Autumnal Centerpiece

If you’re having a white winter wedding, chances are that your bridal shower will be sometime in the fall.  With all the pretty fall colors around us, it’ll be easy to go all autumnal for your shower.

Ask the host of your shower to head down to their local Trader Joe’s where they sell organic and locally grown flowers, and  for roughly of $22.00 they can purchase some decorative Gourd’s and Squash and three pots of “Pin Cushions”. (The cutest ground cover I have ever seen)

Top left: Pin Cusions. Bottom Left: Mini Apples from Farmer's Market. Right: Gourds and Squashes

Ask your host to raid their kitchen cupboards and use grains, legumes, and fruits to accent the centerpiece arrangement for the table. For example I had some extra flowers from last week’s arrangements that I decided to take apart, cut up, and re-use, along with some lentils from my cupboard, and some mini apples I had purchased from the farmer’s market.

With a bit more rummaging around in the cupboards I’ll guarantee that your host will be able to find vases or containers that can be used as alternatives to complete the look. After searching through my storage cabinet, out came my great grandma’s old tea cups (used as mini candle holders), a few vases I had from a wedding last summer, and one of my Ikea canisters from the kitchen counter top.

Tiers of activity help make your centerpiece interesting

Get creative with legumes and the containers in your kitchen

Remember, centerpieces don’t always have to be done with flowers; you can get creative with fruits, veggies, and yes, even legumes! Happy Fall & Happy Shower!!

Flowers + Vase = Centerpiece…right?  What about putting a spin on this basic principle?  Skip the cut blooms that die out in days. Try centerpieces tailor-made for their little glass houses by Botany Factory.

Based in San Francisco, Botany Factory, specifically plant pro Katie Goldman Macdonald, creates terrific terrariums that are like a green thumb’s version of a ship in a bottle, full of twee plants that are cleverly combined. Katie works with Oakland-based glass artist, Evan Kolker, to come up with hand-blown glass shapes for her creations. Put one of these beauties on each table and you’ll be sure to blow a few minds.  Give them as gifts after the wedding to close family and friends who helped out at the event, but be sure to keep one for yourself as a treasured keepsake from the day.

I was in Malibu last weekend for a destination wedding and just had to share these photos!  Chris and Dana’s wedding in Malibu was gorgeous and fit their personalities perfectly. They are both from the Bay Area, but wanted to have a fun wedding near the beach where there would be a lot of  sun.

Dana and Chris got engaged at Disneyland in front of Sleeping Beauty’s Castle, so everything tied back to Disnelyland.  Prince Charming was the ring bearer, with Tinkerbell and Ariel as flower girls.  The cake (designed by the bride) helps tell their engagement story and was extra special because it was so personal.  The best part…the red velvet cake tasted awesome!! I just wish I had gotten the name of the bakery!

The Disney theme carried on to the tables, which were all named after rides at Disneyland and California Adventure.  To liven things up, each table was asked a series of questions, and if you got your question right you were allowed to go to the buffet, but if you answered incorrectly, you had to wait.  My table was the Enchanted Tiki Room.  I am happy to say I answered our first (and only) question correctly.

A lot of work went into the table decorations.  To help cut costs, the bride and groom chose not to put flowers on each of the tables.  Instead, they ordered large martini glasses off the internet, and filled each one with stones, water, and floating candles.  The floating candles looked great, and it was really nice having a small centerpiece on the tablesmaking it easy to talk to everyone at the table.

Vendors

Venue: Malibu West Beach Club – http://www.malibuwestbeachclub.com/

Hair and Makeup: Rachel Browning – rachelbrowning20@yahoo.com

Photographer: Susan Wood – http://susanwoodphotography.com/portfolio/  

susan@susanwoodphotography.com

As vendor bids come in and your wedding budget gets more and more difficult to balance, I’m willing to bet you’ll think to yourself “I could make that for less!”  I wholeheartedly applaud a DIY wedding, but let me be the first to tell you—kid, it ain’t easy.   When my husband and I wed last October, we funded the wedding ourselves on a very limited budget.  It was DIY from top to bottom, including the ceremony, decor, even the food! One of the places I was able to save a ton of cash was on flowers, and here’s how I did it:

1) Shop where the florists shop: Search online or get friendly with a local florist to find out where they source their flowers from.  If you’re a Bay Area Bride it’s the San Francisco Flower Mart.  Go several months before your wedding to start building a relationship with a vendor whose flowers you like. Your vendor will be more honest and accommodating if you’re a familiar customer.  After a few practice bouquets or centerpieces, and a little calculation, get a quote on what the flowers will cost and schedule a pick-up date and time.

2) Keep it simple: For your centerpieces pick one or two colors and florals for your blooms then add a little greenery. Buying direct from a floral supplier means you can get more flowers for your money, as you are providing the labor yourself. Use clear floral tape to construct a grid over the top of your vases, especially wide-mouthed vases. The grid will give your arrangement added structure and stability.

3) Throw a party: Enlist the help of as many friend as you can comfortably fit in your work area.  Put some to work de-thorning and trimming flowers while others make grids and start arranging.  Provide mimosas, snacks, and a little music to make the afternoon more fun.

5) It’s all in the details: Narrowing blossoms to two types of flowers and colors leaves you room to add special details without making the final look too busy.  This could mean incorporating table numbers into your floral arrangement in a unique way, or adding a touch of ribbon.  Here I used wide ribbon around the edges of pots that were all the same size and color, but had different raised patterns.  The ribbon covered any bits of tape that overlapped from my grids and really brought the look together.

6) Get Your Timing Right: Even with help, this process will take you longer than you think.  Time yourself from start to finish on a sample arrangement, including cleaning and trimming, then multiply it by the total number you want.  Give yourself a cushion on top of that to avoid stress.

7) Cool Off: Keep the flowers well-watered in a cool place until they are ready for their big moment! Make sure in advance that you have boxes for transporting your arrangements. On your wedding day, enjoy!  All of those compliments about how beautiful things look?  They’re the reward for all of your hard work.