Inspiration Tables from The Gates on Roblin Open House
I had a great time at the Gates on Roblin’s open house two weeks ago! All of the creative/decor vendors were tasked with designing 3 inspiration tables: one each of the categories of modern, romantic, and vintage. I’m not personally one that’s big on “themes” so my goal with these table designs was really to just create something that I liked and would appeal to engaged couples who like my style. Truth be told, I also didn’t want to spend a ton of money. Because guys, flowers ARE expensive, even on the wholesale level. But that’s beside the point!
I had a great time at the Gates on Roblin’s open house two weeks ago! All of the creative/decor vendors were tasked with designing 3 inspiration tables: one each of the categories of modern, romantic, and vintage. I’m not personally one that’s big on “themes” so my goal with these table designs was really to just create something that I liked and would appeal to engaged couples who like my style. Truth be told, I also didn’t want to spend a ton of money 😂Because guys, flowers ARE expensive, even on the wholesale level. But that’s beside the point!
The Gates on Roblin ~ Mandy Wright Photography ~ Soiree Event Planning ~ Planned Perfectly ~ C&T Rentals
Modern Wedding Design
I had one initial idea for this modern wedding design style: this incredible variety of rose called Toffee. They’re an absolutely incredible colour, they open up beautifully, and they’re a gorgeous selection for a warm neutral (which is the next big colour trend). I paired it with black accents (vase, candle holders, chairs) for some depth and drama, and chose Planned Perfectly’s new taupe linen. It’s got a beautiful texture and is a beautiful neutral base. The black metal candle holders are new to my inventory and I love them! They give off such a great glow. The perfect finishing touch was those black and gold cutlery from C&T! I’ve been hoping for black flatware to be brought into Winnipeg and here they are!
Vintage Wedding Design
I love olive foliage. The stems are a hardy branching shape, the colour of the leaves is a silvery sage green (similar to the colour of eucalyptus but MUCH more interesting…FYI I’m tired of using eucalyptus all the time), and it’s really pretty en masse like this. I also knew that I wanted to use these cross-back chairs from Planned Perfectly, and thought they’d look great with the walnut chargers from C&T Rentals. We added the copper flatware and I popped some dried hydrangea into my copper votives to add some interest to the base of the tall vase. The terracotta menus were actually samples I had on-hand from Minted, and didn’t they work PERFECTLY? (and PS, I have a discount code for any of your from Minted - let me know if you want it!)
Romantic Wedding Design
This centrepiece design was my anti-dote to personally being tired of the typical cylinder vase trio with pillar candles and greenery. I still included three pillar vases, but mixed them in with coloured taper candles and bronze votives, and then created some free-form mini gardens at the base, using moss, fern, and a few floral bits and pieces. I selected the mauve velvet linen as the base and Andrea from Soiree Event Planning completed the table design by selecting the place settings - I was originally thinking all white plates but I love that she stacked the grey charger with the scalloped white dinner plate and salad plate!
My Set Up
And last up, I designed this for my own little set up. I wanted to do something with a little more colour (because as we all know, I LOVE colour) and I started with the dark blue delphinium because I needed the height. Then I knew that I wanted to bring in some coral and peach, and thought I should add in a touch of yellow for a little more vibrance and fun. The light blue velvet linen from Planned Perfectly was SO gorgeous and if you’re looking for an incredible linen to take your tables from basic to amazing, this might be it! They also have a new green velvet that is STUNNING.
I would DIE to create this style of arrangement curved around or in front of a sweetheart table, or as a “nest” for a really intimate ceremony setting. Wouldn’t it be incredible to say your vows knee-deep in flowers?!
The bridal bouquet ingredients included the most perfect peach amaryllis (wowza, am I right?!), roses, agapanthus, alstroemeria, and a couple of cute billy balls. I finished it with a TON of silk Tono & Co ribbon.
Hire a Talented Wedding Floral and Event Designer in Winnipeg
I’ll be announcing my 2021 appointment dates in the next few weeks! My waitlist has already been started so if you want to be one of the first I meet with for a 2021 wedding, make sure you get on the list early. Couples interested in full event and floral design will be contacted first about their dates. I offer a limited number of dates for event design each year, in order to allow me to work closely with each couple. Combining event and floral design is the perfect option for couples who live out of town, or couples who feel they need a little extra help in creating the visual plan for their wedding day. Click this link to learn more!
Tropical Greens at Cielo's Garden's Open House
I always love being a part of the Cielo's Garden Open House each year, for a number of reasons (you can see more from last year's by clicking here!).
First, the people there are wonderful. Carla and Diego (and their adorable daughter and cat) are truly great people, and I always enjoy spending time with them. The facility that they dreamed up and created is incredible. Each spring, when I arrive there for the first time of the year, I fall in love with the place all over again. The way the trees arch over the path in the woods, the sweet stone chapel, even the smell of the air out there - it's magical. The open house is also a great opportunity for me to meet up with some of my couples getting married there, walking through their wedding flower plans in the space in which they'll be, which helps the couple to visualize it so much better.
And finally, the open house is also a chance for me to stretch my creative muscle and do something interesting. Carla recommends me as one of her preferred vendors, and to me, this gives me a responsibility to always be coming up with fresh design ideas so that each couples really feels like they're getting a unique wedding just for them.
So for this year's open house design, I decided to feature my personal favourite colour: emerald green. I didn't want to just do the same old green that has been done time and time again, though - I felt the urge to play with a tropical vibe, which I've never done before, and chose to tie in some of my copper wedding rentals, which paired beautifully with the green and black accents. I was pleasantly surprised at all of the positive response I received on Instagram from the design, so I thought I'd share it here on the blog! The photos were all just taken on my phone, so forgive me for them not be stellar :)
Venue: Cielo's Garden | Florals and Design: Stone House Creative | Place Setting Rentals: C&T Rentals | Silk Table Runner: Tono & Co
Sara and Brent's All-Greenery Wedding
When it comes to simple weddings, I don't think there's anything quite so simple and pretty as an all-greenery wedding. Sara and Brent's wedding was such a fun one to be a part of - it was an intimate wedding, without need for too terribly much floral decor, so Sara chose to go with tons of greenery and texture instead!
Wedding Planner: Amanda Douglas Events | Photos: Kamp Photography | Venue: St Norbert Arts Centre | Linens: Dream Day Decor | Lighting Backdrop: Event Light
I love the St Norbert Arts Centre. It is such a cool place for weddings! It's pretty small so it's ideal for intimate weddings like this one, and it's also such a neutral space that you can go really minimal OR you can go super bright and colourful. For Sara and Brent, we kept greenery on all the tables but alternated styles - half with a full garland and half with just really loose greenery laid down the length of the table, tucked in with candles.
We did a very simple sweetheart table design for them, with a greenery garland. The showstopper was definitely the cafe light string backdrop behind, from Event Light!
Lauren and Jordan's Greenery and White Wedding at Cielo's Garden
Alright. This post has been a long time coming and I've been waiting to share it with you, because it was one of my absolute favourite weddings of 2016. Lauren and Jordan are just plain amazing. Their characters are remarkable: they're both so kind, generous, and honest. Their love for each other is inspiring. It was truly a privilege to be a part of this wedding.
Normally, I'm not so huge on the whole "Pantone Colour of the Year" thing...but given that they selected "Greenery" as the colour for 2017, I can get behind it! Looks like Lauren and Jordan were trendsetters :)
Photos: Pantel Photography | Venue: Cielo's Garden | Videography: Prairie Film Co | Dress: Bliss Bridal Boutique | Makeup: Jessica Kmiec
Lauren had a very beautiful vision for her wedding. With a palette of navy, light blue, white, green, and gold, she told me what she liked and what she didn't like, and then let me run with the rest of it. The bouquets were loose and gardenesque, all in white and green with as many locally grown blooms as possible. I tied them all up with navy satin streamers.
Bridal Bouquet Ingredients: garden roses, scabiosa, sweet pea, lisianthus, campanula, veronica, waxflower, and several varieties of eucalyptus.
The chapel at Cielo's Garden is one of my favourite places to design flowers in. Lauren's idea was to install this gorgeous greenery piece above the altar where they'd say their vows and I couldn't get enough of the idea. I tucked in a few white blooms here and there for some depth. Designing this piece was one of the happiest moments of my summer!
For this piece, I threaded in salal, plumosa, nagi, pittisporum, eucalyptus, ruscus, and stems of white campanula blooms to add in depth. Over at the reception, we chose long garlands of salal greenery with white campanula blooms to emphasize the long wooden tables. They had an incredible troop of friends and family members helping them out on the day of the wedding -- Lauren had wooden table number signs, individual escort cards for each place setting, and many candles. It was absolutely beautiful.
Lauren also asked me to design a flower crown for the reception, and man, does the girl ever wear it with style!
Jungle-Inspired Dinner Party
Man, am I ever late on blogging this amazing dinner party! Early this spring, Emily from Feast & Festivities contacted me about a dinner party she was planning. She wanted to do something different - an industrial jungle theme it was!
I know that most people don't want to spend a fortune on decor for a dinner party, so Emily's idea was to use simple, jungle-esque greenery to pop on the table. It's a great idea - it doesn't take up a lot of space, provides a rich pop of colour, and is so simple to do! using different heights and sizes of cylinder vases, along with different types of tropical leaves, created a varied look with lots of interest. Emily also crafted some really cute DIYs and a signature cocktail called the "Jungle Rumble." Get her top tips for hosting a great dinner party on her site, here!
See more from this dinner party featured on Host Winnipeg!
