Textural Summer Wedding at the WAG
There are some weddings that come together beautifully after much back and forth, brainstorming, and ideas…and there are some that seem to come together so effortlessly! This textural summer wedding reception at the Winnipeg Art Gallery for G+D was the latter — at least on my end!
Eventzy brought me in to design all the personal and reception florals, and they had already conceptualized such a great design plan. Textured rattan elements, touches of floral pattern, a calming twist on the classic white/green/blue palette, and a few modern elements brought it all together.
There are some weddings that come together beautifully after much back and forth, brainstorming, and ideas…and there are some that seem to come together so effortlessly! This textural summer wedding reception at the Winnipeg Art Gallery for G+D was the latter — at least on my end!
Eventzy brought me in to design all the personal and reception florals, and they had already conceptualized such a great design plan. Textured rattan elements, touches of floral pattern, a calming twist on the classic white/green/blue palette, and a few modern elements brought it all together.
Photos by Michael & Melanie
Event Design by Eventzy
THE FLOWERS
Gian gave me a lot of flexibility with her bouquet. She did have a few requests: She wanted as much colour as she could get within her palette (hello, lime green!!), and she wanted to use orchids and garden roses because they reminded her of her grandmother. She has a pretty modern design sensibility, and I knew there would be some fun fashion moments so I thought we could go for a uniquely shaped bouquet.
Bridal Bouquet Ingredients: garden roses, phalaenopsis orchids, cymbidium orchids, delphinium, lisianthus, Bells of Ireland, and forget-me-not.
THE RECEPTION
You’ve always got to love seeing a couple and their guests enjoying their wedding this much!! We’re celebrating here, people. Let’s get into it!
The dinner design was Eventzy’s main priority, and they really nailed it. The floor plan was fantastic, really creating incredible design features that were perfectly paired with pockets of negative space. It felt very calming.
Gian’s one major request was that I incorporate green grapes into the tablescapes — no problem! We also used our LED taper candles and votives. While I’d always prefer to use real, the WAG doesn’t allow real flame to protect the art, so I searched high and low to find the best LED candles I could get my hands on. They were worth the investment!
3 design elements that make this design work:
1) A floor plan with differing table shapes. When you have enough space in your venue, please add different table shapes. This can create a great flow in the room (or, a terrible flow — so be careful!). In this case, we had round tables tucked into what could have been awkward corners, long tables throughout the most of the room, and a very cool C shaped family table in front of the head table.
2) HEIGHT. A space like the WAG can be really challenging because the ceiling is SO high, and even when you add a tall centrepiece, the room can feel very flat. The addition of pedestals with floral urns throughout the room, and the tall lamp stands along the right side create so much visual interest!
3) Texture: rattan lamps, cane-back chairs, and cleverly placed floral patterned linens and napkins add layers of feminine texture that feel fresh.
See what I mean about a great floor plan? The cozy banquette seating under the tall lampshades, that very cool C shaped family table right in front of the head table, and the rows of long tables carefully interspersed with tall floral urns on pedestals make for SUCH an engaging space. Most of the centrepieces themselves were quite simple: white ceramic cylinder vases filled with fluttery, romantic textures: hydrangea, Queen Anne’s Lace, delphinium, and forget-me-not.
Working at the WAG comes with a truncated setup time (as it’s open during the day to gallery visitors), so we always come prepared with a team that’s ready to WORK. The amount of work we busted through in a short period of time was incredible! The most time-consuming element was the foliage on the lamp stands. I knew that we wouldn’t have time to fully cover and instal the foliage on-site, so we prepped these greenery pieces in advance. We made this out of a chicken wire base, folded over almost like a burrito. We wrapped them in large plastic coverings to keep them from drying out, then hoisted them into the van and carried them through the WAG almost like body bags 🙈 We opened those bad boys up, hoisted them up around the top curve of the lamp stand, and then zip tied them closed almost like zipping up the back of a dress. We always have to add a bit of extra foliage to cover any holes or mechanics that are exposed, and then of course, sweep sweep sweep! Lots of sweeping happened this day.
Michael & Melanie Photography ~ Winnipeg Art Gallery ~ Eventzy ~ Planned Perfectly ~ Mix Event Rentals ~ Tilted Space (silk ceremony florals) ~ Collective Event Rentals ~ Creating a Scene
planning a wedding at the Winnipeg Art Gallery?
I want in.
Florals shape the feeling of a celebration. Our design philosophy sees colour, movement, and composition working together to create deeply intentional floral experiences. We see florals not simply as decorations, but as essential elements that define atmosphere, emotion, and visual cohesion.
If this is what you’re looking for, Lauren would love to connect with you!
Modern Meets Classic White Wedding Flowers at SMITH
Kate and Denis’ wedding was set in late May — one of the best times for flowers! We’re talking tulips, lilac, AND spirea — and you know I used it all!
They had chosen SMITH for their reception, loving the intimate setting and delicious food. But, they have a more classic style overall, so in the design process we needed to find ways to blend that more traditional style with modern design elements, to create an overall event design that worked with the restaurant setting.
Kate and Denis’ wedding was set in late May — one of the best times for flowers! We’re talking tulips, lilac, AND spirea — and you know I used it all!
They had chosen SMITH for their reception, loving the intimate setting and delicious food. But, they have a more classic style overall, so in the design process we needed to find ways to blend that more traditional style with modern design elements, to create an overall event design that worked with the restaurant setting.
Photos by Brittany Mahood
Planning by Soiree Event Planning
“The flowers were absolutely stunning. Exceeded all of our expectations! Thank you again for everything. We’re just so so impressed and happy. Thank you so much!”
The Floral Design
When I delivered Kate’s bouquet that morning, her mom was shocked to see me, assuming I would have someone else handling deliveries. But you know what? Delivering your bridal bouquet to you on your wedding morning is one of my most favourite moments of the entire day. A lot of brides start to feel like things are getting real when bouquets get delivered and seeing the excitement in your eyes is thrilling.
Kate had a vision for a slightly smaller bouquet, with a bit more of a vertical shape. Her inspiration image was made of faux flowers, which can be tricky for a florist to then figure out how to execute in fresh flowers. There’s the simple but substantial difference of fresh flowers having their own movement, where each stem is going to do what it wants, while faux flowers are super easy to manipulate due to having a wired stem. All that being said, I LOVED the way Kate’s bouquet turned out!! It was delicate, petite, SO lightweight, and filled with a small selection of absolutely stunning blooms.
The bridesmaids carried single stems of large calla lilies, which I tied with a delicate bow. I didn’t originally plan to use a bow, but I did need something on those stems. At first, I tried just a simple wrap of ribbon and it looked like a hilarious bandaid wrapped around the handle, while the bow looked charming. Done!
Bridal Bouquet Ingredients: Spirea, tulips, sweet pea, mini calla lilies, and mini phalaenopsis orchids.
The Ceremony Design
The ceremony took place at the Canadian Museum for Human Rights. It’s a really striking space, with soaring ceilings and tons of windows. Since the ceremony and reception were going to be in 2 different venues, we wanted to choose a ceremony design that would be easy to repurpose over to Smith without too much difficulty, and to choose something that would ground the eye. With ceilings that high, it can be tricky to figure out the right scale to design for.
We settled on two pedestals to frame in an altar, with 2 lush, branching floral arrangements added on top. When I tell you I got SO lucky with the timing for both spirea and white lilac to be blooming!!! I added in a few mini green hydrangea to bring that fresh spring colour, and we were set to go.
Smith absolutely glowed that night! We layered in classic taper candles, a few statement branching arrangements (at the escort card table and on the bars), and linen accents to bring the entire space together.
Tabletop Styling
Balancing the moody, modern setting of Smith with the desire for a more traditional overall design, the Soiree team and I knew we needed to make very particular design choices to pull it all together.
We included the classic elements of taper candles and central floral arrangements, modernizing them for the restaurant setting with modern floral styling, warm neutral candles, and varied heights to create visual interest.
Dinnerware
Though Smith has nice dinnerware (most restaurants do!), the in-house plates didn’t give the elevated classic feel the family was really after. Soiree chose the Kaleb set from Collective Rentals, which does a really nice job of adding a chic feel to the place settings!
Taupe Candles and Linens
Kate wasn’t confident about coloured candles at first — we looked at samples of a few different colours, including blues, but it felt a little too playful. White felt too crisp. This sandstone taper candle is just the right choice for warming up the overall design without necessarily feeling like you’re adding a colour. They also chose Planned Perfectly’s taupe linens for the round tables, and wanting to add a bit more polish to the rectangular tables, Kate’s mom made coordinating taupe linen runners.
Stationery
Soiree knows just how to bring in a slight touch of colour to elevate a design! Delicate touches of this perfect dusty blue paper in the table numbers and menu cards was perfect.
Floral Centrepieces
One of my first thoughts when discussing the tables was to keep the vases clear — I wanted as much twinkling candlelight as possible, and it reflects so nicely off of clear glass. They preferred classic arrangements, in all whites and greens, and we simply adjusted the size of container and the quantity of arrangements to the size of each table. Restaurant floor plans are often a little more on the random side, so it’s never a cut and dry “x# of centrepieces that all match.” You need to be a lot more detailed and specific, ensuring there’s enough space on the tables to make it all work.
Who This Design is For
Whether you’re blending a modern setting with a classic style like this couple, or merging your personal tastes with your fiance’s, this wedding is a great example that you can find the right elements to bring it all together.
Looking for a Wedding Floral Designer in Winnipeg?
Florals shape the feeling of a celebration. Our design philosophy sees colour, movement, and composition working together to create deeply intentional floral experiences. We see florals not simply as decorations, but as essential elements that define atmosphere, emotion, and visual cohesion.
If this is what you’re looking for, Lauren would love to connect with you!
Intimate, Colourful Weekday Wedding at 529 Wellington
An intimate Monday vow exchange wedding in the park. An elegant dinner at one of Winnipeg’s most iconic restaurants.
For Claire and Lee’s late summer wedding, we let the colour do all the talking, layering in flowers and candles to create visual movement, depth, and a really fun ambiance for a twinkling, elevated dinner party.
An intimate Monday vow exchange wedding in the park. An elegant dinner at one of Winnipeg’s most iconic restaurants.
For Claire and Lee’s late summer wedding, we let the colour do all the talking, layering in flowers and candles to create visual movement, depth, and a really fun ambiance for a twinkling, elevated dinner party.
Photos by Brittany Mahood Photography
There was no formal wedding party, but I did design a small bouquet for Claire’s sister — and look at how PERFECTLY the girls’ dresses go with the floral palette!!! I always provide my clients with a colour palette in their proposals, and it brings me so much joy when the family or guests have very obviously chosen attire that fits within that palette. My husband’s family accidentally all wore shades of the same three colours at our wedding, and our family photos are dynamite.
“Lauren, I knew there was a reason you were my first and only choice for florals, and at the wedding I saw that reason with my own two eyes. Everything was just absolute perfection!”
The Flowers
Quite literally everything was all about the flowers here. Claire was SO excited and so invested in the flowers, to the point where she was having stress dreams about me accidentally using eucalyptus and then creating her own memes to send to me. I love Claire :)
Her specific request was “Flowers so delicious they’re good enough to eat.” Juicy yummy here we come!
Bridal Bouquet Ingredients: Pretty much everything was locally grown! Zinnias, dahlias, cosmos, sweet pea, and even the orchids were locally grown in Manitoba, with a few ranunculus added in for the fluff factor.
The Ceremony
Leo Mol Sculpture Garden is one of my very favourite places in the entire city. It feels so transformative, like you wander through the trees and you’re transported somewhere else. It’s quiet, intimate, and so inspiring. And for smaller guest lists, it is the absolute perfect wedding ceremony location. While we were setting up for this wedding, all the vendors were charmed by an otter flipping around in the pond!
Covering up the view with an arch is a no for me at Leo Mol, so I often suggest to couples that we go for ground-based florals here. These are also so easy to repurpose over at the reception, and easy to install in the short setup timeline that Assiniboine Park gives us.
We kept the juicy palette, adding in more greenery both to use as a base mechanic that takes up a lot of space in the arrangements, and to tie together with the natural vine-covered setting. I had the most glorious Manitoba dahlias, marigolds, and zinnias, paired with bright, rich roses.
The Reception
The perfect late summer dinner party, set at 529 Wellington. I love that Claire and Lee planned this reception like they did the rest of their wedding: fuss-free, but still elevated.
Claire really gave me creative freedom here! We obviously wanted to keep that juicy colour palette front and centre, and since the guest list was so small, we had a lot of budget flexibility. I also needed to stay realistic about the amount of space that I had to work with.
I elected to feature 2 larger, rectangular floral arrangements on each table, interspersed with taper candles, bud vases, low floral frog arrangements, and votives. The glow of the coloured candles perfectly complimented the colour of the florals, creating an engaging ambiance.
Looking for a Wedding Floral Designer in Winnipeg?
Florals shape the feeling of a celebration. Our design philosophy sees colour, movement, and composition working together to create deeply intentional floral experiences. We see florals not simply as decorations, but as essential elements that define atmosphere, emotion, and visual cohesion.
If this is what you’re looking for, Lauren would love to connect with you!
Bold Winnipeg Wedding at Deer & Almond
Restaurant weddings are some of my very favourites. It’s so much fun to work in a space that already has its own aesthetic and vibe. Deer & Almond is one of Winnipeg’s most treasured eateries, and was the perfect location for Sharyne and Gavin’s bold evening reception.
Sharyne and Gavin are both artistic and creative (he’s a photographer), and would you believe me that they started out wanting a French countryside-inspired, white and green wedding? In her initial inquiry, she said “I've also taken a look through your instagram account and we could probably be swayed to some brighter and funkier colours.” — cue my happy tears :)
So I swayed them! We did originally talk about the whites and greens, but it honestly didn’t feel right in the restaurant. The space has some vibrant, joyful tones and we decided to move that direction.
They were married in a private ceremony the week prior, and this was their celebratory dinner with a small group of friends.
Photos by Michael & Melanie
Restaurant weddings are some of my very favourites. It’s so much fun to work in a space that already has its own aesthetic and vibe. Deer & Almond is one of Winnipeg’s most treasured eateries, and was the perfect location for Sharyne and Gavin’s bold evening reception.
Sharyne and Gavin are both artistic and creative (he’s a photographer), and would you believe me that they started out wanting a French countryside-inspired, white and green wedding? In her initial inquiry, she said “I've also taken a look through your instagram account and we could probably be swayed to some brighter and funkier colours.” — cue my happy tears :)
So I swayed them! We did originally talk about the whites and greens, but it honestly didn’t feel right in the restaurant. The space has some vibrant, joyful tones and we decided to move that direction.
They were married in a private ceremony the week prior, and this was their celebratory dinner with a small group of friends.
Photos by Michael & Melanie
We decided to pull together a few different softer peaches, corals, blues, and lavenders, and punching them up with saturated red and small hints of lime. This came from a combination of inspiration images, and Sharyne wasn’t sure how to tie them together. I could see it right away — the perfect reminder that even if you can’t visualize it, your creative professionals can!
The Flowers
With this as my colour palette, you know I had a lot of fun with the flowers! The wedding was in mid-June, so we didn’t have much in the way of locally grown flowers available to us yet — all I could get my hands on were the pansies. But OH how perfect those little lavender pansies were!!
Of course I had to use my favourite red roses, nina. They’re just the most delicious, vibrant colour. I had ordered lavender anemone to pair with them, but they came in kind of fuschia. Would I have preferred the lavender? Yes. But sometimes, a problem becomes its own solution and the brightness of the fuschia worked really well with the space.
We wanted the centrepieces to be smaller in footprint, but with an architectural feel and a little more vertical in shape.
The Hanging installation
As with most restaurant weddings, we did not have a lot of tabletop space to work with. The focus is on the food and the drink, which is awesome! But Sharyne loved the idea of having some sort of focal feature in the space, and when we realized that we could use the slatted wall at the front entrance, the idea was set: a hanging floral feature moment, with their sweetheart table set in front of it.
I wanted to design something sculptural, with strong lines, and a unique feel to it. I always love using allium in designs — those are the large purple “balls” that really command attention. I also decided to tuck in some strands of threaded gladiola, and we used stems of phalaenopsis orchids to get the right lime green (which is really hard to find in the flower world!).
Even better, this piece was also entirely foam-free. I built it on a chicken wire structure, and some of the flowers were water-tubed and others went right into the chicken wire (and ps, we reuse all the chicken wire and water tubes that come back to us, too!).
Looking for a Wedding Floral Designer in Winnipeg?
Flowers are the best way to make a statement at your wedding. Reach out to Stone House Creative for stunning bridal bouquets, truly unique ceremony backdrops, and beautiful floral centrepieces to create the perfect ambiance for your wedding!
Colourful Prairie Tent Wedding in Neepawa
They have the world at the fingertips, and they chose to come back home to get hitched ❤️
Working with Brooke and Taylor on their wedding was a 2025 highlight for me. They were planning from out of town (NYC), and getting married out of town (in her hometown of Neepawa), so there were a lot of logistics to sort through and plans to make.
A few of the things I love: summer flowers, the colour coral standing as a focal point in a fun palette, and a couple who gives me creative control. AND WHEN THEY ALL ROLL INTO ONE? My literal dream!
Photos by Pretty Burd Portraits
They have the world at the fingertips, and they chose to come back home to get hitched ❤️
Working with Brooke and Taylor on their wedding was a 2025 highlight for me. They were planning from out of town (NYC), and getting married out of town (in her hometown of Neepawa), so there were a lot of logistics to sort through and plans to make.
A few of the things I love: summer flowers, the colour coral standing as a focal point in a fun palette, and a couple who gives me creative control. AND WHEN THEY ALL ROLL INTO ONE? My literal dream!
Photos by Pretty Burd Portraits
The Floral Design
Brooke and Taylor’s wedding was in the middle of August — aka the PERFECT time for flowers in Manitoba. Everything in the local fields is just perfect. The dahlias are ramping up, the lisianthus and zinnias have hit their stride, and there’s so much colour and texture available. With their summer sunset palette in mind, it’s safe to say I had a lot of fun.
Bridal Bouquet Ingredients: Mixed coral roses (dragonfly, pink xpression, coral xpression), dahlias, zinnias, foxglove, cosmos, lisianthus, feverfew, sweet pea, and mixed grasses. This was definitely one of my favourite bridal bouquets of the year!!
As a special addition, we commissioned Kathryn from Golden Age Botanicals in Toronto to create these custom gold bees, as a nod to Brooke and Taylor’s original meet-cute through Bumble! I included 2 in her bridal bouquet to represent the two of them, and another in the bar arrangement.
The Design Inspiration
Since Brooke and Taylor live in NYC, they were feeling a bit anxious about everything coming together in a well-rounded way without them being able to actually see anything. After they fell in love with their floral proposal, they asked me to also provide Event Design services. I was so happy to take it from there!
With that “late summer sunset palette” as our starting point, and knowing that the guest list was going to be substantial, I got to work on floor planning and trying to build a tent plan with interest and flow. The only problem was, the guest list kept going up 😂 We ended up re-jigging the layout a few times, luckily adding on a separate tent for the buffet to be served out of so we could keep the dinner tent clean and functional.
The Reception Details
After we sorted out the floor plan, I got to work on tablescaping. I like to have some symmetry in the tent, and I like to have a mix of table shapes. Visual interest is everything in event design — if everything is a sea of sameness, it falls flat VERY quickly (especially if it’s rows of 20 of the exact same thing!).
From Design Board to Reality
Right off the top, this Toffee Belize linen from Planned Perfectly was a great base for all the tables. A tent has so much white from the tent itself, and so much green from the grass, so I needed to create a warmer layer that the rest of the decor could stem from. Brooke loved the idea of a coloured glassware, and while we had a few choices, I ended up selecting Planned Perfectly’s pink tinted glassware for two reasons: 1) it was visually interesting and 2) it wouldn’t actually stand out. We were gong to have a lot going on, and I didn’t need the glassware to make a huge statement.
Next up, deciding how to layer in greens (her favourite colour) and dark yellows/oranges (his favourite colour). Flowers were obviously an easy place, and we also chose green taper candles, golden vases, and LED table lamps. Why go for white or clear when you can layer in a shade from the palette?!
JUST LOOK AT THESE ROSES!!!! This definitely unlocked a new favourite rose combination for me.
The Hanging Installation
This was a sort of last-minute addition! A few months before the wedding, Brooke asked about the possibility of adding something hanging over the dance floor. The logistics of a hanging piece get me really excited!
I ended up using baskets as a base, strung up on airline cable, adding in chicken wire balls and then all the greenery and florals. Luckily for me, Brooke’s entire family of men were around and willing to help, so they graciously did all the hoisting!
You can see the BTS of this here!
I’m so grateful both for the creative trust and the long distance trust that Taylor and Brooke put in me. It’s a lot to hand over the reigns to your most special day, but when you’re planning from afar, it’s also the way that things work best.
It was also so wonderful to have Brooke’s handy family involved! They built and painted all of the ceremony pedestals, outdoor signage, and the bar back wall. Whenever I made a suggestion, they were on it. Tent weddings on your property are a LOT of work (seriously, don’t underestimate it!!) but if you’ve got the right kind of people involved, then there’s nothing else like celebrating in the place you grew up!
planning a Tent Wedding in Manitoba?
Count me in! Whether it’s an intimate wedding for 30 or a celebration the likes of which have never been seen before, reach out to Stone House Creative for stunning bridal bouquets, truly unique ceremony backdrops, and beautiful floral centrepieces to create the perfect ambiance for your wedding!
