a do-it-yourselfer, you could get an affordable lighting setup with a lighting company.Contact us and we can refer you to excellent lighting companies!

Caterer: Helga's Catering. Not bad. First time working with them. They served paella which was great. And one of the bartenders, Maria, helped me set up, offered to get me a drink and get me food. She was so nice!! Their Tres Leche Cake was delicious (I could have had a 2nd piece)
Photographer: Russell Hirshon. Awesome guy. So nice, low-maintenance, got right into the middle of the action (he was inside the circle during the hora!)
Guitarist: Jarrett Laskey

The escort card table (afterwards). In the center of the table closest are boxes of favors (glass coaster set) which served double duty as the escort cards.

Assembly Hall of the GW Masonic Memorial where the reception took place. It's a neat spot with marble floors and columns. The groom setup his own uplighting with amber-colored gels. The far end is the band. It was a snug fit for 150 people. I would recommend about 130. The room also echoes a lot so beware of the sound.

GW Masonic Memorial at night!

Congratulations Alexis & Brian!

Alexis lives the typical life of a consultant. On travel Monday-Friday in some other part of the country. Although they only hired me for the reception, they were one of the easiest people to work with during the planning process.

Reception Site: International Country Club, Fairfax, VA
Floral Design: Petals Edge
Photographers: Bill & Marie Piacesi. My first time working with this husband & wife team and I can't wait to do it again!
DJ: Kirk Rubley
Cake: Cakes by Carolyn. I think Carolyn is the exclusive baker for several of the local country clubs. She really does do beautiful cakes. She also did this cake last year.

The escort cards looked very classy on the grand piano.

Beautiful and tasty cake by Cakes by Carolyn.

Alexis and Brian got all many of their family members to contribute wedding pictures. There were so precious black & whites. The floral centerpiece here is by Petals Edge.

I set up some luminaries along the driveway for Alexis and Brian's exit. Very cool. They come with a plastic insert, which you fill with water to weigh down the bag. Also in the plastic insert is a niche carved out for a tealight candle.

The ballroom at the International Country Club

The ladies at Petals Edge did two different types of centerpieces.

eaTip #1: As you saw above, we put the escort cards on the piano in the lounge area. If your venue has existing furniture (a credenza, dressers, tables) that you can use for your escort card, gift and/or cake table, why not make use of it! It will save you money from having to rent additional tables and linens.

eaTip #2: If you are doing luminaries like the ones Alexis used, be sure to weigh the bags down so as not to cause any fire hazards. You can use sand. The ones Alexis used come with a plastic container that can be filled wither water.

Contact us and we can help you find ways to cut cost and to have a safe event!

Congratulations Rachel & Ariel!

Where to begin with this story? So many interesting tidbits about this wedding. Rachel & Ariel are both lawyers. Ariel's whole family is musically gifted (more on this later). The only word I can think of for how I would describe the planning of this wedding was: adventurous!

Site: Decatur House, DC
Caterer: Basikneads & chocolate fountain by The Chocolate Chick
Photographer: David Lee & Dana Romanoff (friend of the bride & groom)
DJ: Brad Hill
Floral Designer: Greenworks Cynthia Kim was our designer and was awesome! First, Rachel didn't decide that she wanted some flowers until just 2 weeks before the wedding. Cynthia squeezed us in with very little direction and came up with some gorgeous arrangements. See photo below.

This was one of the most memorial and special ceremonies I've ever witnessed. First, 2 of Ariel's friends from high school and his stepfather taught the guests how to sing the Kol Ha Neshamah in rounds. Once the guests got the hang of it, we started the processional as the song continued. Then, Ariel's father played an excerpt from Klezmers' Wedding Music on his violin. Followed by traditional Jewish ceremonial parts. As Rachel & Ariel did the Hakaphah (circling), 8 of Ariel's friends sang Dodi Li in a capella. All incredibly moving. [At the rehearsal, I had heard the acapella and it literally gave me goosebumps.]

Rabbi Biber had this chuppah structure created (it came along with tech support .. ha ha!) but it's a bit plain. So Rachel & Ariel literally handed me the pieces and a bolt of fabric and asked me to do my magic. OK! I experimented with covering the poles in shear fabric while using their personal tallits (prayer shawls) as the top covering. It wasn't bad except the tallits didn't exactly cover the whole top, which kind of defeats the purpose of having a canopy. Take #2. Wouldn't you know it! I just happen to have some sticks that I got from Laura at Soiree Special Events just a week or 2 ago. I was able to reuse them as covering for the poles, lending a more natural look which worked really well in the setting of the Decatur courtyard.

Attempt #1Attempt #2 - Better.

After dinner, waiters passed out chocolate truffles made with love from one of Rachel & Ariel's friend Justine Pringle of Nunu Chocolates.

Guests LOVED the candy bar! Everybody scooped some on their way out! One of Rachel's bridesmaids provided the candy.

The amber-lit tent over the courtyard at Decatur House. Rachel & Ariel are seated in the center of the photo while listening to the toasts.

The ever-popular polaroid guestbook. I usually have someone designated as the picture-taker. This was a DIY version where everybody took their own pictures and it worked out great also!

The buffet arrangement by Greenworks.

The Carriage House of the Decatur House, all set up for the cocktail hour. We used a mix of brown and orange crush type tablecloth on all the tables. Very iridescent and festive.

eaTips: If you are having food stations or a heavy hors d'oeuvre reception (i.e. stir fry station, grilling station), spread the stations around so that the guests don't create a traffic jam at one station. You may also want to consider two smaller bars. Guests love to congregate around the bar. Also for heavy hors d'oeuvres, think about seating. This style of reception typically does not have seating for everyone. Is that going to be an issue for your guests? Contact us and we can help you design your event to make sure all your guests are comfortable!