Kaylee + Nick's Intimate CopperWynd Wedding

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My first impression of Kaylee and Nick was that they were both extremely down-to-Earth people who deeply care for one another. It’s endearing to meet a couple like this and have them as our clients. It’s also refreshing to have a couple that are both present at the first consultation, as well as throughout the entire floral design process. Kaylee and Nick wanted to plan every detail of their wedding together from start to finish. I have a lot of respect for that because it shows that they truly have a loving partnership and want to make decisions as a team. It also allows us to get to know them individually so that we’re able to incorporate each personality into the overall design of their wedding.

This was a fairly smaller wedding than most with about 65 guests, so the couple wanted to really have fun dressing up the tables for their friends and family to enjoy. They had mentioned using a lot of greenery, so we opted to incorporate as assortment of eucalyptus for garland, and then placed a mix of small and large lanterns down the center of the tables. It was just enough to create something that was memorable without going overboard, which was what the couple was aiming for. The two also wanted the arch to be a focal point for their wedding, so we used a lot of eucalyptus, garden roses and antique carnations for a look that still made a statement, but didn’t take away from the breath-taking, mountainous background. Seriously, that view is epic!

And there was an awesome Solar System themed wedding cake that was a fun symbol of their love for outer space.

“My love for you is a puzzle… for which I have no answers.”

— Padmé

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Photography: Chase Sevey ❖  Venue: CopperWynd Resort

Makeup: Bryanna Casey ❖ Florals: 1209 Creative ❖ Rentals: Event Rents

San Francisco City Hall | Lisa + Jess

We were asked to fly out to San Francisco this past March for the awaited wedding of Lisa and Jess. These two women are insanely remarkable. They dedicate their lives to the medical field, to their loving families and friends, and of course, to one another. We stayed with them for four days, and in that short amount of time, we were quickly welcomed in as part of the family (sort of). I mean, how often do the florists bunk up next to the sweet grandmother, or get to after-party with the bridal party? Almost never. So we were living it up.

We stayed in the coolest 4-storey, purple and pink house (like what one would imagine a gypsy princess to live in with her pet unicorn). It was seriously the best. Everyone was so excited, alive, giggly and genuinely enjoying each and every moment. San Franciso does that to people. There's just something in air (besides the smell of weed) that makes people happy to be there. It's S-A-N  F-R-A-N-C-I-S-C-O... no one ever complains about the city. And if they do, they are probably no fun. Congratulations, Lisa and Jess, on officially becoming Winton-Li. Yay!

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Pre-Wedding

“When I saw you I fell in love,
and you smiled because you knew. ”

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San Francisco City Hall

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THE AFTER PARTY

Photography: Cellar Door Photography ❖ Flowers: 1209 Creative  ❖ Venue: Tank 18 
Makeup: Artistry by Azure ❖ Hair Styling: Jaime Voelz

It Was All A Dream :: Erin + Patrick

There is a special connection we have with each and every wedding we are a part of. Every bride and groom's personalities, styles and overall visions for their wedding day are always different, which is why our job is far from dull. Each wedding we do never looks the same as the last, and each team of creatives and vendors we get to work with changes. A couple's wedding day seldom goes forgotten, and we make it a mission to provide flowers and decor that is fitting to who our clients are as individuals.

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On the day of December 31, 2016, Erin and Patrick were married at The monOrchid... where they also rang in the New Year with their loved ones by their side. These two worked closely with a team of people who came together to create a wedding to be remembered. One of the reasons why this wedding came together seamlessly was because of the quality relationships the vendors already established with one another. With the help of Kris and Tyler from Konsider It Done, a dream team was literally created. When you are working alongside your friends (those who just understand your style and trust in your work) it makes the process that much more amazing. We admire the efforts that every single vendor put into this wedding, especially Kym Ventola. We go wild for her work! She pays attention to the details, the moments, the light, the emotions.... to everything that truly matters in a photograph. She has been featured in countless print and online publications, and once again her work (and the team behind Erin + Patrick's wedding) was highlighted on Junebug Weddings this week! It's always an honor to know that one's work is being seen by people across the world... it's a trippy feeling.

“It was all a dream, I used to read Word Up! magazine
Salt-n-Pepa and Heavy D up in the limousine”

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“We’ll never forget looking out at our friends and family between laughs during the ceremony. It’s humbling to feel the love from so many people rooting for your success with every ounce of their hearts. And then when looking back at each other, we were so filled with undying love, excitement, and pure contentment. We could live in that moment forever.”

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Photography: Kym Ventola Photography ❖ Event Planning: Konsider It Done
Venue: The monOrchid ❖ Floral Design: 1209 Creative
Catering: Conceptually Social ❖ Donuts: Welcome Chicken & Donuts
DJ: Ingram Entertainment ❖ Videography: Love Story Films ❖ Invitations: idieh designs
Makeup: SN Makeup Artist ❖ Hair Styling: Vanessa Yvonne Hair ❖ Nail Art: Chica Artista Nails
Wedding Dress: Rime Arodaky via LOHO Bride ❖ Bride’s Ear Cuff: Ryan Storer
Bride’s Shoes: Free People ❖ Custom Leather Jackets: Bananna Bones
Flower Girl Apparel: Carken Design (Leotard), Design by Erica T (Skirt)
Groom’s Apparel: Brothers Tailors
Rings: Hamra (Engagement), House of Diamonds AZ (Hers), Shane Co. (His)
Rentals: Tremaine Ranch (Ceremony Backdrop + Benches), Courtesy Coin, AZ Pro Rents

El Chorro Reception | Hai + Shawn

This was a very special 2016 wedding for us. It signified the start of our very first spring-season. As time continues to pass by, and as we continue to learn and grow, we want to sincerely thank each and every bride and groom we have been able to work with, along with all of the amazing vendors. It's been way cool spreading our floral and design love all over these events and weddings! It's what we obsess over everyday, and it's what we are good at. We will continuing serving our 2017 bookings with so much heart, while staying true to the 1209 quality and style.

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Photography: Kym Ventola Photography ❖  Venue + Rentals: El Chorro ❖ Florals: 1209 Creative

The True Cost of Wedding Flowers

Simon Nickell wrote the following post on his blog, and he took the words right out of our mouths. He touched base on topics that we have experienced several times, and it's super important that clients realize the amount of time that goes into design (on top of the actual cost of the flowers). Simon has been in the floral industry for 26 years, so his experience and knowledge of the business is something we look up to. Location also plays a big part in flower cost. I would like to add that we live in the middle of the desert. Flowers are sent here from all of the country (and the world), so extra care goes into obtaining them, as well as taking care of them as we're working to ensure they look their best come wedding day!

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UK Wedding Floristry Advice - The True Cost Of Wedding Flowers

by Simon Nickell

"This is a headline that I’d like to see splashed across the pages of a national newspaper! It is a subject that is very close to my heart, and one I don’t believe is addressed enough in the wedding industry. A lack of truthfulness about what wedding flowers actually cost can and does lead to a huge amount of frustration and misunderstanding for florists and clients alike.

The bridal press, blogs and social media are saturated with images of “luxury” flowers, flower walls and sumptuous hanging installations, which all makes great copy. They hunger for beautiful images of celebrity weddings and flower heavy photoshoots to fill their pages, which is perfectly understandable. A serious lack of information however for the client, about the work involved for a wedding florist to create these amazing displays, is not helped by the media and bridal press constantly telling couples that they can have it all on a budget of £500.

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When I first started as a florist 26 years ago there were no social media or blogs to inspire. Brides went to their local florist and chose arrangements from a catalogue of commercially produced styles. The designs and flowers available were very limited, and I would often hear a bride say “I’ll have that one, in peach”. Today everything has changed, and it is rare now for me to meet a bride who hasn’t found her inspiration on social media. Pinterest and Instagram seem to be taking over the world and brides bring THEIR Pinterest boards to ME!

I must admit I have a love, hate relationship with Pinterest! While it can be an incredibly useful tool it can also be very misleading. Much of its imagery features incredibly flower heavy American weddings which have been photographed in Californian vineyards or New England gardens and  this can lead to an enormous amount of confusion and disappointment when I tell couples that the flower heavy look they want will cost thousands rather than hundreds.

Let's face facts, apart from the cost of buying a home, the cost of a wedding is probably the biggest expense at one time that a couple will have in their lives. It is also a fact that American couples tend to spend more on wedding flowers than couples in this country, and photo shoots tend to focus on the lavish rather than the average.

There are many reasons why florists charge what they charge for providing wedding flowers. Firstly, flowers do cost money. We have all become so accustomed to seeing flowers in supermarkets at discount prices that we expect flowers to be cheap. Supermarket flowers are a completely different ball game and bear no resemblance to the industry I work in. Produced in colossal quantities for the mass market, they are sold with the marketing strategy of "pile it high, sell it cheap".

The vast majority of the flowers that wedding and event florists use are imported from Holland, with only 15% being grown in the UK. In Holland flowers are traded in euros, the exchange rate with the pound is against us, and fuel and transportation costs have rocketed in recent years. Inevitably this has seen an increase in wholesale costs, and florists have to pass these costs on to their customers. Unlike Asda, who can sell a bunch of spray carnations for £2.00 (which is what I used to sell them for in the flower shop where I first worked 26 years ago) we can't!

Of course being British, we’re often brought up to believe that it’s bad form to talk about money. Florists can become their own worst enemies when asking a prospective client about their floral budget, and I know from personal experience that there really is no shame asking a direct question. It can save a lot of time and embarrassment later on, believe me.

Any good wedding planner will advise their clients on how much money to allow for each element of their wedding. A rule of thumb for flowers is 10%. of the overall budget, depending on guest numbers, flowers used, the number of arrangements and work involved. For some couples this might seem an exorbitant amount of money to spend on flowers, to others no. It is however a useful figure to bear in mind.

Bear in mind that certain flowers of course are always more expensive, more elaborate designs are more labour intensive and additional costs such as hire items, transport, petrol and staff wages, and the dreaded VAT have to be factored in, and can increase the final cost dramatically. 

I spend many months preparing for a wedding, sometimes more than a year. The run up to a wedding can involve months of site visits, design meetings, quotes, re quotes, adjustments and mock ups of final designs. A wedding day for me can have a 4 a.m. start to prepare the bridal flowers, and a 1 a.m. clearance because the venue insists on everything being taken away at the end of the night. All this work has to be included into the final fee.

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To the uninitiated many people think that my work finishes when I deliver the bridal bouquet. If truth be told many people think that mine isn’t a proper job at all. Over the past 26 years I’ve come to realise that the people who do think that don’t respect my work, attach no value to it and therefore think they have the right to negotiate my prices down. I have also come to realise that I have the right to say no. 

Like everyone else, florists are in business to make money; so why should we feel embarrassed about charging what we charge? We work to earn a decent living, pay our bills and provide employment for the myriad of people involved in keeping our industry going. 

Every year I take on a limited number of weddings. I don’t work every weekend because enquiries, like buses tend to come along all at once. I often have to turn down work because I’m already booked, and when I’m not I don’t get anything! Such is the nature of the business.

Choosing the flowers for a wedding should be one of the most enjoyable parts of the planning process. Professional florists are highly experienced, skilled and creative individuals who deserve respect for what they do. We work incredibly hard (often behind the scenes) to make a couple’s day look amazing, and what we do is reflected as the true cost of wedding flowers."

photos by Nicolas Alexander