{Floral Tips: July Flowers}

From A to Z, this month's flowers are anything but typical. In the third installment of flowers of the month, I can't wait to unveil some of July's wonderful blooms.

As always, some of the flowers bloom longer than others in July because of weather issues. These are just a few of the many flowers that you will see during July and possibly beyond. Here's just a few that might interest you.

Astilbe - This is one of those flowers that feels more like a foliage. It's mainly a late spring and summer flower but when you see it, it feels wintery and that's why I seldom use them in my arrangements during the summer though I love them. They are pyramid shaped with feathery plumes. Very slender and spikey like amaranthus but more fragile and shorter(and a bit more medium in price). It is often a line or filler flower rarely a focal although I want to change that. I like putting them in a simple bud vase by themselves. I think they are very interesting. Not very many vendors carry these. In SF, I'd check with Torchio Nursery.(Top left image)

Calendula - One of those modest flowers that people just forget. I like them in centerpiece, bouquets, and in dainty pieces. Not great in Oasis. Very daisy like. You will see them through last summer. Like marigolds, only available in bright orange and golden yellow. Very affordable. Great with rustic arrangements. Mr. Repettos in Half Moon Bays carries these. (Top middle image)

Celosia - I call them 'Brain flowers' because they have these rooster comb texture. They are so super to touch. My favorite is the hot pink. It's not for everyone and it takes a really special bride to want to add these because they can be scary looking. Though not very expensive, you don't get much for your money. Mr. Garcia of Garcia Greens had some really wonderful ones this week. (Top right image)

Chinese Lanterns - I'm not kidding, there really are flowers called 'Chinese Lanterns'. You should start seeing them in the market during middle of July. Only available in a persimmon orange, they are fragile and paper like. Highlight at the SF Flower Market carries some of the very best quality.(2nd row, left)

Dinner Plate Dahlias - I wrote about my love for dahlias last month... well, I'm still in love with them. This month, the SF flower market has more dahlias and a few dinner plate ones. Dinner plate dahlias can be as wide as 10 inches in diameter. These things are huge and they are scrumptious. My favorite are the blush or deep plum ones. If in SF, you can sometimes find these dahlias at the Ferry Building Farmer's market where you can find amazing deals. One note of caution - they shatter when they are old or when it's very hot. Doesn't really last long. I usually like to float mine for a day or two. My favorite wholesaler, Torchio is finally getting the Cafe Au Lait kind. Thanks Darryl and Sean for indulging me. I've been begging them for some. (The Torchio crew likes to read the Brown Bag - so I'm going to insert this to see if they really are reading every word - if so, I owe them cookies!). (2nd row, middle)

Echinops - If you are planning an outdoor, lavender, blue wedding and need a texture element, this could be your flower. 'Globe thistle' is 1 to 2 inches across with a woody stem, great for putting into Oasis. The leaves are thistle like and it's a good form and mass flower. They remind me of dandelions. Only in a grey white or faint blue. (2nd row, right)

Domestic Hydrangeas - For several months now, I've had to buy imported hydrangeas. Finally the local grown hydrangeas are here and the range of colors is alarmingly amazing. Dark purple. French Blue. Blush. Hot Magenta. Broccoli like chartreuse. Love!

The local ones also seem so much heartier than the imported ones and the cost is so reasonable. I'm a huge hydrangea fan because of it's shape, mass size and frankly, it's price relative to it's size and flexibility. You can use them in bouquets. You can use them in centerpieces. You can use them in mass. You can put them in large pieces. Very versatile flower. They can stand only in a vase. They are great mixed with other flowers. They are pretty much a favorite except in direct heat. Sorry, but these will "wilt".

Figone Nursery is one of my favorites and owner, Louie Figone grows them in Half Moon Bay. Torchio Nursery carries many different varieties and colors. A great resource.(Shown above - third row left, middle image)

Marigolds - Are one of my favorite modest flowers. They have a slight sour, tart scent which I find refreshing(since so many flowers have no scent at all). Only available in a bright tangerine orange and citrus yellow. One thing that Marigolds are very good for - making garlands or leis. (Third row, right)

Montbretia - the meaning of Montbretia is "cheerful". They are also called 'Falling stars'. Available in red and orange they are a line flower with multi branching spikes. Mainly in a rust red/orange hue only. For a high style or contemporary design, mass them vertically. (Bottom row, left, middle image)

Viburnum Berry - You know how much I adore 'Snowball' viburnum but did you know that there are Viburnum berries? These lovely berries are more elegant than Hypericum berries. Great for those wine country weddings. Usually available later in July. You can probably find them at Florist-at-Large at the SF mart. (not shown)

Zinnias - These mass flowers come in a range of colors from white, lavender, purple, pink, deep red, peach, orange, yellow to even faint green. My favorite are the green ones which are very hard to find. Depending on the variety, these blooms can be anywhere between 1 to 3 inches wide. Often mistaken for gerber daisies, they are lovely but can brown on the edges. The reason I rare use them, they often come assorted. Yikes. Not very good out of water or in Oasis. (Bottom row, right)

Which July flower would you consider?

{Real Groom: What to ask a Florist - Part One}

In our continuing series Real Groom by Danny Lai, I am grateful that Danny is tackling a great and very useful subject - flowers and the florist selection process.

Today's post is quite insightful. Danny is going to give his male perspective on what he feels are great questions to ask a florist and what to look for. For a change, it's nice to have a client tell me what they want to know instead of me telling all of you what I think. You'll be surprised to find out that Danny and I share many of the same insights.

I can't thank Danny enough for his frank and candid post. Enjoy!

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Floral arrangements play a major role in unifying any wedding theme, as you see them everywhere at a wedding: on the wedding party, at the altar, on the seats, and on the reception tables. When choosing a floral designer, it's important to choose someone who understands your style and vision(Nancy interjects...."amen to that"), and can make it real while keeping within your budget. When interviewing your prospective floral designer, make sure you've covered the following points:

Budget

Ask the difficult questions first.

Ask your floral designer about his/her past weddings of similar size and venue, and get a rough estimate of the floral costs for those weddings. This should give you a ballpark range for your expected floral costs.

Some floral designers produce unforgettable art using only the most expensive elements, while others produce art across a broader spectrum of elements and prices. Make sure your potential floral designer has worked within your budget before.



Photography by Tu Photography



Photography by Kevin Chin

(example of an easy, simple centerpiece designed by floral and event designer Nancy Liu Chin for Ritz Carlton Half Moon Bay followed by very elaborate and grand arrangements in the same hotel and ballroom room as the first set of images. Flowers also by Nancy Liu Chin. )


Knowledge

Make sure your floral designer understands the basics about picking the right flowers for your design.

Ask him/her questions regarding the relative availability of flowers during your wedding month, to get a rough idea of what flowers are in season and would be cheaper, and what flowers would be difficult to get.

Also, find out what flowers can easily be substituted for each other, so you can create similar designs/effects using cheaper elements.

A good floral designer should have a good understanding of basic supply-and-demand of common wedding flowers throughout the year, in order to give good advice regarding cost-effective ways to create arrangements that you want.

{Inside the Floral Studio #5: Stripes Forever}

Could that really be a striped vase? Of course not. Sometimes when you can't find the right colored vase to match your decor, you've got to create it on your own.

Today's "Inside the Floral Studio" lesson, I'll teach you my trick to creating sweet and simple containers out of ribbons.

For this vase, you will need a very straight and simple votive glass that's no more than 3 inches. The key to this is a very straight glass. This won't work if the glass is slightly tapered.

You will need

1 3 inch votive glass
3 inch wide Ribbon
1 inch wide Ribbon
Double sided tape
Ribbon scissors

Making sure your glass is clean. Cut a 3 inch wide ribbon to fit exactly around the votive with a 1/4 inch give. Using double sided tape, adhere the 3 inch wide ribbon. Then cut a 1 inch wide ribbon. Adhere to glass using double sided tape. Voila, you've just created your own vase.

Insider's tip, the trick to making this is to vase so pretty is to use non wired ribbon. Also I find that an inexpensive acetate is just fine. Cut the ends very straight. A high quality ribbon scissor is the best. Also, when I make an arrangement in these tiny votive cups, I put a little piece of Oasis that way no water spills over and "ruins" the ribbon.

Good luck!

{Ask Nancy: To Do or Not To Do}

Hi Nancy Thanks for your posts. They are really well written and quite inspiring. I'm planning my wedding and trying to keep within budget. What is your take on DIY? You have such great suggestions but I secretly want to know can I do my own flowers? Feel free to be honest, I need to know if I can handle this. C.K.

Dear Soon to Bride and other Brown Bag fans,
I'm very hesitant about answering this question which actually came to us a while back. At first I wanted to send a reply that anyone could do simple flowers. It's true, you could go to any craft, outdoor garden resource and online floral wholesaler to purchase your flowers. I don't think that's really the point. Anyone - if they put their heart and soul into something - could do it. The point is will it be worthwhile. Everyone has to look within themselves and ask....

Will the cost savings be worth all the hassle?
Who will actually setup the flowers for you?
Do you have a place to store these arrangements?
Do you have the time to do research on what flowers is available?
If you are having a wedding that is over 150, can you manage the process without stressing yourself out?
Do you have the skills to create flowers? Are you willing to learn?
Are you good with your hands?
Other than flowers, are you planning other wedding DIY projects?
Do you have people who can help you?
Will you be getting help from your groom? Is he willing to share in the responsible of creating floral arrangements?

I have this great story. I once did flowers for my brother and sister in law in LA. My whole entire family got involved so that we could do his flowers. I was certainly a guest at my brother's wedding and being that I am a SF floral designer and I was doing an LA wedding(non paid), we did all the flowers in his 700 sq ft cottage. None of my staff came with me to help save on costs. I bought and ordered all my flowers at the LA mart through my vendor. That part was easy since I do it all the time. Transporting the flowers, not too bad. I drove my husband SUV so we have plenty of room. I did have to bring some equipment but it was one carload. The rest I bought and left in LA with my brother.

Needless to say, there was no professional cooler. Nothing to refrigerate the flowers. Working out of someone's 700 sq ft cottage was very different from my spacious office and studio in San Francisco. (keep in mind this was a very simple wedding - only rose petals, candles, glass for centerpieces). We had to create "make shift" workstations. Here is what everyone was doing.

My father was working on initial pew decorations. My husband, KC, was finishing bridesmaid bouquets. My SIL's friends were helping me with odd projects. My mother in law was working on floral details like wrapping boutonnieres. My mother was wiring flowers. My primary job was to create bouquets, boutonnieres, church pieces. While I was doing the flowers, I also had to manage all the works to ensure that everything got done in one day. I had about 6 people who were my assistants......people to run to get that, people to re-cut that, people to clean glass and on and on.

All in all, my entire famiily pulled together to do this. And to this day, I don't think we would have called it fun. Interesting, taxing, stressful perhaps. Ask them how they felt?

This is all I'm saying on this subject. For me, it's what I do and I'm use to it but for most people it's not fun de-thorning, cutting flowers, removing labels, cleaning glass, doing detail work like wiring. So before you start DIY, think twice. Because as a family member or part of the bridal party, you still have other things you need to help with.

Enjoy!

DIY project courtesy of Marthastewart.com

{Ask Nancy: Drawing the Line}

I'm reposting this post because I wanted to make some changes to the content. Thanks for being patient and allowing me to respot. Enjoy!

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Dear Nancy,
Thanks for being always so forward. Been reading your blog for a while now.

I'm a little afraid to ask this question. Been a florist for a couple of years and I received a call from a friend of a bride today. She saw a photo of a centerpiece that I did and wanted to know what flowers I put into the piece. Not once during the call did she tell me when the bride was getting married or if the bride was even remotely interested in my services. How can I say "no" without offending someone? Should I have given her the information?
San Jose florist, S.F

Dear San Jose Florist...

I don't envy your situation at all. Believe it or not, I face these issues often. Where do you draw the line at being helpful and where do you save your advice, expertise, and time for clients who are actually going to use your service.

I'm not going to answer this question but I am going to say this to potential brides who see photos of someone's work and want to duplicate it. Some brides, I'm sure your questions are harmless. You see a great piece in a magazine, you find out XYZ florist did it. So you take the tear sheet and give it to your florist. This is acceptable. However, if you bypass this step and go directly to the florist, I think it would be questionable to ask the florist a question if you have no intent on using that florist.

Each florist can decide whether they want to give out their recipe or not. I don't think it's a must do. Time is money. One's expertise is valuable. If a florist chose not to answer this person's request, he/she is entitled to his/her beliefs.

What I do when I get a question, especially an Ask Nancy question is this. I ask myself if many people can benefit from a question. If many people can benefit, I'll write an article so that many people not just one person can learn from a post. That's very well worth my time. If I were to answer every question regarding a recipe to a centerpiece I did, I would never have any time to do my work.

I've said this before I will address this again, vendors are not here to do Pro Bono work. No one should expect that. However, if you, as a knowledgeable florist, want to impart some of your tips, recipes on your blog or in a magazine article, I think that's not a waste of time.

Bottom line: Professional vendors are not doing pro bono work. You want someone's expert advice, unless they are a Martha Stewart or educator, trade secrets are just that. Secrets!

{Real Grooms: Finishing Touches}

In our continuing series, Real Grooms, guest blogger, Danny Lai explores the photography and videography aspects of planning a wedding. Once again, I give you the wise opinions of a wedding obsessed groom!

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Photographs and videos are the most common ways to document a wedding. But, it's also nice to have guests leave a little message for the wedding couple. At most weddings, guests sign a guest book or a large photograph. Guests can sign their names and leave nice messages for the bride and groom. But because the guest book is available for signing just before the reception, guests don't have time to think of witty, thoughtful messages, and end up writing something generic like, "Congrats!". A guest book memento would be more meaningful if your guests' messages better captured their personality, or their emotions
during your wedding.

Here are some ways to get your guests' creative juices flowing:

1. A guest book filled with blank paper is imposing for any guest.
Instead, provide some seeded funny questions for your guests to
answer, such as "What fictional duo do [bride and groom] remind you
of?" or "If [bride] is throwing out all of [groom]'s stuff and [groom]
could keep only one thing, what would it be?". These questions can be
printed on little note cards, and guests can write in their answer,
sign their name, and tape it in the guest book.

2. Keep the guest book displayed in a prominent place even after the
reception has started, so that people notice it. Before the
reception, guests are hungry and just want to find their seat, sit
down, and have a drink and some bread. They don't want to waste time
signing stuff. After the dinner portion of the reception, guests have
more time to walk around, mingle with friends, take a break from
dancing, and are more likely to take a minute to write something
clever. Some guests may have had more to drink by this time, making
their comments even more interesting.

3. Thank your guests for their participation by giving them their own
memento as well. A photo booth is a great way to capture how your
guests looked and felt at your wedding. They can keep one photostrip
as a memento, and paste another one in the guestbook. With photo
strips, you won't even need guests to write thoughtful witty comments.
The entertaining pictures themselves are worth more than a thousand
words.

The day after our wedding, the first thing we did was to flip through
the photo scrapbook that our guests made during the reception. I
imagine that many years later, this scrapbook will still be the one
memento we use to recount the people who attended our wedding.

Photograph from Martha Stewart.com

{Inspirations: Centerpieces}

When it comes to wedding flowers, the majority of your budget could well be spent on centerpieces so brides need choices.

I thought I would share a few of my favorite centerpieces ideas. Many of them are quite simple yet very stylish. Some of my truly favorite have unique containers that you can collect and personalize such as tin cans! The honest truth is that centerpieces come in all shapes and forms but the truly great ones all have a complete look where linens, place cards, napkins, containers, flowers work in harmony - together! You don't need fancy flowers to have an impact.

   
 

Top Row Left, Kevin Chin Photography, Flower from Branch Out, Top Row Right, from Brides.com

2nd Row Left from Brides.com, 2nd Row Right from Martha Stewart

3rd Row Left from Martha Stewart, 3rd Row Right from Kevin Chin Photography, Flowers by Nancy Liu Chin Designs

4th Row Left from Brides.com, 4th Row Right from Martha Stewart

Bottom Row from Martha Stewart

{Brown Bag: Poll Results}

   

The results are in from our last poll.  I asked readers to give me their answer to the question...

What wedding detail would you splurge on?  

And the results are as follows:

A truly designer bridal gown...34%

Hand crafted flowers................21%

A Live Band.................................15%

Letterpress Invitations...............9%

Additional Course.......................7%

Custom Lighting..........................4%

Vintage Car..................................3%

ALL OF THE ABOVE..................3%

When  I got married I regretted not having a band and custom lighting but I did add an extra course and I had wonderful flowers so I guess it even outs.  Thanks for your input!  And who ever choose All of the above is just sinfully fabulous.  Enjoy!

{Inspirations: Stylish but Informal Wedding}

Thanks again to Style Me Pretty for featuring this lovely Bird Nest's themed wedding that was a wonderful collaboration with Lisa Lefkowitz. For more details, please click on the image to take you to the article that was original featured on June 16th. Thanks Abby, you are inspiring!

{Ask Nancy: Table Centerpieces}

Hi Nancy, I saw a photo of your work on a blog and absolutely fell in love with the simplicity with a pop of color. I was hoping that you could direct me to more pictures from this event and the lovely centerpieces for inspiration. The photo I am swooning over is of Lisa Wong Jackson's wedding at Aqua Hotel featured in Martha Stewart Wedding Magazine. I would really appreciate your help. Thanks in advance, Raquel

Yes Raquel, I love Lisa Wong Jackson's Wedding too. It's definitely one of my favorite weddings and you probably have missed the many blogs and magazines that featured this beautifully done wedding. Here is a link to Style Me Pretty which featured many images from this wedding.
Though Martha did feature this wedding, it really was the images by talented Lisa Lefkowitz along with the DIY invitations, programs, favors, place cards that Lisa Wong Jackson of Good On Paper created for her own wedding that inspired a slew of brides to make their wedding more green, more personable, more unique.

You are so right, the contrast of the bright citrus green really does "pop". I hope this answers your question!!!

It remains one of my favorite all time weddings and Lisa is one of my dearest wedding buddies.

{Floral Tips: Simple Statements}

So you love expensive blooms like garden roses or peonies. And you want to create a centerpiece that's not your typical arrangement however you have a limited budget.

What do you think you should do?
No matter what, use them wisely even if that means you don't pack them in. Make a statement with simplicity.

Don't let the price of an expensive bloom persuade you not to use it. I took one bunch of garden roses, 2 succulents, a few strands of honeysuckle and some geranium foliage and made this simple arrangement out of my leftover flowers from a wedding a week ago. Of course, I had a wonderful birch branch that looks great with these flowers and I started out with a very modern and simple container which I found at www.fss.com.

This isn't for DIY brides who have 200 guests. This is a managable project for someone who has a simple wedding that's maybe 70 or 80 guests.

The point is this, you can still make a statement as long as you arrange it with the right accessories and accent pieces. By cutting a large succulent and then putting it next to the vase, I'm extending the arrangement and giving your eye somewhere else to look at.

Building an arrangement with airy greens so that the focal flowers have something to support it with is just good designing.

Total arrangement retails between $125.00 and $140.00.

{About Nancy: Bring it on!}

Some wise person once told me that whatever you do, do it well. Honestly, that's about the best mantra I've heard! Every day, in my life, I strive very hard to do things well whether it's being a good doggie momma to Chin Chin, a loving wife to KC or a responsible owner of a business.

Sometimes people crack when they have too much on their plate and they can't perform or give it their all, however, I never feel as alive as when I'm in midst of chaos, changes, and challenges. My true nature comes out! When the going gets difficult, the tough and the experienced really kick it up a notch(in the words of Emeril).

A couple weeks ago, I had the pleasure of working with Gloria Wong, Anne Millett, Lisa Wong Jackson, and Lisa Lefkowitz on an editorial piece for a magazine. It was smack in the middle of a very busy wedding season that just took off. However, KC always says to that I do my best work when I'm constantly busy and under pressure. When I'm working on weddings, deadlines, and editorial content, it's madness but it is a GOOD madness. It's great being this busy with days filled with creativity. This photo shoot in Beltrane ranch was one of the best experiences and I'm glad that I did it even if it was "SMACK" in the middle of 6 killer weddings.

Bottom line: Whatever you do, do it well. No regrets. Bring your A game to life.

ps I can't show you any images from the event. This is just a teaser!

{Inspirations: Peonies in Paris}

This is the follow up post to my previous article aptly titled, Real or Fake. Do you recall that I made a silk bouquet for a client who was taking her wedding photographs in Paris. Well, here's a few images from the photo session. My adorable, jet legged husband sent me these images to share with all of you.

So, what do you think Brown Baggers? Did the silk bouquet look good enough? What would you have done if you were travelling from SF to Paris?

Our couple Nanie and Clifton choose these picturesque backdrops for their wedding photo shoot. Later this year, they are having an intimate wedding at the Mandarin Oriental Hotel followed by a very french reception at Le Charm restaurant in SOMA. For the SF reception, I'll be designing with real flowers. Nanie choose a color palette of butter yellow, dark chocolate and vanilla.

Love that the silk peonies bouquet made it and looks fabulous even though it travelled in luggages all the way from SF. Of course with such an amazing backdrop who is looking at the flowers...right?

Thank you Nanie and Clifton for asking me to do your bouquet and boutonniere!! And thank you KC for the images.

{Inspirations: Project Wedding}

Huge Thanks to Project Wedding for featuring Andrew and Ansley's Real Wedding. Their modern chic wedding at the Bentley Reserve is real inspiration.

{Real Groom: What's Important and Not Important - Part II}

This is the 2nd part to "What's important and Not important?". Once again, I give you the amazingly generous and kind, Danny Lai, our Groom Guru.

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Obligatory face time - Do not feel obligated to obey all of the age-old formalities and wedding traditions. Grumpy grandma and grandpa don't have to be seated at your table if all they'll do is complain and ask about when you'll have kids. Don't feel that you have to pose for countless pictures with relatives whom you've never met. It is YOUR wedding, and you should make sure you get to see the people you've been looking forward to seeing.



One of my biggest regrets was not keeping track of the people I wanted to see, and not realizing that they had already left until the end of the evening. Continuously make the rounds, and don't spend too much time talking to people you see all the time. This is the one time when everyone in your life is within ear shot, and when everyone wants to see and talk to you. Take advantage of this opportunity, and connect with the people who you rarely get to see.

Pictures taken with everyone - There will be lots and lots of cameras at your wedding, and hardly a single detail will be missed. Your friends will send you the pictures that they took, you'll have your wedding photographer's photos, and between the thousands of pictures you sort through, you will have photographic evidence of everyone who attended your wedding. Why waste precious time during the cocktail hour or reception rounding everyone up so that you can get a posed photo of everyone? Each person will be very small in such a large photo, anyway. A much more meaningful memento would be a photo collage showing candids of everyone at your wedding. After the wedding, when time is less of the essence, you can take your time printing the photos and assembling your collage. Don't take time from everyone's (including yours) cocktail hour, dinner, or dancing just to smile and say cheese.

Wedding reception program checklist - The traditional wedding reception program - complete with speeches, first dance, cake cutting,and bouquet tossing - has remained fairly constant over time, so there must be a good reason why those activities are included. But, that's not reason enough to just follow what everyone else does. Different couples have different passions (and fears), and should incorporate elements that are truly meaningful to them. A first dance,father-daughter dance, or mother-son dance is a great way to put the spotlight on a particular couple, but what if they don't like to dance? Is it better for them to be uncomfortable, trying not to trip while everyone is looking at them? Or would it be better to stand up and say a few words about them to acknowledge how important they are to you?

When considering the reception program, make sure to include only elements that are meaningful to you, so you don't waste time going through the motions of doing something that's "supposed to be done."

Perfection - A misspelled word on the wedding program. A few drops of rain or a bit of windy. Some late-arriving guests. A screaming baby. The ringbearer doesn't want to stand during the wedding. These are all little things which make a wedding truly unique and certainly less than perfect, but also uniquely yours. Everyone obsesses about having a perfect wedding because they believe perfect weddings are memorable. But, ask any person to recall a memorable wedding, and the description won't start with "It was the perfect wedding ..." as much as "I'll never forget that wedding because [some memorable event]". Obviously, we want to avoid spelling mistakes, bad weather, tardiness,and disruptive behavior whenever we can, but if it happens, just roll with them. You control what you can control. By that measure, your wedding is perfect. All the little things out of your control, well, they're just bonuses to an already "perfect" and eventful day.

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Given this wonderful post from Danny, I'm also going to give you some advise from vendors, brides and grooms on time wasters at weddings. That's coming out!

Now that Danny has shared with us what is not important, why don't you comment about what you feel is not important?

Photography by Kevin Chin.

{Real Grooms: What's Important What's Not - Part One}

In our Real Groom's series, I've asked our resident "groom", Danny Lai, to give more advise on what really matters most during those painful yet important planning stages of the wedding. Danny tells me that "the best advice you can get regarding what matters most during the planning and the actual wedding is from people who planned their own wedding". Of course we all know that each experience is unique and different but it sure is refreshing to hear a male's perspective. Don't you agree? Let's give Danny, our Groom Guru, some Brown Bag applause for trying to answer, "what important during the wedding planning?". Part two will be about "what is not important during the wedding planning.?". Read on.

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Advice will vary, depending on who's giving it, especially on whether it's a bride or groom. As a newlywed groom, I learned some important lessons while helping to plan my own wedding, and thought it would be useful to share.

These are my opinions only, my simple thoughts on what's actually important and what's not so important. What's important:

Wedding vendor rapport - Your rapport with your wedding vendor -whether for invitations, cake, floral, or photography - is the most important factor in affecting the quality of their work and your level of satisfaction with them. Take the time to interview all of your prospective vendors, and make sure that there is a good personality fit with whomever you choose. Wedding artistry is expensive, and if you don't trust and respect your vendor you may may start to question or criticize your vendor's work, leading to frustration and mistrust all around. Finding a wedding vendor with a similar personality and working style helps to promote an honest, collaborative working relationship.

When you and your wedding vendor have mutual trust that you're working towards a common goal, you'll find that things get done more efficiently, on time and on budget, and in a way that makes you feel good about your decision.

Time on your wedding day - This will be the fastest day in your life,which is why the pre planning part is important.No have no time for little last-minute issues. There are so many things to do, people to see, good food to eat, and very little time to do it all. Do NOT expect to spend time with everyone who attends your wedding. Prioritize and make a mental list of people you definitely want to see, and seek them out during the reception (or have your wedding coordinator find them for you). Don't expect that you'll have time to make the rounds to see and talk to everyone. For a 200-person wedding with a 4-hour reception, you can expect that between the speeches, eating, table toasts, and obligatory pictures you will have just over two hours to mingle with your guests. That leaves you on average 36 seconds to spend with each guest, which is barely long enough for them to congratulate you and for you to thank them for coming, and maybe asking them if they liked the food.

Free labor - Do not pass up free labor. I'm talking about the wedding party, specifically the groomsmen (and even the ushers). Bridesmaids duties are fairly well-defined, and they will be busy with supporting the bride and tending to her whims. Groomsmen generally don't have set duties, and can be convinced to help. Voila, free labor. And every wedding preparation is labor-intensive. For our wedding, we spent countless hours folding, stuffing, and stamping invitations, assembling wedding programs, and constructing the party favors and name tags. You can turn a time-consuming 12-hour job into a low-key evening by rounding up the groomsmen to get it done in a couple of hours assembly line-style.

Airtime - The wedding day is primarily about the bride, but it's your day too (especially if you poured in long hours helping with the wedding planning). Make sure that you get the airtime you want and deserve. For my wedding, instead of being placed in the front at the start of the ceremony, I chose to walk down the aisle during the ceremony. My groomsmen also got to walk down the aisle. I deserved the airtime, and they did as well (see "free labor" above). Your wedding day is your best excuse to feel and act like a celebrity because, well, you are. Make yourself accessible to everyone; they came from near and far to see you and support you. Savor these moments, because every conversation you have is an additional memory of the happiest day of your life.

Guests - what about them? - Weddings aren't fun for everyone. Some of your guests come because they love you and they love weddings. Some of your guests come only because they love you. It is important that you consider their comfort level as well. Wedding guests have a good time when they get to connect with friends and meet new ones. Some people are naturally outgoing and make new friends easily. Others require a little liquid courage. I think it's important for all weddings to have at least a little alcohol (unless the wedding is dry for religious reasons) to ease the tension of being among so many strangers, and promote conversation. Also put some thought into the reception seating chart. Your guests will spend a good portion of dinner seated at their tables, so this is a good time to introduce friends from different walks of life. You should factor in relative comfort levels and common interests when determining the right mix of familiar faces and new faces. For most of our tables, we seated a group of six friends with different group of four friends.

Second image Photography by Kevin Chin
Third image Photography by RAH
Top and Bottom images Photography by Lisa Leigh

{Inspirations: Voila, Windows in Paris}

A couple days ago, KC returned from his Paris wedding photo shoot for our mutual client, Nanie and Clifton. I can't wait to share with you a few of their wedding images but first, I have to show you this inspiring window of the famous store, Laduree.

Before KC left NYC, I emailed him this quick note to remind him to go by the famous Parisian tea salon.

Like the sweet husband he is, KC went by and took a few images for the Brown Bag. We love you, KC!!!

Since 1862, the Laduree family has been creating their Signature macaroons(one of their spring flavor was Lily of the Valley) and other delicious sweets. And yes, before you ask, they do wedding cakes but they are unlike any of the ones that we have in the States. So French.

Though KC did bring me back a Longchamps bag and a box of shortbread cookies from Maxim's, I dream of going to Laduree and devouring all those scumptious sweets including the macaroons(which are a favorite cookies of mine - hint: you want to get on my good side, only macaroons will do!) and the millefeuilles which I first tasted at a wedding in Avignon at Hotel Europa(love!).

Enjoy!

Photography by Kevin Chin.

{Ask Nancy: Favorite Bouquets}

Dear Nancy Thanks again for your posts. Recently you posted that your all-time favorite wedding was that colorful red and turquoise wedding. Lovely & Inspiring. Wish I could change my colors. Do you have a particular design that you are especially proud of? or a favorite bridal bouquet? Thanks and keep up the posts. Doctor in Love

Dear DIL...
Of course, I have tons of designs that I'm especially proud of. A while back I even did a post about my favorite bouquets. Every week it seems like I fall in love with a new bouquet.

Here's a snippet of my Hall of Fame bouquets. Each are special because of different reasons. Many of them are due to the women who carried them. It still makes me tear up when I think about all the brides I've handed a bouquet to.

Just this weekend, four brides carried one of our signature bouquets down the aisle. Every single time, I'm reminded of why I do what I do...there's nothing as special as giving a bride who bouquet and seeing her eyes mist! Truly - nothing compares!

Which one is your favorite?

Top left, toss bouquet for Jennifer. Top right, Bride bouquet for Melinda T. Bottom, Bridal hand bag for Bride and Bloom Magazine. Photography by Kevin Chin.


Most favorite blush and pink bouquets. All image courtesy of Nancy Liu Chin Designs except bottom left, photography by Kevin Chin. Top right, Christine's all pink bouquet is one of the most requested. Bottom right, Anne Millett of Mira Aster's bouquet included blackberry brambles and garden roses. What a combination.

White bouquets in four different ways. Top left, photography by Jesse Leake. Stacy's bouquet for Sonoma wedding. I still remember that one. Top right, photography by Kevin Chin. Bottom left, all Phaleanopsis bouquet for Erin. Gabriela by assistant had to wire many of the white orchids one by one. This was one of the most challenging bouquets. Since we did that bouquet, we've done another one similar but nothing compares to this one. Bottom right, photography by Lisa Lefkowitz. The famous Lisa Wong Jackson of Good On Paper bouquet that was featured in several magazines including Martha Stewart Weddings.

Top row photography by Lisa Lefkowitz. Bottom left, Megan, one of my favorite brides of that fall. Her vineyard photo is still one of my favorite all time images. A bride in red, that's sexy. I remember some of her wedding images in Wedding Bells magazine. Photography by Sylvia's Photography. Bottom right, Erin's bouquet had red mini callas, roses and Peony tulips. Very rare and hard to find. It's one of my favorite all red bouquets. And of course, our bride was fabulous. This bouquet was featured in The Knot. Photography by Tara Arrowood.

{Ask Nancy: Ideas Ideas Ideas}

Nancy, I love your work it is simply elegant and I just hope you could give me ideas for my wedding in New Jersey. Thank you so much have a beautiful day. Christina

Thanks Christina for your note. This once again is a very good question and one that I think is important to address and understand. With so many magazines, blogs, and inspiring work available, my first initial question to our reader, Christina, is this...

Have you look at any magazines today? Have you checked out the myriad wedding websites? Have you looked at our inspiration boards(under the label section)?

More importantly, like any new bride planning a wedding, when you seek professional help, give the floral designer some inspiration. Give them at least 5 key words. I know I say this way too often but tell them something.

For example,

"We want our wedding to be classic but not uptight. Informal with lots of bursts of warm colors and simple tailored details. Colors of the wedding should be current like lime, apple green, lemon yellow. We love the outdoors so if you could make it feel like an outdoor picnic, that would be really fun."

The thousands of other floral and event designers out there have so many ideas but how can we possibly answer this bride without specifics.

More importantly, when you consult a professional for design idea, be prepared to invest the time and the money for their time and effort. Unfortunately, there's no free lunch these days. Vendors have bills to pay as well and in this economy, it's hard to get anything "pro bono" .

However if you are looking for ideas that you don't need to spend a penny on, why not get inspiration from the many great blogs or websites like

Snippet and Ink

Style Me Pretty

Pink Blossom List

Style Unveiled

Ritzy Bee Blog

Weddingbee

Project Wedding

Elizabeth Anne Design

Southern Weddings

MB Wedding Design and Event Blog

100 Layer Cake

Green Wedding Shoe Blog
Wedding Style Guide

Martha Stewart

Hello! Lucky Blog
Betsy White's Flight of Fancy
Jubilee Lau Event's Blog
The Soup
Soiree Charleston
Gloria Wong Design

I hope this answers your wonderful questions Christina. Thank you!


Top Excerpt from Wedding Style Guide
Bottom from Pink Blossom List

{Inspirations: Betsy White's Flights of Fancy}

I'm knee deep in weddings now. Oh my! Still, I'm excited that I'm going to be writing a few posts for Betsy White's blog, Flights of Fancy(pictured is one of Gia's beautiful color inspiration boards). How could I pass it up?

Of course many of you might know that I harbor a secret longing to be an invitation designer(I also long to be Samantha Brown, a romance/suspense writer, and wedding magazine editor-in-chief).

My decade long love affair with all things paper started when my BFF, Jen K.(now Jen Chuang) opened her own Papyrus in Pasadena. Jen no longer has her store in Old Town but I'm completely sold when it comes to all things paper and all those who make it looks so incredible delicate, beautiful, and timeless. It looks easy and it's so not .

Betsy White - Stationary Boutique founder, Gia Graham has been so kind to give me this chance to reach out their her faithful readers. Since I'm a big fan of all people who are driven, self starters, and attracted to beauty, I have to share with ya' Brown Baggers, some of her simple designs. What makes BW is special is that you can order an entire suite - save the date, response, thank you, program, menu, place cards, logo. As a floral and event design, I love it when all the pieces work together. It is so needed and appreciated!!!

{Inside the Floral Studio #6: DIY with Orchids}

For many years now, floral designers have been doing submerged flowers. Sometimes submerging is very easy while other times they seem so intricate and require wiring, rocks, or weights.

The key to submerging flowers in a vase is to begin with a great vase. I prefer cylinder(24 to 30 inches tall) and unusual tapered vases. Of course, it's important to put your own spin so try different variations until you get it right. For this arrangement that I did at Auberge du Soleil, I choose a tapered vase.

The other element that is key is selecting a flower that would look great submerged. I have to be honest, I tend to select on type of flower and orchids tend to be my favorite.

Believe it or not, some flowers don't really work submerged. And others just look plain silly like hydrangea or carnations (trust me, I tried them) . There are many techniques for submerging. This one is one of my favorite.

For this project you will need

1 27 inch Tapered or Pilsner Vase
3 Stems of White Phaleanopsis Orchid(* available in several colors)
Water
Water Crystals(optional)
Shears
Windex
Towel

Step One: Make sure your vase is super clean. Remove any stickers and rinse out the inside of the glass. Trust me, this makes a difference.

Step Two: Remove one or two blooms from each orchid stem so that you have a total of 5 blooms. Note, don't remove them all from one stem.

Step Three: Pour 3 inches of water into the Tapered vase.

Step Four: Line the 5 white orchid florets from small to large. Take the smallest orchid bloom and place delicately into the vase that has 3 inches of water.

Step Five: Take the shortest stem of orchid. If they are about the same size, then just take any one stem. Remove and cut off excess stem. Place this stem into the vase. Fill with water so that it covers the entire stem.

Step Six: Add in loose white florets to fill spaces when necessary. Add another stem of orchid. Continue to fill the vase with water. Make sure to leave 2 to 3 inches at the top. Wow - you've got a stunning submerged arrangement.

Designer Hint: Make sure that orchids face both sides of the container. Make sure when you insert the orchid stems that you put the bottom side in first. Don't dunk the head into the vase.

{Floral Tips: June Flowers}

This is our second post on flowers of the month. This month, I'm covering my favorite June blooms. Of course, some of these flowers bloom longer than in June. These are just a few of the flowers that I'm seeing this month. Note that some of these might be hard to find in your area, I've tried my best to note that.

Bearded Iris - not typically a cut flower, they come in a wide assortment of colors. The ones that I've seen typically are yellow with purple or blue and purple(pictured). Unlike the standard iris, the bearded is breathtaking. They are also a vertical, linear flower that looks great on it's on in a container. I have yet to put one in a bridal bouquet because I fear that it will stain, one day, I can't wait to test this stunning flower. I believe these come in other months so it's not just a June flower. Note, because it's typically not a cut flower, they might be hard to find. Ask your wholesaler if they have a contact.

Billy Balls - Who doesn't love these cute yellow balls. Great for boutonnieres. Tip: try spray painting them lime green or bright red. Really cool. Great for boutonnieres, bouquets, and centerpieces. A trio of them in a bud vase is also very nice.

Dahlias - These lovely garden flowers come in so many shades including Deep red, plum, cafe au lait(pictured), hot pink and so on. They also come in various shapes or forms. One tip, when processing dahlias, make sure to clean and remove all foliage. These flowers can get pretty smelly and don't mix them with out flowers. I often put dahlias in oasis but to be honest, they really should go directly into water. And of course, in heat, they do shatter. They should bloom throughout the summer. I found the deep burgundy through early fall. Not my favorite flower in bridal bouquets though we do them quite often because the stems are either too hollow and thick or too thin and weak. It's funny how these flowers can be has stems that are too thick and too thin. Why is that?

Foxglove - A tall linear flower which is great for large arrangements. They come in purple, light pink, yellow, and white. Comes 4 to 6 ft. Not quite popular yet but quite grand and stately. Ask your wholesaler if they can get these for you.

Garden Roses - With the warming weather, we are starting to see an abundance of garden roses. What's not to love about these graceful blooms. The stems aren't that long and can be very thorny. Hard to find. Because many are grown locally, the price is high. Very expensive flowers. My favorites are the 'David Austen'(pictured).

Hydrangea - With the departure of viburnum, I often switch over to hydrangeas which are local grown. I'm loving the pale lavender with soft green and the deeper azure(pictured). So beautiful. And of course the deep hot pinks are pretty. These are one of my favorite flowers, I cannot lie. They are so fluffy and round. A few in a vase makes my day. Caution, these big blooms are heat sensitive. I don't like using them in bouquets during sunny weather. They will "poop" out.

Nigella - Comes mainly in shades of blue(pictured) and white. When they open they are so charming with their thin threadlike texture and paper thin star shape bloom. This is one of the few blue flowers that I adore especially since it is a lovely French blue. Not the best in Oasis. Because they are very dainty, they can get lost next to other flowers. I think the combination of Nigella with honeysuckle, white peonies, grape muscari, white sweet peas is amazing.

Scabiosa - These lovely, paper thing flowers come mainly in white and lavender-blue. My favorite ones are the raspberry hued blooms. Sometimes I buy them so that I can use their brown center buds. Fragile and delicate but full of textures. The baby blues and ultra violets(pictured) come in from June through the end of summer. Another one of those great flowers that seems to be gaining in popularity.

Snowdrops Ornithogalum - White summer snowdrops(pictured) are finally here. These bell shaped flowers are often confused with Lilies of the Valley or Amaryllis. Hard to find but they are so darling. Delicate! Ornithogalum comes in many different types including the more common Stars of Bethlehem which comes almost year round. They come mainly in white and orange. They are a spikey green flower when cut tight. Eventually they will blooms with flowers appearing in a star shape. The Stars of Beth are one of the most afforable and long lasting flower. The Snowdrops are harder to find and thus to me, more unique.

Which June flower do you love?