The Best Christmas Tree Ever

Happy Holidays!!

This is certainly one of my favorite days of the year!  But it wasn't until I had children that I really cared about creating traditions....and ensuring that the base of the tree was packed with presents.  One of the assumptions that I get frequently around this time of year?  "Your Christmas tree must be stunning with gorgeous ornaments and ribboning!" Yes, I do get to decorate plenty of Christmas trees with lots of frill....for our clients.  However, in my house, the family Christmas tree is one of those places that I give complete reign to my kids. 

We make our own popcorn garlands and the garlands are never wrapped around the tree they way they are "supposed" to be. There are usually more candy canes hung on one side of the tree than the other side.  The ornaments tend to make their way to the floor and to different rooms in the house.  The tree is usually crooked.  Sometimes, I find random toys tucked into the tree.

And I LOVE it!  The tree gets to be a true representation of my kids and they get to call it their own.  So, if you ask me, I have the best Christmas tree ever!  And I get it every year!

Best wishes to you and yours this holiday season!

Yours truly,

Joanna 

A Taste of Fall - Launch Party for The Positive Plate on 11-11-11

Alright folks!!  Here is the official launch party of The Positive Plate - Orange County's newest, hottest restaurant sustainability program spearheaded by Jesse Baker PhD of Ecofficiency!  We have an amazing line up of food from some of OC's best "green" restaurants in addition to stellar music (including Common Kings, Jacob Luttrell and American Idol's Michael Castro)!  It's all happening this Friday on 11-11-11 at an incredibly unique and fitting venue - The OC Food Bank in Irvine, CA.  Tickets are still available but they are going fast!  You can purchase them here for $60 a pop.  Each ticket includes unlimited food and drinks.

 

Sending a special THANK YOU to our restaurant and beverage sponsors.  AND, we are lucky enough to have Paul Schafer of PS Photo Media as our sponsoring photographer along with Fusion Linens as our linen donor.  Of course, Floral Sense will be there with sustainably designed arrangements decking out the event!  There WILL be a give-away of some arrangements too.  

Can't wait to see you there!!

Yours Truly,

Joanna

Dancing Queen

I'll admit that I got caught red-handed a few days ago...totally dancing to the beat of my own music.  Completely free with no reservations, I danced my little heart out.  Until...I found myself face to face with my friendly neighbors staring at me through my wide-open window.  Everything stood still for a moment in time while I stared back at them like a deer in headlights.  My saving grace?  My two little children who stopped dancing only because I had.  "Mommy, come on!  Keep dancing!"

Since when did we decide that someone else's opinion of our free-spirit hinder us to express ourselves?  My boys completely skipped that momentary beat of judgment and checked me back into the dancing world.  I swear, I love my little teachers.  

Although I serve the wedding industry as a designer, I find myself in a counseling role for my brides all the time. A frequent concern?  The RIGHT way to do things, etiquette, structure, gifts, etc.  I find that a huge source of stress lies in what should/shouldn't be done for their own wedding. But who said that we HAD to follow the rules of what someone deemed as "tradition"?  If a wedding is about a union of love between two people, why can't the event completely reflect the couple?  

Remember the JK Wedding Entrance Dance video on You Tube?  If you need a refresher, just click here.  

This makes me smile every single time!  This couple truly embraced a celebration of their marriage that reflected them, throwing the "rules" out the window.  To date, this video has had over 70 million views in addition to parodies featured on TV shows (The Office being one of them) and countless other couples following suit for their own wedding. 

(Photo courtesy of google images)

I'm not sure that they expected such a response but I commend that they took complete freedom to dance to the beat of their own tune.  

The lesson?  Depends on how you take this post.  As for me, I think I'll keep dancing with the windows wide-open like nobody is watching.

Cheers to the beat of your own music!

Yours truly,

Joanna

PS - Have any great ideas on how you make your wedding a reflection of you?  Let's hear it! Send me an email or leave a message below!

Press: Floral Sense Paper Flower Backdrop with Tessa Kim's 2012 Line: Part 1

You are probably already familiar with our ginormous paper flower backdrop created for Tessa Kim's 2012 Line of bridal accessories.  I wanted to share this awesome video that Jakfoto Productions filmed during the actual photoshoot.  Click here to view the film via Vimeo.  Enjoy!

Tessa's new line was also featured in Utterly Engaged and The Wedding Chicks (just to name a few).  I'll post on those soon enough!

Yours truly,

Joanna

Floral Sense's Joanna Park: Mayesh Design Star Contest Finalist

I am completely beside myself right now.  It seems that I made it to the Final 5 for Mayesh's Design Star Contest and the rest is up to voting from you!  You can go to the link here.

Take your time browsing through the videos and vote for your favorite!  There were 38 entries in all and I am SO honored to be chosen in the Top 5!  Actually, I'm also a bit terrified since I wasn't expecting my video to be viewed by so many people. I had no idea that I would even get this far.  All I had that day was a borrowed Flip camera (which I placed on a chair) and 4 takes to get a decent video.

So, there you have it.  Voting ends on October 22, 2011.  Crossing my fingers and closing my eyes in the meantime...I can't handle the anticipation.

A special thank you to Eva Chiou of The Wedding Pantry for allowing me to use your space to film!  And thank you to Wendy Ramos of Just Wenderful for being there to give me feedback between takes (and pressing the Record button)!

Yours Truly,

Joanna

Press: Summer Soiree Yacht Party in Riviera Magazine

Yep, we have another event that requires some memory jogging!  The Summer Soiree Fashion Show/Yacht Party in which we sponsored the florals made it into Riviera Magazine!  Loving the spread!

 

I definitely have to hand it to Marilen Coughenour and Marisa Kenson. These ladies know how to put on a party! Thanks for everything ladies! 

Yours truly, Joanna

Press: Floral Sense Wedding Decor on Junebug Weddings

Remember the high-fashion glam wedding of Stew and Connie Webb held at the Nixon Library in Yorba Linda, CA?  Well, here is the blog feature on Junebug Weddings!  Enjoy!

Yours truly,

Joanna

The Positive Plate Launch Party on November 11, 2011

Ok, I know I promised tidbits of Floral Sense press so, rest assured, they will be showcased in the coming posts.  But I wanted to insert an exciting announcement about The Positive Plate's launch party happening on 11/11/11 at Second Harvest Food Bank in Irvine, CA.  Seriously, I am SUPER stoked about this event as we will have several of our restaurants presenting signature fall dishes with a sustainable twist.  Love it!  Check out the brochure below and the website here for more detailed info.

Just keep in mind that admission is limited to 200 people so purchase your tickets soon!

Looking forward to seeing you there!

Yours truly,

Joanna

Press: Floral Sense Paper Flowers Featured in Hostess With The Mostess

Press is always exciting for us to get!  And it seems our past events have made a few blogs and magazines so I'll be showcasing these over the next few blog posts.  Remember the awesome Bat Mitzvah Trapeze Party thrown for Bella in NYC by Lysa Scarselli?  Well, Hostess with the Mostess loved is so much they featured it on their blog!  You can view the blog post here.

Thanks for stopping by!

Yours truly,

Joanna

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!