One Flew Over Recently...

For florists, February is a frightening and hectic time..

Valentine's Day bouquet orders come in thick and fast.  Some are super early and well prepared, some at the eleventh hour.  Some where the last minute panic can be felt even through an email, and some with a message that must have taken months to perfect.

After years of working solidly in the lead up, and then spending Valentine's Day in the car on deliveries, we were thrilled when we booked a wedding on the 13th giving us the perfect excuse for a year off!  And we even managed to see our boyfriends...

So, this month...

We ventured into the world of a-symmetrical bouquets.  

And posing with your legs slightly bent so that perspective is kinder;

We strung up herb and foliage bundles with twine and hung them from the infamous St. John's pegs;

We made a heavily textured garland entrance-way out of eucalyptus, magnolia leaf, pistachio, leather leaf, hebe, variegated ivy and moss (to name a few), and florally highlighted it with anenome, ranunculus, wax flower and lisianthus;

We received the best post ever!  Loadsa seeds for spring sowing;

We created a pop up flower bed for a ceremony in the Council Chamber of the lovely Town Hall Hotel;

We FROZE our bottoms off in our FREEZING workshop and had sleepless nights worrying about how the flowers would fair;

We chose some of the softest, prettiest pinks and blues around for a very special mum-to-be;

We put together some super cute, blush buttonholes;

And we spent a long, and quite meditative time watching the cat watch a cat;

One Flew Over on Wedding Flowers | Ideas and Inspiration

Popular Wedding Flowers

Like those kids at school, there are some flowers that are simply, undeniably, popular.

These are the ones that everyone* wants at their party; they're in demand, have an air of mystery and frisson about them and are highly sought after.

But beware, like those popular girls at school, popular wedding flowers are also a little unreliable, fleeting and a touch unpredictable.  And in some cases, it was all just an urban myth - they were never that great in the first place.

So, it's best to play it cool around popular wedding flowers. Ask them along, but don't expect too much. 

In all seriousness though, there are some flowers with a lot of (deserved) hype, and also some that have made it back from the deep, dark depths of passé to return cooler and trendier than ever.  

*exaggeration - most people

Here's a few from the popular clique:

The Peony 
Sandy from Grease

Photos: Kate Gray Photography // Buzzfeed

The peony's short season means it's just a summer romance. On arrival, they are all closed up and shy (causing florists no end of panic), but with a bit of heat they suddenly bloom into a flouncy showstopper with attitude. It's just as if they've been sown in to some skin tight leggings. 


The Dahlia
Angela Hayes from American Beauty

Photos: Robbins Photographic // Imagozone

Hyper aware of their power to stop people in their tracks with their regal appearance, Dahlias can sometimes be a tad fragile and must be handled carefully.  But they're totally worth it.


Gypsophila
Amber from Clueless.

Photo: greenhousecanda.com // clueless.wikia.com

A full-on Monet - from far away it's ok, but up close it's a big old mess; we try to always warn brides who want gyp that it smells a bit like cat wee.  
Much lovelier scented alternatives for a white, small budded vibe would be Waxflower or Riceflower. More Cher, less Amber.


Freesia
Matthew Lewis (Neville off of Harry Potter)

Photos: OFO // matthew-lewis.com

The freesia has so often been marginalised as a 'granny flower',  but much like poor, chubby Neville in Harry Potter, it's moving swiftly to hero and total babe status.  
Also, smells delicious.  Hello, Freesia. 
(Hello, Matthew).


The Anemone
Jake Perry from Sweet Home Alabama 

Photos: Elle Benton - Yellow Bird Photography // film.thedigitalfix.com

Not a Poppy, but a much better lookalike. Like Jake Perry, the Anemone is a charming, down to earth, open fella that wins hearts and minds.  

And is so pretty, your heart does a little flip.

Proper Weddings: Sophie and Ant

Sophie and Ant's November wedding was an absolute masterclass in sleek, chic simplicity.

The pair had their ceremony at Islington Town Hall, and the brief for the bridal flowers was warm whites and fresh greens.

Sophie favoured a small, elegant, hand-tied bouquet of Avalanche Roses and white Anenomes.  We used Phlox for texture and to balance the full blooms, along with Freesias for scent and to bring some natural movement to the dome.  

For foliage, we chose the beautiful Autumn Eucalyptus, whose light, intricate leaves stand out from the deeper, darker greens of winter. 

Just look at how flippin' stunning Sophie and her dress are...

Following the ceremony, the wedding party made their way down the road to St. John in Smithfield, who are revered for their own minimalistic style.

The theme of simple, fresh, whites and greens was continued in the dining room of St. John, where feasting platters were served so table decorations kept to a shiftable number!

  

Different size and height clear bottles were filled with blooms and placed along the centre of the tables.

A large white, industrial - style pillar in the centre of the dining room was covered with climbing ivy, asparagus fern and other season foliage to soften up the structure and bring a bit of the outside in, in a natural and organic way.

Extra bottles of flowers were placed around the venue with white votive candles to bring some more glow to the wintry evening.

Sophie's father, a publican, had requested a large arrangement on the bar - his domain!  So Sophie and Ant chose and foliage-only display for some full-on, green texture highlighted with magnolia branches.  

And to finish off the winter wedding flowers, seasonal garlanding with interspersed floral highlights was hung from the infamous St John pegs around the bar and dance floor.

Photos all snapped by the excellent Elle Benton of Yellow Bird Photography.

Houseplant of the Month: February

Houseplants: like the perfect man... long lasting, great looking and low maintenance.  

What is not to love?  

Which is why the Flower Council of Holland are continuing their Houseplant of the Month Campaign throughout 2016.  Each month they have chosen their favourite Houseplant and given a ton of information on the history and uses of the plant, how to choose a nice healthy one, and how to take proper good care of it.
Check out The Joy of Plants for further information and a whole load of fun and inspiration.

We thought we'd do you all a favour and follow their lead, condensing the info in our own monthly feature.  

In the second part of this year's series...

February : Narcissus

Now we all know the Greek myth of Narcissus; the intolerable big head who took delight in shunning those who fell in love with him and then got his comeuppance in true dramatic Ancient Greek style.

But just to recap...

Narcissus treated all the nymphs who yearned for him with great contempt and carelessness. 

 Nemesis, the spirit of divine retribution, grew tired of his arrogant behaviour and cursed him - he was doomed to know what it was like to love and not be loved back.
(We've know plenty of 'Gods' in our time who could have done with this lesson...)

Coming across a pool of water, Narcissus was taken aback by his reflection.

'Well, hello you devilishly handsome thing', he (probably) thought and immediately fell head over heels, not realising it was just his own image bobbing about.

Refusing to leave the side of his object of desire, Narcissus lay by the pool and lost the will to live, growing weaker and weaker until he died.

From the spot where he succumbed, a narcissi sprang up with it's head hung slightly.

And may that be a lesson to us all.



On a slightly happier note, the appearance of the flowering narcissus is an indication that the wintry days are coming to an end and spring is just around the corner.

Remember how seeing the daffodils emerge on the roadside or in the woods made everything seem warmer and brighter?

Potted narcissi are super easy to care for.  Keep the boys in a cool spot and water regularly - the soil should not be allowed to dry up.  It also is not necessary to feed the plant as those big ole bulbs carry everything the narcissi should need.

Also, don't discount narcissi when it comes to spring wedding flowers.  

Consider placing a variety of flowering bulbs and moss in a brass footed bowl for a fancy, sophisticated design, or maybe even pot bulbs in a mad geometric black and white box design, a la below...  

Perhaps more 1960s throwback party than wedding?