Why You Should Hire an Event Designer

...And why your florist would be a great one! 

"The details are not details. They make the design." - Charles Eames

First, what is an event designer? Event design services are geared towards pulling together all of the aesthetic details and plans for your wedding. An event designer will assist you in designing the creative direction for your day, working with you and any of the vendors you hire to deal with the visual aspects of the wedding. 

So, who should consider hiring an event designer?
-the bride who has no idea how to pull together her aesthetic ideas and needs help getting started
-the bride who needs a hand pulling together all of the visual components of the day
-the bride who doesn't have time on her wedding day to do anything herself
-the bride who has DIY tendencies

Photo by Kat Willson Photography for a collaboration designed and styled by Stone House Creative with lovely paper goods from Robin Egg Blue Design and linens and chairs from Planned Perfectly. 

Now, why would your floral designer would be a great person to hire as your event designer? Because designing beyond flowers allows one to really challenge the aesthetic plan for your day, and become the architect for a well-planned, intentional design. Because the details are not just details - when they're intentional, they tell a story. Your story. 

As an event designer, here are some of the aspects I'll help you plan: 
lighting - paper - textiles - florals - textures - colour palette

Many wedding planners also act as event designers, and can expertly guide you through the aesthetic planning process. We know that you want to host a wedding that, in the end, feels and looks like you--we hear that from pretty much every couple who we work with. And we want that to happen, too.

And guess what? Stone House Creative offers some pretty slick event design services. I'd love to chat with you about your wedding and how I can help!

Can't Hardly Contain Myself...

Hee hee. Obviously a blog post about vases would be titled with a container pun. I love puns - not always that great at them, but I love them. AND I love my new containers! I really want to play with some different styles and bring unique rentals to my Winnipeg brides, and though my collection is small right now, there are some exciting things in the works. 

First up, ceremony arrangements! Couples will often go for a couple of big, beautiful statement makers at the front of their ceremony, and I have three of the most lovely, natural-inspired ceramic container options. Don't let the size fool you - these suckers hold a LOT of flowers.

Up next, centrepieces! Those little bronze urns are heartbreakers. I can't wait to do them up with some jewel-toned blooms and they're only about 5" tall, so they're perfect to pop on a table. The silver compotes are SO gorgeous - classic, elegant, with a dainty twist. And last but not least, this collection of stem vases is amazing. They're just detailed enough to bring visual interest, and they're a refreshing excursion from the vintage bottles that have been floating around for a few years. A trio of stem vases at the centre of a table is never a bad thing. And finally, way at the bottom, this is a glamour shot of the most beautiful little votive holder that you ever did see. It's rimmed with gold, you guys. GOLD. Only the most sought-after metallic for weddings these days. I can't wait for these little babies to light up some tables, starting in December! 

DESIGNING YOUR COLOUR PALETTE

One of the first questions that any bride-to-be will hear from friends is, "What are your wedding colours?' And girls, let me tell you something awesome: gone are the days of picking one (maximum two!) colour, pairing it with white, and plastering that single shade everywhere. Let me tell you why this isn't a good idea: 

1) It's totally boring.
2) There is absolutely no life to the aesthetic side of your wedding.
3) If the various shades of that pre-determined colour don't match from item to item (ie. from invitation to flowers to tablecloths), then it's going to look like barf - and some colours are harder to find than others.

So, here's what I think you should do when designing your palette:

1) Select 2-3 main shades. Yep, 3. These are the colours that you're going to be using most often - stationery, bridal party attire, flowers, tablescapes, etc. 

2) Add in 2-3 complimentary colours, which coordinate with your main palette. These will be used as accents to tie the rest of your palette together, in smaller details: ribbons, place cards, table numbers, and so on. 

3) Add in a texture or two - this is what's really going to give your palette life! Whether you lean towards a metallic or love the whimsy of watercolour, want to bring the richness of velvet or prefer the organic, raw touch of linen, this texture is going to ensure that the rest of your colour palette and overall design actually make your aesthetic choices FEEL how you want them to. The texture is what will give your guests a tactile experience.

So go for it! Try on some major colour and see how much easier it's going to be to pull everything together. Some shades I'm craving right now? Burgundies with peach and a golden caramel, complimented with deep plum foliage, the softest pink, and the ever-popular metallic gold, and of course, lots of jewel-tone greeneries!

Need help with your palette? I also offer Event Design services for a limited number of weddings each year. I'd love to talk with you about your wedding! Shoot me an email at stonehouseweddings@gmail.com and we'll chat!

The Making of a Bridal Bouquet

This August, I was delighted to visit an amazing town in Atlanta, called Serenbe. I was there with my team at Once Wed, which is the other company I am delighted to work for - and brides, if you haven't already hit up Once Wed for wedding inspiration, do it now. I'm telling you, you won't regret this. Do it. Seriously!

Anyways, this little town is seriously perfect and provided a wonderful backdrop to play with flowers. My darling friends Linda and Stephanie and I took some time to play, and I love these images from Stephanie that show a bit of the behind-the-scenes making of a bouquet!

First, you clip some greenery from the neighbour's backyard...oops!

...And then you steal some of their hydrangea, too! If anyone in Winnipeg needs their hydrangea "pruned" during the summer, just call me. I will take care of that sucker for ya!

Studly Flowers

Studly flowers…sort of an oxymoron, right? Here's the thing: boutonnieres can be pretty dated and boring (and corsages as well, though the awfulness that some corsages can be is a whole other topic). I really hate boring boutonnieres. Why should they be anything other than awesome? Detailed boutonnieres are proof that even the smallest of details should be attended to in a special manner. I like to pull together different elements out of the bouquets to dress up a boutonniere. Oh, and one last thing - just like a tie finishes a man's look, so a touch of ribbon finishes up a boutonniere nicely. I'm sure you'll agree!

Top Photos: Heather Payne Photography
Bottoms Photos: Brittany Mahood Photography