flora in fashion–alexander mcqueen

vogue.com

Did you see this dress in September’s issue of Vogue? We saw this dress and automatically thought of carnations and foxgloves.

I just can’t stop thinking of how I would sit down or bend over to pick something up in this dress. What if you dropped something down the front of your dress because it is so wide open like a vase opening.

What we love:

• soft texture with a strong structure
• mix of color
• the crazy high shoes that would be perfect for church next week :)

flower feature–carnation (Dianthus caryophyllus)

One of the most common flowers and one with a bad rep (old woman, old fashioned, too traditions, too common). But it really isn’t so. My cousin introduced me to her love for carnations and with her reasoning, I have grown to love using them in designs (those reasons are below).

There are some great meanings with carnations. For the most part, carnations express love, fascination, and distinction, though there are many variations dependent on color.

• Light red carnations represent admiration, while dark red denote deep love and affection.
• White carnations represent pure love and good luck, while striped (variegated) carnations symbolize regret that a love cannot be shared.
• Purple carnations indicate capriciousness. In France, it is a traditional funeral flower, given in condolence for the death of a loved one.
• Pink carnations have the most symbolic and historical significance. According to a Christian legend, carnations first appeared on Earth as Jesus carried the Cross. The Virgin Mary shed tears at Jesus' plight, and carnations sprang up from where her tears fell. Thus the pink carnation became the symbol of a mother's undying love.
• Carnation is the birth flower for those born in the month of January.

source: wikipedia.org

source: marthastewartweddings.com – bellethemagazine.com – thesaltypineapple.com – google.com

What we love about carnations:

• carnations come in any color! Not only so many naturally, but you can dye them to be any color you want! Blue anyone?
• they are hardy! This means that they can handle being handled and used in more novel designs like wreaths (bottom left), leis (upper right), pomanders (center left), crowns (upper left), and garlands (center left)
• an easy flower to come by at any time of the year
• carnations are easy on your wallet and therefore can help you stay in budget
• they can be used to add more volume in a design without costing you a lot
• carnations are a great filler flower or a main flower in designs
• such a girly soft texture
• carns have a sweet smell that brings good memories

trending–feathers

When we were married years ago, I wanted peacock feathers in my wedding flowers. We looked and looked and there were none to be found. It wasn’t trending and so we decided to go with something else.

source: rissfloral.com – montrose prom silk corsage

Of course, now I can find peacock feathers everywhere. (I guess we are just ahead of the trends we are so good) This trend of feathers has been on for a couple of months, but we sure think that it will really evolve this coming season. There are a lot of different types of feathers that we are seeing now in centerpieces and other designs. They are so much fun and really add a unique and personal touch to any design.

What we love:

• you can pair feathers with flowers or just use feathers
• feathers can take something from 20’s glamour to a country vintage depending on the type of feather you use
• feathers add such dimension and depth into an arrangement or corsage
• the fall centerpiece with pheasant feathers (bottom center)
• the bridesmaids pomander balls of feathers (center middle)
• feathers can add structure or softness to the shape of your design

what we’re up to–baby welcome party

Some of our neighbors are welcoming their first baby into their family in the next two weeks. So we are planning a party to host at our home to welcome their baby girl. Our friends didn’t want anything really “baby shower”-ish. They also wanted a party where the spouses could come. So I decided to do an Ice Cream party.
The final event will happen in October sometime when mother and baby are ready to debut.
Here are some of my inspirations:
Some of the things we need to do:

• decide color scheme
  • We are thinking bright colors
• create invites
• thrift containers for toppings
• create the carnation ice cream centerpieces (aren’t they so fun?)
  • We will do those in ice cream glasses and have straws coming out too
  • I love the individual cone ones to have guests leave with on top center
• create pendant banners

color board - navy

Navy is in! It is one of the main colors seen this season in weddings, events, clothing and home decor. And who wouldn’t want to incorporate navy into flowers?

Navy is almost a neutral. It is like saying you can wear almost any color with blue jeans. Navy is the new take on a classic black. It is modern and fresh.

source: blogss4fun7157.blogspot.com – indulgy.com – zimbio.com – stylemepretty.com – etsy.com – theknot.com – jcrew.com – boden.com

What we love:

• navy ribbon! since there aren’t navy flowers, this is our main go to to incorporate the color
  • our favorite is the upper right photo
• navy ties – makes any man look handsome
• navy dresses – can you say slimming?
• the way navy makes any other color look more vibrant
  • our favorite colors to pair with navy
    • raspberry pink
    • light pink
    • coral
• feather and fabric in boutonnieres (bottom center)
• navy and white stripes – is more relaxed and gives that nautical feeling (upper center and bottom right)
• that birdcage veil (center) – now where can I wear that? hmm…

inspired–single

source: 79ideas.org

Simple. Floral arranging doesn’t have to be expensive or complex.

Don’t overthink flowers. Sometimes the best way to make a statement is to cut out all confusion and create a main focal point. Just like the purple allium above.

What could you go cut right now outside to bring in your home? There is something so wonderful about having something living in your home – simple flowers, wheat grass growing in a basket, even houseplants.

ps – I love alliums. Even as the start to die, the structure of the plant/flower is gorgeous!

design style–contemporary

You might like a contemporary style if you like to keep current with styles, enjoy things that are modern, of today, right now.

Contemporary style can be defined as follows: fundamental, simple, subtle sophistication, texture and clean lines. It is the show of space, not things. By focusing on color, space, and shape, contemporary designs are sleek and fresh.

When looking at contemporary design, you will notice that most designs keep with neutrals – blacks, whites, & grays. However, there are always great punches of vibrant colors. So in floral design, we usually are the lucky ones to play with the vibrant colors since we are a smaller piece of the whole.

Like I mentioned above, contemporary design is also about line and space. A floral design is more geometric and focuses on the structure more than the actual flowers. The lines draw your eyes around the arrangement to certain focal points.

sources: pinterest.com – erinpatrickevent.com – google.com

What we love:

• the structural elements used like sticks, containers, pendants
• the texture of the weaved look on the bottom left
• the punch of purple in the middle right
• the clean lines that the calla lilies give to each design – talk about a perfect contemporary flower
• the clustering of the kermit button mums  on the middle right – it creates a structure
• the rhythm (how your eyes move in the design) of the circular piece on bottom right and the arch on the top left