Following Your Heart

For me following my heart in floral work means following nature. As I’ve grown as a wedding florist, I have become very attuned to making bouquets that resemble flowers in their natural world. Muted colors or bright colors, but always colors that you would see naturally. And my bouquet styles always lean toward the organic, unstructured, whimsical way flowers would grow in my garden.

Beautiful Photos by Hannah Jo Photography

Another way I follow my heart is when I connect with a bride because of her wedding style. Sarah came to me as a referral (my favorite way to get new clients) and her wedding colors were mauve, dusty rose and cream for an October wedding. I was already dreaming of what flowers I would choose before we were even done talking!

Sarah and Eric

The flowers I used were quicksand roses, amnesia roses, cottage yarrow, blushing bride protea, burgundy astrantia and terra cotta carnations, with caspia and mixed eucalyptus. The wedding was held at Twisted Pine Farms in Hutchinson, Kansas.

I love that Sarah chose to use her floral arch inside behind the cake table after the ceremony. It was too pretty to leave outside!

What a sweet photo! Sarah’s mom and dad were both so kind to me as I was setting up this wedding and we discovered we knew several people in common, including my good friend Lynnette!

Thank you all so much for letting me be a part of this beautiful day, and please keep sending me your referrals!

Sarah’s Bouquet unfiltered

The Everything Shortage

I just read an article called “America is Running Out of Everything” by Derek Thompson. He called it the Everything Shortage and I know we are all experiencing some version of this in our own lives.

My recent examples:

• Black beans- Walmart online would only let me purchase two cans and I needed three!

• McDonald’s- I just wanted a medium coffee with three creams at 9am at the drive through and there were 20 cars in front of me not moving. So I got out of line and went to Wendy’s.

• Wendy’s- Only three cars, and they had coffee! But no medium or small cups so I had to get a large. ( Which was fine with me BTW).

• White flowers for weddings- so few options, lots of substitutions and higher prices.

Which brings me to the point of this blog. I just want to sincerely say thank you to all the couples I work with for allowing me the creative license to choose the specific flowers for your wedding. For trusting me to make the best possible choice given all my current options. The Everything Shortage has hit the wedding world too with shortages of not only flowers, but vases, corsage glue, and other basic design supplies. But the floral industry as a whole is trying VERY hard to make sure you have the wedding of your dreams. The wholesalers are scrambling to source your flowers, local growers are stepping up to offer more options and florists are sharing supplies with each other. 

I’m sharing this with you just to let your know you are appreciated for your patience and understanding. When I place your order, I’m usually very picky about specific varieties/names of every flower I order, but this year I’ve learned to be patient and understanding as well. And so far everything has turned out beyond expectations, even if I didn’t quite get my first choice on everything. So hang in there if you are also feeling the effects of these shortages right now. Everything will be perfectly beautiful on your wedding day!

Jenny Marie Photography

Hannah Kraus Photography

Ashton and Dustin at Cider Gallery in Lawrence, Kansas

The notes from my first consult with Ashton about her wedding flowers still make me smile. Dusty blush, bronze, berries, grasses, vermilion, rust, textural. She was definitely speaking to my heart as a florist with all the artistic elements she pictured for her wedding. It was a joy to work with her and her ideas! (all photos by Clay and Maggie Swanson, @clay_and_maggie)

The wedding was August 22, 2020 and the colors Ashton and Dustin chose for their wedding were rust/vermilion, navy and mixed greenery. I used magnolia leaves, olive branch, agonis, ruscus and eucalyptus to get the color and texture we were looking for.

Here are some of the detail pieces: The hexagon backdrop (made by her dad) with mixed flowers, agonis, kangaroo paw and lots of Italian Ruscus, a lantern with rust mums and viburnum berries, and the cake with Toffee roses and eucalyptus.

This is one of my favorite pictures! Something about ring bearers and flower girls! Her sweet flower crown was made with Brown Sugar spray roses on a plumosus crown.

Just another picture of the bouquet and the bridesmaids so we can gush over the color of those dresses!

When I get the opportunity to do wedding flowers for a family I know it somehow makes my job easier. My connection to Ashton was many things- church, 4H, family friends, and her grandmother and I are Master Gardeners together in Lyon County. I feel like I have some helpful insight, and even more important, I like picturing what they will think when they see the flowers for the first time. I am thinking of all those connections when I’m designing.

Ashton’s bouquet was a mix of all the things I’ve already mentioned and a few blessings from my garden like millet, ninebark and Russian sage. It was a lovely day at a lovely venue with a lovely couple. I wish them many happy days and happy memories in their new life together!

Rustic Boho Fall Wedding at Mill Creek Lodge in Alma, Kansas

The weather was absolutely perfect for an outdoor fall wedding. The setting was too. The wedding of Abby and Dayton Allen was held on October 19, 2019 at a beautifully restored barn/lodge venue on Mill Creek in Alma, Kansas. Abby’s idea for a rustic boho wedding was pulled together with vintage carpets, macrame, bolo ties, and fall colors including burgundy, blush, forest green, and burnt orange with lots of copper accents.

Big copper mums, peach carnations, hanging amaranthus, pepperberry, orange waxflower and agonis were used to adorn a pumpkin for the entry.

The groom’s boutonniere was a single brown cymbidium orchid with waxflower and copper wire.

This might be my favorite part of the decor. Dayton built a rustic tepee frame for the ceremony backdrop and we added the florals. Pampas grass, rust, peach, and burnt orange flowers with lots of mixed greenery including agonis, ruscus, and silver dollar eucalyptus.

Why do the girls look way more serious than the boys? Good question that only the photographer may know the answer to! Aren’t these photos beautiful? All by the amazing Hannah Kraus Photography. And another favorite detail of Abby’s inspiration is the hoops for the bridesmaids with mixed greenery, fall flowers and succulents.

This beautiful bouquet checked all my boxes- garden style, lots of texture, vibrant color palette and interesting florals. I loved the way it turned out and think it captured Abby’s dream of a rustic boho wedding.

One more thing that made this wedding so very special- Dayton and Abby are family- and it was a joy and an honor to be the florist for their beautiful fall wedding. I wish them all the very best in their new life together.

If you are newly engaged and want to talk about pretty flowers with me for your 2020 wedding (or 2021!) just hit the Check My Date button at the top of this page! I have some AMAZING couples booked for the new year but I’m looking for some more! Are you one of those couples? I would love to get to know you and talk about your wedding. And if I was your florist and you are seeing this give me shout out if you loved your wedding flowers. Thank you so much!