Garden-Inspired Winter Wedding at SMITH

I’ve been waiting a long time to share Morgan and Josiah’s garden-inspired winter wedding at SMITH! But, it just didn’t feel right to post winter images during June. They were married December 28, 2019 in a big, joyous celebration and is the perfect example of why winter weddings are awesome.

Rich, luxurious while still approachable, warm, and overloaded with delicious food, there’s probably nothing that I would change about their wedding. The temperature wasn’t even that cold! Read on for more inspiration on throwing a killer winter wedding here in Winnipeg.

Photos by The Picture & The Poet

Morgan and I actually know each other a bit from church, where we both volunteer with the student ministries, so I was really excited to get her email! She and Josiah weren’t technically engaged yet, but let me tell you: that happens ALL the time.

Bridal bouquet ingredients: Tess and Keira garden roses, amnesia roses, plum and blush ranunculus, mauve astrantia, blush rice flower, and wine amaryllis.

Even though it was winter, Morgan wanted her bouquet to feel very garden-inspired and lush, so that’s what I did!

Morgan both made the centre arch AND did all the calligraphy and signage for her wedding! Her ceremony design concept was to feature the calligraphy paper roll and frame it in with flowers, so I flanked it with my copper stands and absolutely filled them with flowers. It smelled SO GREAT.

After the ceremony in the ballroom upstairs, the party moved to SMITH. We varied the flower arrangements here, knowing that the tables are very different sizes. Some got a single bud vase, and some were filled with fuller arrangements and tons of candles. The flowers brought in a lot of colour to the moody, rustic space.

When you’re planning a winter wedding, there are a few more logistical issues to work through — and specifically with flowers, you need to make sure those flowers aren’t going to freeze to death. Sometimes my brides will order a second bouquet for outdoor pictures, often a simpler posy composed of hardy winter greens and berries. Like I said earlier, it was actually pretty warm for Morgan and Josiah’s wedding (remarkable, because late December is usually AWFUL) so that worked out just fine for them!

On the other hand, when you’re designing a winter wedding, you should definitely take full advantage by playing up the best parts of the season. Ask yourself how you like to feel in winter/during the holidays — I’ll tell you that I like to feel cozy, fat (lol), warm, and surrounded by people I love, good smelling food, and dim lights. Now aside from feeling fat, the rest of that would make for a pretty stinking great wedding, and I think that’s really how Morgan and Josiah’s wedding felt! Morgan’s hand-crafted details aded so much personality and tied it all together.

The Picture & The Poet ~ Smith ~ inn at the Forks ~ AShley Brooke WEddings & Events ~ Bliss Bridal Boutique ~ Hair by Danille ~ Colour me Artistry ~ EPH Apparel ~

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Ainslie and Josh's Modern Restaurant Wedding at SMITH

Ainslie and Josh’s modern wedding at SMITH on the September long weekend was one of my favourites of the year! Normally, an all white and green palette doesn’t get me too excited, but I have to say that I love the way this one come together. Modern, clean, and simple elements created a stunning design.

The couple lives out of province, so most of our planning was done over email (though I did get to have an initial in-person meeting with her, which gave me a really good opportunity to get a feel for her style). I really enjoy working with out of town couples - they tend to put more trust in the professionals that they hire rather than micromanaging us, which in my opinion always results in the best final product. It gives us the chance to think outside of the typical Pinterest box and come up with something great for each couple!

Kamp Photography ~ Soiree Event Planning ~ Minted ~ SMITH Restaurant ~ Jenna Rae Cakes ~ Big City All Star Band

I may go a little over the top with bouquet pictures here. Kamp Photography did an AWESOME job of taking these flower photos (not every photographer does, so I always LOVE it when they do!) and I really love how they turned out. Ainslie wanted her bouquet to feel organic and somewhat natural without being too crazy. Her all white and green palette was punctuated with deep hits of super dark textured bits to make it interesting.

Bridal bouquet ingredients: garden roses, ranunculus, dahlias, scabiosa, and privet berries with jasmine vine and silver dollar eucalyptus with burgundy smokebush foliage for a little extra depth.

I just posted another wedding at SMITH a few weeks ago, and it had a completely different feel. I love how we went with a modern, minimal vibe for Ainslie and Josh’s wedding. Ainslie had a very specific budget that she was comfortable spending, and within that budget and her style and colour palette, she let me do basically whatever I wanted. I elected to keep the arrangements streamlined, with single-ingredient arrangements of white stock in geometric black vases, smaller arrangements in stem vases, and plenty of mod black pillar candles. I also used floating black candles in copper lined bowls, and tucked in some loose greenery on each table. I loved the stationery that they ordered from Minted - the table numbers, place cards and menus perfectly completed the look!

This is a lot more food photos than I would normally include, but GUYS. Look at this! How AMAZING does this wedding reception look? Live music, unreal appetizers, a cake spread from Jenna Rae Cakes…serious ambiance right here!

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Feminine Spring Wedding at Smith Restaurant

I first met Erin and Peter about a year before their wedding, at a Mother’s Day pop-up sale I was doing at Fools & Horses Coffee. I remember her saying that she wanted to talk about wedding flowers with me, and that her favourite flower was tulips and that was basically all she had planned! I was so pleased when I found out their wedding was going to be a feminine spring celebration at Smith Restaurant at Inn at the Forks - one of Winnipeg’s best restaurants, in my opinion! When I was setting up the flowers, I literally salivated when I read through their menu. I would have LOVED to be a guest at this wedding!

Photos: Pantel Photography ~ Venue: SMITH, Inn at the Forks ~ Calligraphy and Signage: Jennifer Bianca Calligraphy

I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again: May is the best time to get married if you’re a flower lover! Just look at all of these sumptuous goodies that I got to use in Erin’s bouquet! She wanted a fairly organic feel to her bouquets, and aside from the aforementioned tulips and a love for pastel pinks and purples, she really just left it up to me. That meant it was time to use some of my favourite springtime flowers.
Bridal Bouquet Ingredients: peonies, locally grown ranunculus, sweet pea, spirea, with spray roses and tulips.

Have I mentioned how much I love small bridal parties? 😍 And Erin’s girls’ dresses are just gorgeous.

Erin and Peter had a really cool idea for their ceremony location: the old train bridge right at The Forks! I thought this was such a fun idea. They just kind of lucked out that passersby were respectful of the ceremony, because it’s not a space that you can officially reserve, as far as I know.

And then reception time at Smith! I actually had another wedding there this fall, and have another coming up in the winter months so aside from just dining at the restaurant, I feel like I’m now very well accustomed to the space. And it’s a GORGEOUS space - it’s so easy to have a wedding at Smith because it’s just so beautiful! They have done an incredible job of creating a great ambiance. For Erin and Peter’s guest list, they used the main dining space along with the solarium, the patio, and the lounge area was re-purposed as the dance floor. There aren’t a lot of pictures of the flowers, but let me tell you that we had flowers and candles EVERYWHERE. We chose clear glass vases in different sizes and styles, and put a mix of arrangements ranging from single stems to fuller, peony-focused arrangements on all of the restaurant tables. And of course, nothing is complete without candlelight so plenty of pillar candles were mixed in as well!

I always love seeing my past clients at weddings (or let’s be honest…in wedding photos ha). Katie (far left) had a stunning, vineyard-inspired wedding day a few summers ago and since then, she’s been a bridesmaid in another of my weddings and a guest at several more. Things like this make me so happy!

Winnipeg’s Favourite Wedding Florist

I'm now pre-booking for 2020 weddings with a wait-list! I love working with creative couples who want their wedding to look and feel different from what their friends have had. Whether it's an outdoor wedding or a classic ballroom setting, I love to bring garden-inspired designs everywhere I go! Want to connect? Click the button below and fill out my contact form so I can learn more about your wedding!