Leslie and Josh

Soft and lush...like snow. That's what Leslie said was her theme for her wedding flowers when she met with me to plan her winter nuptials to Josh. She wanted to keep things simple and elegant so she chose an all white color pallet and luscious flowers, such as hydrangeas, roses, freesia, stephanotis and gardenias for her blooms. And although the temperature was frigid that day, the sky was a gorgeous shade of blue and the powdery snow on the ground was fresh...perfect for some amazing images.

Ceremony Location: Our Lady of Victory, Grandview, Ohio

Reception Location: Our Lady of Victory Parish Life Center, Grandview, Ohio

Flowers: Hydrangeas, roses, fressia, stephanotis and gardenias.

Budget: $800-$1000 (Personal flowers and altar arrangements only)

Photographer: Benjamin James Photography http://www.benjaminjamesphotography.com/

Claire and Lance

I had the opportunity to meet Claire and Lance during a tasting at the Darby House and just from our initial contact I was very excited to work with her! Her ideas of natural flow, earthy gardens and how she wanted to be inspired by the great outdoors made us a great match. Claire had been referred to us by several other vendors, so she knew she had made a great choice as well!

Her colors were sage green and cream. We accentuated the cream with splashes of fresh green in a few complimentary shades for texture and depth. Claire wanted a horizontal hand-tied bouquet that was not unruly but natural. She chose callas, roses, stock, star of Bethlehem and hypericum berries as her flowers. Her girls carried a European hand-tied of green roses and milky-white callas, accented by green hypericum berries.

The Mothers wore a classic gardenia while the men sported roses and hypericum berries. Lance matched his beautiful bride by wearing a calla.

The ceremony was framed by two floral arrangements, designed of green gladiolus, white snap dragons, white phlox and green roses in a tall crystal vase. I thought these arrangements really set the mood and added just the right amount of ambiance to the setting. Her bridal path was lined by white satin bows, which we handmade, on the ends of the chairs.

Her centerpieces on 12 guest tables were simple yet powerful. Claire found the lovely bowls at Create and Barrel and some fine stones to grace the bottom of each bowl. We then placed a single delicate gardenia in each bowl, floating on a shallow pool of water. Votive candles and rose petals danced around the bowl and completed the look.

Claire's toss bouquet was the cake topper while three clusters of roses accented by seeded eucalyptus rested on each tier. I thought the cake really was quite perfect!

Claire's weddings has certainly been one of my favorites! And Claire shared on weddingwire.com that she was pleased and that the flowers were exactly what she wanted. Oh, and she highly recommends Bloomtastic!!

Ceremony and Reception Location: The Darby House, Galloway, Ohio

Flowers: Roses, callas, stock, hypericum berries, star of Bethlehem, seeded eucalyptus, gardenias, snap dragons, phlox, gladiolus

Budget: $1500-$1800

Photographer: Kimberly Potterf Photography www.kimberlypotterf.com

Heather and Anthony

The Renaissance Hotel provided Heather with an amazing backdrop of the downtown Columbus skyline for her wedding to Anthony. A stunning white arch (provided by Bloomtastic) decked out in brown curly willow branches and red mokara orchids was the backdrop for their ceremony. Heather carried a classic collection of white lavish roses accented by crisp white callas and fragrant gardenias. She selected black baccara roses (deep, velvety red) and circus roses (reddish-orange and golden yellow) accented by fresh green hypericum berries for her six bridesmaids and two junior bridesmaids.

A modern twist was taken with the unity candle; submerged red mokara orchids and swirls of fresh green bear grass swam underneath white floating candles in the etched glass cylinder vases.

My favorite aspect of her wedding was her centerpieces! Her guests dined at tables embellished with modern flower decor and warm candle glow. Ten of the 26 tables hosted a tall fluted vase with curly willow branches extending up and out, towards the heavens, draped with fine crystals catching the glow from the candles below. A single spray of red mokara orchids added color inside the vase. The remaining 16 tables were home to a trio of cylinder vases, each boasting swirls of green bear grass or red mokara orchids and all crowned by a white floating candle.

The perfect finishing touch to her cake provided by Short North Piece of Cake was single red mokara orchids, perfectly placed on the tiers.

Ceremony and Reception Location: The Renaissance Hotel; Columbus, Ohio

Flowers: Black baccara roses, white roses, circus roses, red mokara orchids, white callas, gardenias, curly willow, bear grass

Budget: $2300-2500

Photography provided by: Betsey Holley http://www.betseyholleyphotography.com/

Baker: Short North Piece of Cake

Julie and Chris

Julie discovered us online in 2009 and contacted us in February to discuss her September wedding. She lived out of state so initially, we had to chat via email. She sent me her inspiration boards, pictures of her gown and the bridesmaid's dresses and from there we together created a masterpiece of wedding florals. She quickly hired us, and then we met in the summer in person to better acquaint ourselves and to narrow down her flower selections more.

Julie knew she loved texture and bold colors and had selected a clean, modern look for her style. She seemed like a no-fuss kind of gal, and wanted her wedding to reflect that image.

For her bridal bouquet, Julie chose hot pink roses as the canvas for pink orchids and deep purple callas. A sleek aspidistra leaf wrapped the stems instead of traditional ribbon for a "not-so-boring" look. She then chose medium pink roses accented by raspberry colored stock for the bridesmaid's to carry. Her flower girls carried pomander balls designed of tightly packed hot pink and medium pink carnations for a textured look.

Chris proudly promoted a pink cymbidium orchid on his lapel to match his stunning wife while the remaining men sported classic roses.

The pews at St. Joan of Arc where decked out in handmade paper cones in rich chocolate brown, housing luscious cream colored hydrangeas and two altar arrangements framed where Chris and Julie exchanged vows.

The reception had three flower-focused embellishments; two custom floral centerpieces for the guests to enjoy and a waterfall of orchids on the cake. The tall centerpiece boasted of white hydrangeas atop a fluted crystal vase towering overhead. Starfighter lilies (like stargazer lilies but a deeper shade of pink) crowned the hydrangeas. As for the short centerpiece, purple and raspberry stock were carefully inserted into a rectangle vase lined with freshly sliced limes.

It was an amazing day for Chris and Julie, and she loved her flowers, too!

Ceremony: St. Joan of Arc Powell, Ohio

Reception: Brookside Country Club Columbus, Ohio

Flowers: roses, callas, cymbidium orchids, dendrobium orchids, stock, starfighter lilies, hydrangeas

Budget: $2800-$3300 (includes 20 centerpieces)

Photography provided by: DK Photographic

Brandy and Brian July 17, 2009

I met Brandy in January of 2009 at the Columbus Bride: The Show at Vets memorial. Shortly after we sat down at the shop and crafted her ideal look: formal, elegant and all ivory.

Goddess Divine: Brandy's dress was stunning. We didn't want her bouquet to compete or to overshadow, so Brandy chose a sophisticated collection of lush ivory roses accented by ivory miniature callas. Two rhinestone bracelets encrusted the natural stems with an elegant sparkle that seemed to compliment her dress perfectly.

Brandy chose bouquets of all ivory roses to be carried by her bridesmaids while the flower girls had halos of billowy babies breath with champagne colored satin ribbon streamers gracefully flowing down the back.

Stately Men: Brian sported an ivory calla finished with black satin ribbon down the stem while the remaining men wore an ivory rose with black satin ribbon down the stem.

A Family Affair: I'm a BIG fan of Tuscan tables. For one reason, you don't feel like you are on "display" and two, you are now a part of your wedding and not just someone watching it. Brandy felt the same and chose a large Tuscan table to be her centerpiece of the ballroom at the Renaissance Hotel. Tall crystal fluted vases showcased large, open cut callas and champagne colored branches while short crystal compotes were brimming with abundant hydrangeas. In between the tall and short arrangements were cylinder vessels to house the bridesmaid's bouquets during the reception.

Brandy's guests dined by candlelight in the spacious ballroom and ivory rose petals delicately decorated the cake table. The altar arrangement of ivory Oriental lilies and roses played double-duty at both the ceremony up on the pool-deck and as decoration at the reception.

I caught up with Brandy about two weeks after her nuptials and via email she shared these kind words with me: "Everything was amazing! I got so many compliments on the flower arrangements. My favorite was my bouquet. Thanks, Brandy."

Ceremony and Reception Location: The Renaissance Hotel, Columbus, Ohio

Flowers: Ivory roses, callas, Oriental lilies, hydrangeas, curly willow branches

Estimated Budget: $1400-1600

Photography Courtesy of: Shannon Williams Photography http://www.shannonwilliamsphotography.com/

Classy at the Venue

"No roses!!" was the only request shuttered by Monica Dorman who entrusted her wedding flower design for her September nuptials to us. She had a taste for perfection and a flawless vision. Clean, classy and simple were the three keywords she gave me at our first consultation and with that the creative juices ran. Monica also wanted something different, something that kept with the urban look of The Venue at Smith Brothers in downtown Columbus; an upbeat, modern building with exposed brick walls and a bit of an industrial flair.

Monica's bouquet was a hand-tied collection of white and green hydrangeas, white delphinium, white dendrobium orchids and splashed of green cymbidium orchids. Texture and dimension was her desire as she didn't want the ordinary. Her bridesmaids carried a tightly gathered bouquet of green fugis and white cremones accented by green hypericum berries. The men sported crisp white dendrobium orchid blooms on their lapels with a touch of green hypericum berries.

The ceremony was kept simple in the grassy area just outside the main doors. A classic arch was the backdrop with a Boston Fern on each side exercising her taste for simplistic beauty.

The reception boasted of candle glow and exquisite callas and orchids all around. Monica embraced a modern look by utilizing Tuscan-styled tables in the center of the room while surrounding the perimeter with smaller round tables for her guests to dine. The Escort table had a backdrop of three large cylinder vessels brimming of coordinating flowers and the ladies room was infused with the sweet aroma of gardenias. To date, this has been my favorite reception!

Monica and her husband, Wade, had only raving reviews for us when we saw them after the wedding. Her wedding has also been entered into a design contest! Wish us luck!! :-)

Ceremony Location: The Venue at Smith Brothers, Columbus, Ohio

Reception Location: The Venue at Smith Brothers, Columbus, Ohio

Flowers: Hydrangeas, delphinium, dendrobium orchids, cymbidium orchids, cremones, fugis, hypericum berries, bear grass, callas, gardenias, bamboo, river rock

Estimated Budget: $2800-$3300

Photography courtesy of: Kimberly Potterf http://www.kimberlypotterf.com/

Spring Nuptials at The Westin

Jeanea and Derek enjoyed one of the most beautiful Fridays ever in April of this year when they exchanged wedding vows at The Westin hotel in downtown Columbus, Ohio. Jeanea chose to accentuate her love of the color, Tiffany Blue, with deep red flowers that really popped! Her bouquet was designed of rich red roses with pearls carefully placed in the centers of the roses for a sophisticated look. She then selected four different flower types for her bridesmaids to carry, each with a monochromatic, monobotanical design. Derek's boutonniere was a stately red rose to coordinate with Jeanea's bouquet. The guests enjoyed a short cylinder vase brimming with fresh Dutch tulips in deep red with bands of Tiffany Blue ribbon adorning the top and base of each vase. I received an email recently to share with me her amazing photos as well as to let me know she LOVED her flowers and had many compliments on them!

Ceremony Location: The Westin Hotel, Columbus, Ohio

Reception Location: The Westin Hotel, Columbus, Ohio

Theme: Classic and modern

Flowers: Freedom red roses, red gerberas, red Peruvian lilies, red tulips, red carnations.

Estimated Budget: $1000-1200

Photos courtesy of Banks Photography http://www.bankspix.com/