Genius Idea! A Mobile Bakery

My husband was cruising the streets in the Mission District in San Francisco and came across a truck called Sweet Ride. It's a mobile bakery that has all of the sweet goodies one could imagine. He of course thought of me since I love anything cute and small like cupcakes.

He had some banana pudding and gave it a thumbs up and came home to tell me about it. Why he didn't buy me something is beyond me. Apparently, I still need to train him.

However, he does get points for sharing this with me because I can share it with all of you. How cool would it be to have Sweet Ride hang out in front of your wedding and serve your guests some dessert? Pretty sweet, I think.

And if you want to stalk them (like me) you can follow them on twitter to find out where they are hanging out!

Branches for Wedding Centerpieces 101

Most people don't even give a second thought to tree branches and what they have to offer. In fact, most people don't even consider tree branches at all when they think of flowers. But branches have so much versatility! The creative things you can use them for are endless.

You can showcase the branches alone by using flowering trees like cherry or crab apple, or go more elaborate by decorating the branches with orchids, crystals and candles. Branches are also a great and affordable way to add some height to an arrangement if you have tall ceilings. They have beautiful lines and you can definitely find a type of branch to suit your wedding style. Here are some common branches that designers use.

Curly Willow - Curly willow come in a variety of colors. The most common is green but you can also get them brown (dried) or white (stripped of their bark).

Here are some centerpieces using curly willow:

Mazanita: These are branches are very sturdy that can handle the weight of hanging candle votives and crystals. They naturally come in a dark chocolate brown color, but they can also be sand blasted to a light brown or white color.

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Birch Branches: These branches are sturdy and straighter than curly willow. These are great for filling up space and come in a lot of varieties. You can learn more about birch branches here.

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Centerpiece Ideas for birch branches:

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Cherry Blossom Branches: These branches come ready to be used since they already have beautiful blossoms on them. Unfortunately, they are only in season late winter (January and February) for a short period of time.

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Grapewood: You can design beautiful decorative displays with sandblasted grapewood branches. You can combine moss, grasses and succulents for a natural display. Calla lilies and orchids are also great flowers to pair with grapewood.

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If you plan to use branches in any of your wedding decor be sure to ask what type of branches will be used. As you can see - there are many different options out there and you want to choose the ones that will fit with your wedding style.

E + N Wedding | Sausalito's Women's Club

Erin and Natalie wanted fun and bright flowers for the wedding. They love gerber daisies so we used them in the ceremony and reception decor. The Sausalito Women's Club is a hidden gem. It's tucked away in the hills and perfect for a small and quaint wedding!

Ceremony: I made two wreaths and strung a garland across the trees.

Wreath: Carnations, dahlias and gerbera daisies

Bouquet Breakdown

This is one of my favorite bouquets I made last year! The pink colors and variety of textures really popped from the bride's dress.

D + J Wedding | Sofitel Hotel | Pacific Athletic Club Part II

Dominique and Jason had their reception at the Pacific Athletic Club in Redwood City. It's a beautiful room with floor to ceiling windows. The walls and carpet are neutral colored so you can really bring in your own style and colors without worrying about it clashing with the room!
Here are some pictures of the reception that my assistant Beth took for me.

Tall Centerpieces with mazanita branches, hydrangea, roses, dahlias and orchids.

Low centerpieces with green broccoli hydrangea, white hydrangea, white dahlias, vendela roses, green hypericum berries and white stock.

And here's a picture of their adorable candy buffet table!

My next wedding feature fall colors in oranges and reds!

Featured on SF Daily Candy

I am beyond thrilled that I was featured on Daily Candy's SF Fall Wedding Guide. I have received a lot of inquiries for my next workshop and just wanted to give a quick update. My next workshop is scheduled for late January or early February of 2010. However, I have received a lot of interest to have one in December. If I can get enough people signed up then I'm happy to host one sooner. So drop me an email line and let me know if you are interested!


Here's a link to DIY Floral Workshop II and Workshop III I hosted in the previous years. In the workshop you learn how to make your own personal flowers that include bouquets, boutonnieres and corsages. I teach you how to pick and prepare your flowers and give you a list of tools and supplies you need to get started. You get to take a resource packet home along with the flowers you put together. The cost of workshop is $75 per person. Hope you can make it to the next workshop!

D + J Wedding | Sofitel Hotel | Pacific Athletic Club

I loved the colors we used for Dominique and Jason's wedding. Chocolate brown, Tiffany blue and cream always makes for a great color palette. Dominique wanted a full, romantic and fluffy bouquet so we used a lot of garden roses and dahlias. Thanks Dominique for sharing the professional pictures with us!

Bride's Bouquet: Garden roses, majolica spray roses, dahlias,
vendela roses, and cymbidium orchids

Groom's Bout: White spray roses with green hypericum berries

Dominique wanted to attach a picture of her grandparents to her bouquet. So sweet!

Bridesmaid Bouquets: Blue hydrangea, dahlias, vendela roses, spray roses

Pictures of the reception decor coming soon!