Nightingale Bamford Gala Event at The Metropolitan Pavilion

I'm thrilled to share some professional images from the gala event last week benefiting The Nightingale Bamford School. It was a fabulous event to work on and I was so pleased with the final result. This was definitely a collaborative effort between my clients and I. After our initial discussions I created a sample of the centerpiece which we reworked a couple of times to get the perfect balance of texture and whimsy. It was a formal event but the goal was to have the light and spirit of the girls who attend the school to shine through in the design. "Growing Every Girl" was the theme of the event but we didn't want to be too literal in our interpretation.

A few visits to the flowers market was all it took to chose elements that were unique and textural while at the same time allowing for movement in the design for the entrance. We intentionally used many layers in the design yet maintaining a simplicity in the use of clear glass vases and Lucite pedestals. I love how all the elements play a key part in the design yet blend seamlessly together to create a really striking composition. But enough talking....I will let the images speak for themselves.

 

Big thanks to Jess of Love & Light Photographs for making a special trip just to shoot these images for me. You can contact her at {loveandlightphotographs@gmail.com}

Real Wedding: Studio 450

Check out this sneak peek video of a recent wedding at Studio 450. Thanks to Kevin of Martis Media for this video.

Real Wedding: Doug and Ashley featured on Style Me Pretty

Last week was a teensy bit busy to say the least and this week is gearing up to be another crazy one as we prep for a wedding this weekend.

In the midst of it I was thrilled to share the details of this styled shoot featured on Style Me Pretty. However I failed to post a mention of this amazing real wedding also featured on SMP earlier last week. I feel so lucky to have two features just a few days apart...yay! (Insert happy dance here.)

One of two weddings we worked on during the unforgettable snowstorm of October 2011 the wedding of Ashley and Doug was truly stunning. I loved working with this lovely couple and I'm happy to say that we've continued to work with each other on non-wedding related projects!

Enough from me....take  a look at what Ashley had to say and see all the gorgeous photos captured by Christian Oth Studio.

Image courtesy of Christian Oth Studios

Academy of Arts & Letters

I was thrilled to donate flowers to a fundraising event to benefit The Academy of Arts & Letters held at Kai Studio in Brooklyn. There was no design direction other than the "disco" theme reflected on the invitation. I went with black glass vases and a combination of white dendrobium orchids with gold manzanita branches. I thought it was a perfect combination of elegance and glam. I hope the event was a huge success!

Real Wedding: Ashley & Doug

I love this wedding. The images speak for themselves. It's simple, classic, romantic and has all the right elements included. The ceremony and reception both took place at the NYIT de Seversky Mansion in Old Westbury, NY. The wedding took place last October during that freak snowstorm and even though it took me a while to get the images and even longer to post them it was definitely worth the wait.

 

 

 

All images courtesy of Christain Oth Studio

Real Wedding: Lorelei & Michael

Remember that freak October snowstorm we had last year? I'm sure that Lorelei & Michael will never forget the weather on their wedding day. Although they avoided the snow for their City Hall ceremony which happened just a few days before the day of the reception at the 3 West Club was a much different story. I really enjoyed working with Lorelei on creating the right look for her wedding, she came to me with great ideas inspired by her love of travel and work with the Peace Corps. She still had a world map that had traveled with her from place to place decorating her walls. We mounted that on foam core and used it for the escort cards. Lorelei gathered many travel themed props to use and I scouted a few more from the local flea markets. Gold mercury glass vases and metal bowls were used to hold the flowers. Each table had multiple vases and the props were used throughout.
I especially love the entrance display where Lorelei displayed wedding pictures of loved ones which was especially fitting since she wore her grandmother's wedding gown that had been redesigned to best suit Lorelei.

 Lorelei's bouquet was a mix of white ranunculus, white calla lilies, astilbe and gomphrena with accents of green lily grass.

 

 Entrance display with vintage suitcases, maps, globes and a vintage camera were combined with brown bottles and gold mercury glass bud vases filled with white tulips, green fern, anemones and gomphrena.

  Map of the world with place cards.

 Each table had a different assortment of travel props with flowers.

All photos courtesy of Karen Cunningham.

What worked best about this wedding was that the "theme" seemed effortless and was not too overdone or forced in any way. You can include your personality, your hobbies and interests, the parts of your life that you are passionate about without overdoing it. It's important to find the balance between a personal theme and "kitschy".

2012, it's a pleasure to meet you.

It's already five days into 2012 and I'm excited, hopeful and ready to hit the ground running. I've read many blog posts over the last few days and they have all talked about new beginnings, a clean slate, a fresh start and resolutions. The idea that you can keep growing and changing and that each new year, new day, new moment is filled with infinite potential.

There have already been new engagements, new babies and new promises made in these first few days of 2012 and many more to come I'm sure.

In celebration of the New Year I'm often asked for bouquets of all white flowers which is no surprise since white signifies purity, innocence and can also represent the dawn of new beginnings.

Here's to new beginnings!

Real Wedding: Oana and Jason

The wedding on Saturday at the beautiful Skyline Studios (located in the same building as Tribeca Rooftop) was great. The bride, Oana, was amazing to work with and she stayed true to what she wanted for the design of the tables. She was always open to my ideas and suggestions and together we designed a beautiful look for the tables. I love the final outcome and here is just a glimpse...

The detail of the linens and the use of the acrylic ghost chairs added so much to the overall look of the space, more details about the designs and images to come. Stay tuned!

Weekly Design: Orinthogalum Aribicum

This week's design is pretty simple and concentrates on striking elements and texture. The tall arrangement is designed using Orinthogalum and accented with aspidistra leaves. I love the delicate white petals of the Orinthogalum in contrast to their black center.

This low arrangement is designed using a variety of different textures along with a softer accent of hydrangea. I have to be honest the minute I saw these flowers I loved them...different kinds of brunia and berzelia. I'm not sure of the exact names but generally they are from South Africa and New Zealand. I love all the varieties and the subtle tones of color in them.