Image Courtesy of Alixann Loosle – Bouquet by Blossom Sweet

Melissa with Blossom Sweet: This tip is more for a florist than a bride, but I buy Crowning Glory floral preservative spray by the gallon during the summer.  It’s a liquid preservative sprayed directly on the blooms themselves which helps the petals retain moisture even in a climate of dry heat.  I give my bouquets a good dose a few minutes before sending them off, and it seems to help quite a bit.

This should hopefully be painfully obvious to any bride, but please put your bouquet in water when you’re not holding it!  While it should be common sense, I have attended many a wedding where I see the bride’s bouquet laying on the ground or on a table somewhere in between the times when she’s holding it.  This cuts down the life of your bouquet drastically.

Image Courtesy of Hilary Briscoe Photography & Studio Stems

Audrey with Studio Stems: Many highly sought after bridal blooms cant take the heat! So if your a summer bride and longevity is an issue you may want to talk with your florist about a bouquet re-fresh. Though this is an additional cost it should not cost as much as adding another bouquet onto the day, but rather just refreshes up the less hardy blooms and gives your bouquet a fresh look heading into the reception. 

Also if you have a bit of time lapse between ceremony and reception, or pictures to reception and you are careful to get your bouquet into water consider a quick snip of the stems to help them re-hydrate more quickly and properly for a more likely revival. 

And my last bit of of advice entails being realistic and reasonable as a bride. It is true that you may have had a bouquet in mind for sometime now, and that bouquet made of …. lets say … Lily of the Valley, is not going to do well in the summer heat. So be ready to pay for multiple bouquets or be realistic and allow your florist to help you determine a more hardy fit! It will still be beautiful! 

Left photo courtesy of Cascio Photo, right photo courtesy of Rebekah Westover
Floral Design by Blooms & Blossoms

Photo Courtesy of Alix Ann Loosle

Flowers - The days of only wearing a veil in your hair are long gone.  This year wearing flowers in your hair is an especially huge trend.  Flower crowns, small flowers, big flowers, fresh or fake, anything goes!

Photo Courtesy of Ciara Richardson

High bun- A high bun is timeless.  Add some texture for a more modern look, or keep it sleek for a more elegant look.  Leave some hair out to frame your face or sweep it all back.  

Photo Courtesy of Lindsey Shaun & Jacque Lynn

Braids - Braids have been around for a few years now, and this year is no different!  Add a small braid for detail or do one big braid to make a statement.  

Photo courtesy of Courtney Beck & Ciara Richardson

Undone  - ”Undone” or natural looking/simple bridal hair is very popular right now.  Several brides are loosely pinning their hair up for their ceremony, and then taking it down for their reception.  Sometimes less is more, and that is definitely the case with this trend. 

I’m so excited to share this wedding with you today. Tomorrow is the Race for the Cure in Salt Lake City, so I thought it was only fitting that today’s flower feature should be as pink as possible. A very dear woman in my life is courageously fighting the cancer fight as we speak, so before I get into the petal particulars today I wanted to give a shout out to all of you brave women out there like her! I have so much respect for you and dedicate today’s post to you, yours, and mine.

And now it’s time to talk flowers and pink. This wedding took place last August and I just adored the designs. Wadley Farms is an excellent venue with a neutral palette that works well for so many various events, and there’s something about a feminine color scheme that really softens the place up and makes a romantic ambiance for a wedding. The bride’s bouquet and the boutonnieres for the bridal party fit right in to that atmosphere with their soft and romantic vibe. Ah, how I loved them. In looking at the finished products the designs seemed to be so carefree and lovely. It was perfect for the setting.

And speaking of perfect, I’m crazy about these fresh wreaths. In fact, I’m crazy about fresh wreaths in general. If every bride had me create a custom wreath for her wedding (or two, or three) I would be a happy camper! These ones in particular made for a most picturesque greeting as guests arrived at the reception. The hanging amaranthus—along with the draping ribbon, lace, and pearls—really brought the look together in a purely wonderful fashion. Adore!

In addition to the wreaths we also had free-standing shepherd’s hooks lining the entry-path from which we hung cute little floral arrangements in jars. Once again, we accented the look with draping element to coincide with the rest of the décor. The outdoor tables were adorned in eclectic bud vases with various blooms while the indoor tables had more substantial centerpieces which were a low & full design style. The cake was a small one, but who says that’s a bad thing? While it was not grandiose in size, the simple beauty made it a must-see at the event. Loved it. Loved it all.

“Taylor and I met and started dating when we were 15, almost 8 years later we finally tied the knot! I was not only ecstatic about marrying my sweetheart and best friend, but I was also so excited to plan our wedding and most importantly, design and make my dress. I attended the Fashion Institute of Technology in Manhattan where I received my degree in Fashion Design. I have always loved formal dresses, especially wedding gowns. I made all of my high school prom and homecoming dresses and have been designing my dream wedding gown ever since I can remember. When I started making my gown in September 2012 I knew exactly what I wanted the bottom half of the gown to be like because the design in my head had remained the same for the past few years, I had even purchased all of the fabric years ago. The top half of the gown did not come to me until I was completely done with the bottom and needed to solidify a bodice design. I am so inspired by Elie Saab so naturally I was searching for pictures of his work and I stumbled across a gorgeous gown which became my inspiration. Over 250 hours and more than 3,000 beads later, my gown was complete. I designed and sewed every bit of it from start to finish and I could not be happier. I feel like a sparkle princess and I never stop smiling whenever I have it on because everything turned out exactly how I had always dreamed. This is the second wedding gown I have made and I cannot wait to make more unique and beautiful custom gowns in the future. Nothing makes me happier than my handsome groom, sequins, gorgeous gowns, and weddings!”

Here we have an unexpected combination of a floral pattern and nautical stripes. The nautical element in Her outfit is found in His outfit with the boat shoes. Both outfits are tied together with blue and mustard yellow.

The theme here is olive green, ivory, and cognac leather. Both outfits have subtle hints of gold (gold necklace, belt hook, and detailing on His shoes).

This one isn’t hard to miss. Coral and orange are the stars here. Notice how there are different patterns in the skirt and the bow-tie  but it works because the orange in the bow-tie is anchored by Her top. His suspenders bring this outfit combination to a whole new level of awesome.

This outfit was built around Her boots (Frye Melissa Button) and the color turquoise. The femininity of the lace dress contrasts the structured look of Her boots. His shirt acts as the color anchor, off of which Her scarf and earrings are played. The casual look of His shoes and pants offsets the more formal button-up shirt.

The theme here is feminine and romantic, as suggested with the pale pink and lace. His outfit stays masculine, simple, and neutral to offset Her flirty look.

Helpful Tips:

1.     DO choose an outfit piece to build around. It could be a pair of shoes, a skirt, a bow-tie  jewelry, anything!  Let that be the inspiration and anchor piece for the rest of your and your fiance’s look.

2.     DO choose a color palette. An eye-catching ensemble will feature two to three colors with at least one as the “splash of color”.

3.     DON’T be afraid to mix patterns. As long as all of the patterns share one color, it will work! J Crew and Anthropologie do it all the time.

4.     DON’T be afraid to wear bold, bright colors together. They really pop in photos.

5.     DO make sure that you’re comfortable in whatever outfit you choose.

If you are loving the look of the blossom trees for your bridal or groomal session now is the time to get them done! But act fast because they won’t stay around for long! Thank you so much for sharing this beautiful session with us Kristina!