Editorial Photoshoot | Junshien Photography

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!

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

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!

Shoes to Drool Over

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

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.

S + J Wedding

Stacy and Jason got married here in San Francisco at the Sens Restaurant located on the Embarcadero. This restaurant had a balcony with the most beautiful view of the bay and Bay Bridge. The challenge with this wedding was the tables they have at the restaurant. They're pretty narrow and so we had to come up with something that would look nice on the tables without taking too much room. So we decided to use manzanita branches laying down on it's side accented with some orchids.

Bride's Bouquet with eggplant calla lilies, cosmos and black feathers.

Bridesmaid Bouques: callas, milva roses, cherry brandy roses, orange cymbidiums