La Petite Fleur Blog

Check out these two awesome photo above done by Olena Graphics Studio and then look at her site: www.olenagraphics.com. 

Check the awesome photos above done by Olena Graphics Studio www.olenagraphics.com.  Very artistic! Thank you.

The rest, below, are done by me:)

Mehanthi called me a little more than a month before her traditional, Hindu wedding ceremony was to take place.  She and Ben were married legally by US standards, but her family wanted the full Hindu deal and flew over from India to be a part of this beautiful day.  Speaking of beautiful, these two families are simply stunning- can’t wait to see how good looking the kids are going to be:)

Wednesday night my husband, Kyle, and I met Mehanthi and Ben at the Shri Gaayatri Mandir Temple in Minneapolis http://shrigaayatrimandir.tripod.com/ to help decorate for the next morning’s event.  We had such a fun time helping and getting to know Ben and his lovely bride.  We spoke of our favorite music, movies, and most importantly our favorite beverage, Summit beer!  We hung shimmering gold organza from each room’s ceilings and draped it to the floor, wrapped it around every pillar, and completely covered a vent which I described as the “vent beautifier”. In the center of the middle room, I hung Indian styled lanterns to give a soft glow and elegant look- it was my favorite part of the decor.  Don’t tell anyone, but maybe even above flowers, lighting is the most important element of a great environment for a party.  Too much and it’s annoying and harsh, too little and people fall asleep.  I’m a self proclaimed candle freak! Mehanthi and Ben did the place up right by having lots of simple yet elegant white strung lights and lots of candles to set the mood. 

The next day my daughter, Anja, and I set up garlands of Salal, gold organza, red and orange Dianthus, Dahlias, Roses, and Marigolds from each of the doorways entering the Temple.  The  foyer was where we’d take off our shoes, and were welcomed by the wonderful sights and smells of jasmine incense, a bouquet of white Dendrobium Orchids, to bouquets of orange Lilies, and a bowl of red Rose petals and candy that each guest gets on the way out.

Walking into the main part of the temple a large, beautiful, ornate, ceremonial swing caught Anja’s attention and kept her occupied as I set up the rest of the decorations including lighting all the lanterns, laid out the four 5 foot red Rose and Dendrobium Orchid neck garlands,  overflowing bowls of Rose heads for the Priest, hundreds of red and white Rose petals lining the walkway, and setting out the simple and elegant Dendrobium garlands for the lady’s hair.

Note the gorgeous traditional paintings called Kolam in Tamil. Mehanthi’s mother did throughout the space using white rice flour and at the temple, she had put some kumkum around the edges for contrast. Great job, Mum!  Also check out the stunning garlands of Marigolds on each of the very ornate Gods.

I was so honored to be able to be a part of this awesome couple’s intimate ceremony and thankful that they were so laid back to let my daughter help out as well.  Mehanthi’s father and Anja got along splendidly and she did such a good job, I took her for her first manicure and pedicure as a gift afterwards.  What did I get myself into?- now she wants to go all the time!

Good luck Mehanthi and Ben, you are a fun, great couple! Enjoy your lives together and keep in touch.

“Beyond my expectations…”

-Mehanthi

Our friend, Ryan, had a nice little get together with friend’s at his very well decorated and landscaped house in North East Minneapolis.  I decided it would be nice to make him a centerpiece and a boutonniere. He used the Sunflower, Leucadendron, Hypericum Berry,and Coffee Break Roses, and Song of India foliage centerpiece, but the petal-less Sunflower bout he did not:( I thought it was cute, apparently I was the only one.  Anja got to meet a new friend and the two of them clowned around all night.

Ryan is on his 14th year working the beer gardens at the Great Minnesota State Fair.  Make certain to stop by and give him a hard time and get a beer- there’s a full line of Summit Beers on tap this year, including Octoberfest….yum! Thanks Ryan for a great time…and call Jessica already!

Luanne and Tony came to me two short weeks before their wedding…Crikey! Talk about saving the best for last until the last minute:) They decided on having a beach themed wedding and wanted to incorporate any beach-y type ideas into their flowers as well.  Originally Luanne was thinking she’d have a bouquet made entirely of shells, but together we came up with a plan using Agapanthus, Lilies, Thistle, Saw-Tooth Gerberas, Button Mums, Seeded Eucalyptus, Dusty Miller, and pearl filled Stephanotis accented with real sea shells and a handle treatment of a beautiful jeweled starfish broach.

The ceremony took place on the Andiamo Showboat on the St. Croix River in Stillwater http://www.stillwaterriverboats.com/.

I also got to decorate in a huge seashell that was used as a centerpiece- that was fun! Luanne also brought me over a black wire starfish and asked if there was anyway I could decorate that…I came up with Moss, Mums, small closed Lilies, and Dusty Miller to give it a “just washed up on the shore” look- they used this at the alter- I hope it worked out great for them.  The day couldn’t have been nicer- just gorgeous! The bride and groom took off with style in their Cigarette Boat to head off to their room at the stately Lowell Inn in downtown Stillwater http://www.lowellinn.com/index.htm.  Have a great marriage!

These first four pictures are the professional pictures taken by and so generously given to me by Paula Primea. Be sure to take a look at her other work at www.passionateportraits.net. Great job, Paula!

Yeah! I got to be as funky as I wanted to for this fun bride! Emily came to me and told me her story of love that has lasted nearly 10 years.  They never had the official ceremony before today, but Emily felt her and James were pretty much already married, having a house, 2 beautiful girls together, and being together for a long time.  There was no rush or urgency to their planning- they wanted to have a good time and they definitely know how to do that! 

Emily wanted a lot of color, mostly orange and green for her wedding flowers.  While we were looking at books, she kept picking out the cascading bouquets with lots of texture and visual interest.  We came up with a unique bouquet for her using Flame Callas, Song of India foliage, green Button Mums, copper wired loops and sprays of Bear Grass, yellow Craspedia, sprays of Oncidium Orchids, Pincushion Protea, Croton Leaves, a weaving of green beaded garland, and a collar of Prayer Plant Calathea leaves- So pretty!

The attendants carried a more simple arrangement of the Flame Callas, loops and sprays of Bear Grass and copper wire, and a handle treatment of thin orange ribbon ballet wrapped over brown satin ribbon that matched their dresses.   

The flower girl carried a Button Mum pomander accented with orange jeweled flowers- too cute! That’s my daughter, Anja, in her Sleeping Beauty dress, happily modeling the pomander for me:)

My favorite, next to the bride’s bouquet, was the cake flowers.  I designed the topper to compliment the bride’s bouquet and made two smaller pieces to sit upon each of the two other layers of the cake. 

Emily and James are one of the last couples to be married by Judge Albertson at Albertson Farm in Stillwater http://www.albertsonfarm.net/ as he is retiring this year. Their reception was at Jimmy’s Conference and Catering in Vadnais Heights http://www.jimmysfoodanddrink.com/ConfWedding.htm. 

Check out these 4 first pictures above taken by an awesome photographer, Jennifer Cress.  Note the third photo where even a little frog thought the bouquet was pretty enough to live in:) Thanks Jennifer for some great images!!! Make sure to stop by her site and look at her stunning work as well at www.jennifercress.com.

I was so excited to do this wedding.  I found out at our first consultation that Aaron was a Horticulturist and in turf management.  He knew what I was talking about when I was pitching flowers, which was awesome! He not only gave us some great pointers for our grass (aka creeping charlie, dandelions, and crabgrass) but also told me that he was willing to grow grass for me as part of the design of their pew decorations/centerpieces and unity candle arrangements. Take a look at this darling wedding- what a great couple!  My daughter, Anja, dressed up to deliver the bouquet to the bride, who Anja thought she looked like a princess.  The bride’s bouquet consisted of yellow Cymbidium Orchids, green Hypericum Berries, and pink mini Calla Lilies with a collar of Scented Geranium leaves.  This goes down as one of my favorites- I LOVED this bouquet!  The attendants had bunched, green Dianthus (or Carnations, but don’t tell anyone) with pops of pink color using pink Hypericum Berries and also had the collar of the Scented geranium leaves. The boutonnieres were simple using green and pink Hypericum berries, some Myrtle, and to bring in the siver accent color, aluminum wire on the stem treatment. Much to the amusement of the bride’s mother, all personal flowers were secured using magnets!

We had a wonderful time setting up this wedding at the gorgeous and very historic Guardian Angels Catholic Church in Oakdale http://www.guardian-angels.org/- it’s the one you can see right off 94.  I’ve always wanted to see this church! The reception took place at Mississippi Dunes http://www.mississippidunes.com/banquetfacilities.php . Thanks to the happy couple for allowing us to be a part of your most special day! As always…I can’t wait to see the professional pictures. 

A note from the bride:

We received so many compliments on all the beautiful arrangements-we even have some flowers that are still doing quite well and still looking good.

And don’t worry everyone we know who needs any kinds of flowers will definitely receive your information and our recommendation.

Thanks again,

Kirstin and Alex

Kellie and Clint are a very nice couple that had equal participation in their wedding flower planning- I just love when the grooms come to the consultations and have a say about flowers!  I got to use some interesting flowers for this wedding including Love in a Mist, Scabiosa, and deep purple Stock.  I love the venue they chose, the Minnesota Boatclub http://www.mintahoe.com/index.cfm?objectid=F3EDCF4D-1372-537E-D5E42968992A9659 not only for it’s tremendous history, but also it’s closeness- only about 2 miles from my house! They got a beautiful day…luckys! I loved their cake, by Buttercream http://www.buttercream.info/WeddingCakes.html.  I think decorating cakes is one of my favorite things to do, next to delivering the bride her bouquet, of course!

Take a look at their beautiful pictures below, compliments of Megan Quist Photography
meganquistphotography.com.

Kathryn is an Interior Designer who has a great eye for design.  She chose a stunning, classic scheme for her flowers, green and white.  Green and white Roses, Freesia, Hydrangea, Stock, Hypericum Berries, Spider Mums, Callas, Myrtle, Button Mums, Variegated Pittisporum,  Lace Fern, and Hanging Amaranthus were used throughout.

The ceremony was at one of the most beautiful churches I have seen to date, Guardian Angels Catholic Church in Chaska http://www.gachaska.org/churchhome.

The reception was at the very upscale and well maintained Wayzata Country Club http://www.wayzatacc.com/index.html where the centerpieces were designed so that they could be removed from either the rented tall pilsner vases or the stout, “antique” urns and given as gifts at the end of the night. This was a top-shelf wedding and I was honored to be able to be a part of it.

Thanks Kathryn and please, keep in touch!

A note from the bride:

PS. I know I already shared how much we loved the flowers, but they were honestly amazing and made the day for me! We got so many compliments on them and I will be sure to pass your name to any upcoming brides I know :) Thank you for doing such a wonderful job

I met Angel through my best friend, Amy http://lapetitefleurmn.com/news/?p=430 . These two teach together and are a ton of fun!  Angel asked me to help her with her wedding flowers.  I told her that I would love to help her with ideas for her flowers, but since she was getting married in Two Harbors, and that I already had a very large wedding booked for that weekend, that she should contact a florist up there. She assured me that her wedding was very small and that she did not want another florist, she wanted me:) 

I’m so glad I let her talk me into doing her flowers because they were a joy to arrange.  Angel told me that her wedding colors were white, blue, and green and that other than really liking Dandelions, she had no idea about flowers.  She likes texture so I decided a mix of Lilies, Thistle, green Button Mums, Agapanthus, Roses, Iris, Delphinium, Hypericum berries, Seeded Eucalyptus, and Angel hair Vine (in honor of her) we’d get her what she was looking for!

Congratulations Angel, I wish you all the happiness in the world- you deserve it!

The first 6 images are taken by Michael B Studios. The rest of the gorgeous shot are from my friend, Drew Dewitt drew_dewitt@hotmail.com.

I can sum up this wedding in 3 little letters…WOW! I was referred to Marion, Renee’s mother by my neighbor’s mother, Rosalie (see Mary and Owen’s wedding http://lapetitefleurmn.com/news/?p=240)  Thanks Rosalie!

Our first meeting was on site at the Mill City Ruins http://www.millcitymuseum.org/ where the ceremony and reception took place.  I LOVE this venue!  Renee has a very modern, contemporary taste and is very laid back and casual where her mother has a more refined taste and had a more traditional vision for the wedding.  Given this info and the venue, I had to find a happy medium between the two ladies visions.  I came up with a Tuscan themed wedding that both were thrilled with.  Bright yellows, reds, oranges, and purples washed over the Ruins bringing a Tuscan feel to the event. 

I was lucky enough to have 6 other people helping set up this fabulous wedding, my husband, Kyle, my flower vendor and lead designer, Jessica Leopold, a past client and current friend, Molly http://lapetitefleurmn.com/news/?p=22, my neighbor, Mary, Mary’s mom, Judy, and Judy’s friend and my past grade-school teacher, Maggie.  This set up was controlled chaos as we only had 2 hours to set up the entire decor. Check out these fabulous pictures my friend, Drew, took in between moving a ton of flowers around. Thanks Drew, you really could start a photography business and be very successful!

A note and a nice gift were left in my door the other day from the Bride’s mother, Marion. Thanks Marion and Tommy- I’ll be certain to take the family out for a very nice dinner. Here’s what the note said,

Dear Carra,

We don’t know how to thank you enough for the beautiful flower arrangements for Renee and Mike’s wedding. They transformed the courtyard into a beautiful Tuscany setting. Of equal importance they made the dining area look absolutely elegant. We have received endless compliments and praise for your outstanding work.  Please use us anytime if you ever need a reference.

Best regards,

Marion and Tom

A note from the Bride:

we loved the flowers - they were perfect, mike knew how important they were to me and he said he did not know what to expect and was blown away.  EVERYONE is telling me about how they really felt they were in italy!! thank you Carra for making that happen for me. -renee

Katie, her mom, and her soon to be mother in law came to me to plan her beautiful flowers.  They all thought “soft, classic, and romantic” was the way to go. We achieved this goal by using shades of pink and peach Roses, white Roses, pink Astilbe, pearl centered Stephanotis, pink Lisianthus,  light pink Stock, Maidenhair Fern, and Myrtle greens throughout all the wedding flowers.

Katie and Joe were married at the beautiful and very large Berean Baptist Church in Lakeville http://www.bereanbaptist.com/.  I got to decorate the church by making fluffy bows out of two shades of pink ribbon and sectioning off the aisle pews with graceful swags of the same ribbon.  The Alter flowers were lush and full of all the pink and green wedding flowers.

The reception was nearby in Lakeville at the Chart House http://www.charthouserestaurant.com/chart_house_events_center.html where I must have an outdoor party someday- it was very gorgeous! Here we decorated with three different centerpieces.  One a cylinder vase filled with green and pink Rose petals and floating small white candles, another short and stout filled with all the wedding flowers, and the third a rectangular vase filled with bunched green Dianthus (Carnations), bright green Trick, green button Mums, and light pink Dianthus.  I finished off the look by putting a band of pink ribbon along the base of the vase.  I cannot wait to see the professional pictures from this wedding and post them for you all to see how gorgeous this bride was. Also, I need to see the 4 tiered cake that was filled with flowers as well!

Congrats Katie and Joe, you make a wonderful couple!

Here’s an email I just got from the lovely bride:

Hi Carra,

I have been meaning to email you for a while, but time has just gotten away from me.  I just wanted to let you know that Joe and I absolutely loved the flowers.  We were blown away.  You far exceeded my expecations and I just wanted to say thank you.  I cannot tell you how many compliments we got on the flowers.  People are still asking me about them.  Our photographer got some amazing pictures of them.  Again, thank you.  You have a very special gift!!!!

Katie

A review from the bride as posted on Wedding Wire www.weddingwire.com:

My husband I could not have asked for a better experience. The flowers were absolutely amazing and breath-taking. I would absolutely recommend La Petite Fleur to anyone.