the 20 minute New Years Eve top hat

Happy New Year! I made Louise a top hat for tonight! I found this video very helpful , after I gathered my bits it was only 20 minutes to put it together :) I'm so proud of it , I wanted to share it with you ; also wanted to say thank you for an amazing 2012, we had so much fun with all of you!

 Thank you for the opportunity and for your trust, but most of all for allowing me to do what I love, it is almost not fair to call it work! Happy 2013!

xo
viv and louise~

humpback whales!

The ladies and I started a new tradition! Every year for the holidays we are having a "Favorite things Party" and although we did not received extravagant gifts like Oprah's personalized humpback whales :), I was floored by the thought and care that went into some of the gifts.

My head is spinning with  ideas for next year, very much like the SNL parody link above. 

HOW TO: get a group of your favorite ladies, set a budget for gifts (ours was $15) and get together for dinner! We chose a restaurant, but we decided next year will be at someones home, we need more time and space and possibly even pajamas. If you have ten ladies, every lady brings nine gifts to share with the others.

and let the party begin!!! 

Some of MY favorite things were not even the gift themselves , more like stocking stuffers the ladies included! Like a copy of a  hand written special recipe passed down from someones grandmother, special seashells hand picked in someones east cost hometown ... and tomatoes that had been picked green and nurtured in someones basement since summer's end. I live for thought like that!!! I also loved the care that went into wrapping ; all around a fantastic way to kick off the season!

We went home with a crackling wood wick candle,  movies, journals, smartwool socks, blueberry pies, Hana fuji apple sake, salted caramel chai, English biscuits, magazines, movies, chenille socks, eye lashes, chocolate, travel jars and art prints. 

You should try it with us next year! it was a blast and you'll find out that  some of your favorite things are really the ladies themselves!

our wish for you...

Mollie & Bill

Mollie and Bill said I do this fall on the perfect September day. Our first fall wedding of 2012! The wedding took place at St Patricks Church , their pup Forrest joined them for  pictures at Midlothian Country Club where the reception took place.
 Mollie a school teacher was the best at putting details together for her wedding! I love teacher brides, so very organized. :) We had a blast picking heirloom pumpkins to fill with blooms for her centerpieces. Take a look at these lovely images courtesy of ImageIcon.

"We have made a mess of this world."

My friend posted the title of this blog post today after the Connecticut shooting  and I wept ... now I must do my part. We must know our neighbor, we  must be involved , things must change,  this must turn into a positive, we must do better than this and we must do it together.

pretending to be normal...

This is how we finished our wedding season! A gorgeous wedding at Loft on Lake and this was the centerpiece of the room, a ten foot tall tree made out of weeping burlap. Created by the oh so very talented Heather, you can read more about it here. Her blog is amazingly hilarious, you must follow! 

We worked so hard this day, weddings on opposite sides of the state, time restrictions and loads of work, but if you are a florist you know that's every weekend. In the midst of it all, during the madness we try to maintain a sense of normalcy, by breaking bread together at the end of the day, and in this instance enjoy the holiday season.

This picture was taken by  Mysi with her new Iphone and on instagram...she's addicted. Sorry for all the blurry/grainy pictures the day went by so fast.. it felt appropriate. More to come on this wedding soon!

 Some delicious Lebanese food hit the spot after a looooooong day. Our waiter was a freak!

 And a visit to the Kris Kindle Market !

 The girls hoping to cash in/score with Santa :)

picture below  was part of the live nativity scene !

ashley and ryan

 My friend Ashley got married this summer.

Ashley is many things, but one of my favorites things about her is her enthusiasm. She is fun, smart, vibrant, positive and her expressions theatrical. So how befitting it was that her wedding took place at the Rialto Square Theatre.

Facial expressions galore, four dress changes, choreographed dance mob and color bursting out of the seams, this wedding was full of surprises and joy!

This was one of my favorite weddings ever to work on, not only because my friend was to be celebrated but because Ashley said..."Do as you wish Viv, I want it to be fun"... that my friends is like drugs to an addict... and so we did, have fun; the time of our lives! 

  

Picking up your place cards at the ticket booth set the stage for an evening of entertainment, but if you know Ashley, a regular Tuesday would be an entertaining night :)

 

Photograpy: Fender & Donisch   Hair and Make up: Salon 312  Catering: Ali Tucker Artistic Entertaining  Venue: Rialto Square Theatre  Flowers: Petal Play Design