Goddesses of the Garden: A Culinary and Floral Event

‘Twas a wet day in March when the Goddess’ of the Garden gathered together and made beauty in a greenhouse. Sarah Simon aka The Mint Gardener, and Ashley Rodriguez dreamed up this wonderful event in celebration of another year of life as well as their book releases. As trickling drops of rain poured down the greenhouse glass, we had the honor of adorning the floor as well as the entryway with lush floral provided by The Floral Compass.

Our favorite part of this installation was when Sarah showed us a truck bed of full of enormous, blossoming tree branches she had foraged. We tucked the trees into each corner of the greenhouse, creating an atmosphere of magic and coziness that fairies and woodland creatures would reside in. The focal point of the greenhouse featured a standing dining table for friends to dance, laugh and mingle around. Gorgeous tableware provided by Holcomb Studio was surrounded by seafoam green glass and gold candlesticks, velvet shells, and fresh linens by Meema.co. Delicious food was prepared by our very own Ashley. As the sun began to fade, the twinkling light from our glass pillar candles lit the way for the goddesses to dance long into the night. 

Photographer: @gorrrbb

Florals provided by: @floral_compass

Florals arranged by: @antherafloral

Tableware/accoutrement: @holcomb.studio

Linens: @meema.co

Burch Barrel Grill: @burchsupplycompany

Libations: @westlandseattle, @kingsanddaughters

Event Coordination and Food: @ashrod, @themintgardener, @slice.pr

Weddings in Woodinville - "A Walk thru Parisian Gardens"

This year we were lucky enough to get asked to be a part of one of the best wedding shows in the Northwest, Weddings in Woodinville. The theme was “A Walk thru Parisian Gardens” spearheaded by the lovely @perfectlyposhevents_danae. We wanted to design something around the beautiful fireplace at Chateau Lill, something that felt like an exquisite cafe garden escape in Paris. Mauve and lavender were the featured colors, which are some of Anthera’s favorites. Organic, flowy, romantic vibes. Our tablescape showcased 5 types of flowers, simple and elegant. We used lots of sweet peas, tulips, garden roses, ranunculus, lisianthks, hellebore, to name a few. So many amazing vendors helped with this event—all listed below. This was definitely a highlight of the year.

Vendors

Planning and Event Design: @perfectlyposhevents 

Florist: @antherafloral  

Live Painter: @art.by.elina

Cake: @blueboxbakery

Gelato Cart: @nuttysquirrelgelato  

Officiant: @officiantgrace

Honeymoon Resort: @suncadia

Videographer: @ridgewoodfilms 

Stationary: @blakedesignstudio

Venue: @chateaulill 

Rentals: @cortpartyrental

Catering: @shoobydoocatering, @lisaduparcatering

Espresso Cart: @espressoelegance

Specialty Seating: @nobleeventrentals

Linens: @bbjlatavola

Photographer: @sarahlordphoto

Specialty Rentals: @vintageambiance

DJ: @chrisgravesmusic

Lighting: @lightsmiths.seattle

Creative Rentals, Set Design + Event Stylist: @genealexanderdesigns

Photo Booth: @321fotobooth

Live Entertainment: @maison_de_v_entertainment

Restroom Trailers: @privychambers

Calligrapher: @magnoliamarksstudio

Pet Sitting: @towagandtohold

Hotel: @hgiredmondwa

Jewelry: @sholdtjewelers

Beauty: @salonmaisoninc

Bridal Gown: @kitaeventsnorthwest

Groom Attire: @sewgenerouslybespoke

Getaway Car: @bmclimo

Wedding Show: @weddings_in_woodinville

Italian Romance at the Corson Building

We loved creating these dreamy, romantic florals for Jenni and John at the enchanting Corson Building. The Corson was originally built as a home in 1926, but has now become one of Seattle most beloved restaurants and Italian Villa themed event venues. The gentle hues of  light orange, delicate peach, and pure white infused the space with warmth and serenity. Against the backdrop of rustic elegance, the floral focal point was a hanging installation floating above the ceremony - a mesmerizing cascade of blooms suspended in midair from a fig tree. Amidst the historical charm of the Corson Building, these floral arrangements serve as a radiant expression of the couple's enduring love, creating an unforgettable ambiance for their special day.

Photographer: @mollymoormeiere

Venue: The Corson Building

Florals: @antherafloral   

Glossier Seattle's Newest Florist!

We’re excited to announce a new partnership launching this month with the brand new Glossier Seattle store! Seattle is the first Glossier store in America to open post pandemic (other cities previously had stores, but they had to close during Covid, and are slowly reopening). So, technically we are the first Glossier florist in the country post pandemic! We love the store’s modern “Alice in Wonderland” theme, with mossy borders, big poppies, sprouting mushrooms, and bright vibrant colors. It’s the perfect backdrop for our floral magic. Flowers will be delivered fresh 2x a week, and the design will be different every time! Stop by to see what we will create! 1514 10th Avenue in Capital Hill.

Autumn floral vibes and a puppy!

Florals for our fall styled shoot featured a Monet of earthy fall tones and textures to compliment the beautiful green landscape of Trinity Tree Farm. With the clean, modern look of their lodge, we wanted to create an artful and whimsical floral backdrop to accompany the fairytale dress worn by the model. Shades of dusty rose, burnt orange, amber, honey, and mustard shown brightly in the warm light filled room. The table florals were purposefully paired down to accentuate the delightful details created for the tablescape. Our bride held a bouquet toting the season’s finest blooms and fall foliage, including dried bits and berries. The planners even brought along their adorable golden retriever puppy, who fit right into the shoot!

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Vendors: Lanting Photo, Celebrate with Caroline, Trinity Tree Farm, Creativa Co, Cort Party Rentals, Missy Lee Cakes, Christy K Makeup and Hair, Bridal Bliss Shop, Bella Belle Shoes, Heidi Hull Designs Bridal

Going Purple

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I always said I would never get political with this blog, but I honestly don’t think this topic is political. It’s just human.

I grew up in a progressive home, went to progressive colleges, and sided mostly progressive my whole life. So it would of course make sense that when I chose a spouse, he ended up being conservative.

I recently heard though, that studies since the 1950’s have shown families are becoming more and more opposed to politically-mixed marriages. The idea that two people who love each other for all their many qualities, couldn’t possibly talk through their political differences and compromise, is really tragic to me.

I’m not saying it’s an easy thing to do. There have been many times where my husband and I have had to instate a ban on political discussions for the sake of our relationship. But even when we argue about it, we always get past it because we know (because we know each other’s hearts) that we are each coming from a good place, and politics are insignificant compared to the reasons we love each other. These conversations over the years have caused both of us to become more knowledgable, more aware, more compassionate—in a sense, we’ve both become more purple.

But in a world where we can “know” so many people thanks to the internet and social media, but in such small and superficial ways, we don’t all know each other’s hearts the way we need to in order to be making such harsh judgements of each other. Our understanding of people across the aisle is so small we could never rightly judge the basis of their reasoning. And now that social media and advertising companies can literally curate all the content we consume, based on “what we want” of course, we are being pitted against each other in ways we are often completely oblivious to (just watch The Social Dilemma).

I say all of this for only one reason: we’ve got to start listening to each other. We need to encourage discussion. Try to understand, seriously try, to understand the other side. Don’t become a victim to the algorithms. Do your homework. Don’t quote wikipedia. Stay away from Twitter. Look for diversity of thought and culture. Seek out the heart of peoples’ arguments. And when shit gets hard, take breaks. It’s true, you don’t owe anyone anything. But in the words of my favorite super hero, the ever amazing, Diana Prince, “It's not about deserve, it's about what you believe. And I believe in love.”

Go purple. Purple is really a great color.

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Modern Tropical Meets the PNW

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Well it’s certainly been a while, and it would be an understatement to say I’m fashionably late on writing about this fabulous shoot from January…2020.

But oh well. #2020

I stumbled upon this amazing opportunity by chance. After working with the one and only Alice of Events with Alice on an anniversary party months earlier, she reached out to me about this modern tropical styled shoot she was working on with the very talented Pump Up Party. She already had a florist, but it was looking like they would need to back out, so Alice decided to take a chance on a lesser known florist just getting back into her floral groove after a 3 year hiatus, aka muh.

The vision and style of the shoot was new for me, as I typically would run in the opposite direction from anything tropical because of my previous floral shop experience, where I was forced to combine huge palm fronds, birds of paradise, and alstroemeria into an assembly line of tacky centerpieces for the masses. But after seeing the beautiful mood board proposing lush reflexed roses, elegant monstera leaf, and a fun color blocking/ombre effect, I was in like the blush and white wedding trend (sorry—bad wedding industry joke).

As soon as I showed up to the shoot I knew these ladies had it together. It was seriously one of the most organized, well planned shoots I’d been to. The venue Dockside at Dukes was gorgeous—waterfront at Lake Union—and featuring a neutral color palette that complimented the maritime pacific northwest perfectly. It also made a wonderful backdrop to the bright colors and vibrant textures of the flowers, rentals, paper goods and desserts. Not to mention the incredible balloon installation created by Pump Up Party. There were so many beautiful and intricate details created by this 20+ team.

The designers and vendors all really hit the “modern tropical” vibe out of the park with this one—creating an exuberant, but still elegant, look for couples considering a winter wedding. We all know the drear that is the PNW in winter, but adding a nod to the tropics has the opportunity to make the off-season, the new in-season.

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Vendors:

Planner and Coordinator: Events with Alice, Alice Hanh @eventswithalice

Design and Balloons: Pump Up Party, Mehreen Saeed @pumpupparty

Models: Eric and Kendall Matson, Mckenna Sessions @kennybmatson @ericmatson @mckennasessions 

Florist: Anthera Floral, Melissa Pack @antherafloral

Dresses and Stylist: I Do Bridal, Kiana Murkerson @idobridal @k.theconsultant

Videographer: Near Media, James Han @doodwithcamera

Makeup: Glow Whisperer, Sharon Yoon @glowwhisperer

Stationery: Heritage Creative Co., Rebecca Fekkes @heritage.creative.co

Letterpress: Ancora Letterpress, Debra Barclay @ancoraletterpress

Floral Cookies and Lollipops: Botanical Bakery Seattle @botanicalbakeryseattle

Cake Stand: Cherry Rentals @cherry.rentals

Venue: Dockside at Duke’s @docksideatdukes

Tabletop Rentals: Balancing Balloons @balancingballoons

Calligraphy: Cree and Co, Kristina Budchanin @creeandco

Cake Designer 1 (Floral, square): Jan Kim Grumbles Cake Design, Jan Kim Grumbles @jankimgrumbles

Cake Designer 2: Rue Cler Seattle, Taylor Neumeister @rueclerseattle

Photographer: Betty Globa Photography, Betty Globa @bettyglobaphotography

Photographer: Beauty Mark Photography Lindsey Willis @beautymarkphotography

Behind the Scenes Video

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tu-TvEgg8FU&t=2s

This Garden Arch Went Viral!

On a blissful rare occasion, I have the time to design my own styled shoot. An event that is floral forward, colorful, bold, and innovative. This styled shoot at the Jackson Street Studio in Pioneer Square, Seattle, ended up being just that. The theme was lush fall, mixing soft on-trend mauve and blush tones with vibrant corals, peaches, and bronze. Coral is one of my absolute favorite colors to work with, and there are so many good tones! I was inspired by two ingredients in particular—Romantic Antike garden roses and Maple leaves all sourced from SGM and Mayesh. The trick is getting Maple leaves at the exact right time in October—when they are the perfect blend of muted bronze, bright coral and mauve. Yes folks, maple can be alllll those colors at the same time! Fall foliage is so fun to work with, especially mixed with a little soft spring color action.

This shoot was also special because of the amazing team I got to work with. Shannon Beauclair was our stellar photographer, and she is literally one of the best in Seattle. Her main work is portraits, but she is all about experimenting with art and she and I have done several highly noted fine art shoots together. Her daughter, Dominique Beauclair was our makeup artist and she nailed the complimentary look with the flowers perfectly. The dress is none other than Dawson and Deveraux, who does some of the finest in Seattle. And finally, the star of our show, the incredibly beautiful Amour Benjamin who was our model. She truly brought this shoot to life.

The shoot was such a blast to create, and so greatly rewarding to have it go viral via IG, and featured by Florist’s Review Magazine, Ruffled Blog, as well as get to the cover of Washington Wedding Day.

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Movement

The movement of life is not linear. Yet there is a direction it knows to go. Like the flowers and vines intrinsically grow in a particular direction; though sometimes stifled by inherited genes and surroundings.

We move forward and back, side to side, high and low, sometimes it all comes to a startling halt. Our growth is punctuated by feats conquered, trauma internalized, inspiration cultivated and sown. We come from the earth and inevitably move toward it.

Movement brings darkness and light, blurred together in a dance that irrevocably shapes us anew. Our veins pumping with nourishing water, creating a watercolor of scars and wrinkles that become even more beautiful with age.

And while the perils of a life fully lived continue to nip at our heels, we can find solace in the story thus far, and all there is still left to discover.

The movement of life is unapologetically not linear, nor the perfect shade. But that is the beauty of it.

Dreamy Dresses

This beautiful styled shoot shot by our friend Marissa at Haven Photo Co, was put together by The Dress Theory in Seattle. The adorable bridal shop wanted to showcase some of their exquisite wedding dresses against a floral mirror backdrop—enter Anthera Floral. This floral installation was super fun to make. It’s always nice when a client gives us full authority on the design, and lets us run wild with creativity! We went with an etherial, soft, spring, branchy look with lots of ranunculus, stalk, caramel carnations, babies breath and larkspur. The shoot was a favorite from start to finish!

Photos by Haven Photo Co.

Venue: The Dress Theory Seattle / Models: Amour Benjiman, Erica Roth, Kara Veldman / Hair and Makeup: Urbanista Weddings

Lavishly devoted: a floral tribute to Rona Besterman

When she loved you, she loved you fiercely.

She carefully guarded her tender heart, but once you became part of her tribe, Rona wore it proudly on her sleeve.

She possessed a kind of grace and gentleness that made your nerves soften. Rona was that kind-hearted, sweet women you didn’t mind sharing a car ride with, a coffee, or an office. She knew how to read the subtleties of the room. She understood when it was time for silence, or when a warm conversation was needed.

A love for nature, travel, culture and story. Deeply sensitive, she felt what you felt.

She would fight for you, listen to you, accept you no matter what.

Her internal strength carried her through much heartache, illness, and loss. Until the end, she persevered with steadfast, eternally devoted love.