Urban Unveiled 2012...tonight! Updates, NYC Bridal Market

First, a little note on the Fiore Blossoms website...after a little agonizing, fighting with my webhost, dealing with a new template, and working on Urban Unveiled and packing for NYC, I just decided to LET IT GO. It is out of my control for a week, so it is what it is. And what it is, is a down website. Sorry folks! But it looks like you found me here, and my email is still up and running also. If you need to reach me, please just shoot me an email at fioreblossoms@gmail.com. Unless you are writing to tell me the website is down.

And Urban! It's tonight! I can hardly wait. I'll of course have pretty flowers at my space in The Founder's Room, and will also have blooms sprinkled throughout the event for some of my colleagues. Check out Gabriel Boone Photography, Michael Bride, Roche Harbor, Swink Style Bar, 321 Foto, and Greenlake Jewelry Works for more flower goodness. It was so fun designing something for each that I thought captured the spirit of their brand.

There was the sweetest Vendor Highlight post on the Urban Website about Fiore Blossoms a few weeks ago.

And...NYC! Bridal Market! Fashion Shows! The Martha Stewart party! Seriously, after a few years of a lot of camping trips with my boys (which are awesome, don't get me wrong), I feel like the luckiest girl on the planet right now. Be sure to follow my adventure on Instagram (I'll be posting photos from both user names fioreblossoms AND junebugweddings).

Urban Unveiled 2012

Ready to party, plan, and get pretty? I hope you saved the date for this coming Thursday, 10.11.12 and the annual, always amazing, Urban Unveiled Event! I'm super thrilled to be part of it again this year. It's is truly the best show I've seen, and it is an honor to be included on this list of the crème de la crème in Seattle.

If you haven't been before, Urban is the chance to put on a party dress, drink champagne, check out the latest in the Seattle wedding world, eat A LOT of delicious food, and view the spectacular Luly Yang Couture Bridal Fashion Show. It is seriously the best time you'll have wedding planning. Be sure to stop by the Founder's Room where I will be hanging out with a lot of gorgeous flowers!

Grey and White SODO Park Wedding from Wallflower Photography

Pretty photos from Wallflower Photography of a November wedding we designed last year. Estrella wanted a northwest/textured look with white, grey, and green and succulent accents. Love the SODO Park setting!

Olympic Victory Bouquets

Gabby Douglas, with her Victory Bouquet and a little jewelry

I knew there had to be a story behind the pretty blooms of the Olympic Victory Bouquets. If anyone honors the traditional meanings of flowers, it is the British! Jane Packer Ltd, a London institution, was asked to create the bouquets. From their website:

JANE PACKER  are proud to have been selected to design and produce the "Victory Bouquet" for the medal winners at the  London 2012 Olympics. 4,800 floral bouquets will be presented to athletes along with medals during the Victory Ceremonies. The flowers and herbs in the bouquet are British grown and are  made with the help of floristry students across the country.

The Victory Bouquet was designed by our creative director, Susan Lapworth, to reflect the energy and vibrancy of the London 2012 Games.

The bouquet is sectioned into boldly coloured quadrants to mirror the 2012 logo. These are separated by typical British food ingredients which also provide an eclectic fragrance. All of the components of the bouquet had to be able to be grown in Britain, a key aim for us. We have chosen British grown herbs, lavender, apple mint and rosemary.  These provide an eclectic fragrance which is important to enhance the ‘moment’ of triumph for the athlete without causing an allergic reaction which some heavily scented flowers often do. Along with these herbs, we have included wheat, a source of energy, to reflect the ‘energy lines' of the London 2012 theme that has been an influence throughout the design process.

We chose a bright and vibrant colour theme that not only reflects the colours used in the 2012 logo but also throughout the London 2012 games. This vivid combination creates visual impact, which will also enhance the athlete's moment of victory.

For more, check out this fun, behind the scenes look at making the bouquets at Writtle College by Flowerona.

Who Needs Perfume? Just Wear A Jasmine Dress!

Can you imagine the fragrance? This gorgeous dress, shown in these even more gorgeous images from Jonas Peterson, is made of jasmine flowers. Jasmine FLOWERS! I have to warn you that after seeing this, I'm no longer content with my wardrobe as is. And if you invite me to your fancy party, I might just arrive wearing a crazy concoction like this. And by crazy, I mean astoundingly awesome.

Real Wedding: Jennifer + Brandon's Romantic Garden Wedding

More today from Jennifer and Brandon's wedding. A little after my self-imposed deadline, but you know what they say. And I'm keeping it brief. By the time you read this, I'll be relaxing, lounging, and wishing for sun on Orcas Island. If you aren't from Washington and you are planning a visit, you can't possible come here and skip the San Juans. If you are from Washington and haven't spent time there, well...the rest of us disown you.

Anyway, Jennifer and Brandon's wedding was held at her childhood home "Sunnyside Farm". They were wed with with a traditional hand-fasting ceremony, performed by her mother, that incorporated elements from cultures around the world, as they wanted to speak to the "universal truth of love". Oh, and it was under the magnificent tree where they shared their first kiss. But just take a look. It's all pretty romantic, in my humble opinion.

Pretty gorgeous stuff, huh? All of this fantastic pink garden-wedding pretty was created by:

Photographer: One Love Photo
Event Planner: True Color Events
Wedding Gown: Luly Yang Couture
Floral Design: Fiore Blossoms
Linens: Choice Linens
DJ: Austin Beaver
Vintage Rentals: Fiore Blossoms
Ice Cream Truck: Molly Moon's
Cake Topper: Ann Wood

If you haven't had enough, check out their sweet, poignant wedding video by Cabfare Productions, and  Jennifer and Brandon's feature on Junebug Weddings.

Raf Simon's Flower Maze for Dior Couture

Dior has, of late, been absolutely bewitching me. First, they go and make Marion Cotillard - truly the most beautiful woman in the world - their new girl. That piqued my interest. But with this maze of flower walls that new creative director Raf Simons created...they have BLOWN MY MIND.

Jennifer and Brandon's Romantic, Rustic Backyard Wedding - Live on Junebug Weddings Today!

Jennifer and Brandon's backyard wedding, filled with vintage touches and the most romantic blooms, was one of my favorites last year! Besides the great team of people I got to work with, J&B were the sweetest couple; Sunnyside Farm was like a mini-escape each time I came out to plan, and their family just welcomed me in.  It was also such a lesson in karma...for this kind, loving pair, the sun fought through the terrible rain that had made for a soggy day, and they were able to have their hand-fasting ceremony that spoke to the "Universal Force of Love" under the tree where they had shared their first kiss. Seriously, I just loved being part of this amazing day!

It's live on Junebug today, and I'll share a few more flower pictures from their off-the-hook beautiful wedding day next week, right here. Have a great weekend!

Real Wedding: Kristie + John

Kristie and John's wedding day at The Willows Lodge in Woodinville, Washington was filled with vibrant color! They chose a striking color palette of navy, chartreuse, and fuchsia with local dahlias, exotic orchids, and a zillion granny smith apples providing the color. Loved working with the sweet couple (how did Chick-fil-A come up at every meeting?) and my favorite guys, Travis and Jesse from True Colors Events (how do we end up laughing so much at every meeting?). Thank you Sarah Rhoads for the pretty photos!

Ranunculus and Icelandic Poppies in Bright Coral, Pink and Orange - Amy's Bridal Bouquet

Amy's springtime wedding at Lord Hill Farms in Snohomish was filled with bright shades of pink, orange, and yellow, and romantic blossoms of Juliet garden roses, ranunculus, Iceland poppies, and fragrant hyacinth. I gathered the stems together with a mix of new and vintage silk ribbons in shades of coral. A happy bridal bouquet for a happy wedding day!

Bringing Nature Home by Ngoc Minh Ngo and Nicolette Owens

File this under the "I wish I'd done this..." category! But in truth, I'm so glad that it was Nicolette Owen of Brooklyn's Nicolette Camille and The Little Flower School  who created the stunning arrangements "Bringing Nature Home: Floral Arrangements Inspired by Nature"  book that will be released March 27. Nicolette is CRAZY talented, and has teamed up with fantastic writer and photographer Ngoc Minh Ngo to share her wisdom, talent, ideas, and a whole heapin' pile of eye candy. Deborah Needleman, of Domino fame, wrote the forward--bestowing upon it the highest stamp of approval in the design world. Some of my all-time favorite Nicolette Owen designs:

For a little more Nicolette before March 27, check out this sneak peek on Design*Sponge of her darling, flower-filled apartment!

Photo Credits: (1) Pink garden roses with white clematis, photo by Jayd Gardina, (6) Pink peony bouquet photo by Susan Stripling via Elizabeth Ann Designs