Featured on Offbeat Bride

Maddy & Jacob’s garden and arcade geeky wedding

It is always great to see your work featured on a blog or in print.  Last week the blog Offbeat Bride shared photos from a wedding we worked on back in August of 2011.  Offbeat Bride celebrates “couples who dare to walk off the beaten aisle”.  This wedding was a great reflection of the couple and their desire to do things not just because it was traditional but because there was importance for them personally.

Be sure to check out our blog post about the floral design for this wedding:
Green Cymbidium Orchid & Paper Flower Bouquet: A Real Wedding.

And don’t miss the photos by Madlove Photography!

Red Roses & Calla Lily Bouquet: Real Wedding

It’s not a secret that the holidays (and summertime) are my favorite times of the year.  I want to share a holiday wedding we designed the first weekend in December.

 The Venue:
Kensington Gardens
Gig Harbor, Washington

The Photographer:
Tasha Owen

The Flowers:
Red Roses, Deep Red Mini Calla Lilies, Stephanotis, White Roses, White Mini Calla Lilies, Green Hypericum Berries & Christmas Greenery

The Bouquets:
The bride carried a bouquet of red roses, deep red mini calla lilies, stephanotis, green hypericum berries and Christmas greens while the bridemaids carried bouquets of white roses, white mini calla lilies, green hypericum berries and Christmas greens.

Details:
The boutonnieres: red rose for the groom and white roses for the groomsmen and family members.  All the boutonnieres had green hypericum berries and Christmas greens as accents (below left).  Upon delivering the bouquets I added a keepsake necklace to the handle of the brides bouquet (below right).

The Ceremony:
Glass cylinders with light green wire, red roses and floating candles lined the aisle while a candle scape of pillar candles banded with champagne ribbon and gold ornaments spanned the altar table.

The Reception:
For the reception the cylinders that lined the aisle were moved to the guest tables and placed on LED light bases.

Many happy wishes to the bride & groom!

Wedding Photography Giveaway!

I want to share a super cool giveaway with you! My friend Eliesa of Photogen Inc also owns a company called Rivets & Roses which is made up of 5 talented photographers. Rivets & Roses is giving away wedding photography to 5 couples. Check out the info and photos below featuring each photographers work and nominate away! Deadline is THIS Friday, February 17, 2012!!!

Desiree:

Desiree’s Portfolio ~ email Desiree: desiree@rivetsandroses.com

Leslie:

Leslie’s Portfolio ~ email Leslie: leslie@rivetsandroses.com

Louisa:

Louisa’s Portfolio ~ email Louisa: louisa@rivetsandroses.com

Marc:

Marc’s Portfolio ~ email Marc: marc@rivetsandroses.com

Natalie:

Natalie’s Portfolio ~ email Natalie: natalie@rivetsandroses.com

Community Involvement…Meet Harmony!

Back in January one of the high school seniors in our community wanted to know if she could work with me for her senior project (each senior must complete a project to graduate, part of the project is volunteering and gaining hands on experience).  I believe it is important to get involved in the community I live and work in so I was more than happy to work with her.

Meet Harmony!  A mutual friend suggested that Harmony contact me and I am so glad she did.  It has been wonderful getting to know her over these past few weeks.  Harmony’s plan is to get a degree in business and potentially horticulture/botany at a 4 year university and then to hopefully attend an international floral design school.  She is currently attending a community college part-time as part of the local the running start program designed to complete some college credit as a high school student.

One of our first meetings we went to a local wholesaler to pick up flowers for one of my corporate accounts.  Here is a photo of Harmony with some of her favorite flowers…calla lilies.  Orchids are another of her favorites.  This weekend she will get a little hands on experience!  She is going to make the boutonnieres for her group of friends attending the Tolo dance at the high school.  We had a practice session earlier this week where she learned to make the boutonnieres and decided on the design of them.

Look for a blog post from Harmony soon.  She is going to share a bit about her experience working with Jen’s Blossoms!

White & Yellow Rose Bouquets: Real Wedding

In October we had the privilege of working with Soo & Jimmy on their wedding at the Courtyard Marriott in downtown Tacoma.  I’m excited to share these photos from
Jenny GG photography.  Thanks for the amazing shots!

The Colors:
Yellow, White & Navy

The Flowers:
Yellow Roses, White Roses, Stephanotis & White Hydrangea

Additional Materials:
Gold Flat Wire

The Bouquets:
Soo carried a bouquet off white roses with stephanotis while her bridesmaids carried bouquets of yellow roses.

The Guys:
Jimmy wore a boutonniere made up of a single white rose and stephanotis with his groomsmen wore yellow roses.

The Ceremony:
For the ceremony we created tall arrangements of white hydrangea and yellow roses that sat atop white columns at the beginning of the aisle.  We lined the aisle with yellow rose petals and tall cylinders with floating candles.  At the altar we used sheer white drape with a garland of salal, white hydrangea and yellow roses.

The Reception:
At the reception we created low arrangements of white hydrangea and yellow roses for the head table while the guest tables had either a trio of cylinders with floating candles and roses or an elevated arrangement like those used in the ceremony.

Many happy wishes and congratulations to Soo & Jimmy!
Thanks again Jenny GG for the photos!

Bridal Bouquets of 2011

With the fullness of the holiday season I took the first few weeks of January to think about the past year.  I reminisced about our incredible events and adventures, I looked back through photos of bouquets and planned for this next year.  Here is a peek at a few of our bridal bouquets from 2011.  All photos taken by Jen’s Blossoms unless noted.

Photo top right by Life & Lens Photography.  Photo middle left provided by bride.  Photo bottom right by Victor Zerga.

Bottom left photo by Tasha Owen Photography.

Middle right photo by Nostalgia.

Cheers to a fantastic 2011!  Looking forward to our events this coming year!

Happy Holidays!

Hot Cocoa Bar: Day 12

It’s that time of year again where I will share 12 days of decor ideas, favorite recipes (usually sweet), simple traditions and fun things to do.

Day 12:
Hot Cocoa Bar

I have been to several holiday events over the years where part way through the evening a Hot Cocoa Bar magically appears.  Complete with fresh whipped cream, flavored syrups and toppings.  Here is a simple take on a holiday Hot Cocoa Bar that both kids and adults are sure to love!

The Finished Product:

Supplies Needed:
Shaved Chocolate (I used semi-sweet & milk chocolate)
Milk
Heavy Whipping Cream
Powdered Sugar
Vanilla Extract
Marshmallows
Crushed Peppermint Candy Canes
Cinnamon Syrup
Tequila (almond & coffee flavored)
Mugs
Spoons
Decor

Hot Cocoa Recipe:
I searched and searched and decided to try a simple mix of milk and shaved chocolate.  I used 3 tablespoons of shaved chocolate to 1 cup of milk.  Heat the milk on the stove.  When milk is warm whisk in the shaved chocolate.

Tip: I used a mix of semi-sweet and milk chocolate chips.  I also have a Presto Salad Shooter that worked great to shave the chocolate!

Whipped Cream Recipe:
2 cups heavy whipping cream
4 tablespoons powdered sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Mix all ingredients and mix on high until stiff peaks form.

The Details:

Clockwise from top left:  Our silver manzanita tree from Day 4 along with a flower gift from Day 11 and mugs I wrapped with a felt cozy.  Toppings and mix-ins: whipped cream, cinnamon syrup, marshmallows, crushed candy canes & shaved chocolate.  Adult mix-ins: coffee and almond flavored tequila (whipped cream vodka would also be yummy).  The pot of hot cocoa (I make the cocoa ahead of time so it is the perfect blend) and striped chocolate sticks.  Decorative ribbon and printed tags provides a uniform look.

Our Chocolate Peppermint Dipped Shortbread from Day 3 would be a perfect treat to serve with the Hot Cocoa Bar.  So would the Honey Almond Twist from Day 8, the Snowman Cake Pops from Day  10 or our Christmas Morning Scones from Day 12 of last year.

Flower Gifts: Day 11

It’s that time of year again where I will share 12 days of decor ideas, favorite recipes (usually sweet), simple traditions and fun things to do.

Day 11:
Flower Gifts

As I was thinking up ideas for a table centerpiece today as well as an addition to my display in Day 12’s post I thought it would be very fitting of the season to make fresh flower boxes tied with ribbon.  My color scheme: white and bright green.  My flowers of choice: carnations and bells of Ireland.

The Finished Product:

Supplies Needed:
Floral Foam
Ribbon
Scissors, Clippers & Knife
Squares of Plastic
Flowers

To Make:
Cut the floral foam into squares ( I like to angle the corners so they don’t stick out).  Soak the foam in a bucket of water.  To soak, simply float the foam (do not push it down into the water).  While the foam is soaking cut you flowers.  They will need to have short stems.  When the foam is full of water it is time to insert the flowers.

I began on the sides of the foam boxes and worked my way around until all the sides were covered.  I then inserted the flowers into the top.  From there I begin to wrap it with the ribbon starting on the top.  I flipped the flowers box over and placed a square of plastic against the foam before wrapping the ribbon.  The plastic will not only keep the ribbon dry it will help protect whatever the display sets on.  I flipped the box back over and finished tying my bow.

A simple centerpiece that fits with the season of giving.  To check out Day 11 from last year click here.

Snowman Cake Pops: Day 10

It’s that time of year again where I will share 12 days of decor ideas, favorite recipes (usually sweet), simple traditions and fun things to do.

Day 10:
Snowman Cake Pops

I decided it was time to attempt making cake pops.  Around the holidays I tend to go a little snowman crazy.  The cute little snowman in my heading above is the newest addition to my collection.  I gathered my supplies, did a little research and set to work.

The Finished Product:

Supplies Needed:
Cake Mix & Frosting
Candy Coating
Lollipop Sticks
Decoration (coconut, rips whips & Duff candy writer)
Styrofoam (covered with foil or plastic wrap)

To Make:
Prepare and bake cake according to package directions.  Once cake cools, crumble it into fine crumbs and mix in the frosting.  I used just about 1 container of frosting.  When mixture forms a dough it is ready.  I rolled different size balls to make snowmen as well as larger balls to dip as snowballs.  Once rolled, refrigerate the balls for 15 minutes.  Melt a small amount of candy coating, remove the cake balls from the fridge.  Dip one end of a lollipop stick in the candy coating and pierce the bottom ball of the snowman.  Followed by dipping the stick again and piercing the next ball.  Repeat this process with all the balls.  Refrigerate again for 15-20 minutes.  Melt a larger amount of candy coating.  I found it worked well to spoon the coating over the snowmen cake balls and not  dip them directly into the coating.  Allow the excess to drip off then place them in the covered foam to harden.

For the larger cake balls I dipped them straight into the candy coating (no stick) and then rolled them in coconut to make snowballs.

Once the candy coating hardens on the cake pops it is time to decorate.  I used Duff Candy Writer to make the eyes, mouth, buttons and hats.  To make the hats I piped circles of the candy writer on wax paper and refrigerated them until hardened.  I attached the circles together with dots of the candy writer and then used a larger dot of candy writer to adhere the hat to the head of the snowman.  I discovered Rips Whips in the candy aisle at my local grocery store and they were perfect for scarves.

I definitely will make these again and again!  To check out Day 10 from last year click here.