I'm getting more and more ready for the thought of Fall. I love the change of colors and with the seasons changing, new materials are available to use.
It's always fun to get an opportunity for some creative freedom when designing and showing a little more of MY personality. This collection was for Taste of Salem, a showcase of different restaurants and catering businesses in town. I like using unusual floral materials and I discovered some new ones that I immediately fell in love with - Heavenly bamboo foliage. It was the perfect Fall color and was clean and filling, but not over the top. The buffet arrangement used Osage oranges or Hedge apples from a nearby tree. I love their color and texture, they are always focal points. The hydrangea leaves were also turning a beautiful burgundy.

For the centerpiece I took a candlestick and attached a container to the top to design within. All three arrangements were unique, but complimented one another perfectly.

No matter how many weddings I do, it seems there are often "firsts". This wedding had several "firsts" for me, and actually one "last". This bridal bouquet used Cymbidium orchids, beautiful, huge, delicate blooms. I had never used the orchids before and was nervous about how fragile they were, but things worked out beautifully. Another first -- the bride wanted to incorporate a small family bible into her bouquet, so I carefully tucked it in under the blooms, between the stems. Such a sweet and very traditional touch!

The other "first" and "last" was the centerpieces.... I had the dimensions for the vases, but had never seen one, so I made all the centerpieces, rubberbanded the stems together with clear rubberbands and PRAYED it worked when we finally got it set up. I decided I would never stress myself out like that again and from then on would always have at least one vase that I could work with. Things came together without a hitch and I was relieved and excited about the success!

(continued from earlier post)

The outdoor wedding was held at the point, overlooking the lake. Two deer even stopped to take a drink on the opposite bank and ducks floated by in a perfect line during the ceremony.

To liven up the tents, I made these giant flower balls. I bought various sized chinese paper lanterns online and then one by one, hot-glued silk flower heads on to them. It took A LOT of flowers to cover them completely, but the look was AWESOME and really fun and colorful for the summer wedding. I have been able to reuse them for

other events.

Another favorite was for a friend who got married at her parents' estate. The setting was beautiful, the bride was gorgeous, and the flowers were cheerful, colorful, and complimented every aspect of the perfect day.

I think it is important to have a constant flow of fresh ideas not only to stay up to date with trends, but to also exercise your creativity. You never know what picture may spark a new idea! I love looking online and collecting ideas. It's also good to have a lot of pictures of different styles of bouquets and decorations because brides are all different and flowers say so much about your personality. Here are

some of my favorite pictures I've found so far on the web. I'm excited to create my own inspiration boards as I become more proficient with blogging. It's hard to stop with the pictures. I will share more as I can!

I really enjoy coming up with different centerpieces. I feel centerpieces are what guests at receptions or other events really notice as they enjoy their meal and conversation at the table, so it is important that the centerpieces are interesting, beautiful, and appropriate for the type of event. Sometimes I've found simple arrangements can be as elegant as "over the top" arrangements, that "less really is more".