We're exhausted. Its been a whirlwind couple of weeks for our team! Wedding season is most definitely in full swing around here.

I'm so far behind on my blogging, I don't even know how to catch up at this point. So forget about going in order -- I'm going to start with today's and work my way backwards from there (in due time -- I need a nap first!).

This morning was Samantha's wedding in Park City. It was held at the most beautiful estate sitting on 17 acres of pure Park City-ness. The weather was amazing when we were there at 9:00 AM, and judging by the sun here in Salt Lake today, I'm certain it stayed that way for them. The photos are definitely sub-par due to the morning light, so pardon the glare off the glass. Samantha went with a very simple, contemporary style. Main floral players were green cymbidium orchids, eggplant and green goddess calla lilies, and green hypericum berries. Her bouquet was simply divine (I would SO carry that one down the aisle!), and we incorporated some fun accents such as coffee beans in her mixed arrangements. I wish we could have stuck around to see it all come together. There was supposedly a coffee-theme (hence the beans in the vase -- the bride and groom are from Seattle, WA) and I'm sure all the elements that were brought out after we left really pulled things together. One of my favorite parts of this wedding? The cake! The cake was done by Mike McCarey from Mike's Amazing Cakes in WA. Any Food Network watchers out there know exactly who he is! It was fun being able to finally see one of his creations up close. The cake was representative of the couple and their background -- mountains for their life in UT, the Space Needle for their life in Seattle, and I loved the tiny little coffee mug sitting next to the groom. How fun!

"What I did on my summer vacation"

I'm back! I've been back for a couple days actually, but given that this weekend is the infamous 06-07-08, we hardly have time to breathe, much less catch up on blog posts. If we're taking longer than usual to return emails and phone calls, know we haven't forgotten about you -- we've just got to make it through this weekend!

California was lovely. Part work, part play, lots of time with family...very nice. One of the "play" activities was a visit to one of our favorite little spots -- The Conservatory of Flowers in Golden Gate Park. Its a gorgeous greenhouse with various rooms displaying various vegetation in different climates. The orchids on display are simply mind-blowing. If only we could get stuff like that in Utah! I don't know how many hundreds of varieties we saw...its one of those places that is difficult to leave because of its quiet and serenity. I'm including a few photos of interesting orchids, as well as a shot of myself and the boys taking a rest in the Conservatory. They especially loved the live butterfly exhibit -- so fun!

One thing I have to note about my trip -- I had a couple interesting visits with wedding vendors while I was in CA and it reminded me of how lucky we are to have the quality of vendors that we do here in the Salt Lake area. There really is no comparison. We have a core group of vendors here that really strive to stay on top of the trends, produce an outstanding product, and have a strong commitment to customer service. Utah brides really do have an advantage over other states. Perhaps that's why we have so many destination weddings flocking to our state?



Lastly, while in San Fransisco, I was able to make a stop at Britex Fabrics and pick out the lace for my sister-in-law's wedding gown. What a fun experience! Britex is known as THE place to go for specialty and imported fabric and trim on the West Coast. It sits right on Geary Street and is the most amazing fabric shop you will ever visit! Specialty and imported fabrics and trims from ceiling to floor with the most professional and educated sales associates I've come in contact with...what a treat. I myself am a third-generation Britex bride so it was fun to be able to pass that tradition on to Tyler's sister. The lace is simple divine...the sophisticated embroidery will look stunning on Maren. Can't wait to see it done!

Out of the office...

Its that time of year again -- the one where I take off to CA for a couple weeks to do a little work and a lot of relaxing. I'm hopping a plane in a matter of minutes and won't be back in the office until June 2.

I will have limited phone access but will can be reached via email if necessary.

Have a great rest-of-May!

Meagan

Meagan was married at Sundance a few weeks ago -- the bride and groom are from CO so this was another destination wedding (love those!).
She wanted arrangements that were very textured and organic. Both the bride and groom are very environmentally conscious and wanted that earthy look incorporated in their flowers. The colors were blues, greens, lavender, and orange. The centerpieces were in dark stained wood boxes (and each one was different), and the bouquets were wrapped in various colors of burlap and twine. Artistically, this was one of my favorite so far this year. How I love when a bride says, "You get the general idea -- do whatever you think looks best!"

Happy Mother's Day!

I know that the majority of our readers are not yet mothers, but for those of you that are, please accept my most heartfelt of Mother's Day wishes! I don't think I fully appreciated all that my own mom sacrificed on my behalf until I started having kidlets of my own. Now I can see how much hard work, dedication, patience, and love are required to get through each and every day as a mother.

I, for one, had a fabulous Mother's Day. I got to sleep in until 10:00 AM which is so luxurious for any mom. If that weren't a treat enough,I was surprised with a half-dozen of the finest cupcakes in all of Utah from Minis. For those of you that haven't ventured to Minis, DO! Our resident food critic (Kathy) encouraged us to try Minis after a few visits to another local cupcake joint and they are mind-blowingly delicious! The Lemon Pie and Chocoholic are by far my favorites... Of course I had to share the cupcakes with a 4-year-old who only wanted to lick the frosting off the cake, but that seemed rather appropriate given the holiday.

These little arrangements are part of what our own mothers received today. My mom and Tyler's mom do so much to help us and our little company -- especially during our busy summer season. My kids are so lucky to be able to hang with their grandmas so frequently! They're also pretty dang lucky to be surrounded by such fabulous Whimsy women. Thanks to all our team (especially the ever-present Kathy) for being such important figures in my kids' lives. We love and appreciate you all.

Hope everyone had a great day!

Rain drops keep fallin' on my head...

I'm behind on my blog posts yet again, but I had to post about last night's event while the humor was still fresh...

Stacy and Nathan had a backyard reception. The weather around here has been gorgeous lately (albeit a little manic) so I was surprised when I woke up to rain. I called the mother of the groom to see what the plans were for inclement weather -- no changes, they were going to keep it outside. We showed up as planned to a damp but gorgeous backyard. Beautiful landscaping, an amazing tent... it was just perfect -- but drizzling. With positive thoughts we proceeded to setup our items and moved on to the arch we were to decorate. I am not exaggerating when I say that the moment we pulled out the ladder and got to work, the heavens opened and the rain came down. Minute by minute, the intensity of the showers increased and we came increasingly drenched. At first it was funny -- Kathy got a big kick out of the drops rolling off my big ol' nose -- but then it got harder to work. We couldn't see because of the rain in our eyes (I need to add a pair goggles to our toolboxes!), our layers of clothes and aprons were soaked through, our hair was plastered to our faces, and our hands were frozen making it difficult to work with wire and tools. Mind you, Kathy just came back (three weeks early!) from another back surgery, Michelle is 8 months pregnant, and I'm 5-foot-hardly-anything with terrible coordination standing on top of a very slippery metal ladder. I have it hand to them both -- other people would have up and left (don't think they didn't consider it) but they plowed through the misery and we did the best we could considering the circumstances. Our clients were great. We got towels to dry off with, extra coats to wear while we were working, and hot chocolate before we packed up and left. When she was leaving Michelle aptly commented, "Well, it definitely wasn't the most fun wedding we've done, but it was memorable, that's for sure..." We snapped a photo of the three of us before we got in the car (l-r: Kathy, Michelle, and me). You can't see our drenched clothes, but the soaked hair (post towel-dry) and lack of makeup say it all. We love our clients and will always do everything we can to make their day perfect -- even if it means a little discomfort to us now and again. I was so glad to hear this morning that not long after we left, the rain subsided and they had dry skies for the majority of the reception! Phew!

The moment I got home and unloaded the car, I went straight to the shower and stayed there until the hot water ran out. I hope K & M did the same. You girls are awesome!

Kristen at the 23rd Floor

Kristen was married in the Salt Lake temple on Saturday followed by a ring ceremony and reception at the 23rd Floor Event Center. She knew exactly what she wanted -- bright pink roses, white mini calla lilies, candles, and lots of streamlined arrangements. For those of you who have a trained eye, you'll note the size of the rose centerpieces. It may look pretty simple to most, but each one of those puppies had approximately 4 dozen Ballet roses. All in all, we used over 495 stems of roses and 150 stems of callas. Whew! It was a very cute space -- simple, but modern and fun. I look forward to seeing some of the photos taken by our friends at Swensen Photography.