Wedding Designer's Blog

Museum Weddings

11/16/2010 13:43:00

Museum Weddings:

I was inspired to write this article based on the fabulous wine and tasting event held at the Morris Museum to benefit St. Hubert’s Animal Shelter on Wednesday of this past week. J&M did some pieces for the museum including my labor of love, 2 giant birch tree structures with hanging carnation and green mum balls for the modern front entrance of the museum (which of course I forgot to take pictures of and am currently trying to hunt down someone who remembered.) We had such a blast (for once I was able to just relax and be a guest) walking around the exhibits and admiring the beauty of the modern theater area coupled with the classic mansion house.

So in honor of the St. Hubert’s event I felt that I should follow up to my “Tent Weddings” piece I did earlier this year and do “Museum Weddings.” Last year we did a wedding at the Morris Museum that came out beautifully. Held in the front entrance of the newly remodeled modern entrance to the theater, the reception wasn’t the typical sit down dinner and consisted of waiters passing trays the whole night. So there were only a few small sit down tables and a couple of high ball tables, in which we did two styles of arrangements. When the bride first came to me she had come up with the idea to have each of her bridesmaids in the same style dress but a different color, the colors she had chosen where hot pink, light pink, dark purple and light purple. She wanted to stay with that color palette without mixing the colors together. So we decided on doing a collection piece of small carnation cubes with each of the bridesmaids dress colors and a cube of grass in the center (it was a spring wedding so we wanted to do a nod to the “new growth” aspect of the season) for the larger tables guests would sit at.

The second centerpiece was for high tables against the wall and went along with how the couple met, the couple had met while working for penguin publishing and that they both loved to read so we incorporated some books with spines in their wedding colors and held them in place with two of our “book end” grass cubes.

Overall it was one of my favorite weddings that I have done because we really took the couples likes and story and translated it into the pieces that were truly unique to their day.

This past month we also did another museum wedding held at the Chelsea Art Museum in NYC, another beautiful museum more modern in its design with white walls with primarily abstract pieces. For this wedding we did a mixture of really simple tall monoflora arrangements incorporating Manzanita branches.

We also pulled in a bit of a modern garden fusion in a few of the larger pieces (including the lovely but entirely obnoxious to move above mentioned birch tree sculpture pieces, above.) as well as the bridal party flowers by incorporating the traditional garden flowers like herbs, roses and hydrangeas with the modern styles of a more rounded tighter look.

So despite the fact that I love to do museum weddings, and as you can see from our pictures they can be really beautiful and unique venue options. There are a few drawbacks that one needs to concider:

1) Museums have a day job.

- Most museums are open to the public during the day, and because of that reason most day weddings are out of the question. In addition to that, you may need to pay extra to vendors for same day pick up of all rental items if the museum does not have a storage place.

2) Museums have rules.

- A lot of times you need to be careful with what you can/ cannot do in a museum, and sometimes that can effect your decor. For example when I did the wedding at the Chelsea Art Musuem we had origionally planned to do this large floral piece on the grand piano in front of a painting. Unfortunately the museum securiity felt that such a large piece filled willl water in front of a 2 million dollar paintign was too much of a hazard and we had to put it somewhere else.

3) Museums are museums.

- Basically most museums are not recieving the majority of their income from weddings and events held in their spaces. Their income is mainly generated by their day to day visitors as well as gift shop sales or just straight donations. As a result the majority of the planning and organization of wedding is going to fall onto you or (if you've hired your own) a wedding planner and not a catering manager.

Overall I think that museums offer a great space to work with. They are something a little different and unexpected and allow you to bring a ot of your own personality and style to your wedding. I think that if you have the right team to help you and are clear about a museums rules and regulations you can really have a beautiful day!

Emerging Floral Trends

11/03/2010 20:56:00

Gerber Daisys:

Over the past couple of years I have really started to notice a strong trend emerging with brides using gerber daisys. And why wouldn’t they? To me gerber daisys are like the hipper trendier cousin to the rose and the less "posh" cousin to the calla lilly. Gerber daisys like roses amd calla lillies come in a wide array of colors but unlike roses have a more modern and graphic look to them. They also are grown all around the world and are available (fairly inexpensively, unlike calla lillies) all year round. Gerber daisys have also been bread to come in a variety of sizes including gerbera (the largest), gerber mini (medium), and germini (the smallest) which is important when doing personal flowers like boutineers and bouquets. Gerber daisys also go along well with new emerging bridal styles such as the “modern garden look” and the “monoflora look.” Overall I would recomend gerber daisys for a bride who is either looking for something simple and very "just picked in a field," or a "simple modern grapic design," what I would not reccomend this flower for is a lot of mixing with other flowers. The gerber daisy is a bit of a diva flower due to its truly unique look/ nature and looks best either on its own or with only a few other flowers mixed in.

Here are a few bridal gerber daisy arrangements:

Mixed Gerber Daisy Bridal Bouquet with Ivy Trim

Germini Boutineer

Gerber Daisy Corsage

Gerber Daisy Pomander

Gerber Daisy Pew Bow Arrangements

Gerber Daisys Mixed in Low Arrangement with a Few Other Flowers

Gerber Daisys in a Grass Cube

Why the Bouquet and the Boutinneer?

09/25/2010 15:32:00

The History and Tradition of the Bridal Bouquet and the Boutineer:

Since I did that article last week on the incorporation of blue flowers and the tradition of having something blue from that old saying I have been very into this whole wedding traditions idea. I am definitely a history channel addict so I suppose delving into the history of what I do shouldn’t seem so far off for me. I just find it interesting that I have never bothered to find out why these things are part of wedding days and just accepted like a lot of people do, that they were necessary elements. Some of the stuff I have been finding out is kind of weird, like why the ancient Egyptians started putting the ring on the third finger on the left hand and some of it (okay most if it) is really kind of sweet, like the origins of why brides carry bouquets and grooms wear boutonnieres. So instead of dragging this out and continuously posting on this subject for the next few weeks I thought I would get it all out in one post!

So here are some of the more popular traditions and the history behind them:

Why do bride’s carry a bouquet?

“Before the use of flowers in the bridal bouquet, women carried aromatic bunches of garlic, herbs, and grains to drive evil spirits away as they walked down the aisle. Over time, these were replaced with flowers, symbolizing fertility and everlasting love. Specific flowers have special meanings in many cultures; the bride would use these specific flowers and meanings in a collection to visually articulate her feelings for the groom.”

http://www.yourwedding101.com/wedding-basics/popular-wedding-traditions.aspx

Bridal Bouquet

So normally I am not a big fan of “flower meanings,” (you wouldn’t be either if at least once a week a 13 yr old boy came in and quizzed you on the meaning of the particular flower they were picking) I am much more of a if you think it’s pretty and you like the person enough to get it for them then that says more than a fairly loosely interpreted meaning. And I am definitely not suggesting that anyone design their décor around the possible meanings of particular flowers, it might just be a fun thing to tell your bridesmaids or a little thing for you to know. And since I am feeling the romanticism of these traditions here are a few of the most popular wedding flowers and their meanings:

Alstromeria: friendship & devotion

Baby's breath:pure heart, constancy

Calla Lily:magnificent beauty

Carnation:pride, beauty, deep love

Chrysanthemum, white:truth

Daffodil:chivalry, regard, devotion, unrequited love

Dahlia:elegance & dignity

Daisy:innocence, youth, gentleness

Freesia: innocence

Gerbera Daisy:beauty, thoughts of absent friends

Iris:my compliments

Ivy:friendship, dependence, eternal fidelity, and matrimony, conjugal affection

Lilac: first emotions of love, fastidious

Lily of the valley:return of happiness, purity and humility

Lisianthus:thoughts, outgoing

Orchid:rare beauty

Peony:bashfulness, healing

Queen Anne's lace:magic, trust, and healing, steadfast love

Ranunculus: I am dazzled by your charm

Rose:A single rose of any color in full bloom means "I love you." Two roses put together to form a single stem means an engagement. Stem leaves are a symbol of hope.

Rosebuds: beauty of love and friendship, youth, and hope

Stephanotis: good-luck, happiness in marriage

Sunflower:adoration, pure thoughts

Sweet Pea:delicate, blissful pleasure

Tulip:declaration of love, passion

http://www.800florals.com/care/meaning.asp

What about the groom’s boutonniere?

“The wedding tradition of the groom wearing a boutineer originates in medieval times when a knight wore his lady's colors (through flowers) as a statement of his love.”

(Can do the collective “awww” yet?)

Groom's Boutineer

Why the "ring" finger?

“Placing the wedding ring on the third finger of the left hand has two possible origins; ancient Egypt or 17th century Europe. The Egyptians believed the "vein of love" ran directly from the ring finger to the heart, therefore the ring was placed there to denote eternal love. During a 17th century wedding ceremony the groom would slide the wedding ring part way up the bride's thumb, index finger and middle finger as the priest said "In the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit". As the ring finger was the first free finger, the ring was placed there.”

http://www.yourwedding101.com/wedding-basics/popular-wedding-traditions.aspx

Ok I know that last bit has little to nothing to do with wedding and event design (which is what I am supposed to be writing about) but that whole Egyptian thing was a little creepy romantic (creemantic?) and I thought it was interesting enough to be included in the “wedding history” article.

So I hope that this was at least something for you to read while trying to procrastinate getting back to your hectic wedding planning schedules, and at most maybe some of you feel a little bit more connected to the tradition and the meanings of what you are doing instead of just feeling like it is “one more thing” to figure out on that never ending list.

Best Wishes!

Erin Rose Matkowski

What About "Something Blue?"

09/20/2010 10:14:00

The Incorporation of Blue into Wedding Flowers:

We have all heard that age old saying, “Something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue.” And despite its 16 century origins (see bottom for more information) it seems to be one of the only wedding traditions that is still followed today. And a more recent way of incorporating this something blue into a bride’s attire/ general décor of the wedding is in the flowers. And though blue is a beautiful color to use, it can be a very hard to find in nature. And on top of that most of those naturally blue flowers are either too fragile to be used as a cut flower, or are so seasonal that their window of use is so small that very few brides fall within that time period.

So what is one to do if they really want some blue?

Well luckily between the growth of the South American flower market and the innovation of the Dutch scientists brides are beginning to have more options available to them. And now there are primarily two cut flowers in various shades of blue that are currently available for weddings all year round.

Hydrangea: This flower is one of my personal favorite it is great for bouquets and centerpieces and gives a real voluminous look to pieces, it is available all year round from either the South American market (more of the lighter blue) and the Dutch market (depending on the time of year, this can range from a midnight deep blue to a medium tone.)

South American Hydrangea

Dutch Hydrangea

Bridal Bouquet using the Dutch Blue Hydrangea

Delphinium: This flower is more of an accent flower, but can also be used in centerpieces or bouquets. Similar to a snap dragon or a stock flower and is actually named for the “dolphin nose” the flowers resemble. It comes in a wide range of colors from pale blue, to a hybrid blue and white color, to a deep blue tone and is available in any color all year round.

Light Blue Delphinium

Dark Blue Delphinium

Centerpiece using Pale Blue Delphinium

***Hybrid Delphinium: Basically the same as regular delphinium but on steroids

Hybrid Pale Blue Delphinium

Hybrid Dark Blue Delphinium

Card Table Piece with Hybrid Blue Delphinium

Wedding Designer's Note:

Blue flowers mix well with other colors depending on the shade. For example both pale blue and dark blue mixes nicely with white and green but colors like red and orange will only mix well with the darker blue while softer shades of pinks and yellows mix nicely with the lighter blue.

- Erin Rose Matkowski

The History of “Something Old, Something New, Something Borrowed, Something Blue”:

The next line of this old saying actually hints at its origin. The complete phrase is:

Something old, something new
Something borrowed, something blue
And a silver sixpence in her shoe.

A sixpence is a coin that was minted in Britain from 1551 to 1967. It was made of silver and worth six pennies. So this wedding tradition is definitely English, and many sources say that it began in the Victorian era.

Each item in this poem represents a good-luck token for the bride. If she carries all of them on her wedding day, her marriage will be happy.

"Something old" symbolizes continuity with the bride's family and the past.

"Something new" means optimism and hope for the bride's new life ahead.

"Something borrowed" is usually an item from a happily married friend or family member, whose good fortune in marriage is supposed to carry over to the new bride. The borrowed item also reminds the bride that she can depend on her friends and family.

"Something Blue" as for the colorful item, blue has been connected to weddings for centuries. In ancient Rome, brides wore blue to symbolize love, modesty, and fidelity. Christianity has long dressed the Virgin Mary in blue, so purity was associated with the color. Before the late 19th century, blue was a popular color for wedding gowns, as evidenced in proverbs like, "Marry in blue, lover be true."

And finally, a silver sixpence in the bride's shoe represents wealth and financial security. It may date back to a Scottish custom of a groom putting a silver coin under his foot for good luck. For optimum fortune, the sixpence should be in the left shoe. These days, a dime or a copper penny is sometimes substituted, and many companies sell keepsake sixpences for weddings.

Co: http://ask.yahoo.com/20031027.html

Allison and Ed

09/13/2010 09:40:00

This Week's Wedding Spotlight:

Allison and Ed:

Ok this is actually a little late considering their wedding was actually September 4, 2010 but since I was on vacation and was not posting we are a week behind- but such as life goes, here a little later then normal is this week's wedding spotlight:

For Allison she wanted something that was different from what she had seen at other weddings. She wanted to use the bright colors (red, hot pink and orange) of late summer and combine that with her love of peacock feathers and birds of paradise. Because the wedding was set at the Botanical Gardens of NJ at the Skylands manor I wanted to make sure we kept with that garden feeling so as to go along with the natural decor of the location.

The bride carried a mix of red garden roses and seasonal dahlias with peacock feathers accenting the bouquet.

The bridesmaids carried a mix of the wedding colors and garden flowers also accented with the feathers.

The ceremony was able to take place outside on a part of the garden overlooking the twin fountain structures. Because it was taking place outside and we wanted to pull in that plant element so we did a combination piece of live phalenopsis orchids and cut flowers for color.

The aisle design was based off of one the bride had seen in a magazine, we did a draping of tulle across the chairs as well as a carpet of rose petals as opposed to a runner.

To carry the natural botanical theme inside we used wheat grass cubes with gerber daisies in hot pink orange and red and birds of paradise in a style that made it look like they were growing right from the grass, and then we added the peacock feathers to give the piece a more whimsical look.

Want to see how we can create a beautiful and unique wedding day for you?

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Emerging Floral Trends

09/06/2010 20:20:00

Top 3 Floral Fusions:

Tropical Meets Victorian Garden Style:

I know this seems like one of those over the top fusions that no way could ever look good, but in fact this is one of my favorite fusions to do. The way I like to think of it is Tarzan meets Jane, it’s the tropical flowers (orchids, callas, protea etc) mixed with more classic flowers (roses, hydrangeas etc) in either a grouping method (more often associated with tropicals) or in an English garden method (flowers all mixed with greens.) This fusion is typically done in an urn or classic container (Victorian garden) or a modern glass with a leaf in the base (Tropical.) It is nice because it gives the modern look of Tropical Style with the abundance of the Victorian Garden Style.

Classic meets Contemporary:

I like to think of this style as the scene in 27 Dresses when Katherine Hiegel goes into the dress shop to see her sister has taken their mother’s vintage dress and altered it to a more modern style (without the storm out and general anger over the alteration.) Basically classic meets contemporary in the flower world means taking the classic elements that your mother and grandmother had in their flowers (roses, gardenias, baby’s breath etc) and using them in a more modern style. For example instead of a long cascading bouquet roses and baby’s breath doing a more contemporary hand held bouquet with those flowers instead.

Monoflora meets Polychromatic:

Though I doubt that anyone really thinks of this as a breakthrough fusion, it has grown in popularity over the past few years. Basically it is using one type of flower (rose, carnation, hydrangea, gerber daisy) in multiple colors all mixed together. This style is for those with like the consistency of a rounded shape (if all the flowers are the same then the formation won’t have any gaps) but want to have more than one color in their design scheme.

The Wedding Shows our Designers Watch

09/06/2010 20:12:00

Erin's Wedding Show Guide:

My Fair Wedding

Ok I’ll admit it, ever since that bridal show at I Do… I Do… Bridal Salon where I met David Tutera and he complimented my design work I have been a little biased towards his show. But I truly believe that he does a great job when it comes to putting together a theme that is unique to the featured couple and then carrying that theme through the entire event and I think he is really good at explaining that process and how a person could kind of work through his process for their own day.

Whose Wedding Is It Anyway?

I would probably have to say that this is one of my top favorite wedding shows on television today. I think the brides are fairly realistic on the show and I think it shows the benefits of working with a designer and how it can really pull together the cohesiveness of an event.

Rich Bride Poor Bride:

This show is the one that I think whoever is fitting the bill for your wedding should watch prior to the planning process. The majority of people going into the wedding planning process are unaware of how much these events really cost, and what you are getting for that price.

Bridezilla:

Ok this is more of a trashy delight, not even touching on the fact that their behavior makes me ridiculously grateful for my brides- but have you ever seen their décor? I mean silk flowers sprayed with glitter, enough tulle to make Princess Diana’s veil look skimpy, and more Christmas lights then it takes to light up Rockafeller center- it is like the epitome of anti- design!

Platinum Weddings:

I begrudgingly will watch this show as part of my Wedding TV line-up and that is only because I have had so many girls who have watched the show, fallen in love with a particular arrangement and will come in and ask me how much something like that would be. The show is called PLATINUM WEDDINGS their floral budgets average between $150,000- $250,000, so none of the arrangements they feature on the show are less than $1,000 a piece- and for most brides that is just not in the budget. I am not saying that it isn’t a fun show to watch, and if you are just looking for ideas on themes or colors then that is great, but when you watch the show just make sure you are keeping those bride’s budget in mind.

A Classic Touch in a Modern Way

09/06/2010 20:10:00

A Classic Touch in a Modern Way:

Here is a bouquet I did last April for an Irish Catholic Bride who wanted to combine classic elements without seeming dated in doing so. This to me was the perfect compromise- the bouquet in the front was the bride's and we used gorgeous antique hydrangeas (if you can believe it there are only 2 in the whole bouquet) with beautiful white akito rose buds (though I typically like to use more open roses for a grander effect in bouquets I do think that the sweetness of rose buds can be really simple and beautiful) and a ring of babies breath to frame it- though most modern minded brides would shudder at the thought of using babies breath in their bouquet the fact is up until the great turn over of the wedding craze boom (circa 1985- preasent day) most brides were given a standard rose bouquet featuring some babies breath mixed in (sigh- I know my mother was one of those brides as well) and in attempt to give a little nostalgic through back to either a grandmother or mother's wedding bouquet it can be a nice touch to add in with yours, and with this grouping or "layering" method it gives this classic flower a modern twist!

Bridal Party

09/06/2010 20:08:00

How Big Is Too Big?

Over my wedding career I have seen bridal parties ranging in size from just one- three people all the way up to forty plus. To me this has always been one of "those issues" a hushed issue that no one really wants to talk about for fear of offending the bride and groom. And honestly I do believe that it is a very personal decision for someone to make, but because I have been asked my opinion on the subject in the past- I will simple share my personal feelings on the subject. In my opinion it really comes down to simple mathematical ratios- and I feel that your bridal party should not extend past 15% of your total guest list. For example if you have a guest list of 150 people and you have 15 bridesmaids and groomsmen (for a total of a 30 person bridal party not including any flower girls or ring bearers- which is another factor entirely.) That means that 20% of the guests that will be attending your wedding- will be in the wedding- and for me, once it is broken down like that it just sounds disproportionate. Whereas take a guest list of 300 with the same size bridal party, that would make the bridal party count for 10% of your guest list- a percentage that in my mind sounds a little better.

Again, there are always exceptions to this rule, if you are one of six girls and you have five best friends that you have known all your life and you happen to only have 100 guests coming to the wedding then I am not suggesting you try and cut anyone out for fear of being disproportionate. Back in the day the bridal party was expected to do more work for the actual wedding so it made sense to have larger bridal parties to add more workers to the overall mix. Now a days you aren't necessarily having your bridal party over to assemble your invitations or put together bouquets or favors, you are paying a professional to do that stuff for you- and in fact can be quiet an overall cost. Keep in mind that for every member of the bridal party you are looking at one more person to keep track of, one more floral piece, one more gift bag and one seat at all pre/ post wedding gatherings (including mani pedis, rehearsal dinners, hair and make up etc.)-all that added together (plus the added time you will spend calling, texting, e-mailing and generally stressing about organizing people) for the averaged wedding can get pretty costly when you break it down like that. So if by inviting only 100 people you were hoping to save some money- you are probably doing yourself more harm by having a larger bridal party than a larger guest count.

Yet again I am simple stating my opinion- if one of the three most important factors in your wedding is that you have everyone that you want standing up there with you then by all means more power to you- completely ignore this particular post. But if you are really on the fence about the subject and want advice my rule of thumb is to keep the bridal party smaller and not to extend past 10- 15% of the overall guest list.

Bridal Bouquet Guide

09/06/2010 20:04:00

Bridal Bouquet Guide:

I have notices that a lot of brides have had trouble distinguishing the differences between bridal bouquet styles/ terms to describe how they want their bouquet to look like, so I have compiled a few of my images to give bride's a basic idea of how to describe what they are looking for.

Rounded Bouquet: Completely dome shaped bouquet

*This is also an example of a monoflora (one type of flower) and monochromatic (one color) bouquet

Garden Style Bouquet: Rounded style with a bit of a looser look to give it a more natural look

Arm Bouquet: Meant to lay across your arm (think the Miss America bouquet)

Teardrop: Rounded bouquet with a point at the base

Cascade Bouquet: Bouquet with loose garden look with flowers cascading foward

Pomander: Ball of flowers held by a ribbon

There are also a few different "construction" terms a bride should know when deciding on their bridal bouquet. Most styles of design can be done in any of these construction methods, and before you sit down with your florist you should know the perks and downfalls of each.

Handtied Bouqet: Stems are fitted together in a crossing pattern, cut and tied with ribbon, the bouquet can sit in water when it is not in use keeping to flowers fresher. The downfall is that the base can get a little thick depending on the number and types of stems.

Form Bouquet: This is a bouquet form that in which the flowers are put in oasis (a flower foam that holds water) which allows the flowers to be in water at all time keeping them fresher longer, however sometimes the foam does drip.

Handwired Bouquet: Each flower is individually hand wired and taped, resulting in each flower able to be placed in an exact way, as well as a lighter bouquet. However because each flower is individually wired it does not allow the flowers to get any sort of hydradtion and they can show signs of wilting earlier.