Picnic Flowers

With autumn upon us, I thought this flower arrangement idea that I saw posted on my favourite food blog, Sunday Suppers,  was a great  if you have any lingering of flowers left in your back yard that you would like to salvage for a table top dinner.  Mis match old glass jars, interesting vases or in this case, salt and pepper shakers.  So sweet!

via sunday supper

Monaluna Design + Textiles

I came across this beautiful DIY blog today written by an Oakland, CA based textile designer, titled “Mona Luna Design”.  I am not one to ooh and ahh over textiles but after spending some time on her site reading and viewing what she posted, I am hooked.  The blog is filled with beautiful quilts, paintings, prints and lots of textures and patterns.   Quite inspirational for events and table design if you think about it.  I think I also secretly want to learn how to make a quilt and match material together so I found her blog to be intriguing.

 Here is a series of paintings that the blogger painted herself after an inspiring walk during the month of May.  I really like how the flowers were deconstructed and clustered in different colours and angles.

via monaluna

via monaluna

via mona luna

via mona luna

via mona luna

Ink & Peat Flowers

Ink&Peat Floral (via House Martin Blog)

via apartment therapy

via besottment

via lisa warninger

Spring Flowers

This is a table setting that was put together at my house a little while ago while we were entertaining.

I love tulips in the spring time, especially arranged in this white porcelain water jug.  There is something so simple about the arrangement that makes it even more pleasurable to enjoy.

Colour Palettes Made Easy: Rosenow Floral Design

I came across a florist based out of San Francisco called, Rosenow Floral Design and I was drawn to how the owner effectively presented the endless colour options for floral arrangements.  The site offers viewers an artist-like colour palette for all to see and then provides corresponding floral categories for guests to browse.  The simplicity of her site makes it both enjoyable and easy to navigate  and the intricacy and texture in her arrangements were pleasing and attractive.   

Colour Palette (via Rosenow Floral Design)

Rosenow Floral Design (via Happy Hour Bride)

Rosenow Floral (via BoredIncDesign)

P&R Florals

I was involved in planning and executing a cocktail party for some friends from business school a couple weeks ago. 

In this post, I am going to share some of my experiences working with florists and of course show the finished product at the event. 

I think it is fair to say that when you are putting together a budget for an event, to estimate that florals will come in around 10% of your overall budget depending on how much you want. 

If you are doing a handful of arrangements and keeping the blooms in season, nothing too exotic, you can work with a $1500-$2000 budget or use the 10% rule of thumb for a high estimate.  That being said, if you look back at one of my older posts showcasing my favourite Brazilian event magazine, Fiesta, event florals like the ones in my post would cost upwards of $10,000, easy.   Mind you, the pictures I selected were extravagant and ornate and to show the beauty of what dreams are made with if you have a generous floral budget. 

The other important thing to remember is evaluating whether you can work with this individual, your florist.  Do your personalities mesh?  Do you trust that he or she interpret your creative vision?  I like the analogy of selecting a hair dresser.  Selecting a florist is a similar process to finding a great hair dresser, unless you are ripping out a photo from a magazine, handing it over and saying “recreate this” which is fairly unimaginative- when you work with a florist or a good hairdresser, you provide a bit of guidance, share your vision and the rest is up to the artist.  If you are nervous or unsure, ask for a mock-up a couple days before the event to allay your fears. 

In the case of the event I was involved with, the MOB had seen the work of Ingrid at Thirving Metropolis in Toronto and was comfortable with her aesthetic and design. 

The flowers and containers were followed the white and green, modern, loft theme for the night and   highlighted the loft space at Andrew Richards Designs very well. Overall, bride, groom and MOB were content!

floral arrangement by Thriving Metropolis and branches behind glass

Loft lounge area with flowers

bar floral arrangement

coffee table arrangement

bar arrangement