2014 Color of the year: RADIANT ORCHID

Yesterday, Pantone announced the 2014 color of the year: Radiant Orchid.  Here's a bit of the press release.

“While the 2013 color of the year, PANTONE 17-5641 Emerald, served as a symbol of growth, renewal and prosperity, Radiant Orchid reaches across the color wheel to intrigue the eye and spark the imagination,” said Leatrice Eiseman, executive director of the Pantone Color Institute®. “An invitation to innovation, Radiant Orchid encourages expanded creativity and originality, which is increasingly valued in today’s society.” “An enchanting harmony of fuchsia, purple and pink undertones, Radiant Orchid inspires confidence and emanates great joy, love and health. It is a captivating purple, one that draws you in with its beguiling charm.”

Personally, I'm very happy with this color.  It's one I've been using for the Rose of Sharon brand for a while now and some of my favorite bouquets that we designed include this color.

Top left: image via Pantone
Bottom left: Rose of Sharon logo
Top right: Rose of Sharon bouquet: Calla lilies, roses, lisianthus, carnations.
Middle right: Rose of Sharon bouquet: Calla lilies, tulips, anemonies.
Bottom right: Rose of Sharon bouquet: Lilac, roses & orchids.

How do you think the 2014 color compares to the colors from past years?

True Love Tuesday: Kate & Kyle

Late August wedding at the Botanical Garden of the Ozarks.  The purple and sage colors worked great for this outdoor wedding!  And the flowers we used were tolerant of our southern summer heat.

Kate's bouquet: roses, carnations, stock, gerbera daisies, hypericum berries and fern curls.    

Hypericum berry and fern curl boutonnieres.

Bridesmaid bouquet: green carnations and hypericum berries.

 

Mason jars full of summer blooms for the aisle.

Centerpieces: mason jars of purple & white Stock.

Moss monogram

Outdoor seating--love the view!

VENDORS:
Venue: Bothanical Garden of the Ozarks
Coordinator: DreaminNDetails
Photographer: Photo Love
plus many other that I don't have in my files.

Dress Color vs Bouquet Color

When picking the colors for your bridesmaids' bouquets, it's important to consider how the flower color will play against the dress color.  For example, look at how sunflowers pop against the blue dresses, but blend with the yellow dresses.

 

Some combinations will be totally lost against the dress...especially if the dress has a lot of pattern.

 

While other combinations coordinate beautifully without being lost. 

 

 

And still other compliment the dress color, making both shine.

  

More examples of how dresses and flowers mix can be found on my Bridesmaids + Bouquets Pinterest board.

Images via Pinterest.  Please follow links for full credits.

Featured on Flirty Fleurs!

Rose of Sharon was featured on Flirty Fleurs blog yesterday!  Some of my favorite and most inspirational florists have been featured here, and I'm honored to be included.

Check it out.... http://flirtyfleurs.com/?s=fabulous+florist

Style Me Pretty's Little Black Book x 2

Yesterday, two of our weddings were featured on the Style Me Pretty Little Black Book blog!  Yep, I'm pretty excited about this. :)

Photos from both were courtesy of Photo Love--can I just say how MUCH I like working with Photo Love?!?

Kristen + Justin

Rachel + Shawn

Holiday Centerpiece Design Class

Learn to create a Holiday Centerpiece. Participants will create a beautiful holiday (Thanksgiving) floral arrangement to take home.
(No previous experience needed.)

WHERE: Northwest Technical Institute

WHEN: Tuesday, November 12th, 6-7:30pm

COST: $50

INSTRUCTOR: Althea Wiles, Rose of Sharon Floral Designs

Call 479-751-8824 to sign up. Class size is limited

True Love Tuesday: Brittany & Doug

 Woodland whimsy.  The photos pretty much say it all!

Vendors:

Inspired Grace Weddings: Planning, coordinating & making the magic happen

Whitney Mountain Lodge: Venue

Photo Love: Photography

Rose of Sharon Floral Designs

The Event Group: Catering

(There were more incredible vendors, but these were the ones I worked with directly.)

Flowers just die.

I hear this a lot, "Flowers just die."

Well, yes, they do.  That's one of the best things about them.  They aren't static; they aren't permanent. Every time you look at a flower, it's different.  They move, they grow, they change and then they're gone.  And it's time to move on to the next one.

Ever had something that 'the new wore off'?  Something that you just absolutely loved...for a while.  Then you got used to it. It quit being unusual or exciting.  It became common.  This won't happen with flowers.  It can't because you know whenever you look at a bloom that it's only there for a short time.  You have to enjoy it while it's here, because it won't be for very long.  It doesn't have time to become boring or common.

Another good thing about flowers: you never have to dust them.

True Love Tuesday: Olivia & Matthew

This super sweet couple tied the knot at the new Fairlane Station in Springdale in July. The mint and plum colors were perfect for a mid-summer wedding.

Photos courtesy of Benfield Photography. 

From Inspiration to Creation

The request: Whimsical woodland but not rustic

The Inspiration:

The Creation:

Photo courtesy of The Photo Love

Photo courtesy of The Photo Love

(Wind prevented the use of tall vases.)

Homecoming Happy

Last Saturday, Faytteville High hosted their 2013 Homecoming dance.  We partnered with the FHS Cheer Team to sell boutonnieres and corsages in a fundraiser.  

Here are a few samples of the designs we created.  

We had a blast doing this and hope to do more with Prom next spring!

Who's supposed to pay for that?

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Have you ever wondered who was supposed to pay for wedding flowers?  Well, in today's wedding, it is common for the bride and groom to bear most, if not all of the financial responsibilities.  Traditionally, however, the bride's family is responsible for most of the wedding flowers, with a few items that are specifically the responsibility of the groom's family.

Bride / Bride's Family Responsibilities:
~ Flowers for all female attendants (including Flower Girls)
~ All corsages EXCEPT those for Mothers and Grandmothers
~ All ceremony decor
~ All reception decor

Groom / Groom's Family
~ Bride's bouquet
~ Corsages for Mothers and Grandmothers
~ All boutonnieres
~ Flowers for family member unable to attend the wedding
~ All decor for the Rehearsal Dinner

Not Your Mother's Corsage

What is the first thing that comes to your mind when you think of a corsage?  Automatically I picture a woman wearing a giant flower and bow combination either pinned to her collar or on her wrist.  We have all seen the pictures of your mom at her high school homecoming or prom.  Sometimes it is even harder to tell: which is bigger, the flower or the hair!


Corsages today have changed and evolved drastically from the ones I mentioned above.  A corsage was originally a bodice of a woman's dress.  Women often wore flowers in the middle of the bodice and thus the corsage that we know today was named.  A corsage is given and worn for several occasions.  Corsages at weddings were first used as a way to ward off evil spirits in ancient Greece.  In today's times, corsages are given to mothers, grandmothers, and other women who are important and influential to the bride.

In the 20th century it became common for women to be presented with a corsage by their escort to a dance.  Since the style of dresses has changed to include strapless and spaghetti strap dresses, corsages are now typically worn on the wrist.

As I mentioned earlier, corsages have changed since their beginnings.  Women and their dates are now able to choose between different styles, colors, and items to be placed in the corsage.  Younger women tend to prefer the more modern look and adorn their corsages with jewels, feathers, and charms while as older ladies tend to prefer the more traditional look with ribbons.



Whether you prefer traditional or contemporary, there is a corsage out there for your liking!









Information found at http://www.gardenguides.com/84908-history-corsages.html
Images via Fitz Design

New Options for Shopping On-line

We've updated the eCommerce portion of our website.  This should make it MUCH easier to order fresh flowers for any occasion--day or night.  

Take a look:  http://shop.roseofsharon-eventflorist.com/
Let me know what you think.

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