Viola! We've renamed ourselves!...

So I have renamed the blog "Petaled".  Hopefully it is more direct, clear and to the point on what this blog is about.  It's about flowers.  It's about weddings and special events.  It's about cool and exciting things happening around the world. And it's about the flower shop.  My family's flower shop in little downtown Winchester, VA.  My family is not the Snellings family.  The Snellings family is long established and well respected and started Flowers by Snellings in 1952.  The Harrison's (us) bought the business and building in 2003.  Of course we kept the name.  It would be silly to change the name after so many years.
Social Media is a different animal altogether.  And while the blog is intertwined with the shop, it is more than just a blog about the shop.   So moving forward I give you "Petaled".  And yes, that is a proper english word and derived from "petal".   (I double checked wikipedia and webster's to be sure)

Wedding Estimating- The Inside Scoop

I just finished a wedding estimate up this morning (yay!) and thought I would share what exactly happens on the florist end for wedding estimates.

Step 1: The initial consultation.  This can be face-to-face, over the phone, or through a series of emails with pictures and links attached.  Or it is a combination of all of the above.  (30min -60 min)

Step 2: The break-down.  No, not the mental kind ( ha ha).  This is where I look over all my notes, my emails and try to mentally build the bouquets and arrangements and estimate the number of stems (approximately), containers, accents like ribbons, brooches, marbles stones, etc.  needed.    Some sketching /or Microsoft Paint programs are involved because I'm a visual person and need to actually draw it out.  (30min -60min)

Step 3: Research.   This will include multiple emails/phone calls back and forth with my suppliers, visits to websites of suppliers, to get the costs and availability for all fresh flowers and supplies for the specific time frame of the event.  This produces even more emails and phone calls when the event is 6-9 months away and different growing cycles and seasons effect product shipping and availability.  Also if I have to special order event vases to rent out to the bride, where and when they would be shipped, quantities needed, etc.  (time invested varies greatly, small weddings 30-60 min, larger weddings with rental items, 2 hrs total )

For example; Peonies.

Short seasons, either during winter or mid spring, early June, even locally grown are still really pricey.  $15-$20 per stem.  (so yes, if you have tons of peony plants in your yard, by all means, DIY your centerpieces)

Creating Proposal: I type pretty darn fast (thank you Typing 101 in high school! Algebra, not so much)  So this doesn't take long to actually type everything, provided I don't get interrupted with the daily business of the shop. ...which happens frequently because there is always someone celebrating life in all its stages from birth to death.  

Emailing Proposal:  Attaching estimate(s), attaching links, pictures of previous weddings, contracts, etc.  5min-15 min.  

Have you added up the time invested yet?  It's quite a little bit just for the average wedding.  Multiply by 2-4 weddings/events per weekend, multiplied by at minimum the wedding season "months" (May-October).  And this is all at no charge to you, the bride.  All we ask (the floral industry) is that if you must miss your scheduled wedding appointment, please call.  Nothing is more irksome than scheduling 4 appointments for a busy Saturday and no one shows or calls to say they're not coming.  Saturday appointments are a PREMIUM.  Especially in spring with all the other floral holidays and proms going on.  

 And if you decide to use another florist's services- it's okay to let us know you chose another florist.  Really, we won't be mad or scream.  It significantly helps to know when we send out 6 proposals for the same wedding date to 6 different brides, who's booking and who's not for scheduling purposes.   

Flower Girls- What you REALLY need to know about flowers for little girls.

Having children of my own has greatly improved how I sell flowers for flower girls. Why?  Because not all little girls like you messing with their head.  Case in point,  My little girl, age 6, is just now allowing me to braid her hair and put it in pony tails.  (and that's only because she's in L-o-V-e with Elsa and Anna and all things "Frozen")  Before then, she would rip out bands, headbands, ribbons, barrettes, etc. much to my frustration.  It didn't matter that mommy thought she was so adorable with her hair up.  
That being said, it made me realize that to sell a product for a flower girl just because I could, didn't mean I should.  And just because you see it in a magazine, does not mean it will be practical for your wedding.

So if the child is yours, you already know their personality and what they will and will not tolerate.
If the child is not yours, know the child's age and find out how they normally wear their hair.  Up? Down?  Do they like to play dress up?  Are they a total "tom boy" and flowers are just not a realistic option?

Here are some options for Flower Girls : flowers to carry, flowers in their hair, and petals to drop.

Let's talk about hair flowers:

I try to think about comfort as much as style.  Most of my hair accessories are simple, clean and lightweight.  Sure, a whole halo of roses looks pretty, but it's heavy.  And heavy means fidgety, and fidgety means it's getting ripped off the head sometime soon and Nobody's happy.  If you don't favor halos, then pieces that can be clipped in are a great accesorry for any age: 

Next up, flower balls, flower spheres, pomanders, etc. These are great as long as you keep the weight in mind.  Even the smaller balls are heavy when made with fresh flowers. For small children, I highly recommend silk pomanders or choosing the smallest diameter ball possible.  (*remember, some children may see the pomander ball as a missile to be launched)  

As you can see, even a 4" diameter sphere takes a substantial amount of flowers to create the "ball"

Finally there are several other options in the flowers-to-carry.  A simple single stem of hydrangea with a ribbon gives you a larger flower but is also very lightweight.  

Petals: A satin basket with petals is also an option.  Just be sure to check with your venue on the rules about flower petals (real vs fake) and who's responsible for cleaning up the petals afterward.  

There are also lots of other neat ideas for flower girls, even halos to carry: 

As long as you remember that little girls like to touch and smell EVERYTHING.   Whatever you decide it needs to be durable, lightweight and ultimately comfortable for these little ones to keep everyone happy on your wedding day.   

Rose Meanings

Red Rose: Love

Yellow Rose: Friendship.

Pink Rose: Affection, Grace, Admiration

Lavender Rose: Enchantment

Orange Rose: Passion, Enthusiasm

White: Purity, Innocence

2015: A Brand New Year, and a New Color- Marsala

A new year, a new Pantone Color for the year- Marsala! I picked this image because it shows accent colors of berry reds and blues to compliment:

A few wedding ideas to follow this color scheme:

Red roses, red dianthus, light blue delphinium, pink heather, 'garnet glow' mini callas, hypericum berries. 



A boutonniere of red hypericum berries, pink heather and salal leaf with ribbon accent;







A flower girl halo below of heather, boxwood and hyacinth blooms secured with silver bouillon wire.  Texture with minimal weight is more comfortable for little girls (and increases the chances they will wear it for the entire ceremony!)

and an even deeper contrast with bright and dark blues, plum purple and shades of reds and burgundy. 

Shades of Purple

This year's wedding season is drawing to a close. The big color (again) this year was purple followed closely by dark blue.  So here's a look back at the color schemes that were chosen by a few of my brides to compliment purple.  First up is a purple/lavender/pink combination.  The wedding was outside at the lovely Whitehall Manor in Bluemont, VA.  Photos courtesy of StephanieLeighPhotography

Purple stock, pink spray roses, dark purple mini calla lilies, cream roses for the bride and similar bouquets for her attendants.

The Groom: 

The table centerpieces continued the color scheme inside for the reception on grey table linens.   

Another wedding was less formal and occurred at a gorgeous private residence in Winchester.  The attendants were all wearing various shades of purple dresses so the bouquets were a mix of purples and lavenders, very wildflower feeling.  Pop of yellow to break up the purple.  Bouquet features freesia, fresh lavender, globe amaranth, veronica, trachelium, stock, fresh wheat and a person favorite-ageratum. Photo by Me

Image courtesy of SamStroudPhotography:

  

The flower girl halo being modeled by my daughter, italian ruscus, plumosa and fresh lavender; 

 photography by me. 

Another completely different, bold color scheme to compliment deep purple/aubergine dresses.  The bride's bouquet featured dark purple hydrangea, purple lisianthus, purple stock, ageratum, lavender alstroemeria, 'Orange Unique' roses, and orange lilies. Photography by me.  

Submerged orange mokara orchids gave simple but bold color to the reception tables at the Holiday Inn Blue Ridge Shadows.  

If you prefer traditional, high contrast, or wildflowers; many choices are available to you year round with a purple color scheme. 

Wedding May 2014; Capon Springs Resort

I work with many brides who are not local. Some of whom I never physically meet!  With all the various means of communication today, face-to-face consultations are happening less and less.  This is one of the weddings where I did most of the communication via phone and email, pinterest boards, picture swapping in emails and the final day everything was gorgeous.  Wedding location was the secluded and serene Capon Springs Resort, Capon Springs WV.  It always reminds me of the resort from the movie "Dirty Dancing".

The Bride's bouquet; Hydrangea, lisianthus, sweet peas, dusty miller. Very soft and romantic.  

  
The wedding party.




The ceremony at the Music Pavilion:

 
The bride picked out her own clear hobnail jars that I filled with simple bouquets of hydrangea and seeded eucalyptus.

 






The reception was at the Sunset Lodge which overlooks the resort's golf course.  It is a huge outdoor space that is sheltered and features stone fireplaces.

I love when a bride personalizes her wedding with hand picked containers.  In this wedding, silver candle holders with glass hurricanes accented with seeded eucalptus, milkglass containers and compotes filled with hydrangea, lisianthus, and other assorted flowers.

The cake decor was a challenge actually.  Seeded eucalyptus stems are too heavy to individually place stems on cake layers.  So I hand wired the leaves and accents of fresh lavender for a light weight accent to be placed on the cake layers instead of inserted into the layers.

all photos courtesy of Ash Imagery, all flowers designed by Flowers by Snellings, Capon Springs Resort, May 2014