This is not your mother's BRIDAL SHOWER!

Recently I was asked to participate in a new kind of Bridal Shower. Abby Liga and Sabrina James enlisted several amazing vendors to gather together & change the way we look at Bridal Showers.  The Bride is a client of many of us, and has a great vision! The shower will be featured this year in Orlando Magazine & Some vendors participated: Lisa Konency of E-events, Lee Forrest of lee forrest design, Anna Hightower of Anna Cakes, Abby Liga of Liga Photography, Heidi Brice from Puff n' Stuff, & The Flipbook People.


The idea was to throw a shower that is new, fresh, fun and sophisticated. Try and break out of the traditional home-made cake, bridal games, etc. 


They came to me with colors, and an idea. A modern day party from the Pages of The Great Gatsby!  This was a challenge but very exciting. I was commissioned to create everything from tray cards, brand signs, invites, etc.


What we did to keep cost down was create 1 amazing invitation for the Bride-to-Be, and then made matching ones for the rest of the guest.  The picture above shows both invitations. 


The Bride-to-Be Invitation (below) was part Gatsby tradition, part Modern Trend.  We started with a wooden box, pearlized it, lined it with ivory lace and kelly green ribbon, and topped it with ribbon and pearls. On the inside a fan made from feathers with a tassel of pearls and ribbon. The paper used, was a white Metallic Linen, complimented by an Ivory Classic Crest. Both of Neenah Paper. (ps all photography by Abby Liga)

The Invitations for the Guests were a dialed down version of the above.  We mixed White Metallic Linen with Ivory Classic Crest, Accented it with 2 White Ostrich Feathers, 2 Pearls and Intertwined Ribbon. An Ivory Metallic Envelope finished it off!

Meet (from l to r) Kelly Davis, Danielle Stults (BRIDE TO BE) and Sabrina James dressed in true Gatsby style!

Some of the cool Paper we created for the event! Our theme throughout was carried through, Pearls, Lace, Ribbon, Metallic Linen. It created an amazing effect in conjunction with all the beautiful lighting, cakes, floral and food.  You can see the environment below. 

The Flip Book People added some interaction to the event and a great time was had by all!  As you can see all of the participants were amazing and did their part! This is ONE LUCKY BRIDE! 

FAVORITE FRIDAYS!

Drumroll Please..........Favorite Fridays is here again. And this week, my friend and amazing florist  LEE FORREST. Okay let's forget the fact that he has the most perfect name ever for the business he is in. His work is AMAZING!!. We finally just recently got to work together on a Bridal Shower, and of course his contribution was nothing short of AMAZING.

Check out some of his work below and learn about him from the Q & A! You can't go wrong showcasing his beautiful designs at any event you are throwing.

Why did you decide to become a floral designer? 

I’ve always loved flowers—it’s the first thing I can ever remember wanting to be when I was five years old.  Even then, we knew that I had the creative gene, so to speak.  LOL!  Forty years later, here I am! 

How did you get started? 

I worked with other top designers in Louisville and Indianapolis before moving to Orlando in 1997.  When I finally decided that this would be my permanent home, I started building my business from home on the side, while working a day job with another well-known designer in town.  Eventually, my clientele base and my reputation grew enough that I could support myself with my own business.  When the business overtook my little one bedroom apartment near Lake Eola, I moved into my current storefront location.  We could definitely use more space, but we have also kept our overhead low and that has been crucial to our being able to survive these economic times and keeping our prices as low as possible to our clients.  We are considered higher-end, but we are also budget friendly. 
 

 

NOTE: this is the event we worked on together, and let me just say he took the invitations I designed and created these beautiful arrangements to further develop the concept we all were working so hard to create. 

Why are these your favorite designs? 

I love anything that is non-traditional and edgey.  Using wire, concrete blocks and other unexpected elements is another way for me to be creative and stand apart from my colleagues, but still maintaining sophistication and elegance.  Even people with discriminating traditional tastes find our work interesting.  Wire, especially, has kind of become a signature look for us.  

If a bride has an unlimited budget, what should she spend most of her money on?  

A good photographer—to capture your special day so that you can remember it for the rest of your life.  In fifty years to come--the food is gone, the flowers are gone, the music is gone—and the only thing  a bride will have to show for her wedding are her pictures---and a little old wrinkled man.   Pictures are SO important!  




Lee and his team will not let you down, I have just showcased only a FEW of the amazing pieces he has created over the years!
LEE FORREST