With our spring 2014 wedding season coming to a close we at Narcissus had the pleasure of being the wedding florist at many beautiful and memorable weddings. From sophisticated cocktail wedding receptions to rustic outdoor celebrations, this spring was filled with soft tones and the return of beautiful textures.

The garden rose and ranunculus combination ruled the day. This is true largely because this classic paring has the ability to bridge both the sophisticated and rustic styles by simply changing the complimenting flowers or texture accents. For example, the addition of dusty miller to an all garden rose and ranunculus bouquet will bring out the softness of the blooms, adding a vintage gray tone. With the same flower combination, the addition of seeded eucalyptus, hypericomb berry or curly willow tips will instantly elevate this classic combination to a rustic full textured bouquet.

Q: What Flowers did you have at your wedding?

A: Of the many weddings we completed this spring, one stands out personally. I was married on April 25^th, at Christ Episcopal Church in Toms River. For our big day we embraced the style of blooming branches, Orchids and Peony. Classics for a late April wedding, I repeated these blooms throughout the celebration from the bouquets to the reception pieces.

We shared the day with the national observance of Arbor Day and in a fitting tribute, we had Pear and Fichus trees line the aisle of the church. As with many “thirty-somethings” all of our friends who stood in as attendants were married or engaged. Under these circumstances we requested that the attendants be escorted by their spouses, who we equally love, and valued their participation in our big day as well.

To differentiate flower wise, the groomswomen (who were escorted by their husbands), carried peony and phalaenopsis orchid bouquets with simple loops of curly willow for an element of texture. The ladies who were escorted by their husbands (who were our groomsmen) carried simpler yet beautiful white Vandyke tulip bouquets with variegated aspidistra leaves and bear grass loops as their texture element.

The gents sported orchid or freesia boutonnières respectively. My husbands and my boutonnières had the added element of our respective grandfathers’ rings as a collar high on the neck of the flower. We felt this to be a fitting tribute to those who could not be with us but helped shape us into who we are today.

Our reception was held at the beautiful Clark’s Landing Yacht Club in Point Pleasant. We had towering pieces of Birds of Paradise, my husbands favorite flower, fill the cocktail space with stunning bar and food station styled arrangements.

We continued the cocktail style theme for the reception proper, with no formal seating, opting for a mix of high and low tops and tables of different sizes each with different minimalist style arrangements on each table. Blooming branches (white cherry) on the bars and larger tables added a graceful height element to the room.  The smaller pieces were made with phalaenopsis, cattleya orchids and peony all in shades of white and ivory. Romantic candlelight filled the space incorporating pillar candles of various sizes and votive candles on each table.

Though it sounds cliché, it truly was an amazing evening. The wedding was spectacular and the flowers created by my awesome team at Narcissus were spot on. I had the rare day off.