Flowers for an Intimate Wedding POST COVID-19
We are silver-lining seekers…we strive to identify the positive aspects of any given situation or predicament…where there appears to be a barricade, we aim to find a hidden door! Amid the turmoil of these strange and ever-changing days, we’ve witnessed many of our lovely clients struggle to face the new reality that 2020 has forcibly delivered. Highly anticipated plans for major life events are being modified, postponed or cancelled. Yet, we have met with many new clients who are forging ahead with adapted plans for intimate weddings to celebrate their recent engagements.
In knowing that the future is more uncertain than ever and that major life events cannot be put on ice indefinitely, let’s discuss what an intimate gathering means for your flowers - what elements can you omit and what elements can you leverage for maximum impact.
The silver-lining of an intimate celebration is…HELLO!…fewer guests, lower expense! This opens up possibilities to really wow your small guest count with spectacular design elements that weren’t necessarily economical with a much larger guest count. The expanded potential could translate into fancy cocktails, live music and…an extravagant display of flowers!
We are here to tell you where we think you should go BIG! For the sake of trying to sound cute and ‘Cosmo-esque’, we’ll make a LOVE IT or LEAVE IT list below.
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♥︎ Love it : Bridal Bouquet
A beautiful bridal bouquet is imperative…we won’t budge an inch on this one! Although, we don’t always find enormous bridal bouquets to be the right design choice, unless that is the style that you love! We have adored watching the popularity of smaller bridal posies grow following the royal wedding. We wholeheartedly encourage a dainty-sized bouquet filled with the most exquisite blooms - rare, premium, fragile and the sort of flowers that can’t be found just anywhere.
✖︎ Leave it : Bridesmaids’ Bouquets
Sometimes tradition is hard for our minds to let go of…but the nature of the current moment requires us to revise traditions. Rather than having bridesmaids standing in the traditional “bridal party”, simply seat them in the front row of the gathering. During an intimate wedding or elopement, it almost wouldn’t make sense to have half of your guests standing beside you. Maybe you leave a little bloom on their seat to designate their extra-special status. Bridesmaid's bouquets can quickly eat into a floral budget and aren’t even a point of focus throughout the 20 minute ceremony. We say..leave it!
♥︎ Love it : Ceremony installation
You may begin to notice a common thread throughout this post: we think floral installations are where it’s at! Floral installations transform a space, lend immeasurably to the creation of an unforgettable atmosphere, and awe your guests who most likely haven’t experienced something of the sort before. We’ve all seen a flower arrangement in a vase, but have you seen hundreds of blooms suspended in a cloud-like arrangement or an overflowing arch comprised of rare shades of blooms? Having just advised you to forgo the bridesmaids’ bouquets, this could free up anywhere between $500 - $1,600!! We highly recommend a gorgeous floral backdrop for your wedding ceremony and floral pieces on the aisle. A floral wash for your aisle can easily be re-purposed to the reception to line portions of the dance floor, frame the front of the head table and more! Particularly during an intimate wedding or elopement, an artful floral installation can elevate the mood of a gathering space, to be enjoyed throughout the night as an backdrop for cocktails, conversation and family photos.
✖︎ LEave it: boutonnieres and corsages
We aren’t suggesting that bouts and corsages aren’t key elements to wedding floral design, but if you are looking to shave off a few hundred dollars, these accents can be excluded in a pinch. Of course, you know your family’s expectations best. So, your call; or should we say, it’s grandma’s call.
♥︎ love it: welcome table floral
We love a well-done, one-of-a-kind grandiose floral centerpiece to make a major statement in properly welcoming your guests to the grand occasion. Often the very first thing your wedding or elopement guests will see, the welcome table floral visually sets the aesthetic tone for a special evening. After the stage has been accordingly set, guests will become emotional at the ceremony, enjoy a few libations at cocktail hour, fall into a brief food coma and then hit the dance floor without ever looking back. This will be one of the most impactful pieces before the party gets started.
✖︎ leave it: cocktail table floral
Just…why? The social hour is already pleasurable enough as it is, with cocktails, music, and the company of friends…plus, it lasts barely an hour. Put this money into the…(see next item in list)
♥︎ love it: Reception installation
We feel that a reception installation is a key component for any intimate wedding! If you’re going to go big with any design element, make it the floral installation design for your reception. Your guests will spend the majority of your wedding night within the reception space, so the portion of your budget dedicated to a reception installation will have the most bang for the buck. When paired with effect lighting, a reception can be transformed to anything from a swanky dinner with illuminated & stunning overhead flowers to a dimly lit dance party with the installation showcased by colored up-lighting. So…boutonnieres, cocktail arrangements & bridesmaids bouquets OR an incredible reception installation - to us, it’s a no-brainer…go for the latter!
✖︎ leave it: reception table floral
This is just how much we prefer an installation at a reception. Without a doubt, we love adorning dining tables with flower arrangements for a wedding reception, but if you are choosing one or the other, we would suggest an overhead installation for maximum impact. Table arrangements are lovely touches but simply cannot transform a space to the degree that a floral installation can. Tastefully embellish the table with elegant candles instead and let the reception floral installation do the talkin’.
♥︎ love it : Floral backdrop
To serve a similar purpose as the aforementioned reception installation, but in the instance where an overhead floral installation isn’t logistically possible. There are many other ways to make a big impact within a reception space. Floral walls are one method, to serve as breathtaking backdrops for a head table, cocktail bar or for a photo-booth. The determination of what style of floral installation is “right” for your reception is largely dependent on the venue…ceiling height, available structural supports, light placement, etc... We would suggest approaching it with an open mind and speaking to your floral designer about what ideas they might have for transforming the chosen space! When it comes to dreaming and planning for large floral installations, keep in mind that installation design is a floral designer’s speciality and they are able to draw from past experiences to conjure grand, yet achievable, designs catered to the given potential (and limitations) of any one particular venue space. By keeping an open mind and collaborating flexibly with your florist, you won’t obstruct your florist from envisioning something truly fitting and unique.
✖︎ leave it : bar top floral
Leave it….however, there are definitely cases where exceptions should be made. If the bar design or set-up is particularly grand, gorgeous and spacious you should absolutely elevate that by adding a floral masterpiece. However, for the most part, if you are looking for places to pare down, don’t worry about the bar. The bar serves one purpose and that purpose doesn’t generally require flower accents to satisfy guests.
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Postponing your wedding, adapting and moving forward
We are here for all of you..the newly engaged, the recently postponed and for those of you that are still trying to figure it all out! This is a period of unprecedented change and hardship and quickly adapting to the new landscape is no easy feat…we are being forced to change highly anticipated plans, weather emotions ranging from disappointment to grief, and re-invent so many aspects of our daily lives. Please remember that this celebration will happen, one way or another. We are here to make it magical, no matter when or how it happens. If you have recently been engaged and would like to discuss the options for an elopement or intimate wedding, please contact us here. To all of our dear current clients, we are here to help you move forward and will make it as smooth of a transition as possible! Your wedding days are going to be that much more special, once we can finally see them through!
