Hispanic Society Gala 2012
The annual Hispanic Society Gala was held at a the beautiful and historic Metropolitan Club. The event honoring Laura Diez Barroso de Laviada & Leopoldo Rodes had a rich color palette of blue and warm burgundy.
The bar arrangements had a gorgeous mix of antiqued hydrangeas, deep red roses, red cymbidium orchids along with touches of magnolia branches. The shock of the red paired with the subdued hydrangeas created a beautiful balance as pictured below.
The reception florals were a continuation of the color palette, maintaining the warmth and elegance of the space. A low arrangement of antique hydrangeas, red roses and burgundy dahlias were mixed with touches of magnolia and bush ivy, keeping the arrangement seasonal and organic.
A big thanks to Julie Skarratt for these beautiful photos. You can see more of her work at http://julieskarrattphotography.blogspot.com. Enjoy!
Winter at the NYC Flower Market
Even with the impending bitter cold, spring is making its way into our hearts yet again with beautiful tulips, peonies and blooming bulb plants. A late afternoon visit to the flower market on West 28th street between 6th and 7th avenues gave me a chance to escape the noise of the city and take in all the vibrant colors. These miniature daffodils are happy and bright!
I was happy to see one of my favorites even in the dead of winter. These peonies are imported from Chile where they are currently in season.
Winter is a great time to get blooming branches like forsythia, quince and cherry blossoms. When you pass by them at the market they might look like dried up sticks but hammer the ends of the stems and put them in warm water. After a few weeks they will be in full bloom and last such a long time! Check out these blooming quince we found in the market.
Another great spring flower with a subtle scent are sweet peas. They come in vibrant colors and are great for wedding bouquets or in a simple vase.
These kumquat branches and ornithogalum are a great shade of orange and offer a fresh look for arrangements. Kumquats are fun to use all winter and have a citrus fruit hanging from them.
French and parrot tulips covered the market along with fragrant hyacinth. Looks like spring to me!
There are so many more and gorgeous flowers at the NYC flower market, even in winter. Stop downtown and take a look at all the great flowers, plants and things they have to offer!
Get inspired!
Glamorous Glamelias!
We are always up to a challenge here at In Bloom so when a recent bride asked us to make her a gorgeous glamelia as her bridal bouquet we were happy to channel the classic, throw back look. Glamelias were highly popular in the 1940's and 1950's and in the last few years have started to come back into fashion for brides seeking a simple, classic and unique look. These composite bouquets are made by gluing, sewing or wiring each individual petal onto the base of a rose to create one large bloom that makes a statement and is still delicate enough for a bride to carry. Our lovely bride wanted a simple and classic look to compliment her beautiful day which I believe we achieved with this simple bouquet.
We used two different types of freeze dried roses when making this glamelia to make sure it would last beyond the wedding day for our bride and still retain the texture of a fresh cut rose. Back in 2008 Katherine Heigl carried a beautiful glamelia made of a composite of white roses, a very elegant look.
Glamelias, while often time consuming to make, can be a great DYI for a bride or her bridal party to set out and do themselves for that personal touch. For those brides embracing a vintage style wedding this is a great way to pull the best out the 40's and 50's and will bring a certain nostalgia to your wedding.
So, if your hearts desire is for a delicate and beautiful single flower for a bouquet, consider a glamelia and all the tradition they hold.
Enjoy!
PiperLime Fall/Winter 2011 Showroom Installation
Last April was a very busy month of us. On top of the usual weddings & events we created a few showroom installations in New York during market week. One of our favorites was for Piperlime for their Fall/Winter 2011/2012 collection. The inspiration we were given was to go very natural and to use organic elements that evoked the spirit of autumn.
Natural Driftwood & Dried Orange Yarrow Sculpture
We created a large installation comprised solely from a large piece of natural driftwood from California and over a hundred stems of dried orange Yarrow. The color of the driftwood blended naturally against the collection and the vibrant orange became a focal point in the room. This is another great example of using an ordinary flower in mass and making it more special. See Baby's Breath Example here.
Driftwood & dried Mushrooms
To create the same feeling throughout the showroom, we created a few mini sculptures of natural driftwood, dried mushrooms and dried salal leaves. As you can see, the color palette was on point!
Lastly, a wild arrangement of orange Ranunculus arranged in a natural wooden vase to greet each guest!
Floral Board for American Eagle Outfitters
When American Eagle Outfitters came to us to design a floral board to be hung in their concept store for next season’s collection, we started to think what large, impactful and fragrant flowers would show off best on a 4’ x 5’ platform given the AE brand aesthetic. The American clothing and accessories retailer appealing to 15 to 25 year old girls and guys sought floral décor that freshly showcased the brand’s low-rise jeans, polo shirts, graphi T-shirts, and swimwear. Having seen one of our promotional materials featuring a detail of an anemone bouquet, they asked for a similar hued arrangment.
The final result combined stargazer lilies, purple roses, hot pink roses, white roses, white spider mums, green spider mums, iris, purple stock, pink gerber daisies, and white gerber daisies. We individually watertubed the flower heads before arranging them on a custom floral foam board.
We started arranging from the board's center so as to ensure an even overall arrangment.
The completed work showed off well amongst the company merchandise. Again, it's always a pleasure for us to combine retail and flowers, especially when the project calls for a design or scale out of the ordinary.
-Parker Voss
The Collective
One of the most interesting spaces we have seen in a while is the (newish) restaurant and bar The Collective. Located in the former One Little West 12th space, this new quirky spot could not be more different from its predecessor. The geniuses at ICRAVE Design used restored furniture pieces to decorate the interior and even recruited local artists to create installations throughout the space. Needless to say, The Collective isn't your ordinary bar & restaurant. For more photos of the interior click here!
For the exterior floral design, we wanted to create something more simplistic and French garden inspired. We filled the ground level planters with assorted lush green ivy including English & Boston Ivy varieties, Boxwood, Dusty Miller and beautiful shades of Petunia's. The ivy has grown quite a bit since we originally planted and is creeping itself around the planters and the custom denim blue fence.
The previous floral designer used plastic terracotta pots for the hanging plants and flowers. Instead, we replaced them with coco moss planters for a far more natural effect. This corner of Meatpacking is exposed to both intense sunlight in the spring and summer as well as bustling winds all year long. We suggested using vibrant silk flowers that would hold up against the terrain in varieties including Geranium, Fuchsia and Petunia. The result looked flawless and very seasonal!
Special thanks to The One Group and Brad Schrager Photography!
