Tuesday, August 28, 2007

Where am I?

















I've been getting emails wondering where I've been. On vacation! Sort of... You heard about my family reunion -- my sister and her family stayed on a week and crashed at my house. I decided early on in the booking season that that was a good excuse not to schedule any work. Many of you also know that we're undergoing a major remodel at our house (and we're die-hard do-it-yourself-ers) which prompted me to go ahead and take the following week off to try and power through some of our remaining projects before the baby is born. I'm glad to say I'm getting things accomplished (thanks to my sister who put in I don't know how many hours of ripping down wall paper and skim coating walls during her stay), but I look forward to getting back to work next week.

In the meantime, I received Alisa's Millcreek reception photos from Lindsey Hale last week. Enjoy!

Monday, August 20, 2007

Kelly and Chad revisited











I previously posted some shots from Kelly and Chad's June 22 wedding done for me by Opie Foto. The photographer that shot the entire wedding and reception, STC Digital, was kind enough to send over a disk with additional images. We always appreciate the photography talent found here in the Valley. How lucky our brides are to have such a variety of talent to choose from!

Kelly is by far one of the most beautiful people I've had the chance to design for. (She is a professional model, by the way) Thanks, STC, for the photos!

Scotish wedding celebration







Thanks to Anna Page for the photos of Amy and Sterling's wedding this weekend. Gorgeous!

Saturday, August 18, 2007

Employee of the century!

I have to give serious props to one of my team members today. We experienced a very unexpected issue with one of our weddings, and Whimsy team member Michelle handled things beautifully! Without going in to huge detail, one of our awesome brides had scheduled a pick-up instead of delivery for her wedding in Midway. Since I had a slew of family fly in last night for a family reunion in Sandy this afternoon (that I too would be attending during her desired pick-up time), the bride was notified that the location of her pick up would be at Michelle's house. (Side note: when you schedule a pick-up instead of a delivery, it is your responsibility to make sure you've got your times and locations confirmed prior to your wedding day. As with any vendor, we go out of our way to initiate scheduling, but ultimately its up to you to make sure you have the correct time and place confirmed by our staff.) Unfortunately, the individuals picking up the flowers didn't get that information and went to the wrong location, and rather than calling the office or my cell phone (the number to which is on the office voicemail -- if there's a problem, never hesitate to call me!!!) to figure out what was going on, they left and went to the wedding that afternoon without the flowers. (Additional side note: Its always a good idea to have a list of all your vendors' contact information so you can reach them if something is not right. One simple phone call and you can find a quick and painless resolution to most issues.) I got a call at my reunion from Michelle two hours past the pick-up time, concerned that no one had come for the flowers and doubly concerned that when she called the contact information on the invoice, it said the number had been disconnected. We both sprang to action, making additional phone calls until we were able to reach the bride and determine what had happened. The ceremony was going to start in less than an hour (in Midway, mind you) and while theoretically we were not responsible for getting the flowers to the site, we value our clients enough to do whatever possible to make sure things get taken care of. Since she was closer to the canyon than I was at that moment, Michelle loaded the flowers into her car and hit the road, making the over 85 mile round-trip to Midway to get the flowers there for the wedding. Did we have to do that? Nope. Are we charging the bride the $150 that would normally have been charged for that delivery? Nope. How come? Because like I said, we value our clients. It was her wedding day. Things happen. At the end of the day, the important thing is that our clients know that we went the extra mile to make sure we did what we could to make their day a success. Whimsy has always been known for taking care of our clients, regardless of whether or not its comfortable, convenient, or even profitable for us. Michelle really exemplified what we embody as she handled the situation with grace and completely forfeited her Saturday to make that trip to Midway. We truly hope our bride had a fabulous event despite the hiccup.

Michelle is also a part-time wedding coordinator. If you are interested in hiring a dynamic, creative, dedicated individual to assist you in planning and executing your wedding day, contact me and I'll help you get in touch with her.

Thanks, Michelle, for all your hard work!!!

Stephanie



Friday was Stephanie's bridal sitting. She chose a simple bouquet of Freedom, Charlotte, and Circus roses with a white satin wrap and sheer navy ballet overlay. Look for her wedding Sept. 28!

Wednesday, August 15, 2007

A moment of praise

I received the nicest email from the mother of a recent bride (Haley). Clients often send little notes of appreciation which always make our day, but Marcia's was so heartfelt I just had to share. Thank you so much! We love our clients!!!

"Long distance flower arrangements are never easy. My daughter was in Alaska, I (mother) was in Idaho, and Liz (Whimsy Floral) was in Utah; however, no one needed to worry: the flowers were absolutely amazing. Liz was careful to see to detail and was flexible and responsive. We hadn't planned on keeping these fresh flowers, but they were too beautiful not to save. They absolutely made the wedding. The bride's bouquet was vibrant and full. My complete endorsement goes to Whimsy Floral and the talents of Liz. Thank you for a memorable wedding.

Marcia McManus"

Monday, August 13, 2007

Andi in Alpine





Saturday morning was Andi and Darin's ceremony and reception at the Alpine Arts Center. What a beautiful morning it was! Luckily, we were able to get in and out of there before a town parade started and the main roads were closed. Andi chose some very simple designs. Her bouquet featured large white calla lilies with a delicate collar of purple lisianthus and seeded eucalyptus. Her ceremony focal pieces (shown) had a large mix of cream, purple, and green. Congratulations you two!

Tuesday, August 7, 2007

Green Chic...
















Nicole and Tyler were married on Saturday in a ceremony at the First Baptist church followed by a lavish reception at The 23rd Floor. What a gorgeous couple! Their colors were green and black with accents of white. Design wise, this has been one of my favorite weddings of the season. It will eventually make it on my featured weddings page...if I ever find the time to update the site.

The bride's bouquet was simple and clean -- Akito roses with a collar of green hypericum and white bouvardia. The bridesmaids' carried bouquets of Super Green and Akito roses, Star-of-Bethlehem, hypericum berries, and green Fuji mums. The flower girls carried pomanders of green kermits, which matched the wedding party's boutonnieres of kermits, berries, and bear grass. Fast forward to the reception and we had three separate table designs. Design #1 was a grouping of three square vases: green goddess calla lilies, and either a mass of green hydrangea with Akito pave' roses, or a mass of white snowball mums with Super Green pave' roses. Design #2 was a mixed arrangement of hydrangea, snowballs, aspidistra leaves, green goddess and white callas, Akito and Super Green roses, chocolate cosmos, white bouvardia, Star-of Bethlehem, green hypericum, kermits, Bells of Ireland, Camillia, seeded eucalyptus, buplerum, and ruskus (phew!!!). Design #3 was a large cube containing black river rock with a floating snowball and cosmo nestled among Bells of Ireland florets. And lots and lots and lots of candles -- everywhere! (I think we provided somewhere in the ballpark of 85 candles in various sized cubes...) Kathy from An Unforgettable Event coordinated this wedding and did a fabulous job! Big thanks to Kate Benson who was a second shooter on this wedding and provided the amazing wedding party photos.

Monday, August 6, 2007

Windy at Red Butte



Glena's wedding was on Saturday at Red Butte Garden. It was pretty blustery up there as we were setting up so I hope the wind calmed down in time for their ceremony. Tyler only got a shot of the bridal bouquet (Akito and Sweet Akito roses and white freesia) as our team was running out the door. Her table centerpieces were bubble bowls with floating pink gerbs, pink matsumotos, white spray roses, and Bells of Ireland florets. Her bridesmaids carried Akito roses and white freesia, the flower girl had a playful pink satin purse filled with roses and gerbs, and the rest of the wedding party wore white mini callas.

Kim and Roland






A few shots from Kim and Roland's wedding on Aug. 2. Her colors were red, orange, and yellow. We used red and orange mini gerbs, freedom, circus, and gold strike roses, white freesia, burgundy and green hypericum berries, and various accents. They are a delightful couple and we wish them the best!