Lisa and David

I did a wedding recently at Mt. Carmel United Methodist Church in Norcross. I've lived in this area my entire life and have always found it to to be the most charming little church. Lisa wanted to use a complimentary color scheme of blue and orange. She loves roses so I designed her bouquet with orange roses and two shades of blue delphinium. These opposing colors created maximum contrast and stability.

Lisa chose navy bridesmaid dresses and wanted varying shades of orange roses with a ribbon wrap matching the dresses exactly. This contrast was incredibly bright and vivid and very pleasing to the eye. I love that the photographer actually captured a bumblebee hovering over one of the roses!

The inside of the church is just beautiful! For the ceremony, Lisa didn't want to do anything that would take away from the beauty of the church but did want to have some flowers to accent the aesthetic setting. I designed two matching altar arrangements in brass containers to match the existing brass accents as well as the brass unity candelabra. For these designs, I kept the main complimentary colors of blue and orange but added some other colors such as yellow to add texture and diversity to the design. I thought the photographer did a great job in this photograph!

The photographer for Lisa and David's wedding was Shannon Wright with Photography by Shannon. Be sure to check out her website at http://www.shannonseye.net/. She captured some really great shots as you will see in the following photos:

Add Bling to Your Bouquet

I have been using Bouquet Jewels® in my client's wedding bouquets for years. They are great for personalizing your bouquet and they make a beautiful sparkle as you walk down the aisle. There are many different jewels to choose from. Pictured left are the monogram Bouquet Jewels®. Not only do these look lovely embedded in your wedding florals, but you can also have the option of monogramming your bouquet handle. Consider giving one to each of your bridesmaids as their very special gift and keepsake from your wedding.


One of my favorites to use are the stephanotis inserts. This is a great alternative to using the pearl heads and really give your bouquet some color. These, as well as many other types of jewels, are great at adding color to your bouquet especially when you color scheme has very few flowers in that color. For example, I have used the sapphire stephanotis insert (pictured here) for a blue and white color scheme. There are very few pale blue flowers so adding a jewel insert greatly enhanced the bridal bouquet. Other examples would be turquoise, champagne, gold, and silver.

Bouquet Jewels® also come in fun and interesting designs to accent you own personal style and personality. Dragonflies, frogs, bees, butterflies, seashell decor and flip flops are all fabulous ways to set yourself apart from the rest and can be a stunning accent in your spring or summer wedding. If you wanting to spice up your bouquet or other wedding decor, give us a call and we can give you some great ideas!

Favorites for Fall

The fall wedding season is upon us! This season is my favorite for weddings. My husband and I are celebrating our 9th year anniversary today so I have a soft spot for fall weddings. I love this time of year and all the possibilities for creating beautiful bouquets to capture the essence of what is taking place in the great outdoors!

Probably the most popular fall selection is the mango mini calla liliy. There are several varieties and range from deep, burnt orange to bright and vibrant with a golden twist. This flower can stand alone or can be mixed with other fall favorites to create a truly stunning bouquet.

In addition to the fall mini calla, roses are also a fall favorite. Rich, burgundy tones, golden hues, vibrant orage -- the possibilities are practically endless when it comes to this flower.

I love fall bouquets mainly because this is a season that I can really think outside the box. There are so many berries, branches and vines that can accent any bouquet as well as all other wedding designs. By using these elements, we can create great lavish arrangements with great hues and interesting textures.

I don't think we can talk about fall favorites without mentioning the chrysanthemum. This flower is synonymous with autumn and comes in many sizes, textures, and colors. From the small pom pom bloom to the much larger spider mum, chrysanthemums mix beautifully with roses, lilies, and gerberas. While they are known to be one of the lesser expensive wedding flowers they are wonderful for filling in larger arrangements for the ceremony or when decorating many tables for the reception.

If you are planning a fall wedding, you have many options for creating the most perfect atmosphere for your big day. The formal callas, the rustic branches and berries, timeless and classic roses, and the popular chrysanthemum are all great choices!

3 Alternatives to the Traditional Bouquet Toss

Occasionally when I meet with brides, they are weary of keeping with tradition and having a toss bouquet. Many brides are wanting to drop this custom for several reasons. Couples are getting married later in life and brides don't want to add any pressure to some friends who may not be walking down the aisle any time soon. Others dislike the implication that they are chomping at the bit to settle down. Here are some alternatives that may make everyone happy:

1. Wish Come True Toss Bouquet: Invite all the ladies at your reception to participate - married or singe. Ask them all to make a wish right when the bouquet is tossed and the lucky lady who catches the bouquet will get their wish.

2. Fortune Bouquet Toss: Invite all ladies onto the dance floor for this toss. Have a bouquet made of of mini bouquet consisting of only a few flowers each. Held in your hand it looks like one bouquet. On each bouquet, tie a string with a fortune on it and have the bouquets adorned with ribbons. At the toss, all bouquets fly in the air and several lucky ladies will get a bouquet of their own and a little bit of their future foretold!

3. Longest Married Bouquet Toss: Invite all married couples onto the dance floor and have your DJ began playing a song of your choice. Ask your DJ to begin eliminating couples who have been married the least amount of time (one year, then three years, five, ten, and so on.) The last couple dancing receives the bouquet. Your DJ can announce any unusual bouquet tosses and give the necessary instructions. If you're not fond of the traditional toss, give one of these fun alternatives a try.

Our Preferred Photographers

We have the opportunity to work with many wedding photographers in the Atlanta area. After almost a decade working in flower business, we have seen some really great work and some that was . . . well . . . not so great. Believe me, we're picky. Our preferred photographers are those that we've chosen to be the best of the best. In no way whatsoever do we receive any kind of kick backs from referring these vendors. We just know what we like and we want to feature their awesome work on our website. If we didn't like their work, we wouldn't post it!

Check out our list to the right for the photographers we think are the best. In later posts, we will show photos from some upcoming weddings and feature their photographer as well, if we are impressed with their work. Feel free to contact us to find out which photography studio took which picutres.

Check Our Our Newly Updated Website!

We are very excited about our new look! Be sure to check out our new website at http://www.floralfestivities.com/ and let us know what you think.

Decorating Your Wedding Arch

Wedding arches are typically made of wood, metal, or wrought iron and are usually black, white, silver or brass. They are probably most appropriately used for outdoor wedding ceremonies; however, an arch can be used indoors as well.

The wedding arch should be representative of your own distinctive style and personality. Caroline and Blaine (pictured right) wanted a beautifully decorated arch for their late afternoon summer wedding. Caroline did not want to attract a lot of attention to the top of the arch; rather, she wanted the flowers arranged throughout the garland with slightly more emphasis across the top.




Debbie and Eric had a small, intimate ceremony right in their very own backyard! To soften the arch, we used a generous draping of tulle covering the white metal, and designed a large spray at the top as a focal point.

Welcome to Our New Blog!!!

Welcome! We have just created a new forum for our clients as well as our potential clients. Planning your wedding should be a fun and memorable experience without stress and worry! We're here to help! Please feel free to ask us anything related to your upcoming wedding. We are excited about this new opportunity to get to know you better! We hope you will take advantage of our expertise and get your questions answered.

Who Pays for What???

Brides are always asking, "What does the groom's family pay for when it comes to our wedding flowers?" This is a valid question and one that deserves careful consideration!

Traditionally speaking, the bride's family pays for the flower girl and bridesmaids flowers, groom's boutonniere, and all of the flowers for the ceremony and reception. The groom's family pays for the bridal bouquet, additional boutonnieres for the groomsmen, ushers, fathers and grandfathers, and the corsages for the mothers and grandmothers.

But, like I said, that is traditionally speaking. According to wedding etiquette professionals,"who pays for what" is taking a turn. Today, couples are sharing more and more of the expenses and parents of the bride and groom are helping out when and if they can.

As a florist, however, what I see is that most of the time, the bride's family pays for all of the wedding flowers! This can be overwhelming to many of my brides especially when they are expecting 300 guests at the reception and need 30 table centerpieces!!!

My personal opinion is that the groom's family should help take on more of the cost for wedding flowers, especially if the guest list is more than the bride's family originally anticipated. Something that I encourage brides to do is have a rehearsal dinner (which the groom's family traditionally pays for) with floral centerpieces that can also be used the next day at the wedding reception. Both families split the cost of the centerpieces or at least the groom's family becomes responsible for a portion of the expense. This helps lower the cost for the bride tremendously since the majority of the budget is spent on the ceremony flowers and the reception flowers.