Vintage Wedding

A way in which to be eco-friendly is to use vintage, reused, or re-purposed items.

Below are a couple vintage garments that are from 1910 to 1940. Each one is timeless and can be used as is or modified to fit your style.

Dress up a simple dress with this jacket from 1910.

This dress is a great alternative to the traditional white wedding dress.

You can't go wrong with Ostrich feathers. So glam.

This 1940's gown from Etsy is a steal. Wear as is or modify it for a more modern look.

Signature Drink

Following up yesterday's post, here is a tasty drink recipe from real simple that could be used as a signature cocktail...now I just think of a fun name. 

Bourbon and Ginger Cooler 

Ingredients

32 ounces (4 cups) bourbon
80 ounces (about 10 cups) ginger ale
2 oranges, sliced into thin rounds

Directions

Combine the bourbon, ginger ale, and orange slices in a large pitcher or punch bowl. Serve over ice.

NYE

To some New Years Eve is a night to stay at home with good friends and good food. For other New Years is a time to celebrate in style. Well whatever it is you choose her are some ideas for you New Years celebration whatever it may be.

Lighting: Weather you want candles for your dinner tables or festive lights for your party, they are both important in setting a mood.

Decor: Adding some decorations will put you as well as your guests in the party mood. It can be simple from putting down special linens and flowers to hanging garlands, disco balls, feathers and other creative decorations.

Food: This is the time to shine and make a full on feast or tasty treats for your guests.

Drinks: Signature cocktails are always a way to ring in the new year with some creativity and wit.

Props: Hats, noise makers, confetti or whatever you dream up will add excitement to you New Years count down.

Holiday Cheer

The holidays are a time to celebrate and decorate!. These are all ideas that could be used year round adapted to whichever occasion you see fit.

Festive lights brighten up a otherwise uneventful walkway. Go green an make sure the lights are LED.

Feathers add some glamor to your table and can be reused for next year!

Vintage clocks add some elegant NYE decor to a classic table setting. Plus your guests will be sure not to miss the countdown.

Persimmions, Oranges and Holiday Cheer

To continue on the theme of the holidays and decorating, I was able to put out all my holiday decorations I have gathered over the years. It wasn't much but then I brought home some flowers with a great holiday combination of Orange, Red and Burgundy. I also thought gold as an accent would add just the right holiday effect.

Starting from the upper left hand corner: a. my very own decorations and arrangement of berries. b. Oranges add a festive touch in this modern home. c. Oranges and cloves d. a wheat wreath e. gold leaves add an elegant touch to the table f. also another one of my own creations with some wooden ornaments.

Holiday Decor

With the holidays upon us we will have be having or attending some kind of holiday festivity. SoI have gathered some examples and items from etsy to decorate for the holidays with. They may not be your traditional decorations but they will add some festive cheer none the less.

Here is our colorful holiday decor with some green elements to it.
A. Use a fallen tree branch with ornaments for a table centerpiece that doesn't get in the way.
See other great ideas from The Bella Life Blog
B. A wreath made from holiday cards!
C. Colorful French Macarons from Sparkles Kitchen
D. Soft blue bowls from Up In The Air Somewhere
E. A festive mobile, Pukapu

A modern metallic holiday
a. Mirror Mosaic Wreath
b. Brass reindeer, High Street Market
c. Beautiful metalic bowls, Syma Small Works
d. A lobby in a Paris hotel

Hellebore

Hellebore Flowers

As part of trying to offer unique and beautiful flowers, the on that I am investigating this weeks is the Hellebore. It is a winter/early spring flower that comes in many shades of purple, red, pinnk and green. I love the look of this flower and it is something unique for those winter weddings.

You can learn more about the flower {here}

A Hellborus bouquet by Martha Stewart

Peonies, Olives and Llamas, Oh My!

The farm is Cheateau CharMarron Peony Gardens, the home of Monte Carlo Tuscan Olive Oil as well as a llama farm.  The reason I was there was that I went to go pick up a special peony bush to add to my garden of cut flowers that I will be using for the various events I will be doing this coming year. 

Maria the owner was great and showed us around the peony gardens as well as the olive groves which they were harvesting today. The weather was sunny and a bit windy however that didn't effect the beauty of this place that was set high in the East Bay hills looking over the bay and surrounding area. 

Another thing I discovered is that when all her peonies bloom you can come and buy the stalks! So, if you or you know of anyone getting married in April or May, I will be up there picking the most amazing flowers...which would be perfect for a wedding. 

Enough chat here are the photos:

 

If you want more information on the farm click {here}

How beautiful is a rose.

I love roses and if you aren't a rose lover maybe you just haven't found the right one as there are over 100 species in a variety of colors.  Most are native to Asia, with smaller numbers of species native to Europe, North America, and northwest Africa.

One species is the Gallica or Provins roses that are a very old class developed from R. gallica, which is a native of central and southern Europe. The Apothecary's Rose, R. gallica officinalis, was grown in monastic herbiaries in the Middle Ages, and became famous in English history as the Red Rose of Lancaster. Gallicas flower once in the summer. The gallica comes in shades of red, maroon and deep purplish crimson. 

I plan to post more about plant species, so stay tuned for more. 

Growing

As part of my business, I am always trying to find interesting flowers. So, to help in this search as well as learn more about cultivating plants, I am going to try to grow my own. The first thing on my task list was where to plant these flowers, so I have created a raised bed especially for my cut flowers. Depending on the specific needs of the flowers, they will also be spread around the front and backyards.

Currently filled with compost and made with salvaged wood.

Second, find some cool flowers to plant now for spring.
Here is what I have so far:

Clusiana Lady Jane Tulip

Honkey Talk Tulip

Calgary Daffodil

Deinashaugh Daffodil

Snakes Head

Ariella Chezar

Ariella is all over the web with her beautiful flower compositions. She has a way of putting together interesting colors, textures and shapes in a seemingly loose composition but in a well thought out way. I just love what she comes up with. I also just purchased her book and hope to find my own distinct voice such as she did. But in the mean time, I will continue to be inspired.

Client Inspiration

I had a couple approach me recently who wanted some design options for their wedding decor. This got my creative juices flowing and here are some of my design thoughts.

They seemed like an artsy modern couple. So my first though was less traditional centerpieces using decorative lettuces, leaves and interesting foliage to add a visual impact to the table.

Another element was to add an accent color of gray and adding a modern edge with some concrete containers.

Flower Remnants

I had some leftover purple flowers and could not let them go to waste!

English Garden Wedding

Here are some preview photos of the wedding I did this weekend.

I used a combination of eucalyptus, lisianthus, carnations, pears, artichokes, decorative cabbage and other garden type variety foliage.

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Brooch Bouquets

A little something different for your special day and you can keep it forever. You can find these and many more on Etsy at Lionsgate Designs