Jessica's Country Flowers

Dream Weding Giveaway!

2012-01-13T12:57:00.000-08:00

By: Jessica Robinson

We are looking for a couple of our Dream wedding giveaway (Deserving couple). We are looking for a couple who has experienced financial hardship and yet still gives back. We're networking with some of the best in the industry to giveback to this wonderful couple.

To enter or nominate someone a couple, simply fill out our "Be in touch" form on our web site and tell us why that couple deserves to win. The couple will win an over the top wedding, designed by JCF Events and Pink Chic Events and other prizes, including a photographer, custom invitations, rentals, favors, wedding gown and many more. The wedding will be hosted at The West Monitor Barn in Richmond, Vermont (October 27, 2012) and photographed by Candace Jeffery Photography.

We have networked with some of the very best wedding professionals including Rick at Emily's Catering Group for the most incredible wedding menu!

Fall-inspired shoot

2011-11-10T10:25:00.000-08:00

By: Jessica Robinson
We styled the most gorgeous fall-inspired shoot yesterday at the Connecticut River Valley Inn, in Glastonbury, Connecticut. The Inn is so pretty. They have five suites for guests to stay and can accomodate an intimate wedding of 20 or a tented affair for larger parties. Their grounds are stunning and the hospitality, incredible!

Thanks to Renata from Lovely Cakes, Jennifer from Cookie Creatives, Candace and Josh from Candace Jeffery Photography, Sean from Harborview Studios, Pat and Wayne from The Connecticut River Valley Inn, Larissa and Stephanie from Larissa Lake Make-up, Sarah from Parrott Design Studio, Gabriella New York Bridal Salon and Lamothe's Sugar House

Emily's Catering Group

2011-10-15T08:47:00.000-07:00

By: Jessica Robinson

My mother was turning 60th this October and we decided we should host a big Birthday celebration on my parents farm (Lamothe's Sugar House). So I went and saw Rick from Emily's Catering Group in Forestville, Connecticut.

Rick and Cheryl at Emily's Catering Group were phenomenal....almost beyond what I could ever put into words. From the beginning I asked Rick to create a menu for my Mother's 60th Birthday party. His ideas blew me away! He is truly an artist in the kitchen. The man is a genius with food, presentation and style/service.

From the incredible salad (baby greens, candied chestnuts, smoked bacon, bleu cheese, fresh figs w/champagne vinaigrette dressing) which was served with mini cups (individiual) of wild mushroom soup.... to the barbeque beef brisket and chicken with cranberry salsa. OMG!! Pure Yummy!

Guests could NOT stop talking about how delicious the food was. AND the wait staff, perfect. They were extremely professional and kept telling me to stop helping. (since I design wedding flowers, I always feel like it's my job to unload and set up)!! So great. I would recommend Emily's to ANYONE! Every little detail was PERFECT! They made our "Autumn in New England" dinner party beyond incredible!

AND my last minute request the day of the event, for cornbread to be added. Cheryl said absolutely no problem. The cornbread was melt in your mouth fabulous. (Most guests insisted I ask for the recipe!)

Call Rick for your next event. You will be just as impressed as we are!

Well Wed 2011 Magazine feature

2011-09-30T12:47:00.000-07:00

By: Jessica Robinson

We did the most amazing shoot (with the most amazing group of industry leaders) back in May at the Collinsville Axe Factory. Thanks to some pretty fabulous people!

Cookie Creatives by Jennifer/Candace Jeffery Photography/Larissa Lake Make-up/Camille's Bridal/DL Video Productions/Lovely Cakes/Lamothe's Sugar House/Go Against the Grain

Fall-inspired shoot

2011-09-24T17:41:00.000-07:00

By: Jessica Robinson

Several times a year we work on styled shoots to inspire newly engaged couples. Our ideas are brewing and coming to life right now. I thought I'd give you a glance at what our incredible (and I do mean INCREDIBLE) team of industry leaders are putting together.

(Zoe Clark Cakes)

(Etsy vendor: Kathy Pierson)

Here is our team of industry leaders:

JCF Events

Candace Jeffery Photography

Emily's Catering Group

Larissa Lake Make-up

Cookie Creatives

Lovely Cakes
New England Country Rentals

DL Video Productions

LOCATION: Rock Hall, Colebrook Connecticut

Orange inspirations

2011-09-19T14:44:00.000-07:00

Vatne Designs

2011-09-13T10:07:00.000-07:00

By: Jessica Robinson

We LOVE accessories! The perfect piece of jewelry or accessory can add so much interest to your wedding day attire and grab even more attention. We asked Neallie Walvatne of Vatne Designs a few questions to help us learn more about her INCREDIBLE accessory line.

(images by: Sheila Carlson Photography)

what inspired you to the jewelry line?
I have a background working within the bridal industry, and fabulous memories to go with that career. After staying at home with my little ones for a couple years I began to miss the creative outlet that my job offered me so I decided to start up on my own. I am so glad that I did, and I absolutely love that my little creations become a part of the biggest and most special day of people's lives.
what inspires your designs?
I have always been drawn to soft creamy colors and all things sparkly. I try to create timeless pieces that are more than just a seasonal trend, but offer brides lots opportunity to be worn after the wedding.
what makes your designs different from others?
Each and every pieces of my jewelry is hand crafted by me, specifically for each bride. I love to offer custom options and design according to my bride's vision, to make each piece the perfect one for them. Using high quality materials and Swarovksi rhinestones and pearls, I pay close attention to every tiny detail before I package up each piece, and send them on their way.

what is the price range of your designs?
My prices currently range from $30 to $220, affordable for brides of all budgets.

how will a bride be able to get her hands on your jewelry?
My online jewelry shop is the best way for brides to view my entire collection. I do sell to some beautiful retail locations as well, and they can be found on my store listings page. Many of my jewels are also sold on Wedzu, a wonderful array of handcrafted wedding items from independent designers.

what is your goal with your design line?
I would love to see Vatne Designs grow to include a line of baubles and bling for wedding decor. For now I am having a ball meeting wonderful wedding professionals, participating in styled shoots, and creating jewelry and accessories for brides and their bridal parties.

Is there anything else that you think our readers would be interested to know?
My blog is a wonderful site to view real weddings, styled shoots and custom creations. I love to receive photos from my brides, and it is so fun to see their long awaited big day, and to share it with others. Follow me on facebook for giveaways and special discounts.

Designer- Winifred Bean

2011-08-30T18:36:00.000-07:00

By: Jessica Robinson

W inifred Bean is one of the newest designers to hit the market. We asked the designer (Angela) a few questions about her gowns and what inspires her designs. See her thoughts below. Her gowns are simplistic and really pretty! You'll find all of her gowns available on Etsy.com

what inspired you to launch a new line of gowns?

I've worked in the fashion industry for 10 years (DKNY, Michael Kors, Rebecca Taylor), most recently for smaller business and start-ups, and always knew I wanted to start my own business. But I got the idea to do wedding dresses while looking for my own wedding dress last year. I felt there was a lack of places and designers who offered elegant, simple wedding looks for brides with creativity, taste and style - and most importantly, on a budget!

what inspires your designs?

The designs are inspired by current fashion trends and couture runway styles. Designs you see on the runway or on the red carpet and think "that would make a great wedding dress if it only came in white". They are simple, relevant to current fashion trends, yet vintage in a classic way. Modern vintage I like to call it...

what is the price range of your designs?

Currently all styles are around $2000 - as the line progresses I plan on introducing styles as low as $700 and maybe as high as $3000 if I get really creative.

how will a bride be able to get her hands on your gowns?

Currently dresses can be purchased at the Winifred Bean Etsy shop - www.etsy.com/shop/winifredbean. If brides live in the NYC area I can schedule private fittings. Soon we will be partnering with boutiques to sell the dresses and will sell the styles on-line on the Winifred Bean website later in the fall.

what is your goal with your design line?

Ultimately I want to help brides find the perfect dress (and look) for their wedding day at a reasonable price. Not only do I hope to do that stylistically with the designs offered but by also giving brides the opportunity to mix and match tops and bottoms to certain styles if they'd like.

anything else that you think our readers would be interested to know....

As a bride, I scoured endless blogs and magazines for inspiration. In addition to offering a customizable dress experience with the Winifred Bean line, I also plan to offer editorials to help the brides style their dresses and find items to compliment their look. I want to make the "wedding look" experience as seamless as possible..

And stay tuned, I hope to launch a few new dresses and a small bridesmaid collection next year!

Back from vacation

2011-08-25T10:54:00.000-07:00

By: Jessica Robinson

We're back from our much needed vacation and rested up a bit. We're working on a few styled shoots for this fall and winter. I'm dying to see the new copy of Well Wed magazine that is set to come out any day now.

The garden did me good while we were away. I got back to lots of ripe corn ready to harvest, juicy heirloom tomatoes and crisp cucumbers. Summer salads are on our table this week, with some fresh mozzarella pieces. Summer brings us lots to look forward to in the fall. Days are warm and start to get cool as we stretch into autumn. Oh and the kids go back to school. Most moms are jumping for joy at this time of year! So I'm now thinking I'll start jotting down a few notes and possibly write a children's book or two. I do most of my writing during the winter, with my toes toasty warm next to our fireplace and a big cup of hot chocolate. The snow that falls from the sky inspires me. I take an occasional break to shovel the sidewalks and bring in some more firewood.

Real wedding @ Webb Barn

2011-08-11T13:54:00.000-07:00

By: Jessica Robinson
This very pretty wedding was featured recently on Style Me Pretty blog. We LOVE every little detail. We worked along side Sixpence For Your Shoe and Ryan Designs to design this one! Be sure and check out the full feature on Style Me Pretty!

The ever talented Justin & Mary Marantz.... every little detail is captured in their absolutely gorgeous shots.

Vermont wedding

2011-08-03T09:56:00.000-07:00

By: Jessica Robinson

Back in July, our team of designers headed to The West Monitor Barn in Richmond, Vermont to design this incredible wedding. Our idea (along with Ryan Designs) was to suspend centerpieces from the rafters, bringing the attention up into the barn, rather than completely on the table. OH, and what a dramatic statement!

The couple's flowers were simple, yet so very dramatic. Lots of locally grown mint and dusty miller along with a ton of gorgeous garden roses. I LOVE garden roses! Not only do they have a beautiful light floral scent, they look incredible. Tons of petals surround into this flat, yet completely fluffy round shape and create a garden rose (which some refer to as a "cabbage" rose).

Feeling better and self-motivation

2011-07-28T16:24:00.000-07:00

By: Jessica Robinson

I've ALWAYS believed that everything happens for a reason and that positive energy brings good things. The world can be a very cruel place and competitive environment.

Over the last few years I've developed an amazing company, written two books, had two kids, bought a home and tried to update the yard a bit. I've also helped my parents with their farm and company by developing new products and promoting sales. SO needless to say, my life is crazy.

I've learned that I need to make time for myself. As selfish as that might sound. It's true. If I feel better, I'm a better wife, mother, daughter and business person. I've started a re-energizing mission with Amie from Waterfalls: A Spa on the Farmington River. She's amazing! She's very motivated and a powerful woman. We're going to be doing different facials, massages and eating better together. It's time to make a difference.

I've already set my mark with design. Now, it's time to set it personally. Of course, this will probably motivate me even more to do something crazy and over the top with design too!

With Love! Jessica

Busy summer months

2011-07-28T10:47:00.000-07:00

By: Jessica Robinson

It's such a crazy time of year for our company. Wedding after wedding, different looks, unique ideas and more thoughts on how to make weddings different. We're also squeezing in a vacation and a few long weekends this year. (which is honestly, something we haven't done in a long time!)

Right now, we're focused on some pretty wonderful weddings we're designing and a fall-inspired shoot that we're doing with some great vendors soon. I'll sit down at night around the fire pit and brainstorm ideas. It's a constant mind shuffling of "oh, that would be so cool" or "what if we did this..."

Weddings (to us) are about a tremendous amount of detail. Layer upon layer of superb detail, adding interest and making your eye move to see what's next. It's also way more beyond the flowers. I LOVE the flowers, but our design goes into the table setting, the china, how the flatware is presented, desserts, favors and stationery items. We LOVE details!

Fall inspired shoot

2011-07-18T11:00:00.000-07:00

By: Jessica Robinson

Our design team is taking a few weeks off to enjoy the summer sun and beach tides. But, before we do... we wanted to share a little fall inspiration we are working on.

FALL is one of my favorite seasons in New England. I LOVE the autumn breezes, rich hues of amber, red and green fading slowly. The farmer's markets are full with fabulous harvest picks such as plump apples, acorn squash and sweet local honey.

My creative brain is wrapped around this stunning cake. It's inspiring our fall themed shoot. Fall can be romantic and purely stunning sophistication for an event. The weather has cooled down a bit and yet the evenings are still warm enough to be outside to enjoy the stars shining up above us. This cake is by: Zoe Clark Cakes

Stylish Perfection blog

2011-06-22T14:06:00.000-07:00

By: Jessica Robinson

We've been toying with the idea of creating a truly unique blog that featured lots of talented wedding professionals and many real weddings. The real weddings will be from all over New England, New York and Pennsylvania. (we'll expand from there as we go) So, welcome Stylish Perfection! Right now, we're accepting applications for outstanding vendors in their field. email us for more details: jessica@stylishperfection.com

Our team of writers will be blogging about everything wedding related. Rehearsal dinners, great venues and all sorts of unique decor ideas. No wedding would be complete without custom designed wedding invites, scrumptious wedding cakes and pastries. Top industry leaders will be featured so you can find the best of the best. We are grinning from ear to ear with excitement. The launch of the new blog starts mid-September.

Design studio for weddings

2011-06-21T10:31:00.000-07:00

By: Jessica Robinson
Be inspired in our new Collinsville design studio. We are situated right in the heart of Collinsville, Connecticut. Our design team can transform any venue into your wildest dreams.

We have two lovely flower boxes that are overflowing with hot pink pentunias under our windows. Our plan is to create the same look over the entire length of the trestle bridge in Collinsville on the rails to trails path. So far, we have permission from the rails to trails committee. Just waiting now for approval from the town of Canton.

One of the bigger things we are working on is a new wedding blog. It's going to be called Stylish Perfection. Our goal is to bring readers a wide range of weddings, real advice and pure inspiration to create real weddings that fit their own individual styles. We'll be featuring real weddings from all over and many vendors we love.

Real Connecticut wedding @ Webb Barn

2011-06-16T17:29:00.000-07:00

By: Jessica Robinson

Every detail about this fun barn wedding are incredible! Many talented professionals creatively put together this fun wedding. Justin & Mary Marantz took all of the breathtaking images and we couldn't be more beyond pleased with them! They are simply amazing, as always~

So here is part ONE of their images from Justin & Mary. While your mouth drops over those images, take a look at all the vendors involved! Who ever said a barn wedding would be a backyard event was completely wrong! This wedding is romantic, whimsical and simply gorgeous. The flower blooms were put into various Depression Glass tea cups and bowls.

Emily's Catering group
Sixpence For Your Shoe
Sandra Downie Beauty
Modern Trousseau and The White Dress by the Shore
Kendra Scott (Bride's necklace)
Cookies Creatives
Dancing Pen Calligraphy
Stonington Paperie
Lauren Kroesser- cake (groom's sister)
Ryan Designs

HB home- mirrors
Webb Barn (Wethersfield, Connecticut)
Niletti Creations (rings)

Choices for Favors

2011-06-13T06:47:00.000-07:00

By: Jessica Robinson

Food is always a good option for favors. I think it's important to remember the season you are getting married in. If you have time, you can always make something yourself. But, I stress that you should only do that if you have time and it won't make your already crazy life more crazy!

Maple candies are a great New England choice for a perfect taste of New England. Lamothe's Sugar House can make maple candies in various shapes and sizes. Packaging can also be customized depending on your style and tastes. Any of their products are also a great addition to Out of Town guest bags as well. They make really great Maple Kettle corn for that perfect salty yet sweet craving.

Cookie Creatives offers many wonderful choices for favors as well. Of course, I'm big on attending an event and walking away saying "Wow! that was so different!" So when you are looking for something out of the box call her. I love the idea of a scrumptious dessert station with lots of goodies you remember from your childhood. That way everyone can fill up a small container and bring it home with them for that mid-night snack.

Inspirational styled shoot (behind the scenes)

2011-06-08T11:24:00.000-07:00

By: Jessica Robinson

A few weeks back, we teamed up with some pretty amazing wedding professionals to design a styled shoot for Well Wed magazine. Candace Jeffery Photography, DL Video Productions, Larissa Lake Make-up, Camille Bridal, Go Against the Grain, Lamothe's Sugar House, Avery Soda, Party Rental Ltd., Lovely Cakes and Cookie Creatives joined forces to design something many will be inspired by.

Raspberry Rhubarb jam packed in pretty glass jars and flower lid from Lamothe's Sugar House. (which as many of you know is my parents farm) I picked the rhubarb fresh and made a big batch of jam with my Mother the week of the shoot. We punched a small whole in the custom designed tags (by Go Against the Grain) and tied a natural piece of twine onto the jar. That added touch of something made from home. Food is always a really great choice for a favor. Something guests are sure to remember and savor.

Beautiful Farmhouse style tables were used for a lovely table setting. We went for a French country inspired style, with a touch of rustic and a ton of great detail. Detail, detail, detail makes all the difference. You'll see what I mean below. We put lots of effort into making every little detail stand out. Jennifer from Cookie Creatives made a yummy selection of desserts and pastries for our dessert station. (which we set up on a vintage white washed bench that Larissa had) Details go beyond the food too, it goes into the detail of how we displayed everything so pretty. Jennifer had some great glass footed cake dishes and plates that displayed everything nicely. Renata from Lovely Cakes designed a stunning cake that fit

Take a look at the incredible behind the scenes video that DL Video Productions put together of the entire shoot! I'm so impressed with this video Dave made. Every little detail is captured and brought to life in his video.

Barn wedding inspirations

2011-06-07T17:54:00.000-07:00

By: Jessica Robinson

Barn weddings are big right now. There are many barn properties throughout New England, New York and Pennsylvania. Barns can either be rustic and simplistic or over the top gorgeous! Many barns start as blank spaces. As a designer, it’s a great opportunity to let my creative juices flow freely. Earthy wooden exposed beams allow us to hang lanterns, chandeliers and drape sheer fabrics. I love hanging vintage doors and old window panes from rafters too.

Real Connecticut wedding @ Sarah Porter's Memorial Hall

2011-05-17T08:38:00.000-07:00

By: Jessica Robinson

As many of you are probably aware, each year our company hosts a "Deserving Couple" contest. We take hundreds of applications for the contest. We search for a couple struggling financially and really in need for an uplifting wedding. That wedding, designed by our company becomes an over the top event. We network with some of the industry's leading professionals to create a drop dead gorgeous wedding. This wedding is something the couple never dreamed they could afford or have. Doing this brings tears to our eyes and fills our hearts with many emotions of love, hope and faith.

Karri and Chris were married at Wesleyan Chapel in Middletown with their reception following at Sarah Porter Memorial Hall in Farmington, Connecticut.

You really could see the strong passionate love in both of their eyes. It brings so much joy to our hearts to be able to bring tears to a bride's eyes as she looks at her flowers for the first time. The process of design and talking about how everything will look to the actual creation of the event is amazing. We have to listen to a client about what they want and be able to bring that out in our designs. Karri wanted something different, something a bit modern and loved pops of color.

All of the vendors that brought Karri and Chris' look together were amazing! We are so very honored that they were able to be a part of something so special.

Sixpence For Your Shoe
Emily's Catering Group
JCF Events
Steve Depino Photography
The Plumed Serpent
Paper Olive
Dancing Pen Calligraphy
Taylor Rental of Manchester
Sandra Downie Beauty
Lovely Cakes
Cookie Creatives by Jennifer
Ryan Designs

Selecting your wedding gown

2011-05-05T14:07:00.000-07:00

By: Jessica Robinson

I think 90% of our clients say that they ended up with a dress they never visioned themselves in. Even for my own wedding, I visualized one thing but ended up with something totally different. My girls grabbed a gown off the rack and said try this. I really didn't want to, but turns out... that was the one.

The location is a big factor when selecting your wedding attire. Will you be married barefoot on soft sandy beaches? or in a rustic barn setting? (now a barn setting can be rustic and simple or completely sophisticated too, it really depends which way we take your design) Will you be having a traditional church ceremony and elegant sit-down dinner after wards?

(Modern Trousseau gowns)
The pieces of your wedding are like a puzzle. Each one comes together as you plan. You pick the date, then the venue(s) and start to select different vendors you will work with. The design concept comes together as a major piece of the puzzle.

(Melissa Sweet gown)
Gown designers typically suggest ordering your gown at least six months prior. Try attending trunk shows for different gown designers that grab your eye. This gives you an opportunity to meet the designer in person, see their collection and possibly get a great deal on a designer gown.

Check out a few of our favorite designers!!
Modern Trousseau
Winifred Bean
Melissa Sweet
Maggie Sottero
Priscilla of Boston

What style are you?

2011-04-26T16:53:00.000-07:00

By: Jessica Robinson

When we meet clients initially, I always ask them how they would describe their style. Or the style they want to create. Are you looking for something romantic and elegant or modern and trendy? Maybe your style is a bit romantic, rustic-chic? Luckily each of our clients tastes (and venues) are so unique, we have the opportunity to create so many wonderful looks, all their own.

Take this bouquet for example. It has a wonderful mix of dark purple mini calla lilies, cool water roses, blue veronica, purple sweet peas, mini green hydrangea and touches of lavender button mums. It has a "just gathered" feel to it and simply wrapped with an organic burlap ribbon. To me, this bouquet speaks to the style: Rustic and romantic. During every season, there is a wonderful selection of locally grown flowers that offer that fresh picked garden look. (just a few: Zinnias, locally grown hydrangea, strawflower, statice, poppies, sweet peas, lisianthus, peonies, veronica, herbs and snowberries)

This hand-tied bouquet of garden roses is simplistic and romantic. It's the perfect match for an afternoon garden ceremony. This bouquet also goes well with an elaborate gown. With gowns that have a tremendous amount of detail, sometimes it's better to keep it simple. As not to over power the gown and your look. We added a little extra detail with the stems by tying French-knots around the stems with an ivory satin ribbon.

This bouquet features wonderful 'patience' garden roses, an abundance of white cattelya orchids, white sweet peas and ivory roses. It's wrapped with a wide ivory satin ribbon and adorned with a broach from Regina B. It speaks to the romantic and very sophisticated feel of her entire wedding.

How do you visualize your wedding will be?

Flowers available in Spring

2011-04-25T10:30:00.000-07:00

By: Jessica Robinson

Everyone always asks for peonies in August. Just because they are so fluffy and have a wonderful mild fragrance to them. They are stunning. Truth is, they really aren't available in July and August.

David Austin garden roses are a fabulous substitute for peonies. They offer an over-sized head and have that million petals look to them. Some don't look like roses at all, but rather peonies.

If you have your heart set on some of the most popular spring flowers, such as Ranunculus, sweet peas, peonies, tulips or hyacinths you should try and pick a date between December and mid-June. Many things are grown year-round now. But, there is never a guarantee.

You are much better off, getting married when you want and letting an experienced designer help you in the selection of your flowers. We'll try and help you select something you'll love that is in season and readily available. Personally, I love the look and feel of texture. Mixing in seasonal herbs, berries and such add drama and interest to any design.

Tips for planning a wedding

2011-04-20T07:42:00.000-07:00

By: Jessica Robinson

Like anything else, planning a wedding takes time and sometimes a lot of money. Because, like everything else in life, costs simply add up. When you begin the planning process it can be very overwhelming and stressful. Follow a few simple tips to plan with little stress.

To simplify your life and the planning process we recommend keeping your planning details to yourself. Don't post publicly about your plans on Facebook and such. Everyone has their own opinion and personally, I don't want everyone's input. Keep plans to yourself and you'll save yourself a huge headache, plus leave much to surprise as guests enjoy your wedding day.

Make an initial guest list and go through it many times. Ask yourself "have I seen this person lately?" If not, you might want to reconsider whether they should get an invite. Weddings are so much more personal these days and you want to share that with family and close friends that are in your everyday lives. With that initial guest list, you'll have a good idea of where you can host your event. With a larger number of guests, you'll need to find a venue that can accommodate. Hunting down a reception venue that fits your needs can be tough. But, there are many unique options right now.

Browse through colorful and inspiring magazines (such as Well Wed, Southern New England Weddings and La Bella Bride) along with wedding blogs. Some amazing inspiring blogs are: Style Me Pretty, Wedding Chicks,Well Wed, Every Last Detail, The Knotty Bride and Sparkle and Hay. While browsing through magazines, you'll notice you select certain things. You have a style, whether you know it or not... you really do know what you want for your wedding. I highly suggest, making a collage of sorts (ripe out things you like and recycle the rest of the magazine) of things you like. Gowns, attendants gowns, shoes, guys attire, flowers, food, etc.

Collinsville Studio

2011-04-15T08:35:00.000-07:00

By: Jessica Robinson

Our new studio is fabulous! I'm loving every little detail. I love having such a clean and creative design studio to work in. The Collinsville area inspires me so much! There's an amazing energy in this building and the surrounding area. So many phenomenal artists and designers have made Collinsville their home. Every special touch we add to the new studio makes it feel more like home. (I seriously just might move in here!)

I've shopped my little heart out at Used Furniture of Canton. OMG! that's all I can say. Each and every time I go in there looking for something I walk away more than satisfied and beyond thrilled. (both with the quality of the furniture and definitely the price) I've also hit up Hadsell's a few times for vintage blue color Mason jars and some depression glass pieces.

Our new, in-house graphic designer is Nicole Schmidt. She's amazing and completely talented. Nicole is such a fabulous asset to our company and I am always blown away by what she creates! She recently designed the most incredible new logo for us (which is about to be printed into fancy letterpress business cards). Why not stand out!? She also designed our invite for our private cocktail party celebrating our new design studio. I cannot wait to see what she comes up with next!!

This weekend, be inspired by Mother Nature and maybe pick up a copy of Well Wed magazine. It's wonderful and should be glanced at constantly and cherished! We are assembling a spectacular team of wedding industry leaders to do a wonderful styled shoot for their magazine. While snooping around, we found a huge space in the factory that would work perfect for a wedding or special event. So, we're going to host a fabulous shoot to inspire everyone! Just wait to see what we come up with. The ideas are just brewing right now. But I can tell you they are Fabulous!!

New reception venue in Farmington, Connecticut

2011-04-13T08:52:00.000-07:00

By: Jessica Robinson

As a wedding and event designer, I'm always on the hunt for the new best thing. Looking for new trends, colors, different decor options to suggest to clients and fabulous venues that are simply gorgeous! Today, I found a few of those. I'm practically jumping out of my skin to tell you about the new venue that is under construction in Farmington, Connecticut!

I can honestly tell you that I'm VERY hard to impress. I'm a bit particular. Which is why I almost died when I saw how gorgeous and spectacular this place is!! Of course, they are still under construction so you'll have to sort of use your creative minds to visualize what the venue will look like in the end (we'll be photographing it in the next month or so to give you better visuals). But, keep in mind... absolutely NO detail has been overlooked. Everything has been thought of and more. Just to make sure your day is special and completely about you.

Farmington Gardens is situated in historic Farmington, Connecticut on route 4. It's housed in the old Lexington Gardens. It has the most amazing landscaping and is a bit rustic chic. It's also so very romantic and whimsical. The facility is family owned and operated. Which really means they care and are there to assist you throughout your planning process.

The grounds are going to be completely landscaped and you'll walk on a path of beautifully laid paving stones to get to your ceremony or cocktail hour. They are adding a wonderful gazebo so you would be able to have an outdoor ceremony. (you also have an option for a small tent outside if Mother Nature throws us some bad weather) Or, a great option would be to have your ceremony inside the greenhouse space. Visualize an evening affair in the summer or fall, overlooking the sparkling stars during cocktail hour. They are offering white Chinese lanterns for added lighting in this space. (but again you have options here)

Cocktail hour is hosted in the renovated greenhouse, which gives you views of our wonderful New England sky! It's really such a cool space. A wonderful neutral color tile will be on the floors. You can enjoy the outdoors even if the weather doesn't corporate with us!

What I LOVE about this space (is everything) and the fact that you can do what you want. Whether that be round tables or long family style tables. You have options with linens and how you want your day to go. Because, the fact is.... it's YOUR day and it should be about you and the celebration of your marriage. So many other facilities have become lost and too much of a drive through. They have this mind set that "this is what we do". Farmington Gardens is not like that. SO flexible and accommodating. AND as many of us ladies know, the bathrooms can be a breaking point. Not here, they are simply gorgeous! Granite counter tops, wall sconces, plenty of room, tile floors and such.

Farmington Gardens offers a private bridal suite for you to dress in along with it's own private bathroom. No detail is overlooked at this venue! They often will host only one event per day, making the that personal feeling even better. Their state of the art kitchen will be offering the most tempting dishes for your guests to enjoy with the on-site chef.

The dinner area seats up to 342 guests and you have the option for round or rectangle tables. The hammered flatware will go beautiful with the white china and silver chavari chairs with black chair cushions. Beautiful hardwood floors will grace you as you enter the foyer area. Guests will be completely in awe! As you walk into the ballroom you are blown away (again) by how beautiful the space is and how big it is. Very pretty but neutral colors are on the walls and in the carpet. What a dramatic presentation! I'm in love!

If you were on the hunt for the most beautiful venue, it's here. I also LOVE that there is a separate area for cocktail hour and your dinner area can be revealed after. As a designer, that is so very important. Give Phillip a call soon to take your personal tour of the venue.

Waterfalls: A Spa on the Farmington River

2011-04-12T17:13:00.000-07:00

By: Jessica Robinson
I feel as though, with everything going on right now, we all need to take time for ourselves. Life is too fast pace and rapidly spinning around us. We need to close the world out for a bit, especially as strong working women and mothers. With such a crazy busy life, I decided a few months ago that I need ME time.

The Axe factory is filled with wonderfully gifted artists, graphic designers, architects, photographers and such. This past winter, Amie Gabriel opened her spa in the factory: Waterfalls: A Spa on the Farmington River. Her spa overlooks the waterfalls that we are blessed to drive over everyday. The factory is going to be going through a revitalization process over the next few years. Bringing a wonderful historic property back to life and showcasing some wonderful artists and shops.

Amie's positive outlook and energy is incredible! Her spa is one of the most relaxing spaces in the building. Wonderful honey color vintage wood floors are beautiful and large windows let you soak in the spectacular views of the river. She offers Swedish massages, organic body scrubs and fabulous facials. Many of the products she has formulated herself.

If you haven't already called her to schedule sometime for yourself, do it now! She's incredibly gifted at what she does and I'm excited to see what services she'll offer next. I feel so very comfortable with Amie and has a sparkling personality. Take some time and enjoy yourself. Have a girls day out, maybe just for a facial or a full-spa day.

Her space makes you transcend into another world. I just had the most amazing sugar scrub facial. Everything she used was completely organic and edible. My skin feels refreshed and rejuvenated! I have to tell you that I'm completely addicted now!! I cannot wait to see what types of treatments Amie offers next!

Well Wed Hamptons feature

2011-04-07T08:12:00.000-07:00

By: Jessica Robinson

If you haven't already picked up a copy of Well Wed, you should! They have several different versions, including Well Wed New York, Well Wed Hamptons, Well Wed Cape Cod and Vermont Vows. ALL are fabulous!

The bouquet from the Farmer's Museum wedding was recently featured in the Well Wed Hamptons Spring/summer 2011 issue. I'm absolutely in LOVE with Well Wed. The magazine features so many wonderful local artists and designers. The features to inspire couples are phenomenal! Colors pop on every single page and every aspect of beautiful shines through in this gorgeous magazine.

Boston Weddings magazine feature

2011-04-06T15:42:00.000-07:00

By: Jessica Robinson

We're SO thrilled we had the opportunity in the fall to travel to Boston for a small shoot for Boston Weddings magazine. Our colors were white and green to pair with beautiful cakes.

See our centerpiece design on the "registry" introduction page. What an honor! We love the simplistic look of the hens and chicks overflowing this gorgeous urn arrangement. Paired with 'super green' roses, white snowberries, kale and garden roses.

Finding the perfect location

2011-04-04T14:32:00.000-07:00

By: Jessica Robinson
The daunting task of finding the perfect local for your wedding could certainly push you over the edge. There are so many different reception venues in the surrounding area and it really can be quite overwhelming. Start by making a "must have" list for the venue. Create your guest list so you'll have a better idea of how many guests you'll have.

Do your research online and schedule tours of the properties on the top of your list. Use your gut instinct, weight your options and compare menus, etc. I find it helpful to know where your friends got married or will be getting married. (you're not going to want to select the same venue as a friend getting married the same time you are) The time of year you marry can certainly help determine your final options. There are so many really unique venues throughout New England and into New York.

(Jamie Collins Photography)
Well Wed magazine has a great selection of some of the very best wedding venues and professionals in the industry. If you need help in finding the perfect venue, contact us. We have years of experience and are always in the search of unique (and new) venues.

Dream Wedding giveaway!

2011-04-01T12:41:00.000-07:00

By: Jessica Robinson
Our company has been featured in numerous magazines and on many wedding blogs. To celebrate the opening our new design studio in Collinsville we thought we'd do something BIG!

(Allegro Photography)

Along with the some of the most sought after wedding professionals. We are THRILLED to announce we are giving away a wedding! We are looking for a couple, planning a 2012 wedding. This giveaway is open to anyone planning a wedding. The sky is the limits.

To enter, simply fill out our contact form and enter "Dream wedding giveaway" in the 'how you heard of us' section, telling us why we should design your wedding. Don't forget to give us ALL the details, including your contact information and information regarding your wedding, such as if a venue has been chosen and any thoughts you might have. Entry deadline is June 15, 2011

Clean Wash Letterpress
Studio Foto
Jessica's Country Flowers
and many more fabulous wedding artists!

and the writing goes on

2011-03-31T18:27:00.000-07:00

By: Jessica Robinson
Who would of ever imagined I would ever write a book?! Then, I got the bright idea to write a second one. Since the first one was so fun and I felt so inspired!

Now that we are settled into a really beautiful design studio in the heart of Collinsville, I feel even more inspired. Just a few little touches to decorate and make it feel warm and cozy, then we're done. I'm thrilled with the space and how it's evolved.

When I started writing the wedding book I never imagined it would be SO hard to publish it. I honestly thought, I'll write this thing and be able to publish it no problem. Then, the economy tanked. Which made the publishing world take a major hit as well. It's a great accomplishment to get a literary agent to represent you. In December, I signed with a new agent to look for a contract for BOTH of the books I wrote. Hours of writing with my fingers happily typing away while the ideas were flowing like the river in Collinsville and two books later. I have weeks of non-stop writing then weeks were I write nothing at all. It's just how the writing/creative process works for me. I've learned to write EVERYTHING down on note pads. Since, usually I'm half asleep when I have the best idea and I will completely forget if I do not write it down!

It took hundreds of query letters to get only about 12 agents to read my manuscript. Which apparently is a huge feat. I have been fortunate enough to have a wonderful literary agent representing me. She is pushing hard for a contract with a major publisher. She's now in talks with several publishing companies.

Since the books will soon be published and I'll be traveling to promote both books we're going to only take on a very limited amount of weddings each year. I want to inspire many couples to have weddings beyond their wildest dreams. Think outside the box and dream big. A wedding should reflect your personal style and be amazing.

The first signs of spring

2011-03-29T10:29:00.000-07:00

By: Jessica Robinson
Most of us are just plain tired of the long winter we've had. We're looking forward to spring, warmer weather and honestly, flip flops. The tulips and daffodils are starting to push their way through the soil and emerge to reach the suns rays.

I LOVE all the spring flowers available this time of year. Such as, ranunculus, peonies, parrot tulips, anemones and sweet peas. So many wonderful spring colors and a touch of sweet fragrance of a new beginning.

There is lots happening right now. First, we have been asked to be a part of a bridal event at Sur La Table (in Canton) on April 9th @ 4-6 pm. It's such a fabulous store filled with kitchenware and your everyday kitchen needs. Now that we've opened our new studio, I'm working on networking with other great designers and companies. Amie, has a great spa down the hall from us. (Waterfalls- A Spa on the Farmington River) She says it's her passion to give women the power to treat themselves to a pampering day. She insists you need time to yourself and that will help you be happier.

I'm happily working on book tour details as well. Coming up with creative ideas to share both of my books with everyone.

New Studio in Collinsville

2011-03-24T14:51:00.000-07:00

By: Jessica Robinson
After months of remodeling and fixing up, we're finally in our new studio! I'm so excited! We're still putting a few personal touches on the space, but we're finally MOVED in. Which feels good. Paperwork is all moved, new computer all hooked up and we're meeting lots of wonderful new couples in the space. Just a few little things to finish, such as hanging up some pictures and maybe a vase of fresh flowers to the table. We are going to install a big flat screen TV on the wall for couples to view the transformations of spaces we've created over the last few years.

There are SO many wonderful artists that fill the studio spaces in the Collinsville Axe Factory. I feel so much peace in this space. It's going to be a great place to write and to work. I'm looking forward to spring and summer on the rails to trails. The trail runs parallel to the Farmington river and looks over the historical buildings that surround the axe factory.

2011 Deserving Couple Weddings

2011-02-06T17:21:00.000-08:00

By: Jessica Robinson

As many of you know, each year our company gives back by a "Deserving Couple" wedding. We network with some pretty fabulous wedding professionals (many industry leaders) to design an over the top wedding for a very lucky couple. We felt we had been so very fortunate in life, in business and were blessed with family and healthy children. It is our way of giving back and best using our talents.

(last season's deserving couple wedding @ The Farmer's Museum in Cooperstown, New York)
Justin Marantz Photography

For 2011 wedding season we're designing THREE deserving couple weddings! (so we are NOT accepting applications for this season, but feel free to apply for 2012 wedding) In 2012, we're opening up the contest BEYOND New England. We'll go anywhere in the United States. However, we'll only be selecting ONE couple!

Deserving wedding #1: Karri & Chris
their vendors:
Sarah Porter Memorial Hall
Emily's Catering Group
Sixpence For Your Shoe
Ryan Designs
Steve Depino Photography
Paper Olive
Cookie Creatives
Sandra Downie Beauty
The Plumed Serpent
Lovely Cakes
Dancing Pen Calligraphy
(No Eye Has Seen Photography will be capturing all of their rehearsal dinner images)

Deserving wedding #2: Anna & Justin
their vendors:
The Webb Barn
Emily's Catering Group
Ryan Designs
Sixpence For Your Shoe
Justin & Mary Marantz Photography
Stonington Paperie
Cookie Creatives
The White Dress by the Shore
Sandra Downie Beauty
Dancing Pen Calligraphy
(No Eye Has Seen Photography will be capturing all of their rehearsal dinner images)

Deserving wedding #3: Christina & Dustin
their vendors:
La Cupola Ristorante & Inn
Chandelier Events
Kelly's Sweet Rewards
AriaDress
Averill Farms
The Litchfield Inn
Stacey Ilyse Photography
The Spa at Litchfield Hills
Lamothe's Sugar House
Bindi Desserts
Sara Faella
Fizz Paperie

We're honored that so many top wedding industry leaders donate their time, products and services! Without them, we couldn't design such incredible deserving couple weddings!

Sending images off for my books

2011-02-06T12:34:00.000-08:00

By: Jessica Robinson

I started writing a wedding book a few years back. All of our clients kept saying "Jessica, you are so knowledgeable on weddings and you need to write a book!" So I started writing notes and every single thought I had down on paper. I'm sending images off to my agent now so editors can preview my work. Writing a book hasn't been easy. In fact quit a daunting task. It's been really fun, but also like riding a roller coaster ride. Up and down, an emotional roller coaster, crying one minute and smiling from cheek to cheek the next.

But, I know that the first time I can walk into Border's and see my book on shelves...the one I wrote, it will be amazing! It has been such an amazing experience and I'm looking forward to seeing both of my books published soon.

We've been so fortunate that our designs have graced the pages of so many magazines! (to mention just a few: Wedding Style New England, Southern New England Weddings, Bride & Bloom, Florists' Review, Boston Weddings, La Bella Bride magazine and Brides' Connecticut) I'm so honored every year that some of those magazines call us each year to design creative table settings and bouquets for their magazines.

The fun part of getting to design new ideas for magazines is we have to think outside the box. They want fresh material to share with their readers. New color trends, new ideas to revitalize weddings and making weddings different. Every client we work with wants something different from the next. Which keeps our job fun. I get to design with garden flowers one week and orchids the next. So fun!

Lots of neat weddings this year and many cool photo shoots. Hopefully they'll inspire you!

Styled photo shoots

2011-02-03T15:02:00.000-08:00

By: Jessica Robinson

My days have been so crazy! Between finishing up the new studio and wrapping up details on my second book. Add to that all of the snow days we've had... they've really slowed everything. We've had an enormous amount of new inquiries for weddings. Which is so wonderful because each is at a different venue and each client's style is so very different. It really keeps us on our toes when we have to think outside the box.

Photo by: Jamie Collins Photography

We're working on a few styled shoots this season. With each shoot, we'll offer couples unique venues and very different styles with designs. One will be at the La Tourelle Resort and Spa, in Ithaca, New York. This absolutely stunning resort offers gorgeous and relaxing suites, some with real fireplaces and all completely luxurious! My husband and I will be taking a weekend getaway at the resort (along with my sketch pad) so we can gather ideas, look at all the spaces and come up with some fabulous design concepts. It's so important as a designer, that we physically see the space and absorb it.

Another with Beth Ann Sweeney Events at the Osborn Castle in New York. She has so many ideas for this shoot and we're looking forward to working with her!

The other shoot will be at the Lace Factory, in Deep River, Connecticut. This wonderful space is raw, with exposed ceilings and. So many great factories are being renovated and revitalized creating very unique spaces to hold your wedding. I love that the space is so raw. Which means that we can create, basically any look you wanted since you start with a blank palette. With exposed beams in the ceiling, that gives us capability of hanging luminaries, lanterns and even creating suspended centerpieces. Big windows add lots of natural light to the space.

We'll also be working on a Farm to Table photo shoot. I'm still searching for the perfect venue for this shoot. I'm thinking one of the farms my parents sell product to. Possibly Rose's Berry Farm. This concept is so neat! Think about where your food comes from. We'll be utilizing foods grown in this area as well as locally grown flowers (some from our farm and other farms).

I'll keep you up to date on which incredible wedding professionals are helping create these shoots!

West Monitor Barn wedding in Vermont

2011-01-29T11:25:00.000-08:00

By: Jessica Robinson

We traveled up to Vermont this past week to do a property tour with one of our clients at The West Monitor Barn. It's this wonderful raw space, with enormous wood beams and just a wonderful blank area. The beautifully restored barn is incredible!! It's by far, one of my personal favorite venues.

Located in Richmond, Vermont, the West Monitor Barn is a rustically beautiful venue for small meetings, large events, and weddings. The interior is both spacious and cozy at the same time with rough-hewn lumber, carriage barn lamps, and the character of a traditional dairy barn.

It is a very unique Vermont venue. All proceeds from renting the West Monitor Barn go towards funding Vermont Youth Conservation Corps (VYCC) programs, which employ over 300 young people to work on high-priority conservation and education projects across the state of Vermont each year.

If you can visualize this:
There are three sections to the barn. Ryan designs will be draping organic fabric over the doorway and to the floor. That will set the entrance as the doors are opened after cocktail hour to a glorious reception reviled. They are going to hang a collection of rod iron chandeliers down the center of the barn, along with organic fabric draped. They'll be an exclectic mix of chandeliers clustered over the dance floor to break up the space a bit. Ryan Designs will be also designing fabulous lounge areas (both outside and inside) for guests to mingle and enjoy. Erik Ryan, of Ryan designs has a GORGEOUS custom built farmhouse style table that we'll be setting up outside to serve guests some sort of refreshment after their ceremony overlooking the hills of Vermont. (under a custom built reclaimed barn wood canopy that we'll be building, which will be draped with flowing organic fabric and a few touches of flowers)

The guests will be seated at long, family style reception tables. Down the two sides, we're going to suspend old wood barn boards/planks from the rafters of the barn. We'll be screwing in the lids to jelly jars and having an array of glass jars hanging from the bottom of those boards. In addition to that, with all of the glow of flickering candles we'll be tying on little bottles (all uniform) with natural twine and garden rose blooms of reds, raspberry and magenta. A huge pop of color suspended from the beams of the barn. The place is going to be incredibly dressed to impress!

The tables will be dressed with linens from BBJ Linens and lots of little touches of color with flowers. The main colors are raspberry, reds and magenta. Their menu is going to be built off the Farm to Table concept. With as much food being produced locally as possible. This same theme will go into their out of town guest boxes. Natural, brown kraft boxes will be filled with pure maple syrup, locally produced honey, Vermont made wooden spoons and so much more. Carrying the same sense of local home with every guest that comes from afar.

We'll also be lining the ledge of the barn with battery operated pillar candles for even more romantic glow. Ryan Designs has so many wonderful fabric treatments to choose from, throw pillows, custom designed chandeliers and so much more that they can add to your event.

I'm thankful that we have the opportunity to design so many fabulous events and that each of them are unique. We're looking forward to weddings in the city this year (both Boston and New York) and all over. Each wedding being as personal as the client we create them for!

GIVEAWAY! gift card towards custom invitations

2011-01-18T14:05:00.000-08:00

By: Jessica Robinson

Praez Occasions is located in Hamden, Connecticut. Her invitations are stunning! Simply works of art. Her bubbly personality brings sunshine into anyone's day.

Praez Occasions giving away $100 gift certificate towards any invitation order! Simply leave your comments below about what you would like for invitations and one lucky winner will be chosen at random to receive a gift certificate! (we'll announce the winner on our blog this Friday!)

We did an interview with her recently and asked a few questions.

How long have you been in business?

Our parent company, Praez Media Group, has been in the professional graphic design and printing industry since 2003. We began making couture stationery by demand in 2005.

What should clients know about custom invites?

The most important thing we can convey is that there is a big difference between truly custom invitations and customized invitations. There are a lot of companies that offer customized invitations - and that can range from catalog or internet order companies to high end lines that are templates for mass distribution. These type of invitations can only be customized with the client's names and event information, color scheme and limited design accents. A truly custom design is built from the ground up, with individually designed graphics suited to the client's specifications, no templates involved. These services are highly specialized and entail the services of a graphic design professional. And our designs are then handcrafted with handpicked embellishing accents tailored to the client's design theme. The two are simply not the same.

What information would you share with perspective clients that would help make the process a bit easier?

Know that this is a process, so you need to start early and be ready with as much information as possible to share your preferences and design wish list with your designer. We're inspired by everything, so the more information you feed us, the better!

What inspires your designs?

We commonly look to the venue, decor selections, design/style of attire, florals, and personality of the couple for our design inspiration. We always ask if there are any unique or whimsical details or interesting facts that we could possibly weave into the design, as well. The end result is a design unique to that client with gorgeous appointments that can be anything from pearls to peacock feathers.

New Studio in Collinsville-update

2011-01-11T16:26:00.000-08:00

By: Jessica Robinson

We've been working hard on our new studio space in Collinsville, Connecticut. It's nearly complete and looks amazing!! I'm SO excited to say we'll be moving in very soon to meet with our clients and new perspective new clients.

The new studio is situated in the old Collinsville Axe Factory. It's currently in a revitalization process. Come the end of January, there's a new space that will be available down the hall from us (a gorgeous, spacious 2,500 square feet studio/office space. It has 19th century hardwood floors, incredible views, 12-foot tall ceilings, brick and sheet rocked walls with pendant lights). The old factory is filled with talented artists, photographers and such! Collinsville is a trendy, up and coming spot.

Home Depot must love us! I swear, we've spent a small fortune there in new supplies, paint and new tools to complete the project!! We've cleaned windows from early 1900's, painted walls, trim and hung beautiful pendant lights which go perfectly with the old character of the original building. I've been hunting down great furniture finds for our new space too! I found a buffet on craigslist.com for $50 and a GORGEOUS desk at Used Furniture of Canton. I have to say, I had never been there... always drove by it, saw the store advertised on TV a few times and still never stopped. I FINALLY made the time today. What amazing finds they have!! I was impressed with how clean the furniture was, the selection and the prices were SO reasonable. I had the initial thought that the prices would be too much, but they were not!! As we get the studio together, I think I'll go back for a few more pieces to make the studio perfect!!

(These images were taken by: Jamie Collins Photography)

Just a few little touches (molding over the door to the studio, painting window molding in the hallway, baseboard molding and hanging the chandelier from our current space) and we're done!! I'm SO excited about the move and the transition to this new area. The town is bursting with trades people, artists and so much more! I hope you'll join us for a cup of coffee or lunch soon! I'll try and post new photos next week so you can see all the wonderful progress we've made.

Recap of 2010

2011-01-03T15:49:00.000-08:00

By: Jessica Robinson

We were so very fortunate this past season to design weddings far beyond Connecticut. We traveled in August to Cooperstown, New York to design Caitlin and Mike's wedding. You could find us in Boston about eight times last season. (We LOVE Boston!) We are so very grateful for all the personal connections we make with our clients who become close friends.

As many of you know, each year our company designs and coordinates several "Deserving Couple" weddings. We've felt that over the years we've been so very fortunate to have earn a wonderful name in the wedding business and had so many incredible opportunities. Each year we design a wedding (at no charge to the client) for a couple struggling financially, yet still giving back to their community. It's just our little way of giving back. What started out in 2008 as just a photographer and our company donating their services has rolled into this HUGE wedding! Our company along with a superb group of wedding professionals all work closely together to design and create a wedding out of dreams for one very lucky couple. (we designed three deserving couples in 2010 and will be designing three in 2011)

Caitlin and Mike- The Farmer's Museum (photos by: Justin & Mary Marantz)

Anna and Matt- The Barns at Wesleyan Hills
(Photos to come soon by: Raw Photo Design)

Lindsay and Alex- The Fairmont Hotel (photos by Allegro Photography)

In 2011, we have three deserving couples.
Anna and Justin at The Webb Barn along with:

Jessica's Country Flowers

Justin & Mary Marantz

Details Wedding & Party Planning

Stonington Paperie

Lovely Cakes

The White Dress by the Shore and designer Modern Trousseau

Dancing Pen Calligraphy

Karri and Chris at Wesleyan Chapel then reception following at Sarah Porter Memorial Hall:

Jessica's Country Flowers

Steve Depino Photography

Sixpence For Your Shoe

Paper Olive

Toria Dolce Fine Desserts

The Plumed Serpent

Dancing Pen Calligraphy

Christina and Dustin at La Cupola Ristorante & Inn

Jessica's Country Flowers

Chandelier Events

Sara Faella

AriaDress

The Spa at Litchfield Hills

Lamothe's Sugar House

Stacey Ilyse Photography
Fizz Paperie

For 2012 we have big things planned!! We'll be announcing all of the details very soon. Stay tuned for some very exciting news! We always LOVE to hear your comments... so bring 'em on!

Planning ahead

2010-12-28T14:51:00.000-08:00

By: Jessica Robinson

I've always been a planner. I have an excellent memory. I pretty much can recall every inquiry, the details of that wedding and can tell you from looking at photos the names of our clients and where their wedding was. Details are so important to us, which is probably why we are so good at what we do!

When planning a wedding, it's a good idea to plan ahead. Know that during certain times of the year (i.e. Mother's day, May and June, fourth of July weekend, September and November we are crazy busy) dates fill quickly. Because we only book one or two major events per weekend and we strive to give our clients the utmost perfection as well as elite customer service. So, call ahead and schedule a consultation with us to at least discuss the initial ideas. Even if you don't have a clue of what you want, we'll help you figure it all out!

We've been swamped with new inquiries over the last few weeks. I think as the new year approaches everyone starts to think wedding again. They are ready to spring clean, take the tree down and get everything in order for their wedding. I LOVE meeting new couples and having to be challenged to come up with fresh design concepts. It keeps me on my toes! I'm thankful that each weekend is something different. That we're NOT designing the same cookie cutter wedding every weekend! I LOVE that each wedding is a true representation of each amazing couple we get to work with!

(above photos by JCF & Jamie Collins Photography)

A few great questions to ask any wedding floral designer:
How many events do you design per weekend?
Do they exclusively design for weddings and events?
Do they design holiday arrangements?
How many years have you been in business?
Do they have reviews you can see from past clients? (ask for references)
Do you have business insurance?
How many times can you meet with them prior to the wedding?
Will they design samples of your bouquet and centerpiece/table setting? **Is that an additional charge?
What happens if you (the designer) gets sick or is unable to design the wedding?
What types of flowers are available at the time I'm getting married?
Will the designer deliver and set up on the day of your wedding?
Is there an additional fee for delivery and set up?

**I also find it's helpful that you understand the difference between an event floral designer vs. the traditional florist. An event floral designer is someone who specializes exclusively in weddings. They have tremendous experience with weddings and situations that can happen with designing wedding flowers. Because they are exclusively designing for weddings/events, they many times have more time to devote to you as a client and know other fabulous wedding professionals. Many times an event floral designer is by appointment only and is more flexible for meeting times. We, as event floral designers have access to more containers, fancy ribbons and unique rental items. We can custom create pretty much anything. You might pay a little more (for their years of experience, customer service and so on), but the fact that you won't have to worry about a single thing is well worth every little penny!

A traditional florist, designs everyday flowers, fruit baskets, funeral flowers, has walk in clients and cash and carry customers. Their time is focused on everyday happenings of a busy floral shop. They don't design exclusively for weddings, so they probably haven't designed as many weddings as an event floral designer. If your wedding falls during a busy time of year, it might get lost amongst the hustle of the rest of the business. I've found over the years, clients have told us they inquired with their local florist, but after learning they design 8-10 weddings a weekend they got really worried. What are the chances that you'll get the correct flowers you ordered?

I usually recommend you meet with three different companies. Compare their pricing, how you click with the designer (it's a working relationship, you need to be happy with who you work with), see which one offers the most creative ideas. Remember, compare apples to apples. It's hard to go strictly by pricing, since it's all custom work and you are paying for more than just flowers. But, remember to compare an event designer to another event designer, not an event designer to an everyday florist. There is simply no comparison.

How the creative process works

2010-12-17T08:34:00.000-08:00

By: Jessica Robinson

Each day our lives are surrounded and emerged with love and passion for what we do. Which really is the cool part, because we don't really have a job....we do what we love.

Just last night, I couldn't sleep because I was thinking about a new store possibility with the release of one of my books. I'm constantly thinking outside the box and my wheels in my mind are turning endlessly. One of my books is a book about New England farms and it's filled with heirloom recipes from both of our families. It's such a wonderful book, I'm sure many people would love it as an addition to their kitchen. So sometimes, I wake up in the middle of the night and feel a great sense of urge to pick up my laptop and write, search google and so on.

I keep note pads on my night stand, in the kitchen and on our coffee table, just waiting for that creative thought that I just HAVE to write down. I come up with new table designs by looking at fashion, the great outdoors and random things in our world. Snow gracefully falling onto the ground from the great sky above gives me a sense of wonderfully decorated winter wonderland tables, candles glowing and fireplaces crackling. With each different season (thankfully we live in New England) there are wonderful changes.

I hope that the new year brings blessings to all. We are grateful for all of our past clients and all the future clients we work with. I hope we will inspire you to create something fabulous for your wedding, a great dinner party or any family gathering. Simplicity or over the top, we love it all!

Christmas notes

2010-12-14T14:25:00.000-08:00

By: Jessica Robinson

With Christmas right around the corner, lots of us are busy decorating our homes with Christmas trees and other holiday decor to create a festive feeling. There are a few simple tips for making the most out of your holiday decorating.

First, in our family we always get a real tree from a local grower. AND, it's an absolute must that we head out together as a family to go and select a real tree and cut our own. Check out the Connecticut Christmas tree growers association web site to find a tree farm in your area. A few of my personal favorites are Dzen's in South Windsor, Karabin Farms in Southington, Steadman's on South East Road in New Hartford and Jone's Family Farm in Shelton. Of course, I'm a little overly picky about what our tree looks like. I want it to be full, lush and extremely fresh...plus trimmed just right.

The difference between going to cut your own and getting a "pre-cut" tree are undeniable. When you get a pre-cut tree, they are generally harvested in October up north (Vermont or Canada) and shipped to your area garden centers, etc. The problem is that they were harvested so long ago and many times just not fresh. There is nothing quite like a fresh tree, you searched for and cut down yourselves. Some of my personal favorites varieties are Balsam fir, White and Blue spruce and Frasier fir. Look for a tree that has great green (or grayish blue color for blue spruce) color, not loosing pine needles and with a straight trunk. (that will help tremendously when putting it up in the tree stand) You'll want to cut it as close to the ground as you can, as to not leave too much of a stump behind. Bring the tree home, make a fresh cut and put it in the tree stand.

Trees soak up a TON of water the first three to four days. It's imperative that you keep watering the tree to keep it as fresh as possible. Usually twice a day for the first three to four days. If your tree stand dries up, the tree will form a seal and not be able to absorb anymore water. The fresher you keep the tree, the nicer it will look and the less it will pose a fire hazard.

Now, when decorating I put the lights on, starting from the bottom and working my way up. We prefer the old-fashioned style C7 lights. They produce a little more heat and make my vintage spinner ornaments spin properly. (find them on Ebay and be sure to check out Etsy for some great handmade ornaments and vintage finds as well!) When you attach your lights, I find it gives you more depth if you weave the light strands in and out. Meaning, you put a light on a branch inside the tree and work outwards, then repeat. Same applies with the ornaments. I hang heavier ornaments inside the tree, where the branches tend to be thicker and able to withstand more weight.

Pick up some loose greens at those same farms and fill your flower pots on your porch with fresh evergreens. I usually put them on our mantle as well in a large oasis piece (ask your local florist if you can buy a casket saddle with oasis) Sounds awful, but really works wonderful... then I simply decorate with a ton of wonderful picked pine cones and add some lush red roses the week of Christmas.

Beautiful Stationery

2010-12-13T11:22:00.000-08:00

With your wedding the beginning presentation of yourselves to your invited guests is represented in the invites you send out. I am completely in Love these days with letterpress invites and all things letterpress. It's a really old style type of printing that has come back in popularity with a bang!

Richie Designs offers custom designed invitations and other stationery products for everyone's unique tastes. Their designs are trendy and simply beautiful.

Clean Wash Letterpress creates the most beautiful of stationery, business cards and invitations. Her designs are absolutely stunning and impressive.

Right in Connecticut you have Stonington Paperie and Chocolate Creative Designs. Both will design and create something spectacular for your wedding invitations, Save the dates and every aspect or detail for your wedding (such as favor tags, escort cards, etc.)

New Studio in Collinsville

2010-12-10T12:29:00.000-08:00

The new studio is still in progress, but coming along very nicely! I still need to shop for some silk drapes and a few extra touches. Of course, we'll need to clean up after the contractors are done and bring in the furniture. I'm so excited about the new studio, the move and the new life this will bring our company. So many new things planned! But for now, I'd thought I'd share the sneak peek at the studio after the new lights got hung. The studio has three large windows which fill the space with LOTS of natural sunlight. We're right in the heart of Collinsville, in the old Axe factory which is in a revitalization process right now. (the owner hopes to renovate many of the exterior buildings into cute little shops)

Farmer's Museum wedding- Part two

2010-12-08T13:47:00.000-08:00

By: Jessica Robinson

Caitlin had a really great inspiration board she had created for us. From that we designed many just gathered looks. I used old aluminum sap buckets from my parent's sugar house to showcase some antique purple hydrangea I picked out of my gardens at 4:30 am the morning of the wedding. For her centerpieces we created three different looks. One was in wooden crates, lined with sheet moss and overflowing with seasonal flowers. The other were a chocolate footed metal urns filled with antique hydrangea, garden spray roses and locally grown flowers. For a simple look, we gathered bright pink and purple salvia, fresh mint, fresh sage leaves and garden roses in various sized mason jars. Then, clustered them together on the tables. The smell of fresh herbs is intense and wonderful for a summery wedding.

The bride carried a hand-tied bouquet of white dahlias, patience garden roses, locally grown millet and wrapped with wide ivory satin ribbon. The groom's boutonniere was a simple dahlia bloom wrapped with a touch of natural twine. The bridesmaids carried a garden mix of purple statice, purple dahlias, creme de la creme roses and garden spray roses. Each was wrapped with a fancy chocolate ribbon with copper sequins, then vintage rhinestone buttons for added detail.

Salvia and fresh mint (from First Bloom Farm) was so pungent with aroma. Really a great choice for this particular wedding.

We created a "family tree" with manzanita branches in tall cylinder vases and purple mokara orchids. The bride created her own DIY escort cards of flower seeds in envelopes. We strung natural twine from the two trees and then hung each escort card with a wooden clothes pin. (pick up the clothes pins at Walmart for $1.39 for 50 clothes pins) Natural twine can be found at your local Home Depot or hardware store. We dressed the escort card table with chocolate color burlap (JoAnn Fabrics $2.99/yard).

Farmer's Museum wedding- Part one

2010-12-07T14:18:00.000-08:00

By: Jessica Robinson

This past August we traveled to Cooperstown, New York to design a wedding for Caitlin and Mike. Along with an incredible group of wedding professionals (some of the very best in the industry) we created magic.

DETAILS:
Caitlin and Mike applied for our deserving couple contest back in 2009. They were going through some family issues and struggling financially. Mike was leaving his job to go back to school full time and they were living off of one income. They are such a loving couple, devoted to their family and to each other. We couldn't of selected a more grateful and truly deserving couple.

The setting: The Farmer's Museum in Cooperstown, New York. They were married in the chapel on the grounds, Cornwallville Church. Then the reception following in the barn at the museum. The Farmer's Museum is a spectacular venue that has deep roots in New York State's rural history. The museum is set on 120 acres of pristine farm land which has been a working farm since the 1790's. The Farmer's Museum is a private, non-profit educational organization.

Since many guests were traveling, we created cute out of town guest bags. We filled natural burlap bags with tissue paper, then added raspberry rhubarb jam from Lamothe's Sugar House, bottled water, Crunch and munch, rasinettes and lavender oatmeal soap from Goat Boy soaps. I picked up prepackaged "thank you" notes at Walmart (less than $2 for 10 cards) and attached them to the handle of each bag with a wooden clothes pin.

Along with Jennifer from Cookie Creatives, we created a really awesome candy station. She hand made caramel/chocolate popcorn, sea salt caramels, homemade marshmallows, chocolate dipped pretzel rods and three different kinds of chocolate bars. We added maple lollipops and maple salt water taffy from the sugar house to the display. I also made my parents famous Maple farmhouse chocolate chip cookies and placed them in jars for guests to help themselves to. (which by the way, I developed the recipe for!) I had picked up large pickle jars with wooden lids at Ocean State Job Lot for $5 each. The other glass jars came from Walmart (or you can get them at Target) for $10-12 each. Jennifer also hand decorated sugar cookies with the couples monogram on and flowers. We displayed those in vintage wooden trays amongst all the candy jars. I picked up wooden tongs and metal scoops at Walmart.

For a little candlelight romance, the staff at the Farmer's Museum helped us hang green oxidized metal lanterns with real candles. We used thin copper wire to hang them from little eye hooks that were already in the wood beams. Since the ceilings were so tall, it helped to break up the space and add some drama.

Vendors who donated their products and/or services:
Jessica's Country Flowers (event coordination and floral design)
Justin & Mary Marantz
Cookie Creatives by Jennifer
The White Dress by the Shore and designer Modern Trousseau
ABC Cakes
Lamothe's Sugar House
Goat Boy Soaps
Hartford Florist Supply
First Bloom Farm

December is upon us

2010-11-30T13:54:00.000-08:00

By: Jessica Robinson

December brings cold, glistening snow falling from the New England sky and family time. I love this time of year! Almost every night, I haul in firewood from out back and enjoy some quiet time near the warm glow of the fireplace.

Right now, I'm working on making my proposal for The New England Kitchen perfect in order for it to be shown to publishers. It's a wonderful book filled with heirloom recipes from our families and many recipes created right in our own kitchen. Writing a book is a huge task! I decided to write the wedding book first, then had this bright idea (with Scott's help) to write the kitchen book. So with the winter, we have less weddings and I have more time to write. I love being completely lost in my thoughts, with my toes in cozy fuzzy socks resting on the coffee table and the fireplace a glow. I write at night, so my day is filled with the normal tasks of the business. Of course, right now... we've been fixing walls, getting ready to paint and trying to get electricians to hang chandeliers, etc. at the new studio space. More to come soon!

Caramel Chocolate apples

2010-11-28T17:40:00.000-08:00

By: Jessica Robinson

Every winter we dip hundreds of granny smith apples into homemade caramel and then dark chocolate. While the chocolate is still wet we roll some of them into toasted coconut and even add a few M&M's. I love adding a little detail with white chocolate drizzled all over them. Not only are they made from the heart they are absolutely delicious! Every ingredient in our apples is natural goodness, no preservatives and nothing artificial.

We start by making a huge batch of homemade caramel. Then, dipping hundreds of apples into the caramel. While the caramel sets the chocolate temper machine is melting and stirring dark chocolate into sweet heaven. My mother usually sends over a tray of pure maple candies for me to dip into the chocolate as well. Luckily, the Snyders pretzel rep lives right around the corner from us and is always willing to drop off pretzels to dip. (I love the taste of salty and sweet) If you're looking for the perfect holiday gift, people are really going to enjoy order them from us.

Real wedding at the Fairmont Hotel, Boston, MA

2010-11-16T18:59:00.000-08:00

Back in October we had the pleasure of designing Lindsay and Alex's wedding. The day could not of been more perfect. I am absolutely in LOVE with Boston. It's like breathing in the clear ocean breezes, you just soak in the surroundings and fall in love. Head over heels.

Over the years, I've developed a taste for the finest things in the wedding industry. My designs are only as good as the photographer who captures the creativity. Allegro Photography completely BLEW me away with the images they took of the wedding! I couldn't stop looking at the images, just soaking in all the fabulous details they captured (and we designed)! Take a look at the wedding.

The Fairmont Hotel is a stunning location. Rich with history and architectural beauty. Fizz Paperie created their invitations and they could not have been more beautiful. Real wood. How different and so very original. I'm looking forward to showing you more of the details to this wedding!

Wedding in Vermont

2010-11-16T15:47:00.000-08:00

We've been lucky enough to have the opportunity to design weddings far beyond Connecticut. I love Connecticut, but traveling is SO much fun and gives us the chance to think outside the box even more (with a new venue and location).

Next summer we're heading to Vermont to design a really, just plain cool wedding! The location: The West Monitor Barn. The colors: Red, magenta and deep raspberry. Very vibrant colors to make a splash that really strikes a statement! We'll be hanging tons of flower blooms from the rafters in glass bottles. These are some of the inspirations the bride gave to us. I'm really happy to be working with Ryan Designs and cannot wait to see what kind of lighting they come up with! Their company makes all sorts of custom lounge pieces, farmhouse style tables and the most incredibly gorgeous chandeliers anyone's ever laid eyes on! All of the details will be photographed by Craig Paulson Photography out of New York City.

Since nearly all of the guests are from out of town, we'll be making up some pretty fabulous out of town guest boxes. Brown kraft boxes filled overflowing with made in Vermont and New England goodies and tied up with a red/white thin string with a 'thank you' tag. Goodies include treats from the sugar house and maybe some Vermont made wooden spoons or something. I'm surely going to check out the Newfane Country Store for some inspiration and local fare.

Cooperstown, New York wedding

2010-11-16T06:20:00.000-08:00

In August our design team headed up to the Farmer's Museum in Cooperstown, New York to design Caitlin and Mike's wedding. (They are one of our 2010 deserving couple winners) The Farmer's Museum is an absolutely stunning property!

Caitlin was extremely lucky to get a stunning wedding gown from The White Dress by the Shore and Modern Trousseau. What can I say.... except that the gown raised the bar for the look and feel of the wedding!

I believe that your guests should be wowed as they enter your reception with a great entrance piece. Which is usually the escort card table/display or a wonderful hors d'oeuvre table. (or both)

We hung green oxidized metal lanterns from the earthy wood beams of the barn for her reception and lots of candles to her tables. Low centerpieces, were overflowing with lavender dahlias, mini green hydrangea, 'cool water' roses, 'super green' cabbage roses and unripe raspberries. We used several different containers, which included rustic wooden crates with moss sides and lovely footed chocolate/bronze color metal urn. Mason jars of fresh mint and colorful summer blooms were abundant. Sweet sophistication and romance will fill this wedding!

ABC cakes designed a great cake for the couple. We are teamed up with Cookie creatives to create a fabulous candy station with touches of vintage charm and candies handmade right in New England (including rock candy and fruit slices). I stopped by Ocean State Job Lot for some incredible glass jars with wooden tops for displaying the candies. (they have wonderful bargains on things like that!) Honestly, it's kind of hit or miss.... so I tend to stop a few times a week when I'm in the search for something. I also picked up a few rolls of natural twine. (to twist around the stems of bouquets and adding that touch of country rustic charm to boutonnieres)

I'm completely in LOVE with all the details of this wedding! We are so very fortunate that Justin and Mary Marantz will be capturing every little gorgeous detail.

She along with a friend designed a simple and very pretty wedding invitation. With deep sky blue writing and flower motif at the bottom... I'm in love! She's going to create DIY menu cards to match that will be tucked into every guests napkin.

The wedding was featured on Style Me Pretty. Take a look at the FABULOUS images Justin & Mary captured of the entire event! Cooperstown, NY wedding at the Farmer's Museum.

Bouquet ideas

2010-11-10T11:45:00.000-08:00

By: Jessica Robinson
It's always nice to see a bride carrying a really stunning bouquet! The attention will be on you as you glide down the aisle to the love of your life.

(Steve Depino Photography)

Remember, when selecting what type of flowers and the color of the bouquet make sure your floral designer has a photo of your gown. That will help them determine what to recommend to you for flowers. If you have a gorgeous and very elaborate ball gown, lots of detailing... you may want to consider a simplistic bouquet. Look through images online and in magazines, but give some creative freedom to your florist. They'll be able to recommend the appropriate types of flowers and colors for the season.

Even if you absolutely LOVE peonies or tulips and we can ship them from Holland for your July wedding. As a designer, I might suggest we move in another direction based on the possibility of the weather being SO hot. Incorporating herbs and seasonal berries is a great idea. This will add texture and a little hint of sweet smells. We certainly don't want you to carry something that is too over powering with smells either.

Detail, detail, detail... on the stems of your bouquet. I love to accent the stems of a bouquet with pearls, rhinestones, French knots, twisted wire or other creative ideas to add interest. Even a piece of your mother's gown for something old. Search on Ebay, Etsy or in consignment shops for vintage jewelry to add to the stems of your bouquet.

Weekend of events

2010-11-08T16:21:00.000-08:00

This weekend we had the absolute pleasure to have met one of our clients for October 2011. They are planning a wedding at La Cupola Ristorante & Inn in Litchfield, Connecticut. Christina & Dustin are amazing and so sweet!! La Cupola has four very intimate suites, so we were all able to stay. It's like you become a family member to Frank and the staff at La Cupola when you become a client. (Scott and I have been close friends with him for over 10 years now!)

Gayle joined us from AriaDress and brought the most lovely gowns for the bride to try on. That was SO fun! How fun is it to try on a wedding gown and realize it's actually happening! Amy from Chandelier Events joined us on Saturday to discuss all of the decor ideas, from the invitations to the flowers and beyond! Amy is just fabulous and has worked in the wedding industry for many years. We put our heads together to come up with some really pretty decor ideas. With the layout of La Cupola, we'll be inviting guests for cocktail hour downstairs then dinner upstairs (which is really different, since La Cupola's dining room has booths) and family style tables in the center of the room. After a really tasty lunch at La Cupola we shared some cupcakes of possible cake flavors from Kelly's Sweet Rewards. One of my favorites was her red velvet cakes with cream cheese frosting. Oh my goodness! Just divine!

We'll be adding a pop of color with orange mokara orchid and milva rose centerpieces. Lots of warmth will fill the dining room with beeswax candles. A touch of rustic New England will be added by using old barn boards down the length of each booth table. The dinner that we tasted at La Cupola was incredible! You do not find reception venues like this often. Such hospitality, phenomenal food and wonderful wines. We had the opportunity to do a wine tasting at Sunset Meadow Vineyards. It was really fun and their wines are wonderful! We're hoping to serve their wines for Christina and Dustin's wedding (what better thing to offer to your guests than something locally produced!)

For their guests attending, we'll be putting together some pretty amazing out of town guest bags. They'll be filled with all sorts of local goodies and maps of area attractions. We'll probably include one of the cookie mixes from Lamothe's Sugar House. It's a really nice touch for an added thank you for making the trip for your wedding (especially when the guests are coming so far as their guests). Along with the help of Amy from Chandelier Events, we'll be putting together a really yummy candy station (filled with handmade chocolates, caramel/chocolate apples and many wonderful treats!) We are really looking forward to this couple's wedding, which includes a romantic outdoor ceremony overlooking the pond. Purely romantic in New England!

La Cupola Ristorante & Inn (Deserving Couple)

2010-10-27T15:02:00.000-07:00

As November approaches I am so happy that Christina and Dustin are joining us in Connecticut to discuss the details for their October 2011 wedding. They are one of our very deserving couples for 2011. The wedding ceremony and reception will be held at La Cupola Ristorante & Inn. This really cute and romantic Italian villa set into the rolling hills of Litchfield, Connecticut.

Amy from Chandelier Events will be teaming up with us to design one simply gorgeous New England wedding that the couple is sure to remember for quite some time! We're overly thrilled that Christina and Dustin are able to make the trip to Connecticut for a long weekend of exciting plans and a little relaxation. So many of their wonderfully talented vendors are also making the trip to Connecticut. AriaDress has graciously donated a gown for the bride as well as very trendy bridesmaids gowns. LOVE their dresses! Stacey Ilyse Photography will be capturing all of the wonderful details of this couples wedding. (and believe me there are going to be a TON of jaw dropping details!) Sara Faella has offered to take care of the bride's hair (as well as a couture hair piece for her) and make-up and she'll be enjoying a spa day at The Spa at Litchfield Hills the day before her wedding! Fizz Paperie will be custom creating all of the couple's stationery pieces for the wedding. Jillian's work is to die for!

During this weekend we'll be discussing the overall design concept for their wedding, tasting the mouth watering menu and sampling scrumptious cake selections from Kelly's Sweet Rewards. I'm so excited for everyone to meet and to meet the couple (finally) in person and for them to get the chance to meet the incredible team of wedding professionals that are helping create their wedding!

Two of my favorite seasons

2010-10-25T12:13:00.000-07:00

When we initially planned our wedding, we selected September 2001. Then for family reasons we moved the date to June 2002. I've always believed that everything in our lives happens for a reason. Whether it is to test us as a couple or to make us stronger individuals, everything has it's purpose. I remember September 11th weekend clearly. Because of the horrible attack on New York of the twin towers and the whole country mourning. With planes grounded we had to use what ever was already in the wholesaler's coolers. Nothing was able to fly in. Faith and a little improvising helped us to create a beautiful wedding that weekend. I guess God had a reason to guide us to the spring of the following year.

Two of my absolute favorite seasons are fall and winter. I love the harvest and the celebration of those two seasons. The reflection of us as a couple is strong within the comforts of home and things that we love. Growing up on a farm, where we grew our own vegetables, canned tomato sauce and made many things by hand we're quite crafty people. Which (thankfully to my grandmother) who gave me a little guidance with this whole floral design thing I've been able to create wonders of joy for many couples. Which ever the season you choose to be married, let it be a time that has a personal connection to you both. Everyone in your family (if they are anything like my family) will have their opinions about when and where. It's important to take them into consideration, but not to let them make the ultimate decision for you since it's your wedding, not theirs.
Fall is a glorious collection of harvest season, colors of Mother nature and a celebration of life. Twigs, pine cones, cinnamon sticks and evergreens are abundant during winter. Simplistic vases filled with cranberries, water and floating candles can add that pop of color to your reception.

Family style tables are a trendy new way to entertain at your reception. Guests can enjoy conversations in a way you'll never be able to at a traditional round table. For a gorgeous look that everyone will enjoy you can line the center of the table with sparkling glass cylinder vases (in various sizes/heights) simply filled with fruits and vegetables. Of course, along with a ton of candle light and more touches of fruits/veggies on the table as well. Because the more candles the more intimate and romantic atmosphere you'll create. Glass can be a modern way to add life and interest to your reception tables. Depending on the season and your color palette, there are a ton of options including gourds, mini pumpkins (either white or orange), fancy eggplants, mini pears, limequats, kumquats, lady gala apples or even loose grains. Add a few glass bud vases or vintage glasses with single blooms of garden roses or fresh herbs for fabulous fragrance and wonderful texture.

Real wedding at Simsbury Inn

2010-10-25T07:54:00.000-07:00

By: Jessica Robinson

This pretty summer wedding was at Ethel Walker Chapel in Simsbury, Connecticut and reception following at the Simsbury Inn. Two absolutely stunning locations. The chapel is simplistic and very elegant. Beautiful white woodwork and creamy color walls, incredible windows letting natural sunlight in and big chapel doors.

I used pink carnations for spheres on every other pew for a really pretty decoration to the aisle. Carnations can be a really inexpensive, yet dramatic way to decorate church doors, pew ends or even your escort table. They are colorful, fluffy and when crafted together into spheres, wreaths or covering an entire table can make stunning decor. For long family style tables we create a snake of sorts (completely out of roses or carnations), that weaves amongst the candles and glassware. Simplistic yet completely overwhelming and absolutely stunning!

Sweet senstations

2010-10-24T17:09:00.000-07:00

Fall can be one of the most very romantic seasons in New England to get married. Mother nature gives us her treasures of the growths of summer. Colors are stunning during the fall and the smells amazing. The weather can be perfect for an outdoor ceremony. This wedding was at Jonathan Edwards Winery in North Stonington, Connecticut. It's a gorgeous winery that has fields of vineyards flowing the rich earthy hills. Their are plentiful wineries and vineyards throughout New England and beyond where you can host your wedding. During fall, it's the perfect place to celebrate the juicy harvest.

Personally, I love unique venues such as your favorite winery or empty barn. It's the character of the natural surroundings that make it so very special and surely, an evening to remember. When you walk into the venue you'll ultimately select to host your wedding it's an emotional feeling that just takes over all of your senses. For me, I truly believe that everything in life has it's purpose and things are meant to be. I strongly believe that your wedding is a reflection of your personality and therefore should be an event you are comfortable with.

Now that wedding season is coming to an end we'll be busy crafting ideas for fabulous photo shoots for the new upcoming year and trendy weddings that will truly inspire you. I absolutely love when a new client comes in and makes my mind spin out of control. It it about creating a look you've never created before to make guests heads turn and create a wedding into a stunning transformation of beauty.

Seasonal flowers

2010-10-20T11:34:00.000-07:00

When you select your wedding date and have the initial details nailed down, think about your decor. If decor is really important to you be inspired by the season you've selected. Personally, I feel that sometimes having a design concept that is simplistic can be utterly pretty. Know that by selecting seasonal flowers (and letting your floral designer help you with suggestions/decor ideas) you'll get much more bang for the buck!

For a spring wedding I love the idea of low cylinder vases filled with an abundance of tulips. Just tulips, maybe a great green leaf wrapped inside the vase or some thin twigs twisted around the perimeter of the vase. (which adds a little extra touch of detail) The more candles the better. Beeswax or soy candles are a great choice. But, keep in mind they are more money than the traditional paraffin wax candle. Manzanita branches in vases add height to any wedding reception with tall ceilings. Hanging luminaries and depending on the particular season, crystals, leaves or other adornments.

Summer blooms are among us. Roses, mini calla lilies, orchids and dahlias are perfect blooms for summer. Dahlia blooms and zinnias are lush and abundant during summer months. They are lovely just by themselves in bud vases and vintage glass drinking cups. Add some candles and viola you have a pretty and simplistic look for any wedding. Start off with a white crisp linen and add color with the flowers. Gerbera daisies

One of my personal favorite seasons in New England is fall. Autumn leaves are gracefully floating from the skies above gliding their way down to cover the grass with earthy colors of love. Buy things local, from area farms and save a bushel of money! You can get colorful squashes, heirloom tomatoes, ghost pumpkins and interesting shaped gourds to bring together any fall look. Branches are fun in the fall as well. Glass vases filled with bosc pears (which also are available in a mini size) add texture and color to your table settings. Lady galla apples are the perfect fall touch of red and amber colors yet simply say fall. You can get wonderful holiday ornaments that look like glittery fall leaves and acorns. They make the evening sparkle hanging from branch centerpieces.

Winter love is flavorful. Winter greenery adds fragrance and texture to any romantic snow filled wedding. Fireplaces aglow with wood burning logs and mantles covered with candlelight add sense of warmth. Winter brings back so many childhood memories for me, personally. If it's the same with you, offer S'mores, hot chocolate with marshmallows, snow covered winter nights and cinnamon sticks. You can go to your local Christmas tree grower and purchase trimmed greens for great prices. Ask for a collection of different evergreens for wonderful fragrance and a mix of textures and colors.

With what ever the season you marry in. Ask your floral designer for creative suggestions to achieve the perfect look for your decor.

New things to come for weddings

2010-10-19T12:01:00.000-07:00

By: Jessica Robinson
With the new year quickly approaching (I know... can you believe it?) we're about to open a new studio in the heart of Collinsville, Connecticut. It's this quaint little historical town bursting at the seams with history. It's a town filled with many artists and creative minds.

As fall is upon us and winter nearing. I love some of the things mother nature supplies us for decorations. With your fall or winter weddings, enjoy the natural glow of candles and even wood burning fireplaces. There are so many fabulous vegetables, pumpkins and gourds that make incredible earthy touches to your decor. Fill bushel baskets with locally grown apples and cluster them to the entrance of the reception venue. For a pretty barn wedding, drape natural muslin over the doorway for a beautiful and inviting entrance to the reception. I'm completely in love with family style reception tables vs. the traditional round tables. They are romantic and so very different. I love reception venues that are willing to work with you and think outside the box. The best reception venue is a blank space where you get to design something all your own from the ground up. Cluster an eclectic mix of vintage glass vases with garden roses, beeswax candles in mason jars and seasonal blooms or vegetables down the length of the table for an inviting atmosphere and it's sure to be the talk of the town.

As a designer, I find many things inspire me. Creative minds are constantly coming up with new ways to decorate a wedding and add romance to any event. Because couples have their own distinct style and personalities, we love getting to know our clients. You become family to us. We'll chat for hours over ideas and come up with something that will absolutely blow you away! Meet us for coffee, a light lunch or even dinner. If we can get to know you better, we'll be able to design wedding decor that fits you perfectly.

Some of the weddings we have for next year are simply amazing! From the fancy hotel wedding, private clubs and estates to the rustic barn wedding. We're excited to be a part of a very special day to each and every one of our clients!

Planning a wedding in a down economy

2010-10-18T14:12:00.000-07:00

Planning a wedding in tough economic times

By: Jessica Robinson

In these very trying times it takes a little more creativity to plan the wedding of your dreams and stay within your desired budget. Think outside the box and with some smart thinking and planning you'll be able to enjoy your cake and eat it too. Even with a tough economy, people still get married. It's about thinking and planning a little different to save money and still enjoy the day.

Create your guest list, then tour facilities. Remember that everything adds up. The more guests you invite, the more meals you'll need to pay for, more centerpieces, rentals and such. With a slightly smaller guest list, you'll be able to choose a more unique venue and possibly save big bucks. Many smaller reception sites offer a more intimate setting and custom menu options to suit your every palette. They also are more flexible time lines. Who says you have to have a fancy sit down dinner with all the embellishments and touches. The front porch of a local Inn would be completely romantic with guests sipping tangy lemonade and sweet tea. Serve a simple picnic style lunch and bring back childhood memories for guests. This can be a really unique and fun option for a summer or early fall wedding.

With less guests, you can locate a venue that maybe wouldn't normally host weddings. This can be a very intimate and romantic option for your reception. I love the idea of having less than 50 guests on a Friday or early Sunday afternoon. Invite close friends and immediate family only. There are many options for venues, including smaller restaurants with small private banquet/conference rooms, Inns and even a great rustic barn.

Do your research before booking the venue. Ask them what comes with the rental (i.e. do they include the catering costs, tables, chairs, basic linens and china, etc.??) and what you are responsible for. Are you only allowed to pick from one or two caterers? That can be good and bad. On one hand, the caterer really knows the venue well. On the other hand, you could be stuck with using them and spending more money than you really wanted to.

Here are some of my favorite venues for an intimate New England wedding:

The Barns at Wesleyan Hills

The Harrington Farm

The West Monitor Barn

La Cupola Ristorante & Inn

The Barn at Gibbet Hill

Go with one or two types of flowers and one color. Loose blooms in a collection of bud vases (which you can pick up at Ikea or flea markets/tag sales) look wonderful down a family style table clustered with an abundance of candles. Simple and really pretty.

What ever you do, budget yourself and try to stick with that budget. Don't let everyone's opinion (and believe me, they'll all have one) sway your decisions too much!

Details to the wedding

2010-10-06T17:05:00.000-07:00

With any wedding and any budget for that matter, you can find simple ways to add tons of fabulous detail to your wedding. For me (the very savoy shopper) I try to find things at places you may not normally think of. I personally love Pier One, Ocean State Job Lot, Home Depot, Target, Marshalls, TJ Max, yard sales, flea markets and even on Ebay.

You can save money by choosing one color tone, limiting yourself to two types of flowers and use lots of candles. Buying in volume of one type of flower and one color palette can generally give you a price break. My favorites would be dendrobium orchids and tons of roses. (probably white orchids and 'Faith' color roses with a touch of 'Miranda' garden roses.. mostly white flowers with a simple splash of color will transform any space) Find a great price on pillar candles at Christmas Tree Shops or Ikea. Just keep in mind, most reception venues require everything be contained in some sort of glass vessel for fire hazard reasons.

Buy off season and save a bundle! I find the best deals shopping off season. At the end of summer, you can find amazing prices on glassware, lanterns/luminaries and decor items. As long as you plan ahead of time (come up with some ideas of how you would like to decorate) and you have some extra space to store the items (possibly a garage). Another great find... Goodwill stores. You can find glassware and many vintage finds at wonderful prices. My uncle loves tag sales and usually scours the newspapers every weekend for me. He'll look for listings that say vintage glassware, Tiara ware and even estate sales. (use caution with estate sales, sometimes it's not the best prices)

I find really wonderful things to use for detailing on bouquets at Forever 21 stores and some of the accessory stores in the mall. Etsy and Ebay are great as well. Look for vintage rhinestone buttons, shoe clips and broaches. I have even found wonderful pins or broaches in consignment shops. Keep your options open and keep your eyes peeled for fabulous finds!

Barn weddings

2010-10-05T17:32:00.000-07:00

I'm completely in LOVE with barn weddings lately! You can have the romantic and pure sophistication with a touch of rustic New England. Because many times the barns are a basic blank canvas, you can create a look that is truly all your own.

Some pretty amazing venues are:
Riverside Farm in Vermont
The West Monitor Barn in Vermont
The Barn at Boyden Farm
The Smith Barn
The Barn at Gibbet Hill in Massachusetts
The Webb Barn (Connecticut)
Old Sturbridge Village in Massacusetts

Historic town of Collinsville, Connecticut

2010-09-22T07:02:00.000-07:00

My husband and I purchased a home about 3 years ago in Collinsville, Connecticut. I am completely in love with this quaint town. So many things to do, the people are so nice and it's in the heart of everything happening! Rt. 44 is right down the road, where you'll find great organic and natural grocery stores like The Meat House. Go a little further and you can pick up fresh produce at either Tulmeadow Farms or Rosedale Farms. Rosedale Farms offers their own farm made wines, a great corn maze and so much to do with the kids.

So, with my love for this town. It really is a wonderful area, really great schools and just the overall atmosphere is lovely. We decided to open up shop in the old Ax Factory in the center of Collinsville. Of course, it's the busiest time of wedding season for us (the fall). So, we're doing a bit at a time as we can and hope to be ready to meet clients sometime in October. It's really a fabulous space with lots of light, super tall ceilings and tons of character as well as history with the old factory feel. I'll be posting images when we finish renovating the space!

There are so many great artists and businesses in the center of Collinsville. La Salle Market is there if you want to grab a breakfast sandwich or coffee, dinner at Crown & Hammer pub, art classes with Kate at River City Art Center or even a birthday party with the kids there and authentic tacos at Husk.

Here's a few pics from the fabulous Alissa Dinneen from a wedding we did together in August at Lord Thompson Manor. Enjoy and we hope to see you soon!

Saving tips

2010-09-15T17:05:00.000-07:00

With the economy being the way it is, every little penny counts. Some simple things will help to keep your check book from going up in flames. Think outside the box and some simple cut backs will help you have a wedding of your dreams without taking out huge loans.

If you don't have the cash to purchase it, you don't need it. Paying for things right away, means you don't pay huge interest charges on your purchases. Save your change, I grab my husband's change every week and put it into a jar. Do you know, I usually use the money to buy groceries for the week. You'd be amazed of how much you can save in spare change and putting dollars in that jar too! Cook meals at home and eat out only once a month or two. This saves a bunch over the course of a year! If you do eat out, look for coupons online or in the mail to your favorite restaurants. I get the Sunday paper every week and clip coupons. Being a savoy shopper and only buying food you really are going to eat saves big bucks!

Now, I don't normally recommend designing your own flowers. It can add more stress to your day than you are ready for. However, if you are looking to cut back on your floral costs... hire a professional for your personal flowers and ceremony decor (boutonnieres, corsages, bouquets, etc.) and ask some friends to help you with the reception flowers. Get married during the summer or early fall, locate a local farm or grower and purchase cut seasonal flowers. Fill mason jars with water and add one kind of flower. I love using mason jars filled with play sand, real beeswax candles and clustering different size jars down long rectangle family style reception tables. Just add touches of blooms or during the winter, evergreens and pine cones.

Meg & Sarah's wedding

2010-09-11T18:50:00.000-07:00

This wedding was designed and perfectly coordinated by Bernadette from 14 Stories. The setting was Chimney Corners camp in Becket, Massachusetts. They really could not of asked for a more perfect day. With every wedding, details are so very important and anything organic or natural.

We picked ribbon grass out of the gardens at the studio. Freshly picked lavender pieces garnished the couple's signature "sweet pea" drink. I happily picked every last stem of mint, thyme, rosemary and basil from our gardens to use as sweet and savory scents to all the tables. The dining room smelled spectacular and very inviting!

There was an abundance of raspberry and orange gerbera daisies in glass mason jars, copper mercury glass bud vases and various vases. We gathered kale, purple dahlias and purple hydrangea in vintage style wooden boxes with handles. The details are just gorgeous. Lots of natural twine twisted around boutonnieres of orange gerbera daisies with millet grass and mahogany fern curls.

Alice in Wonderland wedding @ The Barns at Wesleyan Hills

2010-09-05T18:43:00.000-07:00

Today's wedding was for Anna and Matt, one of deserving couples for 2010. Their wedding was mainly around the theme of Alice in Wonderland. A wonderful fun and colorful wedding. The couple worked closely with Jubilee Events to come up with a design that they would absolutely love and remember for a very long time.

They were married in a little chapel (Hope Valley Church) right down the road. The bride and her attendants were able to literally walk down the road to the romantic ceremony. They couldn't of asked for better weather!

The bouquets were so very different, colorful and whimsical. Green millet, hot pink mini calla lilies, billy balls, scabiosa pods and garden roses were hand tied and wrapped with Tiffany blue ribbon. The bride carried a bouquet of similar flowers but a splash of red roses and cinnamon cymbidium orchids. Each boutonniere was different and truly one of a kind. Here are a few images of the reception decor. Bright colorful zinnias, gerbera daisies and various flowers were clustered in vases and vintage medicine bottles then clustered on the tables. An old wooden door was hung over the head table and medicine bottles strung with natural twine featured colorful gerbera daisies. I'm dying to see what Raw Images captured!

The details that bring it all together

2010-09-03T06:18:00.000-07:00

By: Jessica Robinson

With any wedding, it's the simplest of details that bring everything together and make it complete. Like adding moss to the edges of the wooden crate centerpieces for a touch of detail for your eyes to be drawn to. The more candles the better.

The simple touch of adding a rose bloom to each out of town guests room lets them know you really love that they are taking time out of their busy lives to share this with you. It will really brighten their day. Even adding chocolates to pillows in every room, something that adds the personal touch is perfect. Create a cozy and intimate feeling by having a lounge area. Ryan Designs offers some amazing pieces that you can rent to complete the look. Add a fire pit, local wine and you'll have the perfect environment for a highly talked about event. Ask your caterer to put out trays with all of the makings you'll need for yummy S'mores.

I just received one of the most unusual and impressive invitations in the mail. Custom designed by Jillian at Fizz Paperie. Her designs are fabulous and so very creative. There is nothing she cannot do! Believe it or no, this invitation is actually made out of wood. The detailing is perfect and absolutely stunning! I love the whole look. It's classy and says romantic yet sophisticated New England wedding. Lyndsay and Alex's wedding is in October at the Fairmont Hotel in Boston. The wedding is going to be amazing!

More exciting news for Jessica's Country Flowers. We just got the keys to our new studio in Collinsville, Connecticut. It's located in the old Axe Factory in Collinsville. Right in the heart of the happenings of a very busy town. We need to do a little painting, add some chandeliers and just the right touch of decor then we'll be ready to meet all of our wonderful clients. I'm really excited about the changes we're making this fall and winter!

Summer floral details

2010-09-02T17:17:00.000-07:00

By: Jessica Robinson
For a summer wedding, I love the look of lots of candles, preferably beeswax candles. The light aroma of beeswax is romantic and subtle. Then adding flowers that remind me of sun filled summers at our farm as a child. Things like zinnias, statice, salvia, sunflowers, sage leaves, fresh lavender and fresh mint, simply placed in vintage mason jars.

I love the look and feel of long tables. You could never imagine, unless you attended a romantic dinner party how the simple family-style tables bring so much conversation to any event. If you have a small wedding you can have one very long table, an intimate gathering of your close friends and family. With larger parties, you'll simply have multiple tables. Still creating that intimate environment and connecting more people together.

With late summer and early fall weddings, I love the idea of an early afternoon wedding with luminaries strung overhead and lots of pillar candles clustered on the patio or gardens. Loose blooms in various mason jars and vintage drinking glasses can be simple but very romantic. As the autumn weather cools the air off I love the look of deep purples with touches of earthy sage green then creamy colors mixed in. Try adding some height with branches in glass cylinder vases, copper glittered leaves hung and of course, lots of candles. Nothing can be more romantic than tons of candles. I'm looking forward to some very gorgeous weddings this fall.

One of the prettiest places for a wedding

2010-08-31T17:22:00.000-07:00

By: Jessica Robinson

Caitlin and Mike applied for our deserving couple contest back in 2009. They were going through some family issues and struggling financially. Mike was lost his job and went back to school full time and they were living off of one income. They are such a loving couple, devoted to their family and to each other. We couldn't of selected a more grateful and truly deserving couple.

The setting: The Farmer's Museum in Cooperstown, New York. They were married in the chapel on the grounds, Cornwallville Church. Then the reception following in the barn at the museum. The Farmer's Museum is a spectacular venue that has deep roots in New York State's rural history. The museum is set on 120 acres of pristine farm land which has been a working farm since the 1790's. The Farmer's Museum is a private, non-profit educational organization.

Caitlin had a really great inspiration board she had created for us. From that we designed many just gathered looks. I used old aluminum sap buckets from my parent's sugar house to showcase some antique purple hydrangea I picked out of my gardens at 4:30 am the morning of the wedding. For her centerpieces we created three different looks. One was in wooden crates, lined with sheet moss and overflowing with seasonal flowers. The other were a chocolate footed metal urns filled with antique hydrangea, garden spray roses and locally grown flowers. For a simple look, we gathered bright pink and purple salvia, fresh mint, fresh sage leaves and garden roses in various sized mason jars. Then, clustered them together on the tables. The smell of fresh herbs is intense and wonderful for a summery wedding.

I'm really looking forward to all of the incredible images that Justin & Mary Marantz took. Their truly gifted artists capturing the details of the wedding in a way not many can.

Touches of detail to Boutonnieres

2010-08-31T17:08:00.000-07:00

By: Jessica Robinson
With all of the weddings we've planned and designed over the years, we've done so many unique things with flowers. Your bridal bouquet is a main focal point to the wedding, but don't forget to spice up his boutonniere a bit!

The boutonnieres should coordinate with the look and feel of the rest of the wedding. The camera's will be focused on him just as much as you. Guys usually don't want anything to frilly, so keep it simple but with some detail. You'll notice that our boutonnieres are always dressed for the occasion. Meaning, we wrap the stem with a touch of ribbon or twine, depending on the style and formality of the wedding. Then add other seasonal touches like millet, grass twisted and weaved around the stem or even a peacock feather.

Shades of Pink at Lord Thompson Manor

2010-08-28T12:39:00.000-07:00

By: Jessica Robinson

Here's a sneak preview of today's pretty wedding. The setting: Lord Thompson Manor, Thompson, Connecticut. Set away from the fuss of the everyday world, it's tucked back on a wonderfully manicured property. Wind down their gravel driveway into a picturesque and just lovely setting.

What sets Lord Thompson Manor aside from other venues is the weekend wedding idea. When you reserve their facility, you become pampered for the entire weekend. Not rushed out the door for the next wedding to take over!

We used a combination of hot lady, cool water, Anna and Faith roses for the entire wedding. The bride carried a lush hand tied bouquet of white cymbidium orchids with pink throats and ivory garden roses. I adorned the stems with ivory satin French knots... so pretty!

Jackie, from Lord Thompson Manor will create one of a kind menu cards. Each of which is personalized with all of your guests names. A really wonderful personalization. The manor has a real working fireplace, perfect for that New England autumn or winter wedding. The smell of real wood burning in a fireplace just gets me. It makes you feel warm and cozy.

Enjoy breakfast on their patio or in the sun room and enjoy the company of great friends and family. Everything in life is so rushed these days, it's nice to take the entire weekend to embrace your wedding. The details are wonderful for this wedding. Lord Thompson Manor set up a delicious candy station for the couple with most pink and red candies. Candles are everywhere which adds so much romance and ambiance.

Of course, these are just a few images I took... dying to see what the fabulous Alissa Dinneen took!

Challenges of wedding planning

2010-08-26T14:47:00.000-07:00

By: Jessica Robinson
The challenges you are faced with while planning your wedding can be enormous. As you plan your wedding, you take on a new roll: wedding planner. It's like a complete new job. Like you don't have so much going on in your life already. If you have the funds available, it's a great idea to hire a wedding coordinator to help with the daunting task.

Wedding planners offer various packages to fit your needs. Whether you need help from the very beginning stages to assist you with selecting a venue, the design concept and other vendor suggestions or just planning month of and day of to help keep everything in order. If you live out of town, but planning a wedding in another state a wedding planner might be a must. (especially if you do not have a ton of vacation days you can take to take on the tasks yourself)

Some area planners to consider:
Sixpence For Your Shoe
Chandelier Events
Details Wedding & Party Planning
Wedding Istas
EST Occasions

I find it helpful to make check lists. Now, my husband hates them... but I honestly think it makes me feel as though I'm accomplishing things when I can check things off. Make a spread sheet in Word and check away! You'll find it helpful to come up with an initial budget and give yourself an idea of how you want to spend it. Which areas you have more for (or are more important to you).

Most importantly, don't stress out! Things go wrong with weddings all the time. The most important thing is that you understand that and know that you have hired the best of the best to take care of the details. All of your vendors come together and work well together.

One of my favorite ladies in the wedding business is Sara Faella. She's the creative force behind Sara Faella Designer Stylist. She'll come to you and take care of your hair and make-up needs. She also designs some pretty fabulous couture hair pieces and accessories.

Have your cake and eat it too! Kelly's Sweet Rewards makes some amazing wedding cake creations! Let her creative mind come up with something wonderful for your wedding. Now, if you are looking for something unique for favors or to have in your out of town guest bags, try her cake balls, red velvet cake dipped in scrumptious chocolate. Bit size tasty treats! Lovely Cakes is another wonderful company! If you are looking for someone to make pastries and confections besides your wedding cake try Toria Dolce Fine Desserts & Wedding Cakes. Now, for the most yummy candy station, handcrafted sugar cookies and other wonderful treats contact Jennifer at Cookie Creatives. She just made some of the most tempting treats for a wedding we worked on together. All I can say is Yum!

Deserving couple @ La Cupola Ristorante & Inn

2010-08-26T06:12:00.000-07:00

By: Jessica Robinson

As many of you know, each year our company designs a wedding for a deserving couple. We look for a couple that has experienced financial hardship, yet still gives back to their community. We feel as though we've been so very fortunate in life and in business that this is simply our way of giving back.

With the unstable economy, there are quite a few families struggling with finances. Most are just lucky to still have a job. Giving back to a few very lucky couples every year makes us feel so good. It also is a wonderful way to be even more creative and connect with some pretty talented wedding professionals in the industry. For 2011, we had chosen two teams of professionals to create two deserving couple weddings. But, while at La Cupola one evening for dinner....we told Frank what we did each year and he said "we should host one here, it would be beautiful!".. and so the plan began. So we set out to find one more deserving couple (someone who really could use a helping hand and honestly could not afford any sort of a wedding) and one more team of professionals.

What I love most about this couple, is that they are real and genuine. Life sometimes hands us unexpected hardships and hurdles. It makes us stronger individuals and grateful for what we do have in our lives. Life isn't perfect, but if you can stick together and come stronger as a couple even with tough finances... you're golden!

the couple: Christina and Dustin
Details: October 2011 wedding @ La Cupola Ristorante & Inn, Litchfield, Connecticut

Vendors involved:
Chandelier Events
Stacey Ilyse Photography
AriaDress
Sara Faella
The Spa at Litchfield Hills
Fizz Paperie
Kelly's Sweet Rewards

This is one of her inspiration boards we created for her initial design concept. I absolutely adore Style Me Pretty blog and love the way you can create your own inspiration boards on her site! Check this one out and make one of your own! Give me your input and let us know what you think!! We LOVE to hear your comments!

Wedding @ The Farmer's Museum

2010-08-22T17:55:00.000-07:00

By: Jessica Robinson

We traveled up to Cooperstown, New York to design Caitlin and Mike's wedding. I cannot tell you how much I loved the scenic trip through New York and the stunning country side views.

Their wedding was beautiful! The location: The Farmer's Museum, Cooperstown, New York

Our team of designers headed up (very early) on Saturday morning to decorate the site. We hung green galvanized lanterns from the beams of the barn, adding that sparkle glow to the reception. All of the couple's place cards were hung from two trees (manzanita branches in tall cylinder vases) strung with natural twine and attached with wooden clothes pins. It looked amazing! Definitely caught your attention as you walked in. Thanks to our lead designer (Melissa) for putting this together!

Their centerpieces were all different. Some with wooden crates, lined with moss and filled with an abundance of summery flowers. Others were chocolate/bronze footed urns with similar flowers. The third design was simple. Clusters of various jars filled with fresh, fragrant mint, colorful salvia, dahlias and garden spray roses. We clustered antique purple hydrangea in sap buckets at every entrance to the barn. The entire look was lovely!

Cookie Creatives by Jennifer handmade so many fabulous candies and of course the prettiest hand decorated sugar cookies. They were displayed on the most yummy candy station I've ever designed! Scott hand delivered out of town guest (burlap) bags that we filled with Rasinets, bottles of water, Goat boy soaps (lavender goat heads), raspberry rhubarb jam from Lamothe's Sugar House and Crunch and Munch. They were really cute and the perfect touch as a thank you for guests traveling to join the happy couple.

Justin & Mary Marantz were kind enough to photograph every last little detail.... I can hardly wait to see what they captured! They are incredibly talented and very, very generous! Her cake was designed by ABC cakes.

Caitlin looked absolutely stunning in her Modern Trousseau gown which was provided by The White Dress by the Shore. The weather could not have been more perfect for their summer wedding. More details to follow in a few weeks...

Paper Quilling class

2010-08-19T19:21:00.000-07:00

By: Jessica Robinson

This coming fall we'll be hosting a class at River City Art Center. It's situated in the historic town of Collinsville, Connecticut. I'm hoping many of you will join us for a really fun, creative class with Kate of River City Art Center to create some really amazing DIY stationery pieces for your own weddings. There will be about 12 spaces and they'll fill quickly for sure! We'll have fun, get to know one in other better and just have a great time doing some DIY projects. I'll bring the wine!

Paper quilling (also known as Paper filigree) is beautiful and creative way of rolling, bending and pinching the paper then making designs out of the paper. There are numerous things you can design with paper quilling. I love the idea of making your own save the dates and even table numbers. You can make your own signs for guest tables and candy station (identifying the different candies).

Kate is one of the most energetic people I know and VERY creative! We'll be working with her to have a 4 week class so couples will be able to learn how to design your very own art projects. I'd love to see more creativity for Save the Dates, table numbers and even stationery for dessert tables!! LOVE! Maybe even create your very own Family Tree out of paper quilling... and guests could sign on leaves you can place on the tree afterward. Creative...use your imagination!!

Let us know if you would like to join us this fall. We'd love to have you!

Jessica's Country Flowers happenings

2010-08-19T08:59:00.000-07:00

By: Jessica Robinson

It's been a very busy summer filled to the brim with some pretty gorgeous weddings! We've had the pleasure this year of traveling beyond Connecticut and even beyond New England to design some incredible weddings. This coming weekend we are making the trip to The Farmer's Museum in Cooperstown, New York to design our first deserving couple wedding for this year. Her flowers were donated by Hartford Florist Supply and First Bloom Farm donated a few things as well.

Many wonderfully talented wedding professionals have come together to put on a wedding Caitlin and Mike will never forget. With all of the struggles they have faced over the past year and just recently, they are SO very deserving! Look at our blog next week and we'll hopefully have some images of the wedding to post!

Some of Caitlin and Mike's vendors are:
Justin & Mary Marantz
ABC Cakes
The White Dress by the Shore and Modern Trousseau
Cookie Creatives by Jennifer

Preparing for a Farmer's Museum wedding

2010-08-14T06:05:00.000-07:00

By Jessica Robinson

So, our first deserving couple wedding of the season is next weekend. With Justin & Mary, ABC Cakes, Cookie Creatives by Jennifer and she's wearing Modern Trousseau compliments of The White Dress by the Shore. Her dress is beautiful! I'm dying to see this wedding complete and so everyone can drop their jaws over the fabulous (creative) images Justin & Mary Marantz will capture!

These weddings become so personal to me. It brings more joy to me, knowing we designed a wedding for someone who really, really deserved to have a pretty wedding... knowing you helped them out. You helped to start a life and started it out right.

All of her flowers are coming from Hartford Florist Supply. Rick was kind enough to donate many things. We also have flowers being donated (and grown locally, right in Connecticut) from Maggie at First Bloom Farm.

Cookie Creatives by Jennifer and I will be collaborating on the most yummy candy and dessert station ever! It's a wonderful collection of handmade treats, old-fashioned rock candy, caramel chocolate popcorn and all waiting for guests to take home and enjoy. It should be a beautiful display! I've put together some really fun glass candy jars, vintage wooden trays and various glass vintage pieces to display it all perfectly!

Summer inspired table setting

2010-08-13T06:17:00.000-07:00

This photo shoot was created at La Cupola Ristorante & Inn. Which is situated in the historic town of Litchfield, Connecticut. This beautiful stone villa style reception venue overlooks Bantam river and a large pond. The owner (Frank Rosa) is from Italy and loves weddings. He believes that weddings should be an intimate gathering of family and close friends. Frank loves family style reception tables vs. the typical round tables. It is this amazing, quaint setting that lets people connect and enjoy each others company.

With my table designs, I wanted to create a look that was simplistic, yet completely romantic. We sought out to create something different, but completely affordable. Something that said romantic summer nights and complete sophistication.

Hand tied bouquet of 'Miranda' and 'Patience' garden roses, sarencena lilies and pink cymbidium orchids. I wrapped the stems with natural twine which I purchased at Ocean State job lot in the tool section. ($2.60 roll for 260 feet of twine)

The table setting featured farmhouse style tables. Then I added chocolate color burlap for a simple runner. The texture of burlap is wonderful and even the smell of it adds to the overall feel of this table setting. (burlap was $2.99 a yard at JoAnn Fabrics, but you can order online from various vendors for less) Three chocolate stone urns were overflowing with antique green hydrangea, 'Miranda' garden roses, 'Cool water' and 'Faith' roses. I used a collection of various vintage drinking cups and dessert cups as vases to bring a little touch of color and more detail to the table setting. (I found some wonderful vintage glasses on Etsy. In Burlington, Connecticut there is a wonderful shop that sells Depression glass and various vintage glassware.) I filled pint mayo jars with dry beans for really cute luminaries for the table. Adding some texture and more interest.

Sara Faella creates couture head pieces. She has a incredible selection of things on her web site to pick from. Anything from birdcage veils to floral and feather clips adorned with Swarovski crystals and tons of detail. She also travels throughout New England styling hair and make-up for clients. Her pieces paired wonderfully with the gowns from The Plumed Serpent. Alison showcased a short, cocktail style dress that was stylish and fun. She also had the most gorgeous sophisticated gown. The full length gown -Romona Keveza organza gown with rouched bodice and full ballgown skirt covered with hand formed organza flowers. The short gown is Anne Bowen's "Botanical Gardens" tea length faille gown. It has a high/low hem and is accented by tulle peeping from the hem. All accessories are Debra Moreland for Paris.

Kelly's Sweet Rewards created cakes that coordinated to each of our table settings. She also hand crafted the most delicate cupcakes with sugar flowers. They were carrot cake and packaged beautifully. She also dips red velvet cake in chocolate to create what she calls "cake balls". They are these bit size, purely yummy treats that your guests would surely remember as they savored every single bite! Linen napkins designed by Butterfly & company were a perfect addition to the cake table. Gorgeous yet simple menu cards were designed by Fizz Paperie. We worked with Jillian last fall on a wedding and the invites were to die for!

Vendors:
Photography: Jamie Collins Photography
Flowers & event design: Jessica's Country Flowers
Location: La Cupola Ristorante & Inn, Litchfield, CT
Stationery: (menu cards and place cards) Fizz Paperie
Hair & Make-up styling: Sara Faella
Dress: The Plumed Serpent
Cakes and cupcake favors: Kelly's Sweet Rewards
Rentals: Rentals Unlimited
Tea Dipped Napkins: Butterfly & Company

Real wedding Winter Wonderland at Society Room

2010-08-10T07:46:00.000-07:00

August 10, 2010 by Jessica Robinson

Katie and Alan were married at the Society Room in Hartford, Connecticut on February 13, 2010. It was a winter wonderland theme wedding and with snow freshly fallen in Connecticut, made the perfect scenery. I was jumping out of my skin when the absolutely fabulous Jamie Collins Photography happily agreed to photograph every lovely detail!! You can see the entire wedding featured on Style Me Pretty blog. Style Me Pretty is a terrific wedding blog that features a wide variety of simply gorgeous weddings (from simple backyard affairs to over the top sophisticated ballroom weddings)!

I think winter weddings can be so utterly warm and inviting, as well as completely romantic. Fireplaces glowing with logs burning... that smell of firewood burning is amazing for the senses. It makes you feel all warm and fuzzy inside, like you are in Grandma's house and cookies are coming out of her oven.

Katie and Alan had their first look photos taken prior to the ceremony so they could completely enjoy cocktail hour. They headed to the newly renovated Old State House to take images before their ceremony. The Old State House charges a minimal fee of $200 to take photos for one hour. But, as you can see from the images, so worth the little fee. It's a stunning place for a unique venue, rich with history and architecture. They also took photos together at City Hall in downtown Hartford, Connecticut.

Lots of couples choose to have photographs prior to the ceremony. It's a personal preference. You need to think about whether it works for you or not. You need to decide what works best for you. In the fall (with shorter days) sometimes it's a good idea to see each other prior to the ceremony and get the photos done first. That way you can enjoy the ceremony and cocktail hour, without the worry of rushing images and loosing sunlight fast. On the other hand, you need to think whether you want your fiancee to see you prior to the ceremony. I personally wanted to see the look on his face as I glided down the aisle in sure bliss. I literally floated down the aisle towards the love of my life!

Katie had the most beautiful gown with lace detailing by Watters. We created a lush hand-tied bouquet of 'patience' garden roses, 'vendella' roses, white cattelya orchids and white sweet peas. Wrapping the stems with a very wide ivory satin ribbon and the most gorgeous broach from Regina B (which looked like snow swirling through the sky). The groom's boutonniere was white sweet peas wrapped with thin ivory satin ribbon which was simple and different. (I made several spare boutonnieres for the groom since sweet peas are rather delicate) The rest of the gentlemen had boutonnieres which were white mini calla lilies and a crystal branch with stems wrapped with thin ivory satin ribbon. The bridesmaids carried hand-tied bouquets of white mini calla lilies, white cymbidium orchids, ivory roses and white sweet peas. We wrapped the stems with a dark chocolate/copper color ribbon with copper sequins and thread detailing.

The ceremony and reception were in the ballroom at The Society Room. We created one look for the ceremony, then completely transformed the room while guests enjoyed cocktail hour upstairs on the balcony to create a completely new look. During the ceremony, we lined the bar area with vintage-style containers filled with white hydrangea and pillar candles in metal square luminaries. We created the perfect backdrop with two 12-ft. tall curly willow "trees". They were decorated at the top with white dendrobium orchids and surrounded at the trunk with vendella roses and white cymbidium orchids, then added hanging luminaries. Sixpence For Your Shoe hung their program card off the back of each chair with a deep eggplant color satin ribbon.

I created a dramatic escort card display with Manzanita branches which I sprayed with snow and iridescent glitter to add that wintery look. Button mums tightly clustered together at the base looked like snow and touches of white cattelya orchids, white cymbidium orchids and vendella roses added more interest. Sixpence For Your Shoe draped the tree with crystal garlands (purchased at www.save-on-crafts.com) and hung their escort cards with white wire from those crystals. This was a show stopping pieces as guests entered the venue.

Tables were draped in an ivory shimmer crinkle taffeta linen from Cloth Connection, white napkins with the added napkin treatment Sixpence did (deep eggplant satin ribbon with a vintage-style ring on each napkin which they purchased off of Ebay). Because the room has such enormously tall ceilings we created some tall centerpieces and some low centerpieces. Custom wooden bases, made from recycled wood from the sugar house at my parents farm were made by my talented husband, Scott. Arrangements at the top of those bases were white hydrangea, white dendrobium orchids and vendella roses. Along with hanging luminaries and stems of sparkly crystals. Touches of moss at the base of the arrangement and white cattelya and white cymbidium orchids along with votive cups added interest. Low centerpieces were of white hydrangea, white sweet peas and vendella roses in a vintage-style square footed urn which came from R&S Baskets in Massachusetts.

For double duty, the two "trees" which highlighted the ceremony were used as the couple's backdrop during dinner with their sweet heart table set in front of them. Low pieces which covered the bar area during the ceremony were moved throughout the reception venue (on window sills, in the pub area, etc.)

The Society Room of Hartford is a stunning location. Featuring thirty-five foot tall mural ceiling in the main ballroom, marble, brass and bronze accents throughout the facility. A setting with history and a Great Gatsby era. A coffee station was set up in the lounge pub area. We also set up the candy station in this area. Which I hand dipped over 150 caramel/chocolate apples for with custom created tags by Sixpence For Your Shoe. I packaged each apple in a corsage bag, added ribbon which was purchased at Costco and used silver metallic roping to attach the tags. Acandystore.com provided all of the candy, which were all white which included white chocolate peppermint bark, coconut squares dipped in white chocolate, Joy almonds, yogurt covered raisins, white jelly beans and many more. I purchased candy jars at Walmart and Sixpence For Your Shoe provided the candy scoops. Little clear bags with labels were on the table for guests to help themselves to candy to take home.

Sixpence For Your Shoe purchased a variety of vintage frames off of Ebay and spray painted them silver for their table numbers. Butterfly & Company had tea-dipped the most incredible, real linen napkins to be used with the coffee station and cake after dinner!

Photography: Jamie Collins Photography
Cinematography: Chris Walsh Productions
Flowers: Jessica's Country Flowers
Event Design: Jessica's Country Flowers
Event Planning: Sixpence For Your Shoe
Ceremony Location: The Society Room
Reception Location: The Society Room, Hartford, CT
Linens: Cloth Connections
Invitations: Sixpence For Your Shoe
Bride's Jewelry: (bracelet and earrings) Haute Bride
Broach for bouquet: Regina B
Bride's Dress: Watters
Bridesmaids gowns: Jim Hjelm
Make-up Artist: Sandra Downie
Tuxes: rentals from Men's warehouse (groom's Calvin Klein, groomsmen's Ralph Lauren Chaps)
Cake: Cakes by Donna
Cake stand: Raise the Cake
Card box: The Wedding Main St
Cocktail napkins: Butterfly & Company
Candy: Acandystore.com

Real wedding at Tumblebrook Country Club

2010-08-03T06:53:00.000-07:00

August 3, 2010 by Jessica Robinson

By now you know... one thing that absolutely brings a smile to my heart is the way a bride looks at her flowers for the first time and just glows! (may times it will bring a tear to her eyes) Which means we simply did our job and hopefully did it better than she would of ever imagined. It's like reality hits her and the day has actually come to life. And of course, I'm thrilled to say that Alissa Dinneen was there to capture the look on the lovely bride's face!

This pretty spring wedding was held at Beth Israel in West Hartford, Connecticut and a lovely reception following at Tumblebrook Country Club.

The bride carried a stunning hand-tied bouquet of pink peonies, ivory garden roses, pink ranunculus and pink cymbidium orchids, wrapped partially with ivory raw silk ribbon and pearl pins. Boutonnieres coordinated with this beautiful bouquet. We grow many different varieties of peonies in our gardens. During the spring you'll also find tulips in our gardens along with blueberries and raspberries (that we pick unripe to use in our weddings).

Even a little rain couldn't put a damper on this happy couple's wedding day. Smiles all around!

Real wedding at St. Clement's Castle

2010-08-02T12:52:00.000-07:00

August 2, 2010 by Jessica Robinson

With all of good intentions when planning an outdoor ceremony, sometimes it's a good idea to have a backup plan. We designed this wedding last October at St. Clement's Castle in Portland, Connecticut. The old saying in New England about the weather is.... wait a minute and it will change. It was cold, snowing, raining and sleeting on the October day that Kimberly and Gaetano were married. (the bride said her wedding was unique because of the chaos that surrounded the day)

Alissa Dinneen Photography captured all of the beautiful details of this romantic fall wedding. The bride and groom originally had planned for a ceremony in the sunken gardens at St. Clement's... but Mother Nature had other plans. So we created a warm and inviting ceremony space inside the ballroom. After the ceremony, we transformed it into the most romantic receptions ever!

It's important to keep in mind, while in the search for a great photographer, to find someone that can capture fabulous photos no matter what the weather throws at you! As you can see, Alissa did a wonderful job being able to capture details of this couples day, even with the cold, wet snow that was falling out of our New England sky's.

This beautiful, hand-tied bouquet consisted of dark eggplant color mini calla lilies, 'milva' roses, 'black magic', rose hips and cinnamon color cymbidium orchids. The stems were wrapped partially with a eggplant and mustard color striped ribbon.

Her stunning gown was San Patrick which she purchased at Harold's in New Haven, Connecticut. The bridesmaids gowns were also purchased there.

For a dramatic entrance piece, we created an over the top curly willow 'tree' centerpiece for her escort card table. The tree was set in the center of a round table and completely surrounded by her favor/escort cards candy apples. At the base of the tree were mini pumpkins, moss and more flower touches.

Custom created centerpieces with a rustic wooden base were overflowing at top with antique hydrangea, 'milva', 'black magic' and 'sexy red' roses, along with rose hips and seeded eucalyptus. Detailed on the table with lady gala apples and moss. Nothing said a wedding in New England more than these stunning centerpieces! Cakes by Donna designed her delicious cake.

Real wedding at Hopmeadow Country Club

2010-07-30T18:03:00.000-07:00

Another photographer that really grabs my attention is Joyelle West Photography. Her work is simply stunning and perfectly flawless. We had the absolute pleasure of working with her last September on this gorgeous wedding in Simsbury, Connecticut.

Next October we'll be working with her again for a wedding at The Barn at Gibbet Hill. There are so many stunning custom pieces we'll be creating for this wedding. Including a canopy for the couple to be married under, created from old barn wood we salvaged. The details are endless!

Her dress was simply divine. Simplistic, but yet so pretty and romantic. Her gown was from Felicity Couture. The bridesmaids gowns were created by the fabulous Coren Moore. The bride let each bridesmaid choose the gown that fit their style best.

The couple chose an afternoon ceremony at Ethel Walker Chapel and reception following at Hopmeadow Country Club. The weather couldn't of been more perfect! I LOVE September and October weddings in New England. The weather is generally not too hot and not too cold. The surroundings of Mother Nature during that time of year wrap us in beauty. Colorful leaves falling in a cool breeze, pumpkins ripening in open fields and the smell of freshly squeezed apple cider remind of us home and comfort.

Fizz Paperie created all of the couples stationery, including some pretty spectacular invitations! Here are some more of the details from this GORGEOUS wedding! Her bouquets were a stunning collection of white mini calla lilies, white dahlias, button mums and our own farm picked snowberries. I planted them a few years back when I realized they weren't easy to buy commercially.

Hiring a friend

2010-07-29T17:44:00.000-07:00

With the tough economic times, many couples are trying to figure out ways to cut corners and save a few dollars. Keep in mind, if considering asking a friend to do something major for the wedding you might be sadly disappointed and possibly adding extra stress to your life.

I really believe that photography is a key component to any wedding. After all is said and done, that's what you will have left to remember each and every moment. Hiring a professionals photographer is tremendously important for stunning visual memories for years to come. Some of my favorites are: Jamie Collins Photography, Alissa Dinneen Photography, Candace Jeffrey Photography, No Eye Has Seen Photography, Steve Depino and Justin & Mary Marantz. Though you really need to interview them yourself, in person to see if you connect with them and how their pricing structure fits your needs. Most of those photographers will go out of their way to accommodate you in every way, creating custom packages that fit your style and budget.

This is a wedding that Alissa Dinneen captured last summer at Jonathan Edwards Winery. Such a gorgeous location! She's an amazing artist capturing every detail in such perfect grace.

We recently worked with Jamie Collins Photography on the most fun photo shoot (although, to be honest I was really sick and had lots of great friends to help out that day)

After hearing other couple's experiences with friends saying they'll do something major for the wedding. I would recommend using some caution. You might have a friend that owns a bakery shop and they bake cakes for a living. That might work out perfectly fine. Many times, unfortunately things just don't work out and feelings end up hurt or you end up with an end result you are simply not pleased with. Your wedding is probably one of the biggest events you will ever plan (or pay for) and it needs to be an event to remember. (no regrets)

You might think, oh I can do my own flowers. But, where do you order the flowers from? Who's going to help you put together bouquets on the morning of the wedding? Where will you store the flowers? Who's going to deliver them to the reception venue?? and so on.....Do you really want to stress over something like this? You should relax and savor every little moment of your wedding day. Leave the stress and the hours of putting together the flowers to us! Planning such a big event requires organization and lots of man hours coordinating everything.

Now, this is not to say I don't encourage some DIY elements to a wedding. If you can take a few days off before the wedding to make last minute favors (like my chocolate caramel apples covered in toasted coconut)... I say do it! I love adding personality to a wedding with DIY projects. Create your own menu cards. Things like this. But, remember to plan ahead of time and don't overload yourself with a ton of projects that completely stress you out! For my own wedding, I purchased a bunch of lanterns to line the sidewalks of our reception venue. I dropped them off a few days prior to the wedding and left detailed instructions of what I wanted to do with them.

Real wedding at Society Room

2010-07-27T19:39:00.000-07:00

This gorgeous hand-tied bouquet featured 'vendella' roses, white cymbidium orchids, ranunculus and fragrant sweet peas. Twisted with ivory satin ribbon.

I love bouquets of white and green flowers. Different textures and unique flower combination create a stunning bouquet. One of the most beautiful flower for spring is ranunculus. It's this delicate, yet stunning flower with a ton of petals that comes in a wide array of colors. We've recently had a ton of new inquiries for spring and summer 2011 weddings. I absolutely LOVE meeting new potential clients and coming up with new design concepts that will completely thrill the eye.

Images were all captured for this beautiful wedding by Tony Spinelli Photography

The Society Room is one of the most stunning reception venues you could ever ask for. The overall atmosphere is incredible! With so much history, The Society Room is the perfect local for anyone fascinated with history and architecture. Let their staff take care of everything and you'll be beyond satisfied. Besides wonderful hospitality, you're taste buds will be thanking you over and over again.

Sara Faella's couture pieces

2010-07-27T13:34:00.000-07:00

Sara Faella is the new and upcoming couture designer of accessories and head pieces for weddings and events. She's also a make-up artist that will travel to you on the day of and take care of your every little need. Sara has this amazing personality and can custom design something that fits your needs. We recently had the pleasure of working with Sara Faella at our photo shoot a few weeks back. She's just amazing!

Photos by Jamie Collins Photography

First Bloom Farm

2010-07-26T18:01:00.000-07:00

I had the pleasure of meeting Maggie from First Bloom Farm today. She grows seasonal flowers, herbs and so much more, organically. I'm loving all the things she grows and we'll be ordering some for our Farmer's Museum wedding in late August. Millet, basil and salvia will make the perfect addition to Caitlin's wedding.

We have many things growing in our gardens for our weddings this year. Including a number of grasses, lavender, mint, dahlias, statice and hydrangea. This fall we'll plant over 1,200 tulips to harvest in the spring for weddings. In the spring, our gardens are heavenly with nearly 40 peony plants. I love picking unripe blueberries out of the garden for an organic touch to boutonnieres. In September and October we have snowberries to pick for the most beautiful addition to any bouquet.

Wedding at the Riverview

2010-07-26T17:48:00.000-07:00

This past Saturday was so very hot. The Riverview was decorated beautifully. Lynda from Details Wedding and Event planning took care of making sure every little detail was in place. Gorgeous platinum pintuck linens draped over every table looked romantic and sophisticated. Curly willow and manzanita tree centerpieces adored crystals and hanging luminaries for a wedding guests are sure to remember. Anna, Hot lady roses and pink cymbidium orchids twisted up the trunk of each tree.

Bottles of oil infused with garlic and fresh rosemary were on the tables for guests to dip bread into.

Sneak Peak

2010-07-19T17:46:00.000-07:00

I just opened my mail today and fell completely in LOVE! Jamie Collins Photography worked with us last week for the most intimate and inspirational photo shoot. Here is a sneak peak to get your senses ready! Sara Faella was on site to style hair and make up. She also creates couture hair pieces and accessories for weddings and events.

All of the (gorgeous) gowns were brought in by The Plumed Serpent. You can find a wide variety of different designers and price ranges to fit your needs. Their customer service will make you feel right at home! We're looking forward to the entire feature of this shoot (which also featured Fizz Paperie, Kelly's Sweet Rewards and Butter Fly and Company)

Happenings of Summer

2010-07-15T12:52:00.000-07:00

We just had the most AMAZING photo shoot with Jamie Collins Photography and a hand full of the best in the industry! Jamie Collins has the most energy I've seen! She gets so excited about what she's photographing and is practically rolling on the ground to get the best shot! Just wait until you see her images! Just fabulous!! Her images from Katie's winter wonderland wedding at the Society Room are simply breathtaking!!

The location: La Cupola Ristorante & Inn

637 Bantam Road (Rt. 202), Litchfield, Connecticut

860-567-3326

It's this stunning earthy stone villa with such a welcoming atmosphere. Big beauiful windows overlook the entire property while you enjoy your reception. French doors open into the dining room and gorgeous chandeliers are throughout the facility. Creamy color walls with all white trim. Enjoy cocktail hour down stairs and then dine upstairs or the opposite. The outside grounds are amazing, with a pond surrounded by granite benches, beautiful trees and flowers. A split-rail fence that borders the edge of Bantam River and the surroundings of Mother Nature. If your party is over 100 guests you can have your wedding in the beautiful crisp white tent overlooking all of these views.

Dress on site in your own private suite or in another private room. Frank Rosa, the owner is meticulous over every little detail. He makes you feel as though you are family and it's your wedding so it's got to be perfect! Have your wedding what ever time is convenient for you, since you reserve the entire day. Personalized service goes far beyond that when he asks you to come to dinner and pick out your dinner for your wedding. He wants to personalize it and make something your guests are sure to remember for a VERY long time! (you can ask our guests, they are still raving over 8 years later!)

Fizz Paperie created beautiful menu cards for our shoot. She even created matching escort cards. I designed family-style table settings, since that is what they do in Italy. (according to Frank) Things are different there, not so fast pace as our American ways. You take the time to enjoy each others company and soak in the aromas and flavors of good food and wine. All of our rental items (including farmhouse style tables, beautiful stemware and flatware) were provided by Rentals Unlimited.

Sara Faella was on site (she's fabulous by the way!) to help with the stylings of the model. She not only will travel to your venue to do your hair and make-up, but creates Couture (one of a kind, never duplicated!) head pieces, bird cage veils, etc. So trendy and hip for the bride looking for something different than a veil, or to add to the simple veil. Her pieces went great with the GORGEOUS gowns that Alison from The Plumed Serpent brought! LOVE, LOVE the gowns... cannot wait for Jamie's images!

Kelly's Sweet Rewards made the most tasty creations ever! Chocolate dipped cake (cake balls). Melt in your mouth, yum! Her cakes coordinated perfectly with our florals for each table setting!

The weather was perfect! The clouds were in the sky with the sun poking through. The rain held out right until the end! Perfect timing for a down pour!

Keep your eyes on our blog for updates of where you can see the entire shoot!

Photo shoot for next week

2010-07-08T08:08:00.000-07:00

I'm SO excited that next week we're working with some of the best of the best wedding professionals and that Jamie Collins Photography is working her styling magic to capture every little fabulous detail!!!

We'll be designing a photo shoot at La Cupola Ristorate & Inn, in Litchfield, Connecticut in July along with sweet creations of Kelly's Sweet Rewards! I'm looking forward to seeing what Jillian Sullivan from Fizz Paperie comes up with for the menu cards, etc. She's a wonderful stationery designer! I've designed two really fabulous table settings that are to die for! Garden elements, yet sophisticated and simply romantic! With bouquets and unusual boutonnieres to coordinate. Sara Faella will be creating some pretty unique accessories for the models hair and taking care of all their hair & makeup needs! So excited to see what she comes up with! Lovely gowns are being provided by the Plumed Serpent.

All of the incredible rentals are being provided by Rentals Unlimited. They are amazing and have a wonderful selection of unique rentals for all of your wedding or party needs.

Stay tuned to Style Me Pretty to see the entire shoot reveiled.