Ashleigh + Ben | Delray Beach Wedding
Ashleigh and Ben traveled to the states from Australia to tie the knot. Ashleigh loved the natural beauty of the oceanside estate, but was also drawn to a neutral and romantic garden style. Romantic, loose and overgrown garden details provided a perfect marriage of seaside + garden. Which, if you ask me, really is the best of both worlds.
I still remember the day Ashleigh contacted me. Ashleigh and Ben were traveling all the way from Australia and planning a destination wedding at a family member's estate in Delray Beach. I had to catch my breath. First of all, Australia is basically where all of the incredible creative things ever created come from. Ok, that might be an exaggeration, but I will spend hours on end scrolling through Australian wedding publications and will lurk Australian creatives on instagram until my eyes turn red. Second, she mentioned Delray Beach which just happens to be my hometown and a major source of sentimental material for me. I was hooked, I was attached, and I was so ready to dive into a creative adventure with these two.
Since they were traveling such a far distance, their wedding was incredibly intimate with only 20 people in attendance (and we all know how I feel about small intimate weddings - give me all of them!). Ben's aunt graciously opened up her home to their nearest and dearest and was such a champ when a mini-monsoon decided to hit during setup. The ceremony was moved indoors meaning our large wood arbor found its new home right in their formal living room. Like I said, champ.
Seeing a forecast of windy, sideways rain/downpour pop up on your phone the day of a wedding is never an ideal situation. It affects timing, portraits, alters setup locations, and can leave many couples upset and bummed. However, some of my favorite pictures and moments from weddings we've been a part of happen when storms strike. The soft overcast beach portraits with Ashleigh and Ben are everything and wouldn't be what they are without the crazy storm that decided to invite itself to their wedding.
Ashleigh loved the natural beauty of the grounds, but was also drawn to a neutral and romantic garden style. We pulled in blue tones through privet berries, blackberries, and navy centered anemones to pay tribute to the gorgeous ocean surrounding the estate, while keeping the larger blooms fluffy and in shades of white and blush. Vines and branches were incorporated to add those loose and overgrown garden details providing a perfect marriage of seaside + garden. Which, if you ask me, really is the best of both worlds.
Photography | Finding Light Photography
Floral Design | Port + Palm Co.
Cake Design | Chic and Sweet Artisian Cakes
Catering | Silver Sac
Marianne + Ted | Social House Wedding
Marianne and Ted's guests walked into Social House that night expecting to spend the evening celebrating an engagement, but instead they were all lucky enough to be a part of a gorgeous wedding.
As you all know by now, a Social House wedding is my favorite kind of wedding. When you add in the element of surprise and a couple that beam with love for one another, you've just hit a whole new level. Marianne and Ted's guests walked into Social House that night expecting to spend the evening celebrating an engagement, but instead they were all lucky enough to be a part of a gorgeous wedding.
Marianne wanted her florals to be simple, modern, playful, and accented with tropical colors and details. We filled large copper bottomed bud vases with monsteras and a pop of pink. A trailing of vines and ferns draped along their ceremony backdrop and was illuminated by flickering candlelight.
Designing for Marianne and Ted was such a fulfilling and wonderful experience, they truly trusted us to do our "thing". I always try to tap into my client's personality when I step into the studio. I want to design not just another bouquet with garden roses, but instead a bouquet that screams, "I belong to (insert name here)". When I started the design process for Marianne I kept coming back to the word "joy". Like I mentioned in the beginning of this post, these two beam, so it wasn't hard to latch onto that and design with that in mind. Congrats you two!
Photography | Carolina Guzik Photography
Floral Design | Port + Palm Co.
Venue | Social House
Planner | Stacey Catena Events
Caterer | Hampton Forks
Tent | Sperry Tents
Cake | Earth and Sugar
Rentals | Coco Prop Shop
Coral Cove Inspiration Shoot
There's something so sentimental and classic about a beach wedding, and this shoot was no exception. We wanted the florals to be loose and romantic while still speaking to the natural beauty of the ocean and it's surroundings. Every creative involved truly embraced the vision and brought so many beautiful moments to the day.
True collaboration can be hard to come by. To me, collaboration is finding a group of people who challenge and influence you, working together to find a vision everyone can stand behind, and then letting that talented collective do what they do best. Of course there are the hiccups, the unexpected rain storms, the near meltdowns, and the sore muscles. But when you find a group of people who can look at you sweaty and near tears, jump right in and offer a hand, and even a hug, you walk away feeling so fulfilled and grateful.
For me, this Coral Cove inspiration shoot is a perfect example of how wonderfully a collaboration can work. I was first connected with Teresa of Jose and Teresa Photography through a few of my fellow Social House members. She was looking to rebrand her website and was hoping to pull together a collection of photos that spoke to her own style.
I love how every detail came together. The florals were loose and romantic while still complimenting the natural beauty of the beach. The table top accents reminded me of my favorite parts of the beach - whispy pink clouds, fragmented bits of sea glass, and found treasures. My favorite floral detail has to be the clay-looking eucalyptus pods used in the arbor's design. They offered the perfect amount of natural contrast against the more romantic blooms used throughout the bouquet and centerpiece.
Beach weddings don't need to be full of starfish and sea shells. I love how we as a group were able to showcase a fresh and romantic approach to a beach wedding that allowed the natural beauty of the beach to act as a soft and complimentary backdrop.
Photography | Jose and Teresa Photography
Floral Design | Port + Palm Co.
Rentals | Coco Prop Shop
Planning | The Golden Pineapple Event Co.
Stationery | Every Little Letter
Bridal Gown | Wildeflower Boutique
Models | The Hip Suburban
Cake | Cloud 9 Bakery
Hair + Makeup | Beauty by VM
Melissa + Chris | Social House Wedding
The first time Melissa and I met we grabbed a cup of tea and I still remember sitting there and feeling like we had been friends for ages. She's just my kind of girl. We talked about how she met her boyfriend Chris, which was quickly followed up with, "we're not getting engaged anytime soon". Low and behold about two months later I get a text and it's a picture of her finger with a new shiny sapphire and diamond accessory. Chris clearly had other plans.
Are you guys ready for this gush fest? It's about to get real emotional real fast. Melissa first came into my life through instagram- which seems to be how many of my relationships form recently. She was starting her letterpress/gold foil company and was looking to connect with local wedding peeps. We grabbed a cup of tea and clicked immediately. I still remember sitting there chatting and feeling like we had been friends for ages. She's just my kind of girl. We talked about her friends, her move to Florida, and how she met her boyfriend Chris, which was quickly followed up with, "we're not getting engaged anytime soon". Low and behold about two months later I get a text and it's a picture of her finger with a new shiny sapphire and diamond accessory. Chris clearly had other plans.
From there we started talking about their wedding day dreams, their likes and dislikes, and what they wanted the night be like for their loved ones. It's crazy to think that all those chats and all those dreams became realities. Sure, there were some hiccups along the way, some dreams had to be altered, but in the end these two cried and laughed through their vows, danced for hours, hugged every single person, and celebrated for a whole weekend.
Melissa and Chris wanted to keep decor minimal and modern with pops of vibrant colors and nods to our Floridian surroundings. Her bouquet was full of bright blooms in shades of pink, oranges and yellows and accented with wild greens that seemed to dance out of the sides. When designing their ceremony backdrop, we wanted to keep it modern while still feeling natural. We used greenery with defined lines and stark shapes making a bold and modern impact. Fluffy blooms were sprinkled throughout their cocktail style reception, and bold tropical greens lined the walls. Their sweetheart table featured a vintage barkcloth table runner and a bright and lush centerpiece, while guests clinked vintage champagne coupes.
I always stress the importance of working with your venue and the location you've selected. Melissa and Chris did just that. Social House is a modern blank slate with plenty of Floridian charm, and midcentury frame work. That allowed us to design a modern Floridian wedding with old Florida accents - which to me really is the best of both worlds.
I've said it before, and I'll say it again- Melissa and Chris are two of the most emotionally connected couples I know. They get each other. They appreciate every bit of the other person. They know they are flawed and they kind of revel in that. Their cores are so completely tied, like little magnets that lock onto each other and don't let go. Life isn't always easy, it can throw you for a loop, it can break you down and leave you feeling lost and helpless, but I see them, I see the love they have for each other and it is so evident that these two will always have each other's backs wherever life takes them. At the end of the day that's what it's all about. It isn't about what design decisions are made, whether you have peonies or garden roses, or whether its a hot dog food truck or taco truck. It's about the rest of this messy, intricate, short life and who you want with you on that ride.
See Melissa and Chris's wedding featured on Junebug Weddings!
Photography | Lauren Louise Photography
Floral Design | Port + Palm Co.
Planning + Event Design | Port + Palm Co.
Catering | Aioli
Venue | Social House
Tent | Sperry Tents
Invitations | Gold Cotton Print
Makeup | Palm Beach Makeup Pro
Bride's Hairpiece | Acute Design Shop
Bride's Attire | Rachel Marie Hurst
Video | By Design Films
Rentals | Atlas
Vintage Rentals | Port + Palm Co.
See their emotional first look featured on Junebug Weddings, BuzzFeed, and Huffington Post!
Carey + Brendan | Williamsburg Inn Wedding
Designing for our clients is always an adventure and a rewarding journey. But designing for a family member, for your sister, that is about as rewarding as it gets. Carey asked for fall inspired colors that were refined and brought the surrounding gardens into their historic colonial venue at the Williamsburg Inn.
Designing for our clients is always an adventure and a rewarding journey. But designing for a family member, for your sister, that is about as rewarding as it gets. Carey asked for fall inspired colors that were refined and brought the surrounding gardens into their historic colonial venue at the Williamsburg Inn. So, we loaded up the car (boarded up the house - because Hurricane Matthew was making a determined effort to hit our home in South Florida), and headed off to Virginia for some fresh fall air, family time, and inspiration.
I wanted to make sure her centerpieces and bouquet felt freshly gathered, so we sourced plants from the area, combining interesting textures with bold blooms such as peonies and dahlias. In order to bring the lush greens of the grounds in, we designed half of her centerpieces primarily with various and texturally interesting greens and added touches of floral accents in shades of blackberry and goldenrod. The remaining centerpieces incorporated larger focal blooms in shades of blush, burgundy, ivory, and blackberry.
With Hurricane Matthew headed along the east coast, heavy rains called for an indoor ceremony. Large urns of fresh rosemary were used to define the ceremony space and filled the room with the scent of fresh herbs. You immediately felt as though you were outside in a brimming garden and quickly forgot about the surging rains.
I'm a big believer that everything happens for a reason, and if it hadn't been for the threat of a hurricane, and the rains that come with it, Carey and Brendan wouldn't have these gorgeous and dewy couple portraits. As they strolled through the garden they remained huddled extra close to one another under a clear umbrella - because all great romances have a rain storm or two intertwined.
Congrats Carey and Brendan! We are so beyond happy for you two, and know that your life will be filled with a lot of love, boardgames, and laughs. Love you so much and thank you for allowing me to create some pretty moments for your big day.
Floral Design | Port + Palm Co.
Photography | Hyer Images
Planning | Night and Daye Events
Venue | Williamsburg Inn
Band | Six Stylez