Modern Wedding at the Cambridge Multicultural Arts Center

Spring has been busy around here and we are well into wedding season and all of the work and beauty it brings!  I had a few fleeting moments to play catch up today week and Coleen and Colin’s May 11th wedding in Cambridge MA was up next in the blogging queue.

We used blooms in shades of purple, yellow and white for their modern Boston wedding.

 

The bridal bouquet was mostly white with touches of vibrant purple and yellow.  White stock, ranunculus and spray roses were mixed with dusty miller, purple tulips, status, asters, freesia and yellow billy balls.

The maids carried purple bouquets with pops of yellow to contrast against their dusty grey J.Crew dresses.

   Junior bridesmaids, dressed in yellow, carried solid purple bouquets featuring stock, alstroemeria, tulips, anemones, and dusty miller.

Ranunculus boutonnieres

 

Pam at work

The Boston skyline was looking a little soggy, but luckily the drizzle let up for the ceremony and reception.

Each table was named after a neighborhood. 

The events space in the Cambridge Multicultural Arts Center is a must see!  Check out that ceiling!

Cocktails were enjoyed in the gallery space.

         

Simple gerbers (the groom’s favorite) added a simple punch of color without taking away from the art installations.

 

What a beautiful venue!

Friday Flowers – Boston Bridal Shower

 

Last weekend I had the absolute pleasure of co-hosting a beautiful bridal shower for a dear friend.  The wedding will be in upstate New York where the couple hails from. This shower was for all of the Bride’s Boston-based friends and family.  It was appropriately “Boston” themed and all were encouraged to bring gifts with local flair; tickets to a show, gift certificates to local eateries, or products from a uniquely Boston shop.  Especially fitting given recent events, don’t you think?  Big thanks to Nubar in the Sheraton Commander in Harvard Square for being so very accommodating!

Floral inspiration came in the form of springtime blooms, not unlike those you’d see in the Public Garden.  Tulips, Roses, Hydrangea, and Hyacinth, mixed with Ranunculus, Scabiosa, Freesia, Bells of Ireland, and Sword Fern.

These specialty tulips get me every time! I can never walk out of the market without a bunch this time of year. The multiple bloom, the fringed edges…who could resist?

The stunning beauty of a single Ranunculus bloom…

Budding Quince branches set in a cylinder lined with Sword Fern adorned the dessert table.

 

One of our new chalkboards (available for rent this season – variety of shapes and sizes!) displayed the mouthwatering variety of tea cookies from Butternut Bakery. Rave reviews for these desserts, as always!

Ridiculously delicious!!! 

Butternut Bakery also crafted the favors, set at each place.  Individually wrapped, Boston themed sugar cookies.  Do you see the level of detail in this Swan Boat cookie?  There is a white cloud in the blue icing of the sky!  Too pretty to eat…well, almost.

 

Newbury Street cookies.  Fitting since the wedding gown was purchased at a salon on this famous street.

The Bride-to-be’s first Boston home was near Fenway, so of course we had a CITGO sign. 

 

Love it, or hate it, the “T” gets you around Boston!

     

A beautiful celebration!

See Pam in New Hampshire Magazine!

 

Have you picked up the May issue of New Hampshire Magazine?  See Pam and the table that we created with My Feathered Nest for the Palace Theatre’s “Table Talk” fundraiser inside this month’s copy!

Earth Day 2013 – “Green” Wedding Flowers

It’s Earth Day!  Here at Ideas in Bloom, we strive to do our part for the environment and remain as green as possible while still providing our clients with the widest variety of cut flowers and designs available.  The cut flower industry isn’t the most environmentally friendly (flowers are shipped from all corners of the world year round) and we strive to make choices every day that help lesson our carbon footprint.  Here are our top five…

Recycling.  This goes well beyond reusing the flower boxes large orders come in or recycling the floral paper used to wrap bouquets.  We carry a large selection of unique rental items that not only allow our couples to cut costs, but ensure the multiple use.  Additionally, we always encourage clients to bring in their own, reused, containers around the holidays and tend to see the same family heirlooms year after year.

Living Decor.  Given Pam’s background in horticulture, it’s no surprise that we routinely provide plant decor for weddings and all other events.  From centerpieces to large installations, we’ve done it all.  In partnership with one of our growers, we also offer rental of larger trees and shrubs. Talk about impact!  Click here to see one of our collaborations.

Composting.  Retail florists often don’t have this option based on their geography, but as a independent studio in a more rural area, we actively compost all of our discarded floral material.  Our compost has even built a burm on which Pam installed a landscape!

Energy Efficiency.  During the busy wedding season our cooler hums, keeping all the flowers destined for celebration as fresh as can be.  When we don’t have events, we turn it off to save the energy and fuel.

Cutting Garden.  This is still a work in progress for us.  Each spring we hope to till more land to expand our gardens to include a true cutting field.  Sadly, it hasn’t happened yet, so for now we supplement our wholesale supplied flowers with blooms cut from Pam’s amazing existing gardens.  My favorite harvest are the Hosta leaves.  Gorgeous!

Have an Earth Day “resolution” or an unique way you stay green?  Share it with us here!

 

learn more at http://www.earthday.org/

2013 Table Talk – NH Magazine Award Winners

It’s been pretty busy around here as we continue to meet with couples before the start of the wedding season.  I haven’t even had the chance to post about our table, a collaboration with My Fathered Nest, for the Palace Theater’s 2013 Table Talk Fundraiser.  We we lucky enough to win NH Magazine’s Award that evening and you can see our ode to Seussical The Musical in the May issue of the magazine!

Mb Lincoln of My Fathered Nest crafted a paper mache tree around one of our plant stands and we built around it with a grapevine nest and live plants and moss creating a jungle below.  We gave Mb all of our ribbon remnants from past events and she sewed this crazy tablecloth that made the perfect base for our yellow placemats and flower arrangements at each place setting.

The “Birdephant” peeked out of it’s bright red and white polka dotted egg.

Each setting had a votive which served as both place card and favor.  A “hearts rose” sat in a nest of bright green moss with a trio of craspedia shooting off to the side.  Pam created the place cards and anchored them on pipe cleaner springs that made them dance about.  Talk about whimsy!  Mb took our turquoise napkins and expertly folded them into lotus blossoms to add to the setting.

 

A great time was had by all!  Mb and Pam pictured here, sporting the custom feather fascinators I made.  Yes, we even decorated our guests!  Our server didn’t escape either.  She was a good sport and wore a hat just like that of the Cat in the Hat.

2013 Boston Flower & Garden Show

 

Today may have felt like the end of winter, but temperatures are forecasted to dip in the next few days.  Didn’t get your spring fix?  Not to worry, the Boston Flower & Garden Show is this weekend!  Starting tomorrow you can walk through the doors of the Seaport World Trade Center and be transported to a magical land of blooming blubs, babbling brooks, and flowers as far as the eye can see…sort of.  But hey, we’ll take it! 

We will be buzzing around the shop this weekend and won’t make it this year.  I remember our trip last year vividly though – almost 9 months pregnant and going stir crazy, it was a great diversion!  Here’s a recap of that Show to get you in the mood: http://ideas-in-bloom.blogspot.com/2012/03/2012-boston-flower-garden-show.html.

Planning to go?  Share the highlights with us here!

Baby Shower

We had to share this oh-so-cute baby shower arrangement!  Little Caroline has been born into a family full of farmers, so Pam came up with an absolutely adorable way to integrate an arrangement and this farm play-set.

Mrs. Farmer riding through a “field” of green spider mums and yellow gerber daisies.

We also provided a few containers that were to hold chocolate lollipops.  White spider mums and carnations in rustic boxes created a base to “pop” the treats into (sorry, couldn’t help myself).  The wooden boxes with chalkboard inserts were the perfect rustic compliment to the barnyard theme.

Congratulations to proud parents LeAnna & Mike!  It’s always such a pleasure to participate in the continued celebrations of our bridal couples!

Vintage Wedding Weekend at Robin’s Egg

 

 

We had a blast designing for the Vintage Wedding Weekend and had the pleasure of getting to know the crew behind Robin’s Egg in Milford, NH a whole lot better. 

Here are our photos (with a few from Rhonda at Robin’s Egg) of the pieces featured at the event…

 

 

 

 

 

bouquet featuring garden roses, blackberries and trailing vintage lace

heirloom creamer to match!

dramatic compote style arrangement in colored glass

elevated centerpiece on a mercury glass pedestal and coordinating posy in a matching mint julep cup

springy collection of tulips, hyacinth and green tricillium in a burlap wrapped vase

another of our vintage sewing machine drawers filled with kale, viburnum and spray roses – a lovely centerpiece   

     

To see more, click on the full album below…

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