Huckleberry Karen

Press: Cover for Ceremony Magazine

2012-01-24T17:25:00.000-08:00

One of my goals for last year was to make it inside a magazine - in print. Don't get me wrong, I love the blogs and featured weddings they share but there is something about being in a magazine. It's tangible and you can cuddle with it at night. So you can imagine how THRILLED I was to find out that I made the cover for Ceremony Magazine that is launching up here in the bay area. I had a vision for this photo shoot and Mary from Very Merry Events helped me pull it all together. Her personal touches and cute pie pops were adorable.

Here is the cover. The magazine should be hitting the stands pretty soon.

Here are a couple of images I took on site. It got pretty windy so we had to secure the sign with a couple of fish wire. We also had to take quite a few shots of this so you could see all the letters. You can see here that the "s" almost got away!

You will also see this bouquet on the cover for Ceremony Magazine in October 2012. Woohoo!

I posted some more images earlier for this photo shoot here. I also worked on another table top and will post photos of that in the next post.

Pro Pics: J + J Wedding | Sir Francis Drake | San Francisco

2012-01-12T07:00:00.000-08:00

Do you remember the wedding that I share with you a few weeks back? Orange with purple accents and a bride with gorgeous red hair. Their awesome photographer Vero of Vero Suh Photography just shared some photos with me and I am in love with them. Her ability to capture the details of the wedding day are amazing! Take a look for yourself!

All images are courtesy of Vero Suh Photography.

Definitely my favorite photo from my 2011 weddings. Love!

Family Photos with Meg Perotti

2011-12-22T07:28:00.000-08:00

I debated on whether I should post photos of the family on my blog. But the pictures that Meg Perotti took are just too awesome and so I had to share. If you want pictures for ANYTHING - you should contact her. She did a wonderful job managing my 3 year old - and that is no easy task. If you have ever been around a toddler then you know how unpredictable they can be. So if you need a wedding photographer, engagement pictures, newborn photos or family photos then she is your gal.

This picture cracks me up. This is what my toddler was pretty much doing the whole time. How Meg managed to get him to cooperate is beyond me. I had a bag full of candy that I had to bribe him with. All she had was a stick. And the stick worked.

Editorial Photoshoot | Ceremony Magazine | Mandarin Hotel

2011-12-19T21:02:00.001-08:00

Here's a sneak peek of a photo shoot I worked on for Ceremony Magazine last month. I am very excited to see this in print next year.

My favorite detail on this bouquet is the ribbon treatment I have for the handle.

A + A Wedding | Hakone Gardens Saratoga | Chinese Banquet Wedding

2011-12-08T08:41:00.000-08:00

When Alicia contacted me to help with her wedding flowers, I just couldn't say no! You see, Alicia is the younger sister of Anita who got married a year ago. And I just so happened to be a part of Anita's lovely wedding day. You can see her flowers here. When I met with Alicia and Andy I just kept thinking how sweet they were as a couple. You can just see how much they care and love each other in the images that the photographer captured on their wedding day.

Ceremony: Hakone Estate and Gardens, Saratoga
Photographer: Chau Ly with W Photography
Florals: Huckleberry Karen Designs

Bouquet Breakdown

2011-12-05T09:28:00.000-08:00

This bouquet was from Yulia and Igor's wedding I posted about earlier here. One of my favorite things about this bouquet were the tweedia accents. There are not that many blue flowers out there - and tweedia has such a sweet and delicate look to them.

Press: Huckleberry Karen Designs Featured on Junebug Weddings

2011-12-01T01:10:00.000-08:00

I just found out that this awesome wedding I worked on was featured on Junebug Weddings!Read the article and see more images here. Gary and Heather talk about how they personsalized their wedding and have some great advice!

J+J Wedding | Sir Francis Drake Hotel | San Francisco

2011-11-29T08:56:00.000-08:00

Beautiful location, adorable bride with red hair and a wedding dress full of ruffles. This wedding was brimming with personality! We used shades of orange with purple accents since the Sir Francis Drake Hotel had these colors as part of their decor.

Venue: Sir Francis Drake Hotel, San Francisco
Chair Covers: Especially Yours Chair Covers
Photographer: Vero Suh Photography

Here a couple of photos I took

Both Jenny and James travel a lot for their work. They had the most adorable little luggage favors I have ever seen. They doubled as seating cards too. Loved them!

Y+I Wedding | Legion of Honor San Francisco

2011-11-21T08:12:00.000-08:00

Yulia and Igor planned their wedding in four months! They started the process right by choosing a beautiful venue. The Legion of Honor is something else. It's just beautiful. No words can really describe it but trust me. It's gorgeous there. Not to mention there are plenty of photo opportunities there.
We originally planned to do something with branches but the museum doesn't allow any dried branch material there (for the fear of little insects) that could damage the art. So we went to plan B which was something structured and modern to match the art and statues in the main room.

Venue: Legion of Honor San Francisco
Catering: Jane Hammonds Events
Colors: Shades of white with blue accents

Bride's Bouquet: hydrangea, calla lilies, dahlia, stephanotis, tweedia, roses

T+M Wedding | Portola Valley Presbyterian Church | Sheraton Hotel Palo Alto

2011-11-17T07:56:00.000-08:00

When I first met Tristan, I knew that we would get along just fine. First of all, she has a cool name. Second of all, she brought her mother with her who was so excited about her daughter's wedding that it was infectious. They came with a pretty good vision - something whimsical and fairy tale like with twinkling lights and butterflies. Tristan made it clear to me she was not a traditional bride - she wanted something with texture and bright green flowers. And no roses.

Bout: calla lily with curly willow and berry accents

Bridesmaid Bouquet: green hydrangea with white mums, and dahlias

Cute little green kermit mum bout for the ring bearers

Green dendrobium orchids for the ushers

Tall Centerpiece: curly willow, bells of ireland, hydrangea, spidermums

dendrobium orchids with silver butterflies and hanging votives

Garland for the church with little butterflies

Fund Finds: Stacking Rings & Pillows

2011-10-27T09:10:00.000-07:00

It's amazing how I find things when I'm not really looking for them. Or maybe I just have ADD. I was looking for a headband for my little girl Ginger. We have a family photo shoot coming up and it's essential that she has some sort of hair accessory cause she is bald. I mean she has NO HAIR and if I put her in something blue she looks like a boy. But that's not the point. The point is that while I was looking for a headband on etsy I found these other items that I love. It has nothing to do with Ginger or with the photo shoot but who cares? Cause they are simply too cute not to share.

Here are some adorable stacking rings by Olive Bungalow. I thought they would be cute gifts for my nieces (who are teenagers) or maybe bridesmaid gifts? You can even customize the one with the initials.

And this one can be stacked with others...but why? It's just gorgeous by itself.

I was also looking for some pillows for Ginger's room. The poor girl has been sleeping in a room of chaos. One of my goals before the end of the year is to get her room put together. So while looking for pillows I found these at Vintage Green Limited. Super cute ring bearer pillows.

I also liked this one from Freshline.

And in case you are wondering, I never found a headband that I liked and would be shipped in time for the family photo shoot. Which means I'm going to have to make my own. Some times I really drive myself nuts. But at least I found a great tutorial here on how to make one without a sewing machine (because I really don't want to dig that out of the closet right now). I'll post it once I finish it next week!

Playing Around

2011-10-24T06:42:00.000-07:00

One thing I wish I had was more time to play around with flowers. I usually have left over flowers from my weddings but I'm so focused on the next wedding - I don't take the time out to just be creative like I should. So I made a point a few weeks ago to use the left over flowers I had and make some boutonnieres. It was nice to make something just for the fun of it. No fuss and no pressure!

N + M Wedding | Ruby Hill Golf Club | Pleasanton

2011-10-19T08:35:00.000-07:00

It was a gorgeous day for a pink and yellow wedding! I love the soft pinks mixed in with the buttery yellows.

Editorial Photoshoot | Junshien Photography

2011-10-13T06:15:00.000-07:00

I was very excited when Junshien contacted me to see if I could provide some bouquets for his upcoming editorial shoot.

photographer: Junshien International Photography
stylist: Michelle Tan
makeup/hair: Michelle Tan, Christina Chen
dress: BoLee Bridal Couture
florist: Huckleberry Karen Designs
models: Caroline Vu, Monika Majdanska

Michelle sent me some photos of the dresses and I created four different bouquets to match the looks. Love how the photos turned out!

M+I Wedding { Bridges Golf Club } San Ramon California

2011-10-08T06:26:00.000-07:00

Shades of pink with teal accents - you can't go wrong with that color combination. Loved the bold colors that Mei and Ian used for their wedding. They also had really nice personal touches like the children favors or "goodie bags" with toys and lollipops and a seashell for each place setting. They got married in June - and June is one of the best "pink" months I can think of. You can get all sorts of spring flowers in pink - peonies, ranunculus, dahlias, tulips, calla lilies...need I say more? We'll let the pictures do the talking....

Inspired Collective

2011-10-03T05:36:00.000-07:00

Come join the fun at the Inspired Collective grand opening on Thursday, October 6 at 6pm.

Blu Bungalow

2011-09-25T20:33:00.000-07:00

Very excited to share that Huckleberry Karen Designs is now part of the wonderful family of Blu Bungalow! What is Blu Bungalow? It's a wedding planning boutique where newly engaged couples and brides can swing by and get some expert advice on planning their wedding (or any other event). The best part? It's free. Yeah, that's right. It's free. You can walk in and gather some resources, take a look around and plan away. I had the pleasure of visiting Blu Bungalow last month and the place is amazing.

The location? Even better. It's on Union Street in San Francisco where you can get all sorts of shopping done. Some of my favorites on Union Street are:

- The Union Street Papery (All the invitation eye candy you can think of)
- Forget Me Knots Bridal (Adorable wedding dress boutique where you can buy dresses off the rack. I actually bought my bridal veil there)
- Haute Bride (Gorgeous bridal accessories including shoes, hair pieces, jewelry and couture bridal gowns)
- That Takes the Cake (for yummy cupcakes - the red velvet is to die for)

So basically, you can get all sorts of wedding stuff done on Union Street in San Francisco!

N+N Wedding | Ralston Hall & Mansion| Belmont, CA

2011-09-12T10:02:00.000-07:00

One word for this wedding: STUNNING. The bride, Niloofar, really gave me some creative freedom - she showed me some photos of flowers she liked and let me run with it. And run I did. I had so much fun putting it all together and quite pleased how everything turned out. I think that Niloofar's bouquet is probably my favorite bouquet I have made thus far. The thing was HUGE and I jokingly told her that she would need to work out in order to hold the bouquet.

Here are some of the photos I was able to get - Niloofar was generous to share some of the professional images she has received so far and I"ll be sharing those in a bit.

Sneak Peek: Flower Girl Purses & Bridesmaid Bouquet

2011-08-24T09:43:00.000-07:00

I'm putting together my blog post for my next wedding - and it's a splendiferous one. But first I must share these super cute flower girl purses I made for the wedding. I am so proud of them - they deserve their own post. I've been wanting to make flower girl purses for quite some time and I finally convinced one of my bride's to let me. Thank you Niloofar for having faith in me and letting me be creative :)

Confession: Since I have never made these before - I wasn't sure how many carnations I would need for three purses. So I guessed - and well, I guessed wrong. I was off about 5 carnations. That's it - but 5 carnations is a lot when you have a gaping whole in a purse. So I was forced to be creative...and with some help with my assistant Nikki, we found a cute solution. And I have to say - I'm glad I was short 5 carnations because it made me think out of the box. I really liked how they turned out! We used some dusty miller, eucalyptus leaves, a rose to give the purse an accent. My bride also gave me some hair clips to use in her bouquet (which was super awesome stunning, by the way but more on that later) but I decided to put them on the purses instead. It was adorable.

And here is a sneak peak at the bridesmaid bouquet. If you like this - you will LOVE the bride's bouquet. That's coming up a little later!

S+A Wedding | Casa Real | Pleasanton

2011-08-17T01:44:00.000-07:00

Seleene was planning her wedding from New York - not an easy task to do but she did a great job. She picked a beautiful venue and wanted greens and purples to go with the sari dresses that the bridesmaids were going to wear. We also hung cute little lanterns from the branches - cute idea! It's hard to see since it was still light out but the lanterns were lit up with little LED lights inside.

Bride's Bouquet: roses, dahlias, hydrangea, calla lilies, sweetpea, lisanthus

Bridesmaid Bouquets: hydrangea, freesia, dahila buds, roses, orchids

L + J Wedding | Pro Pics | Palo Alto Hills Country Club | Elle Jae Weddings

2011-08-08T06:41:00.000-07:00

Last week I showed you some images from Leslie and Jon's wedding and then James from Elle Jae Weddings sent me over some of the professional photos he took. They are AWESOME. And I have to say that I love Leslie's shoes. I wish that the whole colored heels for your wedding day trend thing was happening when I got married. Looks so cool in photos!

Bride's Bouquet

More images can bee seen on from their slide show that ElleJae Weddings put together. Thanks James for sharing these with me!

Ombre

2011-08-05T08:09:00.000-07:00

I'm noticing a new trend here. Well maybe it's not new. But it's new to me and I like it. It's called ombre. And from what I know - it started with hair. People (namely Sarah Jessica Parker) started to high light her hair - in shades of color. The dictionary term says: shaded or graduated in tone (in terms of color). Here are some examples:

martha stewart

From erineverafter.blogspot.com

From ohhellofriendblog.com

So is it too late to get on the ombre bandwagon? Has it left or is it just coming around the corner? I would love to style a photo shoot using me some ombre.

L + J Wedding | Palo Alto Hills Country Club | Palo Alto

2011-08-02T08:00:00.000-07:00

Color! This is what Leslie told me when she was telling me what she envisioned for her wedding. Leslie has curly hair, adorable dimples and a great smile so it seemed quite fitting that she wanted something vibrant and fun.

Photography: ElleJae Weddings
Day of Coordinator: Melissa with Dream It Events
Venue: Palo Alto Hills Country Club

I can't wait to see the photos from ElleJae Weddings!

Blogging More

2011-07-29T10:12:00.000-07:00

One of the goals I set for myself for this year was to blog more. Hmmmmmm. Don't think I'm doing a very good job of that. I'm kicking myself for setting this goal - what was I thinking? I just had another baby in February (her name is Ginger and a very happy baby) and still chasing my 2 year old around. Most days I am just happy to make it to 6pm when my husband comes home so I could eat and then collapse into bed. If I manage to get some work emails and proposals done then it's a stellar day. I even told my husband that I wanted to blog more so he could motivate me and remind me of my goal. This morning I said I wanted to blog more and he said, "Well maybe you should blog instead of watch Project Runway." It was a mistake to tell him about my goal. I like Project Runway and I'm not giving it up!

It's not that I don't have a lot to say. I do. My mind is constantly going but the time to do it all is rare. Even though my work and business is wedding related - it is only part of my life. I want my blog to be related to weddings (flowers specifically, duh) but there are so many blogs out there that dedicate themselves to wedding inspiration, I couldn't possibly compete with that. So I am allowing myself to write about stuff other than weddings and flowers. Because let's face it, there is more to life than just weddings right? Weddings is where life begins for many - so along with wedding talk - let's also talk about stuff that happens AFTER weddings. Like babies, friends, family, work, ups, downs, crafting, shoes, frustrations and well, life. The journey. Let's talk about the journey.

So here are some things I have been obsessed with lately.

Needle Felting. My friend Nikki made this bird and I heart it. She's super artistic. She has an etsy shop so if you like the bird - you can buy it! She's adding inventory so check back or just email her. I tried making one and let's just say my bird looks like it skipped a few meals. But this is a crazy fun craft. All you need is yarn, needle and some sculpting skills.

I have also been on the hunt for some very cute flat sandals with ruffles. This has been a lot tougher than I thought it would be. I really like these Badgley Mischka sandals. But they are $105 (on sale right now on Zappos). I showed my husband and he said, "Why would you pay $100 for flip flops?!" He just doesn't get it. But I had no argument cause they are flip flops. Very expensive flip flops.

Besides blogging more this year, I also want to start sewing again. I saw this adorable outfit somewhere and I really want to make it for Ginger.

So basically, if I'm not blogging them I'm stabbing yarn with a needle, looking for shoes, trying to rediscover my sewing skills or most likely, watching Project Runway. Happy weekend all!

J+M Wedding | Kohl Mansion| Burlingame

2011-06-17T06:10:00.000-07:00

What a way to start the wedding season! As you know - I've been on a little break because of my new addition to the family. I was very excited to get my hands on some flowers again and this wedding was the perfect way to start my wedding season. The weather was suppose to be rainy and stormy with thunder showers (what are the chances of rain in June?!) but it ended up being pretty sunny and everything came together beautifully.

Venue: Kohl Mansion in Burlingame
Photographer: Lizzie Kimball Photography
Cake: Nora's Patisserie

You can see more images of Jessica and Matt's wedding on Lizzie Kimball's Blog here. And a special thank you to Lizzie for allowing me to share these images. Thanks Lizzie!

Sneak Peek: Centerpiece Trial

2011-06-13T07:20:00.000-07:00

Here's a centerpiece I whipped together for one of bride's to take a look at. She wanted colorful, vibrant and fun - and that is what I gave her! Perfect for her upcoming summer wedding. I can't wait to see a whole room filled with these!

Here we took out the green "snowballs" and replaced them with lemon leaf.

C + J Wedding | San Francisco Yacht Club | San Francisco

2011-06-08T09:07:00.000-07:00

What can I say about this wedding? I can say that I absolutely adore the bride. Caroline and I became friends years ago when we started teaching at the same school. We shared many late nights at school working (how the heck do you use this copy machine?!) and soon after, many dinners, conversations and laughter through the years. We spent 6 weeks together touring around Europe (we were great travel buds) and helped each other through so many things like break-ups, vacations, family stuff and so many other ups and downs that it would take a novel for me to tell you. So you get the point, right? Caroline is my girl. She was also my go to gal when it came to flowers. She was my assistant for many years and I was so sad to hear she was moving to Seattle but also so happy that she was starting an adventure of her own with her new life and new husband.

So of course when she got engaged - there was no question that I was doing her flowers! I also attended the wedding - so I took photos when I could but I really wanted to enjoy the moment with her and celebrate.

Caroline wanted something simple - so we went with shades of white with green accents. A classic combo.

Venue: San Francisco Yacht Club
Photographer: Vincent Au Photography

Here are a couple of pictures I was able to get before the wedding started!

Gardenia for her hair

You can see more photos of Caroline and Juan's wedding here at Vincent Au's Blog!

Fun Finds: Cupcake Stands

2011-05-18T07:20:00.000-07:00

Here are some very cute custom cupcake stands that I saw on Hostess with the Mostess blog. You can get them from an Esty store called Pedestals. Love it!

Fun Finds: Little Girl Shoes

2011-05-09T05:45:00.000-07:00

I love little girl shoes. And now that I have a little girl that I get to dress up - I have to muster up all the strength in me so I don't buy every single pair of these adorable shoes from Gracious May. These shoes are perfect for the little flower girl!

I have my friend Marie to thank for sharing these with me....and my husband can curse her later when he finds out that I bought these shoes for Ginger (my little girl) who doesn't even walk yet! Ha!

K+D Wedding | Flood Mansion | San Francisco

2011-05-03T07:01:00.000-07:00

Here is a gorgeous wedding held at the James Leary Flood Mansion in San Francisco. You never can go wrong with classic colors like white, apple green and silver. I love the details that Karin worked out for the place card settings.

Bridesmaid bouquets in shades of green: hydrangea, roses, orchids and kermit mums

Bride's bouquet in shades of white with green accents:

hydrangea, dahlias, roses, orchids and mini calla lilies

Groom and groomsmen bouts:

green cymbidium orchids with hypericum berries and monkey tail

Place card table that Karin designed.

We hung green kermit mum pomanders off of the chairs for the ceremony.

One of the altar arrangements placed at the front.

Love the simple elegance of the large, long stem calla lilies.

Five Year Anniversary

2011-04-30T10:09:00.000-07:00

Hard to believe - but I got married five years ago today. Seems like a long time ago. So much has changed within the last five years! We bought a house, moved from San Francisco to Campbell and had 2 kids! I was looking through some of the wedding pictures (they already look so dated to me!) and thought I would share some of my favorites from the day!

But first up - who were my vendors?
Venue: Thomas Fogarty Winery
Catering: Melons Catering
Day of Coordinator: Kathryn with Dream A Little Dream Events
Photographer: Becky with Art of Emotion
Make Up: Maria with Professional Make-up Artistry
DJ: Big Fun DJ
Flowers: Petalworks (no longer in California)
Cake: Sonja with Bravos Bakery (Sonja just got married last year and I did her flowers!)

Many people ask me if I did my own flowers. The answer to that would be NO. I would be lying if I told you I didn't think about it. I thought about it a lot. I went back and forth about it and discussed this with my fiance (now husband) about it. Like many brides out there, I wanted to save money. But at the end I realized that I wanted to relax on my wedding day - and not worry about anything. I wanted to get my nails done and if you work with flowers - you know that your hands get tore up and disgusting. I wanted to be sipping champagne in my bridal suite before the ceremony - not running around sweating and stressing out about the set up. Also, when I got married, I didn't have my own business. That came after I said, "I do." So I wised up and hired a professional to take care of that stuff and I have to say that I'm happy I did.

Okay - on to the photos!

GETTING READY

I wanted to wear flip flops but my mom insisted that I buy "real shoes". So I bought these shoes on sale but I didn't wear these cause they hurt my feet like heck - but they sure look great in the pictures!

One of my favorite photos of my little niece getting ready. She was so excited to be a flower girl.

My bouquet: roses, peonies, calla lilies, ranunculus,

green hypericum and lily of the valley

I had 4 bridesmaids, 3 Jr. bridesmaids and 2 flower girls.

I just couldn't leave out any of my nieces (who were the Jr. bridesmaids).

What the heck are they doing?! Well, let me tell you. After I walked on to the deck (see above photos) my train was FILTHY. That deck was covered in dirt. These photos were taken BEFORE the ceremony. Thank goodness I had some white chalk (I heard that this was good to have in the emergency kit to cover up dirt stains). So my sister and friends took the white chalk and had to basically "color" the whole bottom of my train and dress. So put white chalk in your emergency kit people - cause it sure comes in handy!

The handsome groom.

We had a willow arch decked out with flowers for the ceremony. I didn't want this (to save money) but my other half really wanted it. I'm glad I listened to him cause it looks really nice in the pictures.

Another favorite photo of mine. My niece dancing with her dad.

PRECIOUS. Just look how happy she is!

These were little goody bags I made for the kids that attended our wedding. I put a coloring book, crayons, popcorn, drinks and bubbles that they could play with to keep them busy and happy!

All the parents thanked me for including this - another nice detail!

My toss bouquet. I made paper flowers and tied quotes about love to them.

I loved my cake. But looking at the photo now, I realized I didn't have a cake stand. I should have gotten one. Hmmm...I guess I missed that detail!

Hope you enjoyed some of the photos - and happy 5 year anniversary honey!!

Beautiful Hair Blooms

2011-04-28T08:23:00.000-07:00

Many of my brides ask about flowers for their hair. A large bloom tucked behind the ear or pinned in your hair looks gorgeous. You could wear this in lieu of a veil or underneath the veil but either case - it's a small detail that people notice. The problem is that there aren't that many flowers that can withstand the hairspray and oils that comes with a pretty hairdo. You also need a flower that's light enough to be pinned and that can look fresh for a long period of time.

So here a couple of good options....

Gardenia
Cons: Sometimes the petals will turn brown over time and it has a strong smell. Some like it the smell and others don't.

If you like the look of the flower but don't want to deal with the scent then a silk flower would be a good option. It seems like there are a lot of varieties of hair clips with gardenias.

Cymbidium Orchid (Comes in white, pink and green. Other colors a little harder to come by would be yellow and orange)

Vanda Orchid (orange, fushcia, purple)

Stephanotis Bloom (white)

Phalaenopsis Orchid (white and purple)
Cons: These also tend to wilt sooner rather than later. You would probably have to pin a new one in after the ceremony.

Dendrobium Orchids (white and fuschia and purple)

Cattleya Orchid

The nice thing is that pretty much any flower looks gorgeous in hair, it's just a matter of choosing one that fits your wedding style.

Fun Finds: Calligraphy & Stamps!

2011-04-19T10:29:00.000-07:00

Once in a while I'll come across something pretty fabulous and I can't help but want to share it with all of you. It may be wedding related and it may not. But either way - it's definitely something fun!

The credit goes to my friend Sara from Stinkerpants for this cool find. I love Lettergirl's calligraphy and handwriting. She has an etsy shop and also offers self inking address stamps. I want to get my hands on one of these for sure!

I think these would be great gifts for anyone who loves pretty handwriting and stamps. I'm planning to buy one of these for myself for Mother's Day!

M + S Wedding | St. Regis Hotel | San Francisco

2011-04-15T08:48:00.000-07:00

Here's a gorgeous wedding that was held at The St. Regis Hotel in San Francisco. This venue has a lot of modern elements - a great location for a city wedding.

Wedding Coordinator: Lisa from Bellissima Vita Weddings
Photographer: Larissa Cleveland
Lighting: Creative Lighting Design

Here are a couple of photos that I took...

To see more of this beautiful wedding you can check out Larissa Cleveland's Blog Post.

Style Me Pretty | Little Black Book Member

2011-04-11T16:30:00.000-07:00

I'm very excited to announce that Huckleberry Karen Designs is now a member of Style Me Pretty's Little Black Book. According to SMP: The Little Black Book is a highly edited collection of wedding service providers–from mom and pop boutiques to A-Listers. Bottom line, these vendors are the best of the best.

If you are planning your wedding or just looking for some inspiration you must check out Style Me Pretty. It's a great blog that showcases weddings from all around the world and allows you to create your own inspiration board!

Fabulous Cake

2011-04-03T15:10:00.000-07:00

This was one of my bride's cake from her wedding last fall. I LOVE this cake. So simple and elegant and tells a story. Can't get much better than that!

Cake made by Kelly O'Brien of Glass Slipper Gourmet.

S + E Wedding | Thomas Fogarty Winery| Woodside

2011-02-16T09:07:00.000-08:00

Susie and Ed got married in the fall at one of my favorite venues, Thomas Fogarty Winery. I am a bit biased here since this is where I got married almost five years ago - but if you checked the place out you would have to agree it is one of the most beautiful wineries along the peninsula (between San Francisco and San Jose).

There were so many things I loved about this wedding - the venue, the scrabble theme and the cake topper just to name a few!

Venue: Thomas Fogarty Winery
Wedding Planner: Janece with Every Elegant Detail
Photographer: Jesse Leake Photography
Cake: Gabby with Cake Coquette

Susie wanted a soft and romantic bouquet that was fluffy! I have to say that this was one of my favorite bouquets from 2010. Flowers included hydrangea, spray roses, freesia, dahlias, roses and orchids.

Susie had given me some lace left over from her wedding dress so I wrapped her bouquet with it and accented it with some pearl pins. It really added a nice detail!

Bridesmaid Bouquet

Love the cake topper!

C+J Wedding | De Anza Hotel | Cupertino

2011-02-10T09:37:00.000-08:00

Carolyn and Jon got married in the fall so they wanted to use bold fall colors for their wedding pallete. The bridesmaids wore eggplant purple and we went with shades of orange for the bouquets. I have to say that the bridesmaid bouquets were one my favorites from last year. Loved the dahlias and eucalyptus leaves!

Bride's bouquet: roses, dahlias, calla lilies, cymbidium orchids

Bridesmaid bouquets: roses, spray roses, dahlias and eucalyptus leaves and pods

Groom's bout: calla lily with eucalyptus seeds

Groomsmen bouts: scabiosa pods with hypericum berries

Ring bearer pillow

Flower girl pomander

Centerpieces

Bouquet Breakdown

2011-02-07T09:24:00.000-08:00

I haven't done a bouquet breakdown in a while so I thought I would breakdown Misty's bridal bouquet from the wedding that was featured in the previous post.

I also included the names of the roses but keep in mind that each grower has different names for their rose colors. For those who live in the bay area then you would find these roses at the San Francisco Flower Mart.

Bouquet Breakdown

2011-02-06T10:07:00.000-08:00

A funky and fun bouquet without using any roses, dahlias or peonies (the most popular weddings flowers in my opinion)!

Featured Wedding - Style Unveiled San Francisco

2011-01-26T18:51:00.000-08:00

Over the holiday break, I received great news that one of my couples, Misty and Rey had their wedding featured in the Style Unveiled - San Francisco real wedding section. Very exciting. Here's a little peek.

Misty talks about how they pulled everything together from choosing the venue, the photographer and the flowers. All the photos were taken by Jessie Cho Photography. You can read more about her inspiration and see more images here.

It's Been A Long Time!

2011-01-20T08:06:00.000-08:00

I hang my head in shame. I realized I have neglected my blog and when I went to check last night it said my last post was November 1st, 2010. Holy cow. That was 2 months ago! Again, I hang my head in shame. I know, I should stop shaming myself and just start posting my weddings and musings again. In my defense, I do have an excuse. I'm currently 8 months pregnant AND I'm chasing a 2 year old around. By the time I have a moment to sit down I want to eat, sleep and then eat some more. My last wedding was in November and then I pretty much collapsed from exhaustion (due to the entire child I am growing inside of me - a favorite quote from my friend Stinkerpants).

I cannot make up for lost time - but I do hope everyone had a wonderful holiday break and a great start to the new year. I've received a lot of inquiries so far - December is one of the biggest "engagement months" out there and once the new year starts, people realize they are getting married THIS YEAR. Time to be excited and (freak out).

I still have a few weddings from last year I would like to share and I'm hoping I can crank those out before baby #2 decides to make her grand entrance. In the mean time, here's me and my big belly!

Photo courtesy of ElleJae Weddings who took our family photos this year!

D + D Wedding | Presidio Chapel of My Lady | San Francisco

2010-11-01T09:10:00.000-07:00

I try to take photos of all my weddings in its entirety but the reality is that I just don't have enough time to do so. Sometimes I only have a moment to snap shots of the bouquets before I deliver them or I get a couple of minutes at the reception to take photos of the centerpieces. As much as I like to show weddings with all of the different floral elements including bouquets, bouts, ceremony and reception I don't always get to do that! But I feel like it would be a shame not to show some pictures of these lovely bouquets and ceremony flowers of a July wedding earlier this year.

Bride's Bouquet with peonies, roses, garden roses, hydrangea, orchids, freesia,

calla lilies and purple crystal spray accents

Bridesmaid Bouquets with a variety of roses and dahilas

Ceremony arrangements with smilax garland strung along the pews

with pew bouquets.

K+C Wedding | Acqua Hotel | Mill Valley

2010-09-30T16:14:00.000-07:00

When I first met with Katie the first thing she told me is "no roses." She wanted something fun and modern that matched the decor of her venue. She really liked those anemones with the black centers but they were not season. So we went with the Gerber daisies with dark centers - a pretty good substitute if you like those anemones. My favorite thing about this wedding? It was definitely the donut table. Decorating the table was pure torture. Looking at the pictures just now makes me want to hit up the nearest donut store (which happens to be called Pyscho Donuts. Very telling, huh?)
Okay - moving on to the pictures.

Bride's Bouquet: Hydrangea, spidermums, calla lilies, dahlias and freesia

Bride's bouquet close up.

Bouts and corsages

Bridesmaid Bouquets: hydrangea, gerber daisies, spidermums and monkey tails.

Cocktail table arrangement

Ceremony Decor

Branch arrangement for the buffet table.

Donut Table!

H+C Wedding| Palm Event Center| Pleasanton

2010-09-01T10:29:00.000-07:00

I would have to say that Helen and Chris were one of the most laid back couples that I worked with this year. Their personalities really came through the wedding day - everyone in the wedding party had smiles on their faces and you could see that everyone was enjoying themselves. They chose a beautiful venue - The Palm Event Center in Pleasanton. I was thrilled to find out that I would be working with the very talented photographer Sarah K Chen again. I worked with Sarah when she captured Cathleya and Mark's Wedding a couple of years ago!

Here are a couple of images I got from the ceremony and reception:

A special thanks to my sister and nieces for helping with this wedding!

You can see more images on Sarah K Chen's Blog.

S + D Wedding | Heather Farms Community Center | Walnut Creek

2010-08-17T08:27:00.000-07:00

Another June wedding featuring the color pink!

E + H Wedding | Angwin Private Estate | Calistoga

2010-08-04T19:01:00.000-07:00

When I met with Erika she told me that her wedding will be held at a private estate in Angwin. My first thought was, where the heck is Angwin? So I looked it up on Google Maps and it's this tiny city north of Calistoga. I have to say, it's beautiful there. She found a private estate to rent from the owner and had a beautiful garden wedding. Erika wanted big, fluffy flowers so of course we had to use peonies.

Spray rose bouts and corsages

Bride's Bouquet: Roses, peonies, freesia, spray roses, stock, lisanthus and sweetpea

Centerpiece - the tables were in the hot sun so we staged the in the shade

and waited until it was closer to the reception time.

Chuppah Decor

Cocktail arrangement with a single peony.

T + M Wedding | B.R. Cohn Winery | Glen Ellen

2010-07-12T12:28:00.000-07:00

I'm so behind on posting my weddings. This was a gorgeous May wedding that I was delighted to be a part of. Kelly of A Savvy Event did an awesome job designing everything. I loved the rustic touches, oatmeal colored linens and the hanging chandeliers.

Venue: B.R. Cohn Winery, Glen Ellen
Event Designer & Coordinator: Kelly with A Savvy Event
Photographer: Geoff White Photography
Floral Designs: Huckleberry Karen Designs

Bridesmaid Bouquets: Variety of white roses, freesia, calla lilies, dahlias

Here are some images from Geoff White Photography. You can see more images of this beautiful couple of gorgeous wedding on their blog.

Wedding in a Week

2010-07-07T09:38:00.000-07:00

I'm very excited to announce that Huckleberry Karen Designs will be a part of a wedding giveaway sponsored by Star 101.3 and Wedding Wire. It's called Wedding in a Week and couples can enter to win a wedding of their dreams! Prizes include a ceremony and reception at the Julia Morgan Ballroom, catering from Blue Heron, event planning by Mango Muse Events and much more!

The catch is that the couple will have one week to plan their wedding. This will definitely be fast paced and fun. Not much time to change your mind here!

You can learn more about the details and how to enter the cost here. The listeners will be voting on the table decor and flowers along with the cake and honeymoon destination. Make sure you tune is so you can vote! I can't wait to blog about this wedding :)

Flower Trial

2010-06-21T09:32:00.000-07:00

Here are some photos of a flower trial I had with my bride and groom a couple of weekends ago. Their wedding colors will be shades of purple.

Sample Bouquet: Roses, dahlias, sweetpea, tulips and lisanthus

This photo was taken by the groom. Thanks Jason!

Reception centerpiece: Roses, dahlias, hydrangea, hypericum berries, dahlia buds and stock

Donuts!!

2010-06-16T11:50:00.000-07:00

What does donuts have to do anything with flowers? Nothing really, but one of my July couples LOVES donuts so they will be having a donut table. At first I thought it was a table in the shape of a donut and I was very confused. It turns out it just means it will be a dessert table with all kinds of lovely donut goodies displayed in an aesthetic way. She sent me a photo and I instantly wanted to stuff my face with donuts and then save the beautiful cake pedestal so I could stare at its beauty every night. I have a thing for cake pedestals (ask my husband, I think I registered for 5 different cake stands when we got married).

Anyway - I will be given the task to decorate this donut table with flowers and I am very excited to do this. Do you think they will notice a couple of donuts missing? I love it when couples share what THEY love with their guests. And let's face it, who doesn't love a good donut?

A+M Wedding | Shakespeare Gardens Golden Gate Park | San Francisco

2010-06-14T13:10:00.000-07:00

I think I have mentioned it before but I'll say it again. One of my favorite ceremony locations in San Francisco is the Shakespeare Garden in Golden Gate Park. We lucked out and got some beautiful weather in May. There was a slight breeze but the garden is protected so you didn't feel the breeze that much and the sun was shining brightly that day.

Bride's Bouquet: Peonies, roses, calla lilies and freesia

Bridesmaid Bouquets: Dark pink peonies, roses and freesia

Wreath I made for the Iron gate at the Shakespeare Garden

Day of Coordination - Really Just the Day?

2010-06-09T17:31:00.000-07:00

A few months ago my friend Kathryn from Dream A Little Dream Events wrote this great blog post about Day of Coordination versus Month of Coordination. You can read the article here. I remember reading it and agreed with everything thing she wrote. It would be very difficult for someone to walk in the day of your wedding and know exactly what's going on and all of the details that are involved.

Kathryn mentions this term "Month of Coordination" and mentions the importance of it. According to Kathryn, a month of coordinator "should be meeting with you about month or so before the wedding to go over all your final details, at the final venue walk through and ultimately putting together the final vendor timeline and vendor lists. This is an extremely crucial part to making sure that all weddings go smoothly and that everyone is on the same page. The final venue walk through is one of the most important meetings surrounding a wedding, and I couldn't even imagine walking into a wedding not knowing the venue/vendors/family/couple and thinking that I could pull it all together without a hitch."

As I was reading the blog post I nodded in agreement. However, a couple of weekends ago I actually experienced the difference between a Day of Coordinator versus a Month of Coordinator. I'm not going to mention any names but I personally felt that the "DOC" had no idea what was going on. Granted she knew some of the big things like where certain tables and chairs were going to be set up but there were some other items she had no idea about and asked me and other vendors if we knew the answer. For example:

She didn't know where the guest book and programs were or who had them. One of the groomsmen arrived early at the ceremony so she asked this groomsmen to call and ask around.
There were some issues with the microphone. She was unsure of where it was going to be placed and there should have been more microphones.
She was unsure of when the guests were arriving via shuttle so she didn't block off some spots in the parking lot in time so the shuttle ended up double parking and making a mess in the parking lot.

And these were just a few things I noticed that I felt that a Month of Coordinator would have known about and some of the issues could have been avoided. There was a lot of questions being asked and the overall feeling was frantic. I personally don't enjoy working in that type of environment.

So my advice would be to investigate a little deeper into the services that your DOC provides and make sure it includes all of the details the day involves. And remember that you get what you pay for. A month of coordinator spends a great deal of time organizing your details on top of executing all of those details on your wedding date so the cost will be more. I believe this is the difference between a $500 DOC or a $1200 DOC.

And if you are a planner that offer Day of Coordinator services you may want to consider changing the title so it's not misleading. You are mostly likely providing services that include more more than just that day so be sure to charge accordingly.

Okay, I'll get off my soap box now.

Bouquet Breakdown

2010-05-27T11:00:00.000-07:00

This was the bridal bouquet I made for the Hotel Whitcomb photoshoot I posted here. I knew for the bouquet that I really wanted to use these feathers - and I wanted to avoid roses. I have nothing against roses. I just didn't want to buy 25 of them and deal with the thorns when I would most likely end up using only 5 stems. Anyway, I used the spotted feathers as inspiration and chose flowers that I thought would compliment them well. I was going for something soft and vintage looking.

And here is the cute little Groom's bout I made to match the bouquet:

G+G Wedding | Garden Court Hotel | Palo Alto

2010-05-24T10:00:00.000-07:00

Grace and Greg got married at a nearby church in Palo Alto and held their reception at the Garden Court Hotel in Palo Alto. Grace wanted something bright and colorful for the flowers so we went with shades of pink with some orange accents.

Bride's Bouquet: peonies, tulips, ranunculus, sweetpeas and garden roses

Bridesmaid Bouquets: Flame calla lilies

Groomsmen Bout: Mini flame calla lily with green hypericum berries

Mother Corsages: Mini pink cymbidium orchids with hypericum berries

Floating Centerpiece: Submerged vanda orchids with floating candle.

Floral Centerpiece: Roses, tulips, orchids, stock, hypericum berries

These were the favors that were placed on the guests napkins.

I love the simple fold on the sash for the chair covers.

Bouquet Breakdown

2010-05-13T10:44:00.000-07:00

I made this bouquet for the Hotel Whitcomb photo shoot seen here. Some people asked about it so here's the bouquet breakdown for it!

And just for kicks (and because I took a million photos of this bouquet with my new camera) here's another picture!

T+M Wedding | San Jose Musem of Art

2010-05-03T10:13:00.000-07:00

Words cannot even express how adorable this couple is. They are so sweet and I absolutely loved working with them. They had their wedding at the San Jose Museum of Art. It's a modern space and the reception room is pretty much a blank canvas. So we wanted to add a lot of color to the room with flowers. We went with shades of red and purple with green accents. The colors definitely popped from the dark linens.

I went a little crazy with the pictures so get ready....

Bride's Bouquet: Roses, stock, calla lilies, anemones

Bridesmaid Bouquets: Roses, hydrangea, stock, tulips with curly willow branch accents

Groom's Bout: Ranunculus with hypericum berries

Groomsmen Bouts: Purple calla lily with hypericum berries

Venue:

Ceremony

Aisle Decor

Reception

The Awesome Team that worked this event:
Venue: San Jose Museum of Art
Caterer: Catered Too
Event Planner/Coordinator: Nicole Lisanne Wedding & Events By Design
Florals: Huckleberry Karen Designs
Cake/Cupcakes: Satura Cakes

Coquette Events Giveaway

2010-04-28T16:11:00.000-07:00

Jamie from Coquette Events is hosting a wedding contest! The prize is their "Day of Coordination" services. They just launched their new website Coquette Events so check it out! And for more info on the giveaway you can check out the blog post here.

Here's Jamie at my Huckleberry Karen Workshop I hosted a couple of months ago!

Photo Shoot | Hotel Whitcomb | San Francisco

2010-04-26T08:21:00.000-07:00

I was very excited to get a call from Amanda of Blueberry Photography. She was asked to take some photos of the newly remodeled Hotel Whitcomb in San Francisco and asked me to provide some florals for the wedding portion of the website and brochure. I couldn't say no to this opportunity since I had free reign on what I could make. Here are some images she sent over to me last week.

Wish Upon a Wedding

2010-04-15T08:54:00.000-07:00

Huckleberry Karen Designs is proud to announce they are now a wish granter for the non profit organization Wish Upon a Wedding. Wish Upon a Wedding provides weddings and civil union ceremonies at destinations throughout North America for individuals facing terminal illness.

Check out their website here to see how you can help and donate your services too!

What about me?

2010-04-12T11:49:00.000-07:00

So I think we all know about the show stoppers - the flowers that get the most attention and are widely used in weddings. To name a few....peony, dahlia, roses, orchids and calla lilies. Many of the brides I meet with will love one of these flowers and want them in their wedding. Don't get me wrong, I love these flowers too - there isn't a peony that I can say no to and they all scream, "buy me, buy me!" when I'm at the flower mart. However, I feel as though some flowers get overlooked (it's the part of me that always roots for the underdog) and don't get the "attention" they deserve. So here are some of my favorites...

Stock: comes in all sorts of colors including white, yellow, pink. burgundy and purple. They look beautiful when grouped together or arranged with other flowers.

Spider Mums: These flowers take up a lot of real estate and comes in white, lavender, green and yellow. They add a lot of texture into an arrangement or bouquet.

And here is a bouquet that one of my students made from my Flower Workshop last month.

Anemone: They come in white, red, purple, magenta, and blue. The white ones come with dark centers or green centers. I have a love/hate relationship with these flowers. I love the way they add some pop in arrangements and the dark centers really add some depth - but man, these flowers are a pain in the butt. You have to wait for them to open and they have weak stems. So you really have to be gentle with them and they require some extra patience. Something one doesn't have much of when you have a 18 month toddler.

There are a lot more flowers out there - and there is always one that will fit your style and personality! I'll be listing some more of my favorites soon.

S + D Wedding | Carneros Inn | Napa Valley

2010-04-07T10:17:00.000-07:00

Sarah and Dave got married at the beautiful Carneros Inn in Napa, California. This place is breathtaking. Sarah wanted something that blended in well with the natural landscape of Carneros Inn so we went with shades of white and green with some blue accents. Dave really likes hydrangeas so we made sure we included them in the ceremony centerpieces.

Bride's Bouquet: Gardenias, astilbe, stock, bells of Ireland, spray roses, Stars of Bethlehem

Side note: I had a hard time with this bouquet the first time I made it. Sarah likes things more organic looking with things "sticking out" and I tend to make more compact, clean bouquets. So I had to play with the flowers a bit. I even put it down and went back to it a few hours later. I have to say I loved how it turned out!

Bridesmaid Bouquet: Flame calla lilies

Mom's Posie Bouquet: Hydrangea and spray roses

Ceremony Area

Floral Workshop

2010-03-31T09:58:00.000-07:00

I hosted another floral workshop a couple of weeks ago. We had 10 students that were eagerly waiting to learn about flowers and how to make bouts, corsages and bouquets. Usually when I have these workshops the ladies are chatting away about weddings. But this was a very focused group - no chit chat going on this time. As you can see their concentration paid off cause they made some beautiful flower pieces!

I went to the flower mart the day before and found these beautiful yellow roses.

So I had to buy them for the class.

Processing flowers

Spidermums

Working on an orchid bout

Jamie from Coquette Events choosing some flowers for her bouquet.

Trisha of Trisha Dean Events is working on her bouquet.

Emily's bouquet with roses, spidermums and wax flower. It turned out beautiful!

Liz and her lovely bouquet.

Andrea with her bout creations.

Andrea and her mom Betty with their bouquets.

Jamie with her final product.

Thanks ladies for coming to the workshop. I had a great time!

Both Jamie and Trisha wrote a little ditty in their blogs about the workshop. If you want to get their perspectives on the workshop check it out here and here.

Bouquet Breakdown

2010-03-19T09:16:00.000-07:00

Here's a breakdown of the bouquet I made for the Bridal Faire I was a part a couple of weeks ago. I wanted to add some fun to the "traditional" bouquet so I used some pink feathers as accent.

Here's another image of the bouquet at a different angle.

Bridal Faire Showcase Part Two | Crowne Valley Plaza Hotel | Palo Alto

2010-03-09T09:40:00.000-08:00

I posted about the bridal faire I was a part of last week - here are some more photos!

I wanted to do something a little more glamorous for my last vignette. My first display was more modern seen here and the other was more fun and casual seen here. I wanted to use the white branch I had in the studio and decided to go with whites and pinks for something soft and romantic.

The Bride's Bouquet with dahlias, peonies, calla lilies, roses, ranunculus

and accented with some pink feathers.

I also loved my neighbor at the show - not only because she shared her cupcakes but she's truly one of the nicest person I have met! Keisha owns That Takes the Cake located in San Francisco. They specialize in cupcakes for weddings and events. They have some great flavors that are really fun and unique. She has one called Fuzzy Navel and another cupcake with Bailey's cream and chocolate. Yum!

V + B Wedding | San Francisco City Hall | Hotel Monaco | San Francisco

2010-03-09T09:25:00.000-08:00

Vanessa and Bill had two ceremonies! The first was held on a Friday at San Francisco City Hall for just their family members. The next day they celebrated with their friends and extended family at Hotel Monaco.

Thanks Garrett from GB Photographers for all of the beautiful images!

Bridal Faire Showcase Part One | Crowne Valley Plaza Hotel | Palo Alto

2010-03-02T09:47:00.000-08:00

I was one of the vendors at the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Palo Alto this past weekend and had the opportunity to showcase some of my work. It was great seeing some industry friends and making new ones too! I decided to show 3 different styles to show some diversity.

First Display: Happiness!

Ring Bearer's Pillow/Nest

Bridesmaid Bouquet with craspedia, ranunculus and succulents

Second Display: Modern Sleek

I used some of my left over flowers for Beverly's from Especially Yours Chair Covers display.

More pictures from the bridal faire to come!

J + R Wedding | Golden Gate Club in Presidio | San Francisco

2010-02-23T10:17:00.000-08:00

When Jenny and I met - we hit it off instantly! She wanted bright and fun florals that incorporated the color orange and succulents. She liked "spiky" flowers with lots of texture for the bouquets and wheatgrass for the reception centerpieces. We had a lot of fun brainstorming ideas and I loved how Jenny allowed me some creative freedom.

Venue: Golden Gate Club in San Francisco
Caterer: Melons Catering
Photography: Zach Anderson
Florals: Huckleberry Karen Designs

Photos below are from Zach Anderson's blog.
You can see more photos of Jenny and Raed's Wedding here.

Here are some close ups of the bouquets and bouts.

Groom's Bout

Groomsmen Bout

Bridesmaid Bouquets

More photos of the ceremony and reception coming up next!

The Knot "Best of Weddings" 2010

2010-02-12T16:50:00.000-08:00

I was surprised and completely honored when Rick from The Knot Weddings called me to share that I was selected to be the "Best of Weddings" Floral Designer for 2010. Every year the The Knot surveys brides to survey for the best venues and vendors in the wedding industry. I'm suppose to be getting a placque in the mail pretty soon and I can't wait to hang it on the wall in my studio! Thank you to everyone who has supported and voted for me. Here's to a great upcoming year!

Bouquet Breakdown

2010-02-09T08:40:00.000-08:00

One of my favorite bouquets from 2009 from Kim & Matt's Wedding. Kim wanted something fun and fluffy and she loved craspedia (also known as billy buttons)!

I usually only breakdown bouquets but I thought it would be nice to include the matching groom's boutonierre from this wedding. It was so cute!

B & S Wedding | The Cliff House | San Francisco

2010-02-05T20:18:00.000-08:00

Beverly and Safdar met with me while they were out visiting from New York. It's not easy to plan a wedding when you live across the country but they did a wonderful job. It was my first time at The Cliff House in San Francisco and the one thing I noticed was how wonderful the staff was. They were so willing to help and so nice. I give them a big thumbs up!

Bride's Bouquet: Roses, spray roses, calla lilies, hypericum berries

Bridesmaid Bouquets: Roses, dahlias, hypericum berries

Chair Bouquets

Table Centerpieces

V + G Wedding | San Rafael | Seafood Seafood Peddler

2010-01-25T08:55:00.000-08:00

This was my 2nd purple wedding in October of 2009! Valerie and Greg were married at the St. Isabella Church in San Rafael and then celebrated their union at the Seafood Peddler. They have a beautiful private room at the restaurant.

Bride's bouquet with roses, dahlias, calla lilies, spray roses
wrapped with a rhinestone buckle.

Bridesmaid bouquets: hydrangea, roses, dahlias, freesia and calla lilies

Flower Workshop

2010-01-20T14:53:00.000-08:00

Hope to see you there!

H + G Wedding : Beltan Ranch | Glen Elen

2010-01-05T07:37:00.000-08:00

Happy New Year! I hope everyone enjoyed a very restful and fun filled holiday break. I'm still struggling to get back into the groove of things but I figured I should start where I left off. Back to my weddings from 2009!

What can I say about Heather and Gary? Adored them. So sweet and just loved how they combined some soft, rustic touches with some funky and fun elements in their wedding.

Venue: Beltane Ranch, Glen Ellen
Photographer: Jerry Yoon
Make-Up: Sherrie Long
Planner: Denise Kramer
Florals: Huckleberry Karen Designs

Awesome bridesmaids.

See more images of this wedding on Jerry's blog.

Below are some pictures I took of the bouquets and centerpieces. I know - my photography leaves a lot to be desired but I'm working on it. I'm taking a photography workshop this weekend. Let's hope I learn something.

J + J Wedding | Rahlston Hall Mansion | Belmont

2009-12-19T07:05:00.000-08:00

I had the pleasure of working with Jennifer's sister, Emily who was married at the The Palm Event Center in Pleasanton earlier this year. You could say that the family was very busy year with the planning of two weddings at to beautiful locations. Jennifer chose The Rahlston Hall Mansion for her wedding. This was my first time there and it's beautiful!

Venue: Rahlston Hall Mansion
Photographer: Cliff Brunk Photography

Here are some photos that Cliff was so kind to share with me:

You can see more photos of this lovely wedding on Cliff Brunk Photography's blog.

V + R | Saint Claire Hotel | San Jose

2009-12-14T07:46:00.000-08:00

I loved working with Vu and Robert! They wanted something fun and modern so we went with the colors pewter and yellow with touches of white. One of my favorite quotes from the year was from Vu. She told me she wanted a "big a$$ bouquet". I was afraid with her tiny frame that she would be overwhelmed. But she rocked the big bouquet with style.

Ceremony: Cathedral Basilica of St. Joseph
Reception: Sainte Claire Hotel in San Jose
Photographer: Augie Chang

All photos courtesy of Augie Chang.

You can see more photos of the gorgeous wedding at Augie Chang's Blog.

Bouquet Break

2009-12-11T10:28:00.000-08:00

I had a few people ask me about Jessica's bouquet from Jessica and Alex's wedding I posted about here. There were a lot of flowers in this bouquet!

C + E Wedding | The Fairmont Hotel| San Francisco

2009-12-09T09:25:00.000-08:00

This was a beautiful wedding at The Fairmont Hotel in San Francisco. The ceremony was held at the rooftop gardens and the reception was held in The Crown Room. The Crown Room is on the top floor of the hotel with breathtaking views of the city.

Vendors:
Venue: The Fairmont Hotel San Francisco
Wedding Coordinator: Julie with JBD Events
Photographer: Michelle Walker Photography
Videographer: Justin Fone Productions

All photos were taken by Michelle Walker Photography

You can check out more photos here.

Original Save The Dates from Minted

2009-12-04T07:49:00.000-08:00

I needed some ideas for fun holiday cards this year and my friend Sarah from Sarah's Test Kitchen told me about Minted.com. This place has some really modern and fun designs to choose from. They also have adorable "yearline " Holiday Cards and Save The Date cards!

You can get 100 of them for about $2 each. Affordable and original!

Cute Holiday Book Cards

Photo Card

I'm off to Tahoe this weekend but I'll be back with more weddings to share from this year!

Shoes to Drool Over

2009-11-30T14:00:00.000-08:00

I was over on Zappos.com looking for some red shoes and got totally side tracked. I really don't need red shoes (or white ones for that matter). But I'm sure someone out there does. So I might as well share what I found - and drooled over.

RSVP Ivana - $89.00

Stuart Weitzman Pomposo - $325

Nina Electra - $89.95

RSVP Lauren on sale right now! $56.05

J + A Wedding | Regency Center | San Francisco | Part II

2009-11-23T08:25:00.000-08:00

Here are some more photos of Jessica Alex's beautiful wedding at the Regency Center in San Francisco.

Jessica and Alex made the manzanita branch centerpieces and I accented them with the flowers around the base.

They had long banquet tables so I did a variety of centerpieces in white and pink.

Here are the invitations that they made. Jessica designed the invitations and Alex made the pocketfold. He made each one by hand!

J + A Wedding | Regency Center | San Francisco | Part I

2009-11-21T09:54:00.000-08:00

I loved all of the details that Jessica and Alex put into their wedding. They met in art school and worked together in creating beautiful invitations and centerpieces. I was fortunate enough to help pull all of their creative ideas together into a very lavish and chic wedding.

Vendor List
Location: Regency Center in San Francisco
Caterer: Union Street Catering
Make Up Artist: Maria with Professional Make-up Artistry
Photograper: Junshien Weddings and Portraits
Videographer: Andrew with Studio MSV
Baker: Sugar Coat It Studio
Lighting: Elle Music
Floral Design: Huckleberry Karen Designs

Bride's Bouquet: Hydrangea, dahlias, roses, fern pods, spider mums, stephanotis, asiatic lilies, calla lilies wrapped in a feather collar.

This is what groomsmen do. I think they're holding 8 bouquets.

More photos to come of their invitations, ceremony and reception!

Bouquet Breakdown

2009-11-18T12:19:00.001-08:00

One of my favorite bouquets I made a couple of years back.

Special thanks to Perspecta Photography for this image.

D + B Wedding

2009-11-16T10:03:00.000-08:00

I loved the fun colors we used for Denise and Benjo's wedding. Denise wanted sunny and bright so we went with yellows and oranges for her flowers. I also had the opportunity to work with the ever so talented Ed Pingol again.

Here are some photos that I took of the personal flowers.

Bride's Bouquet with roses, dahlias, spray roses and freesia

Mom's corsage

Groom's Bout: Yellow cymbidium orchid

Groomsmen bouts

Here are all of the centerpieces altogether before I placed them on the tables.

Here are some of his photos that Ed Pingol took from the wedding.

You can see more images of Denise and Benjo's wedding here.

Workshop Scheduled!

2009-11-12T08:26:00.000-08:00

The next workshop has been scheduled! Click on the flyer to view the details.

Hope to see you there!

M + E Wedding

2009-11-09T08:53:00.000-08:00

I helped Melinda with her personal flowers for her intimate wedding at the Shakespeare Gardens in Golden Gate Park. Her colors were shades of white with purple and yellow accents. The little pomanders I made for her flower girls were adorable!

Bride's Bouquet with dahlias, roses, freesia, hydrangea and spray roses

Bridesmaid bouquet

Groom's bout with stephanotis

Flower Girl pomanders with green kermit mums

Groomsment Bouts with white dendrobium orchids

I still have 3 more weddings to post for August and then we move on to September!

Genius Idea! A Mobile Bakery

2009-11-04T10:19:00.000-08:00

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!