Welcome, 2014!

  Here we are again, on the eve of a brand new year.  Do you have your resolutions ready?  Truthfully, I’m not a huge fan of these once-a-year declarations.  When you get to spend each day pursuing the craft you love, with those you love, every day is a commitment to my foremost goals: to be happy & fulfilled in all that I do. So many make these goals attainable (you know who you are) and for that I am so very grateful.

To that end, while 2013 was a banner year for us at Ideas in Bloom, we’re looking ahead to 2014 with more focus and creativity than ever before.  We’ll be booking only one wedding each weekend, ensuring every wedding has our undivided attention.  We’re known for our custom designs, but also for our unparalleled customer service and attention to detail.  We’ll never risk that level of quality for quantity, ever.  Not only do our couples benefit from this arrangement, but our families do as well.  Perhaps they’ll see a little bit more of us this summer than last!

So here’s to passion, balance and joy.  Cheers!  I hope the new year brings you happiness, fulfillment, and whatever else you strive for in 2014…

Happy New Year!

Letter of Thanks

In the spirit of giving thanks, it seemed fitting that we write an open letter of appreciation.  We've had another banner year here at Ideas in Bloom and it's all thanks to the wonderful people we work with and those who have been our steadfast supporters.

Thank you to our wedding clients.  You welcome us to participate in one of the most important days of your lives.  We are always honored to be called upon to design for such a special celebration and appreciate the trust you have in our creativity.  You make it easy to love our work.

Thank you to our fans.  We are so lucky to have such a loyal and spirited fan base.  Your comments, "likes", and continued recommendations fuel our creative fire year after year.

Thank you to the amazing professionals we collaborate with.  Over the years we've created a network of such talented and kind-spirited colleagues.  Every event is a group effort and we so appreciate the work of our friends.

And the biggest thank you of all goes out to our families.  You tolerate our odd hours, the "shop talk" that creeps into dinner conversation, and our absence on weekends.  You volunteer as babysitters, assist with deliveries, and construct whatever we dream up.  You support our passion, allow us the space to let our creativity thrive, and are our biggest champions.  Thank you.  For without your support, none of this would be possible.

So happy Thanksgiving to you and yours.  We hope you have much to be thankful for this year as well.

Lisa & John – A Wedding at the Condon Homestead

AW Photography

Here we are, almost two months later, but the memories are still fresh.  A beautiful family celebration for two of my favorite people.  There’s too much to capture in clever prose, so please enjoy these photos and short captions in its place…

(photos by yours truly)

 

The gardens were in top form.

With a dreary forecast, we brought the gardens into the tent as well.

Preparing for the big day.

Jo kept close watch on all activities.

The yard was ready for guests.

The flowers waiting patiently for placement.

The main event!

Poms of Baby’s Breath and yellow Mums hung with votives to frame the ceremony space.

I don’t think I’ve ever been so nervous to present a bride with her bouquet…

Seemed fitting to photograph a craftsman’s bout on an antique handsaw.

 

Each table featured a unique vessel filled with white, yellow, and orange blooms.

 

Table numbers were stenciled onto aluminum buckets (for rib bones – mouth-watering photo to come).

The tent was strung with lights and each table glowed with votives once darkness fell.

Tom’s famous ribs were a hit, as always!  The Father of the Groom took his grilling duty very seriously, building a custom grill pit we’ve since named “Grillzilla” (it’s a beast), and holding test run tastings leading up to the wedding.  We’ve never eaten so well!  A big thank you to to “pit crew” for their service under very wet skies.

Speaking of delicious treats, the gorgeous cake by Tastefully Wright.  We are spoiled with family talent. 

No detail too small.  A welcome sign for the rehearsal dinner, our signature chandelier, and custom made sap bucket wall sconces.

The army of umbrellas for all the good luck the sky dumped on the couple.  It wouldn’t be a family wedding without it!

         More details…

The happy couple sawing into their cake and dancing to the local Blue Grass band who rocked the barn that night.

So much love for two wonderful people.  The amount of family involvement from both sides of the wedding aisle warms the heart.

And they lived happily ever after…

 

 

Venue: The Condon Homestead

Flowers & Decor: Ideas in Bloom

Cake: Tastefully Wright

Entertainment: TMud and the Spuds

Happy Birthday, Pam!

Happy birthday to my wonderful mother and partner!  Sorry we won’t be celebrating at the beach like last year…

Well, hello again!

I knew it would be a challenge to find the time to post this month, but yikes!  Has it really been since the 2nd?  Profuse apologies for the lack of commentary and photos.  As expected, July has flown by in a flash.  Between weddings, consultations for next year, and a little shindig we hosted this past weekend, it’s no wonder my keyboard is a little dusty. 

It’s been an incredible season thus far and we’ve designed for some truly beautiful events.  Early this month we had the unique challenge of transforming the blank and very industrial-looking canvas of the Cyclorama in the South End of Boston into a secret garden for Rebecca & Justin’s wedding.  This installation took the cake.  We commissioned custom-built pieces, assembled a slew of our vintage props and had our favorite plant grower deliver a huge truck full of trees, shrubs and plants.  Check out some of the previews for yourself!

Just this past weekend we poured our hearts into making a family wedding extra special for two people who are so deserving of a beautiful wedding day – my little brother John and his new wife Lisa.  They decided that it was only fitting to get hitched in the barn/workshop John helped build on my parent’s property.  A laidback couple, they wanted a “no fuss” wedding…backyard BBQ with good food, good music, and a few flowers.  And it “no fuss”, or at least as “no fuss” as you can get when you have a family of wedding professionals!  There was a tent, custom lawn games, a bar constructed of refinished beams (built by the groom), wall sconces made from metal sap buckets (wired by the father of the groom), a local blue grass band, a gorgeous cake by THE Cake Lady (aka our grandmother), and “some” flowers.  Oh, and did I mention that my father made his famous ribs on the specially built grilling pit lovingly dubbed “Grillzilla”?  The massive grill and a trusty crew of Hawaiian shirt clad friends turned out ribs and grilled chicken for all and the tasty sides came from friends and family alike.  But more on that later…once I have time to edit the photos.

That’s the update for now.  I have what seems like a million photos and video clips to edit and pull together for some great posts to be featured soon, but for now, we’re off to focus on the two weddings we’re designing for this weekend.  Have a great week!

Introducing the Newest Member of Our Team!

Welcome Jolene Wilder

Little Jo arrived on March 18th and we have enjoyed every minute with her!

 

Thanks to everyone for all the well wishes we have received,

Kristin & Chris

 

…and thanks to the amazing Brooke McConnell of Hudson Photo for capturing sweet moments like this

A Baby Shower for Baby O

This past weekend a couple wonderful friends of mine threw the perfect baby shower.  Family and friends gathered to celebrate the the fast approaching arrival of Baby O.  Pam, of course, provided the flowers.

So many people chipped in to make the day great.  Those yummy chick cookie favors were made by Kelsey of Butternut Bakery.  They are the only sugar cookies I’ll eat!

THE Cake Lady (and great grandmother to be) outdid herself yet again with a barn made of cake surrounded with clay figurine keepsakes.  Mom, Baby, a watchful Kiera dog, horse and sheep are now in the nursery.

A big thank you to Caitlin & Mona, my partners in crime in a former professional life, for hosting such a wonderful day!

 

And thank you to Brooke, who captured the memories while wrangling a toddler at the same time.  That’s talent :)

A New Year

Good morning and a good New Year to you!  It’s hard to believe another year has come and gone so quickly, though I suppose time passes much more quickly when you are wrapped up in the things you love.  2011 was an exciting year of growth for Ideas in Bloom… more weddings and special events than ever before, burgeoning friendships with new local vendors (don’t forget to check out some of our favorites in the sidebar!), and an incredible amount of support from our fan base.  Thank you!!!

Photo by the talented Stacey Hedman – part of our wintery photo shoot with Prepare To Wed this past spring.  So much fun!

As we enter 2012 there is a lot to look forward to.  Our concentration has begun to shift more heavily to the floral aspects of our services and the calendar has started to reflect that.  It started to fill up with weddings and events even before the holidays hit!  We look forward to integrating our unique garden-inspired style into many of these events, often in the form of live plantings.  I can’t wait to see all of these special events come to life.

The next year will certainly bring us as much personal joy as professional.  I look forward to meeting with and getting to know those newly engaged in the coming months and designing for as long as my ever-growing belly will allow.  Our first wedding of the year is in late February and you bet I’ll still be in the studio, likely propped up in a chair!  Though come March you’ll likely see a bit less of me as Chris and I welcome our little one.  However, this doesn’t mean that operations come to a halt.  The studio will continue to run as usual, and a voice not often heard from will be coming forth on the social media front to fill in as I step away.  That’s right, Pam’s New Years’ resolution is to become more integrated into our online presence.  The blog, Facebook, and *gasp* maybe even Twitter!

We look forward to everything this coming year has to offer and the people we will meet along the way.  New clients, talented vendors, and inevitably, new friends.  All welcome additions to the Ideas in Bloom extended family.

So here is to the New Year.  A year of growth and joy for all!

‘Tis the Season…for Engagements!

The holidays are such a special time of year; full of festivities and family.  No wonder so many couples get engaged!  You’ve probably noticed your Facebook newsfeed filling up with announcements, congratulations, and pictures of those new sparklers.  I’ve seen more than a few friends and acquaintances post the happy news in the past two weeks alone and we haven’t even hit the landmark dates of Christmas and the New Year yet.

Every year we prepare for the after holiday rush of consultation requests.  Newly engaged couples, still shining with that holiday glow, who are excited to plan their big day.  This year there will be two very familiar faces at the table – My not-so-little-brother, John, and his FIANCE, Lisa!  Lisa’s been a part of the family for years now, but we are so happy that they are making it official.  (Adorable couple below – a few hours after the proposal)

Brother John made my Christmas by tricking me into going to the locally owned and operated jewelry store with him to check out the custom ring.  He had been in the day before, seen the ring, and decided to bring big sister in for a second opinion.  Of course it was perfect.  As a craftsman (amazing woodworker & furniture maker – and I’m not just saying that because he’s family) it was important to him to buy an original piece by a fellow craftsman.

Luckily he didn’t make me keep the secret long at all and proposed the very next morning while on one of their favorite hikes.  We were all able to celebrate with them just hours after while on our annual Condon Family Christmas Tree outing.  Quite the hunt this year, considering the big news and our fancy new hats Pam brought back from her recent trip the Calgary.

The love birds got surprisingly tame bear toppers, while Chris and I received Sasquatch and a Yeti respectively.  We may have looked ridiculous, but those handmade hats are warm!  Check out all the kooky creatures from KnitWits. 

So, as this year draws quickly to a close, the Condon family has much to look forward to and celebrate in 2012

Happy holidays from our entire family!

Baby O!

Many of you have noticed (and more than a few of you have pointed out) that the blog posts have been a bit few and far between in the recent past. While I assure you that we ladies have been keeping quite busy behind the scenes, your discontent has been heard and noted. Apologies to all, and now some news to reward you for your patience…

Chris and I are beyond pleased to announce that a new addition will be joining the Ideas in Bloom family this coming Spring. No, it’s not another furry shop dog, but an honest-to-goodness baby! Our little sprout will make his or her entrance right on time, just as all the other seedlings start to transform the New England landscape in late March.

“Grammy” Pam is of course thrilled and will be taking the reins for a short time while we settle in as a family. But, as those of you who know me well can guess, I’ll likely have to be kicked out of the shop on my due date and will be back and designing with the little one in tow just as soon as possible. Luckily our booked spring events will in no way be impacted by the arrival. This tot has impeccable timing already :)

We are currently busy gearing up for a slew of beautiful fall weddings that are quickly approaching so there is plenty of on the job training planned for our budding apprentice. Baby O should be ready to jump right in for the 2012 Spring/Summer wedding season!

Here’s our first baby splurge – a piece by the talented Miss Laura Warecki.  You should check out her Etsy shop Paper Taxi!

A little R&R

Well it’s that time of year again – the once-a-year Ideas in Bloom vacation week.  We’ll be out of the office Sept 4-11th, rejuvenating our creative souls in preparation for the busy fall wedding season.

We hope you all enjoy the long weekend in happy and safe revelry, and good luck to all those vendor friends with 9.10.11 weddings!

Knowing the country will view Sunday, September 11th in solemn reverence, we also wanted to pass along information about an inaugural bridal show to be held at Pat’s Peak.  Many of you know that we are preferred florists at the banquet facilities, but will be regretfully unable to attend this event, the first of it’s kind.  We encourage all those engaged couples looking for a beautiful rustic retreat to take in the show.  There will be a slew of vendors, hors d’oeuvres, entertainment, fashions and thousands in door prizes (including a $500 cash grand prize).  See below for details…

MEMORABLE EVENTS BRIDAL SHOW AT PATS PEAK BANQUET CENTER

Sunday, September 11, 2011

12:00pm - 3:00pm

$500 CASH Grand Prize!

"Discover The Other Season of Pats Peak"...
Pats Peak is the perfect location to host a wedding ceremony and reception. Vendors from all over NH will be at the Bridal Show to help you plan the wedding of your dreams.

$5 admission. Purchase tickets and pre-register at MemorableEventsNH.com.

Also listed at http://www.patspeak.com/weddings.html

 

See you soon!