Blue Blooms for A Special Bride
My youngest niece Melissa (Lissy) married her best friend Ken nearly 12 years ago which, by the way, just seems like yesterday. When she asked me to do her wedding flowers I was super thrilled and especially honored to accept her request. Knowing her favorite color is blue, it was no great surprise that she chose blue roses in combination with white roses, white gerber daisies, and fuchsia pink mini carnations. Silvery green eucalyptus was also added to compliment the bouquets, boutonnieres and corsages in keeping with Melissa’s accent color of silver.
It was a drizzly morning in June when I made the first delivery stop of the day to St. Matthew’s Anglican Church in Abbotsford with the arrangements for the ceremony. Two large white baskets filled with a generous mix of blue, white, and fuchsia pink flowers were placed on either side of the alter, and smaller arrangements adorned tables in the foyer.
One of two bountiful flower baskets that were on either side of the alter at the church. They were later transported to the reception venue to stand behind the head table. There I saw how HUGE they actually were – oh my! Well, my sister-in-law did ask for ‘lots of flowers’ in those puppies & I quite happily obliged <grin>!
From there, I went to my brother’s home to present Lissy & her bridesmaids with their personal flowers. I honestly think I was more excited for her to catch that first glimpse of her bouquet than she was. I had uniquely embellished the stems of her hand tie by ‘overlaying’ the white wrap with shimmery silver ribbon that trailed from the bottom of the bindings in staggered lengths. Small silver hearts were used to fasten fuchsia pink mini carns to the ends of each ribbon. She absolutely loved it!!
Lissy’s colorful hand tie was every bit the ‘delightful spark’ that she is in life, AND it was her dream bouquet! Her sister & maid of honor, carried white gerbers, fuchsia mini carns, a few blue roses, and ‘spirals’ of eucalyptus peaking through the blooms. All the girls wore periwinkle blue dresses that were the perfect backdrop for their white & pink posies. Lissy’s wedding gown was detailed with tiny beads that were blue – of course – giving her extra sparkle!
Back at the church I matched everyone up with their flowers and shared a ‘misty moment’ with my brother while pinning on his boutonniere because he was giving his last born ‘away’ that afternoon. The ceremony was lovely, and some of us cried. But they were happy tears as Ken & Lissy were joined in marriage.
The ‘boys in blue‘ for the boys!
And a stunning bride!
Suffice it to say, I remained ‘on call for flower emergencies’ as one of the groomsmen came looking for the ‘flower lady’ because his boutonniere had fallen off & he needed me to reattach it. Too funny! After one last floral delivery to the reception venue to bring the blue & white roses for the cake, my ‘job’ was done and I celebrated heartily with everyone else. Hubby & I even adopted a fish that night and named him ‘Shrimpton’ (aka Shrimpy). Who would have thought!
A blue Siamese Fighting fish in a bowl complete with blue beads adorned the center of each reception table. This is our ‘Shrimpy’ who we took home with us at the end of a fun evening.
A very proud aunt with my two beautiful and precious nieces!
Although I was kept hopping for most of the day, it was worth every minute – just to serve my sweet niece in such a special way by providing her with the flowers she so wanted & deserved. And despite the rain, it turned out to be a magical day for an awesome couple! Wishing you both much happiness & love always! Hugs & love from your Aunt B!
Introducing Mr. & Mrs. Shrimpton
P.S. They now have a son named Trevor who was born in March 2010 & is the spittin’ image of his Mom!
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