A wine-inspired fall wedding

I'd love to share a few images from a beautiful, bold wedding at a Virginia winery.  The clients asked for bold, fall-inspired bouquet and soft, romantic centerpieces.  I am never one to shy away from color so I created some rockstar bouquets and some super sweet centerpieces for the reception.

The bridal bouquet was made of burgundy dahlias, orange protea, red hypericum berries, dark purple and orange calla lilies, burgundy carnations, burgundy cymbidium orchids, craspedia, burgundy astilbe, kiwi vine and agonis.

 The boutonnieres were created with dark purple and orange calla lilies, craspedia and red hypericum berries. I used a little bit of greenery and tied them with twine.

 

The bridesmaid bouquet was similar to the bride's but I used more orange flowers instead of burgundy and purple.  They were wrapped with twine and lace. 

The aisle was lined with burgundy and orange rose petals and the altar was created with orange and red gladiolus placed on top of wine barrels. 

 

We went the complete opposite direction with the ceremony. I created these hydrangea and baby's breath centerpieces in birch lined vases.  To tie in with the rustic feel of the bouquets, I used kiwi vine as well. 

 

The image below is actually one of my favorites from the whole wedding.  The flower is called Hearts, and as you can see, it opens like a heart.  I love using this rose for wedding work.  What better way to add more love to a wedding than to use a rose that is shaped like a heart?? 

All of the images above are thanks to Paired Images Photography.

Lindsay's Wedding

Lindsay and David were married at The River Farm and wanted a bohemian garden look using jewel tones to add a pop of color to their garden wedding.  I had so much fun using these bright, vibrant colors to create the look they wanted.

Lindsay's bouquet was an asymetrical and airy gathering of eucalyptus, dahlias, thistles, anemones, freesia, garden roses, craspedia, german chamomile, scabiosa, succulents and hypericum berries.  I love how each color contrasts with the next, especially those little pops of yellow.

David's boutonniere was made to compliment the bouquet.  I used fuschia spray roses, hypericum berries, craspedia and a thistle, with a backing of camelia leaves.

 

Lindsay's cake was decorated in concentric circles of greens, and accented with a few more of the roses and dahlias that we used in the centerpieces.

We created two centerpiece designs.  One was a simple natural grouping of bottles and bud vases and the other was a large and vibrant collection of the day's flowers.  They truly brought vivid colors to the reception tent.

 

Lindsay's dress was truly one of a kind.  I love the lace detail!

 

Here are a few more of my favorites.

 

While we're admiring, look at how the photographer brilliantly captured the flowers as well as the shadows of the trees outside the tent....so inspiring to see!

I can't get enough of this bouquet!

 

Just a few more...

 

I wouldn't be able to write such beautiful blog posts without the talents of the photographers that are a part of these special days.  Stephanie from Stephanie Dee Photography hit the ball out of the park in capturing these images.  Thanks so much to Stephanie for sharing!

Megan's Wedding at Army Navy Country Club

When Megan came to me with the theme "Black Tie meets Garden Chic," I knew I had to be a part of this wedding!  She wanted lots of light colors with lots of textures and a few darker elements.  The happy couple was married at The Old Post Chapel on Fort Meyer, and their reception was at the beautiful Army Navy Country Club.  I had so much fun with these designs, and I hope you enjoy them just as much.

Meg's bouquet is one of my favorites so far.  This whimsical bouquet is made of beautiful Alabaster garden roses, silver brunia berries, white ranunculus, cream roses, local white dahlias, white scabiosa, white astilbe, white dendrobium orchids, accented with silver dollar eucalyptus leaves and silvery succulents.  That gorgeous fabric around her bouquet is actually a piece of her mother's dress (including little white buttons) which was cut to fit the bouquet.  We also attached an Irish horseshoe charm.  I loved all the personal touches!

 

The bridesmaid bouquets were smaller versions of the bride's bouquet!

The centerpieces also incorporated some sweet little chocolate cosmos flying high up over the other flowers as well as some feathery agonis foliage.  I loved using these darker elements to add depth to these designs.

Can we also just talk about this gorgeous ballroom??  Beautiful chandeliers and multiple fireplaces...just stunning.  It's hard to see it, but the room has a round wall full of french doors that open up to a balcony that overlooks a huge green golf course.  I was completely blown away!

Here are a few more of my favorite images.  Thank you so much to Beth at Beth T Photography for the lovely pictures!

 

 

 

Such fun flowers in such an elegant venue!  Stephen and Megan were a wonderful couple to work with and I am so happy to be able to share these with you!  I leave you with one last picture of the happy couple-isn't she just lovely??

All images provided by Beth at Beth T Photography

Nina's bouquet

So I had the sweetest bride who called me this summer.  Nina only needed a few bouquets, and her colors were burgundy and pink-a color combination that I have been dying to design with!  I practically begged her to let me have complete design control, and I think because I was so enthusiastic, she agreed.  I am so in love with this bouquet and I hope you enjoy it as much as I do.

For this bouquet, we used Hearts roses, pink cymbidium orchids, pink godetia, light pink calla lilies, white spray roses, red dahlias, burgundy scabiosas, pink limonium and agonis leaves.

The Dahlia

The Dahlia....oh the dahlia....One of the most gorgeous seasonal flowers we have.  It comes in as many colors as you can think of and in several shapes.  Here on the East Coast, we can usually get them from late summer through the fall.  They're one of my favorites and I am blessed enough to be able to purchase my dahlias from a local grower, Don's Dahlias.  You can visit my post about my heavenly trip to his farm here Chapel Designers.  That was an amazing trip for so many reasons!  So the collection today is all about the dahlia.  Notice how the different textures can be used in so many ways.

Flora Organica

In the middle of this bouquet, you can see what I call The Queen of the dahlias, the Cafe Au Lait dahlia.  It can be anything between a ivory creamy color, all the way to a dusty pink.  Different colors of flowers can bring out different shades of this beauty. Here the ribbon and other flowers bring out almost a peachy tone!

Jose Villa Photography and Holly Flora

 Paired with neutral toned flowers, this Cafe Au Lait looks pretty pink.  So much pretty just from one flower.  What a show stopper!

Kimberly Salem Photography + Denise Fasanello Flowers

 Here a buttery white dahlia pairs beautifully with the greens and whites in this arrangement.

Levi Tijerina Photography + Brigitte from Floral Design of Europe

I love this gorgeous pink dahlia.  You really don't need a lot of them to make an impact!

Nancy Liu Chin Design and Bokeh Photography

 This is a favorite of mine.  A non-traditional black and white bouquet, into which The Queen fits perfectly!  I love the dark greenery as well!

Passionflower

 Nothing better than an asymetrical shape for a table arrangement.  I love the movement of the clematis, lilac, and those gorgeous parrot tulips, but to me the dahlia is still front and center!

Sebasta Design LLC and Tyler Boye Photography

 All these pretty dusty colored flowers only accent the Cafe Au Lait's dusty pink color.  Who wouldn't want to carry this bouquet down the aisle towards the love of their life?  Such a romantic bouquet!

The Blue Carrot

I cannot say enough about the work of The Blue Carrot.  This gorgeous bouquet uses the color from the ribbon and the accompanying flowers to create a light and airy bouquet that looks like it was plucked straight from the gardens.

Sweet Blossoms

Sweet Blossoms + Liz Hough Photography

Sweet Blossoms + Liz Hough Photography

  

The Cafe Au Laits in these bouquets came from Don's gardens.  When I got them, I was stunned.  They were way bigger than any I'd ever seen and I was thrilled to have been so lucky!  The bride even put one in her hair-how elegant!

Sweet Blossoms + Rebecca Keeling Photography

These beautiful white ball dahlias also came from Don's gardens.  They were perfect for this rustic barn wedding.  I loved the look of the clean dahlias in contrast with the thistles and dusty miller.

I hope you've enjoyed this trip through the land of dahlias.  What's your favorite color of dahlia?