DIY's for Spring Weddings- Think Pansies Part 1

Pansy BouquetPansies are such cheerful flowers that come in a MULTITUDE of colors and sizes. In Raleigh, NC, mid October through mid December is the best time to plant pansies, and there is still a pretty good selection too.

You may be thinking cute flowers, but what do they have to do with weddings.
Well... here are just a few ways that you can use pansies for your springtime wedding: pressed flower designs, edible additions to decorate desserts for a bridal luncheon or even your wedding cake. You can even take it a step further and create sugared flowers with pansies- I really like this idea because it can be done several weeks ahead of time. I will go over these ideas and more but first...
Let's talk about planting them.
Pansies are fairly easy to grow. And by growing them yourself, you can choose just the right color.
They will need to be planted in a garden bed in part to full sun. Add a light application of fertilizer when planting, and again in early March when they really start growing again.
If planting them in the garden seems intimidating, you could plant them in a large pot with potting soil. I will show you how in the next post.
In the meantime, if you live in the Raleigh-Cary area check out the selection at: Campbell Road Nursery on the corner of Tryon and Campbell Rd. and also Garden Supply Company on Old Apex Rd, in Cary.
Don't hesitate to email me if you have any questions!

Autumn Treasures from the Garden- Looking Back

Here are some of the last blooms from my gardens. The flowers above are ones that I picked and arranged around the end of October. After I had gathered them, I began to pull the plants down. It's hard to believe another season is over.
The zinnias performed very well. I left a couple of plants just so I could pick a few more flowers. The speckled bells of foxglove were a lovely surprise in the fall garden. These are late spring bloomers that bring a vintage look to floral designs. The Black and Blue salvia put on a beautiful show with their cobalt blue flowers. Next year I plan to cut them back in late July to see if I can get shorter, bushier plants. I will also cut back and fertilize the dahlias around the same time to see if they will produce more abundantly on shorter plants.
The yellow buttons are Tansy and the pink quill like flowers are Fireworks gomphrena. I plan to make sure both of these will be back next year.
All of these flowers would be wonderful additions to vintage or garden themed wedding flowers.
And  I was very pleased that several of my brides wanted to use garden flowers in their wedding designs. I always hope that someday this may inspire them to grow flower gardens of their own! I would love to help them if they decide to do so!

Weddings- Mikki & Hector... The Real Pictures

I call them the Real Pictures, because 1) they are taken by truly gifted photographers and 2) they show the Real People who have just gotten married!
And I am so excited to show off these two! Mikki and Hector make the sweetest couple and they had the most wonderful wedding in September.
And Jamie Blow of J&J Photography did an outstanding job of capturing all the wonderful details of their special day.

The color palette that Mikki and Hector chose was absolutely gorgeous- rich plum and purple, lavender, antique green and ivory.
And I loved combining beautiful flowers from my garden with the beautiful flowers from the market.
Cinda of Cinda's Creative Cakes created a fantastic wedding cake with cool leaves and branches embellished with fresh flowers and a cute bird nest!
The round oak slabs are Mikki's Dad's handiwork. They were perfect for the woodsy garden theme.

It is music to my ears when I hear from my couples how perfect their wedding day was, and I am so excited for them as they begin their lives together as husband and wife.


Mikki and Hector, I wish you all the BEST as these newly wedded days slip into weeks....then months... then years..... many, many years!!!

Fall Bouquets of Dahlias and Zinnias

The dahlias this year have been an absolute treat! Since Springwell Gardens is an urban garden, space is at a premium, so I only have about twenty-five plants. I have chosen colors that I think would work well for late summer and autumn bouquets, and I have not been disappointed.

This late October bouquet features a sunset palette that flows between dusky purples, fuchsias, warm peach tones, and magentas. The zinnias are from a July planting, and a few plants are still producing flowers.

The hyacinth bean vines will also bloom through to frost. Their flower spikes start a bright fuchsia and mature to a grape lavender. The magenta  globes of gomphrena add the finishing touch!Cream stock and ivory Majolica spray roses mix with peachy hued dahlias and salmon colored zinnias in this next bouquet. Starry florets of chives, bronze colored leaves and pink flower spikes of perilla round out this design. Perfect for the change in seasons from late summer to autumn!

Looking Back at the NC State Fair

It's hard to believe that the NC State Fair has already come and gone. I had a great time participating in the floral design competitions this year. Sometimes I win and sometimes I don't, but I am always hopeful. This year I entered four categories, and I ended up winning a couple of Blue Ribbons as well as one Best In Show!
One of my favorite designs contained one of my favorite flowers--- Zinnias. The category was NC Themed Design that was to feature all NC materials (botanical and flowers), and the title was "Love A Fair". This made me think of all the fun rides at the fair, so that was what I designed my piece around- a ride at the fair.

Then I filled an old wooden box with lots of garden gatherings such as scented geraniums, gomphrena, Love In a Puff, osmanthus greenery, zinnias, etc. Made up a cute little banner to drape across the front, and created a vine roller coaster complete with pyracantha berry cars.It didn't win a blue ribbon, but I sure had a lot of fun creating it!The next piece was door design called "Holiday's Are A-Knockin". It could be for any holiday, so I did a different take on my favorite- Christmas!
And this one proved to be a WINNER! I received both a Blue Ribbon for the design as well as Best In Show! My one big regret is that I accidentally deleted the picture of my piece on display at the Fair with its ribbons.
Below is a quick shot that I took before I rushed it over to beat the entry deadline.

This design featured bright green branches of Kerria Japonica, variegated osmanthus leaves, yellow tipped Chamaecyparis, and Fireworks gomphrena from the garden as well as red Freedom roses from my vendor. Red aluminum wire held the branches in place and made a great hanger as well.
Can't wait to do this one again. The fresh flowers should last for several weeks if watered carefully and hung on a protected outside door- Perfect for the Christmas season!

Autumn Weddings- Katherine & Jared

Late October in the South can bring on some incredibly great weather for outdoor weddings! And such was the case last Saturday for Katherine and Jared, (of course they had a good Plan B just in case...) The morning began with bright sunshine and just a touch of chill, and the day only got better!
I first met Katherine and Jared at the Southern Bridal Show & Expo last April. And I loved seeing them both again for a floral consultation shorty afterwards. Jared came along to give his support and also offer some suggestions of his own.
Katherine already had some definite ideas about the color palette and other elements of decor- soft yellows and creams, muted oranges and touches of mahogany brown. The flowers included Asiatic lilies, roses, mums, mokara ochids, lisianthus and hypericum berries.
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The aisle decor and reception table designs were created in galvinized pails.
I was able to also include some zinnias and dahlias from the garden, (so sad that most of the blooms occurred the week before the wedding, but thankful that some blooms waited for the wedding!)

The arbor for Katherine and Jared was created by her dad, (and I am sure it was a Labor of Love!) They really liked the arbor that my husband, Wilson, had made for my garden beds (also a Labor of Love), and had taken pictures of it. I was very impressed with her dad's handiwork.
It was the perfect touch for the grounds at Anderson Point Park in Raleigh, and looked quite charming wrapped in willow branches and flowers!
The reception was also at the park in a quaint white cottage with warm, pine paneled walls and wooden beams and lots of personal touches provided by Katherine and Jared and their families. Perfect for celebrating such a special day.

Jared and Katherine, I am so happy for you both! I know that your day was all that you hoped for, and I am so excited for you as you begin you lives as Husband and Wife!!!

Blue Ribbon at the NC State Fair!!!

NC State Fair means one thing to me- floral design competition! Well actually I do like to check out the other exhibits too: beautiful garden designs, bonsai "treelets", the cows and goats and chickens-- especially the chickens-- I love them, (too bad the town of Cary does not allow chickens in the town limits). And of course the food- I am not brave enough to try the Fried Oreos, but I really can chow down on the funnel cakes.
Well back to the Floral Designs- thanks to Erv Evans (who does an INCREDIBLE Job with the Flower & Garden Show) and Cleveland Plant & Flower Co., professional florists in Wake County have the opportunity to showcase their stuff just for the fun of it!
One of this year's categories was "Surprise- something special for the new mom and baby". I still have a "fair" amount of pink in the garden so of course I wanted to do something to welcome a new baby girl.
And here's the design that I entered this year. I purchased a wooden box from Michaels and whitewashed the exterior. Next I glued on pressed Larkspur florets to the box. See the DIY Wedding Flowers- Pressed Flowers from April. I also glued Larkspur to the Baby Card as well.
I grow larkspur each year from seed. NOW is the time to plant larkspur seeds for next year's blooms. I plan to put up a post next week about how to plant it.
Other flowers from the garden included dainty pale pink dahlias called Chilson's Pride and bright pink Fairy roses, scented geraniums, lamb's ear and Green Spice Heuchera leaves- these are some of the best heucheras in my garden beds!
Other flowers from my wholesaler included ivory Majolica spray roses and something I was thrilled to see- fresh pink Larkspur!
I was also thrilled to receive a Blue Ribbon for my design