High Fashion Glam Wedding at Richard Nixon Library

It looks like Richard Nixon Library is where the parties are happening lately!  Considering that it IS a gorgeous historical landmark, this venue is hard to pass up.  The wedding featured today was held back in July and I am super excited about sharing the images with you!  Our bride, Connie, came to me with this glitzy, glam, high-fashion styled theme for her special day.  The trick was to get gold peacock feathers and crystals to work in the design while keeping the feel of high-style branding.  Here's what came about!  Enjoy!

 

 

Congratulations Stew and Connie Webb!!

A special thank you to our day of set-up team Jesse Baker and Iris Marialaki!

Yours truly,

Joanna

Even Hungry Hungry Hippos Get Substitutions

Remember the game Hungry Hungry Hippos?  This used to be one of my favorite games as a kid so it was only fitting that I pass on the tradition to my own kids.  The only issue I ran into was the blatant choking hazard of the small white feeding marbles for the hippos' voracious appetite.  So, rather than waiting a few more years to introduce the game, I decided to substitute the little white marbles with cereal (ie. Kix).  This simple substitution works perfectly for my little men!  They get to enjoy the game and eat at the same time!

 

My point?  Yes, I do have one that pertains to the floral world. I know some of you may not want to hear this but there are times that florists will need to use botanical substitutions depending on what Mother Nature decides to offer during that season.  Keep in mind that Mrs. Nature has a mind of her own and no one can control what she will produce and how she will produce it.  For the most part, we can predict what will be in season but sometimes she likes to throw us a curve ball.  So, in the event those precious peonies are not available in exact shade you wanted, your florist should contact you to let you know what the other options are.  And if you end up hiring a GREAT designer, he/she will make your decor look just as stunning (if not better). Let's face it....its not as much about the flowers as it is the designer.  Right?

As a word of advice, I might have a few back-up options in the contract if you have specific varieties in mind for your decor.  My personal preference is to go with a general feel of your decor in seasonal flowers if possible.

Hope that this tid-bit of info helps you in your wedding decor planning!

Yours Truly,

Joanna

Wish Upon A Wedding Southern California Gala: Blissful Wishes Ball

Wish Upon a Wedding Southern California Chapter held its second annual Blissful Wishes Ball at the gorgeous Richard Nixon Library in Yorba Linda last night.  For those of you unfamiliar with WUW, it is "the world's first nonprofit wedding wish granting organization, providing weddings for terminally ill individuals." It truly is an amazing organization!  The guests of honor that evening were Douglas Wang and Lizabeth Tso who were granted a wedding by WUW at Bella Collina in San Clemente.  The wedding was absolutely stunning but even more beautiful is the unwavering love this couple shares for each other and their children.  You can read up more on Douglas and Lizabeth here.  It was pretty emotional seeing the family take the stage and pour out their gratitude to the organization for giving them a wedding they have had to push back over and over again.  They were met with a very well deserved standing ovation!

Just to give you an idea of the caliber of weddings that are granted, I snapped a few images of the gala.  Truly, no detail goes unnoticed nor unaccounted.  Keep in mind, these aren't fabulous professional images but you'll see the love in those details!

Venue: Richard Nixon Library 

Ice Sculpture: Ice Bulb

Florals: French Buckets (AMAZING florist!  Love you Sussanna!)
Linens: Designer Specialty Linens


Catering: White House Catering


Cake and Desserts: A Wish and a Whisk


And some of my favorite people!
Robert Arthur of Invisible Touch Events


Veronica Taylor of Designer Specialty Linens and Hanssie Trainor of Hanssie Trainor Photography


Desiree Patterson of Good Gracious and Lindsey Sinatra of A Wish and A Whisk


Sending a special congrats to the ladies of Utterly Engaged, Henny and Lucia, for winning your Shining Star Award!


Hope to have inspired you a bit this week!

Your truly,
Joanna

Photoshoot: Behind the Scenes of Floral Sense Paper Flower Backdrop Set-up

I have an obsession with designing for photoshoots.  So when Tessa of Tessa Kim Birdcage Veils and Accessories asked me to design a paper flower backdrop for her shoot, I jumped at the opportunity.  There's a ton a work that goes into prepping for these productions to get the final perfect images including models, make-up, hair, venue, lighting, photography and design (just to name a few). Behind-the-scenes is where lots of the work is done and its my favorite place to be! 

 

And the grand finale!

 

To get a sneak peak of the photoshoot, check out the photos posted on Tessa's fan page here! The rest of the images will be up soon.  Trust me, I am in as much anticipation as you are!

Yours Truly,

Joanna

Featured Wedding at Mastro's in Costa Mesa, CA

Looking for some fun, colorful, modern floral decor ideas?  Here is a great modern wedding Floral Sense participated in back in July.  The pictures were taken with a personal camera but you'll get the gist of it all. Enjoy!

 

Yours truly, 

Joanna

Fulfilling Your Childhood Dreams

I’m a little sad that the OC Fair is over but I really only go for one reason each year.  It's to win my boys one of these ginormous animals. That’s right.  I have talent like no body’s business!  

I won the cow this year.  

The frog is from the previous year. 

And who knows what next year holds.

I just want to clarify that I didn’t wake up one day and decide that winning these animals was going to be an annual tradition. As with most things for me, I had a great source of inspiration: Randy Pausch.  If you don’t know the name, you will want to know the name AND spend the next hour or so watching his Last Lecture.  (Warning: have a notebook and a box of tissues handy.)  I refer back to his last lecture regularly.  Each time I watch it, I leave with yet another lesson and find ways to apply it to my life.  There’s the head fake lesson, achieving dreams lesson….and the ginormous animals. Yes, Randy Pausch inspired me to fulfill my childhood dream of bringing home an oversized carnival toy.  And now I’m hooked.

I remember entering the wedding industry years ago for mainly one reason: To bring to life the childhood wedding dreams for a couple (ok, its usually the bride's asthetic dreams coming true and the man just wanting his woman to be happy).  There is something so satisfying after a wedding set-up to take a moment, step back and admire the hard work of creating a gorgeous setting for a grand nuptial celebration.  And yes, each of those details make a huge difference!  Whether its the specific flower breed used to remember the couple's first date or the family heirloom brooch adorned onto the bride's bouquet, they all play part to the special day.  Truly, nothing beats having a couple tell me that their wedding decor was more than they ever dreamed!

Cheers to fulfilling your childhood dreams! 

Yours Truly,

Joanna


PS - We are returning to our original Monday/Thursday blog post schedule!

Barbie and Ken Get Married

I came across this awesome photoshoot by Beatrice De Guigne of Barbie and Ken's wedding. 

Yeah....pretty damn amazing! I've seen many wedding photos and I take particular interest in the detail shots.  Beatrice took no shortcuts to photographing this wedding! View the rest of her photos here on her blog.

Thanks for rocking my Barbie world!

Yours truly,

Joanna

Sustainability in the Cut Flower Industry

Co-founder of Ecofficiency.org, Chrissy Gray, has spent the last few months abroad in South America and I'm excited that she is finally back!  While overseas, she had the opportunity to visit Cayambe, Ecuador, and get a peak into the thriving cut floral industry there. What she learned was that the actual impacts of farming practices on these flower plantations are alarming. Detrimental practices include the use of pesticides that are illegal in the US which, in turn, are affecting the community's children born with physical deformities and mental deficiencies...not to mention the use of non-biodegradable materials just to package the roses.  (I can't even tell you how much cellophane I have stored away for future design use off of cut flower packaging. I don't even purchase cellophane.)  Chrissy's article (which you can read here) tells an eye-opening view into what goes behind some of the flowers you purchase.  

Sustainability in the floral industry has been a difficult push.  Thankfully, the demand for environmentally safe floral farming has led to the development of certifications such as Veriflora and Rainforest Alliance. For Floral Sense, this makes the conscientious purchasing of our fresh goods much easier.  This also means that not all the flower breeds we want will be available within the certification which calls for some creative substitutions.  You, as a retail consumer, have the option to make better choices in where and how you purchase your designed arrangements.  My hope is that you are empowered with enough information to ask your florist the right questions.  At the end of the day, where we put our money is what we inadvertently demand.

If you have any questions regarding this topic or would like to further the discussion, please leave a comment below.  I would love to here you thoughts.

Yours truly,

Joanna

Ecofficiency.org at Doheny Days

Come join Ecofficiency.org at Doheny Days this weekend.  We are greening it up!

 

Check out the Doheny Days Facebook page for more info on attending.  Hope to see you there!

Yours truly,

Joanna

Ecofficiency.org Speaker Series: Socially Responsible Investing

Our Speaker Series at Ecofficiency is finally up and running again after a bit of a hiatus.  We have a new venue too!  Please join us on Wednesday September 7 at Haute Cakes in Newport Beach from 7:00 PM to 9:00 PM. Our speaker will be Kyle Scrimgeour from Core Capital Management covering the topic of Socially Responsible Investing.  

Complimentary appetizers and drinks will be provided. And a $5 donation at the door is appreciated!

Haute Cakes

1807 Westcliff Drive

Newport Beach, CA 

949.642.4114

See you there!

Yours truly,

Joanna