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A LOVELY MORNING AT SUOT FARM & FLOWERS

Last weekend I had the opportunity to visit SUOT Farm & Flowers located in Burlington, Washington, and spend  some time with the Sarah and her delightful family. It was the morning after that incredible (and quite unusual!) thunder and lightening storm. The earth the still very damp with a slight chill in the air; you could sense fall just around the corner. And there was a calm stillness about the morning – the kind that follows the energy of a fantastic storm.

When I arrived Sarah was playing Guess Who with her son, Huck. I then took a turn. I hadn’t played Guess Who in over twenty years and I had forgotten how much I loved it! Huck, even though he is only four years old, won the first game and came really close to winning the second game. Sarah’s husband, Keith, was in the kitchen making an egg bake and they graciously invited me to join them for breakfast.  It was a warm, warm welcome.

Sarah is a Washington flower farmer. She’s had her garden since 2012 and has been selling her flowers commercially for about 3 and a half years. SUOT stands for “small units of time” and Sarah explains the story behind that name on her website as coming from her grandfather who worked on big projects and life goals by breaking them down into smaller tasks, or smaller units of time. This concept of how working on something a little bit every day will result in a masterpiece had a great impact on Sarah. And I can say from being there first-hand that SUOT Farm & Flowers is nothing short of a masterpiece.

After breakfast Sarah gave me a tour of her garden. She primarily grows spring and fall crops when the Pacific Northwest rains are abundant. Sarah explained that she uses a technique of gardening called Hugelkultur, which essentially mimics what natures does in the forest community, where plants grow on top of decaying trees. By composting organic material in the same locations where you grow plants, the fertility in the soil builds, weeds are reduced, and soil retains its moisture. Perhaps this was the magic that caused Sarah’s gorgeous dahlias to re-grow on their own this season with the most fantastic blooms.

Sarah’s garden was absolutely wonderful to see in real life. She has beautiful foliages and flowers, and even fruit plants for cuttings. There were apple tress, blueberry bushes, raspberry bushes, currant plants, lavender bushes, drumstick allium, monkshood, hellebore, gladiolus, moneywort, yarrow, lady’s mantle, zinnias, garlic, and corylopsis to name a few. I snapped a few photos of some of these beautiful plants.

monkshood flowermonkshood flower and leavesa coral zinna and a coral dahliapink cosmos flower

 

Sarah also hosts botanically themed hands-on workshops. She mentioned a former workshop where participants got to make lavender wands. Lavender wands were often used in the middle ages for fragrance. People could perfume themselves when regular bathing was not as common as it is today. Women would tuck these wands into their bosoms to smell nice. You can find out about Sarah’s upcoming workshops HERE.

Before I left SUOT Farm and headed back home, Sarah sent me off with some garlic, potatoes, and a big beautiful bouquet of her lovely garden flowers. It was one of the best departing gifts that I have ever received. The bouquet is still sitting in my studio, as lovely as can be, and a cheerful reminder of nature’s incredible warmth. I cannot wait to use SUOT flowers for future weddings and events, and share the magic that grows there.

bouquet of locally grown colorful flowerscolorful flowers and potatoes

 

THE MAKINGS OF A FLORAL DESIGN STUDIO – PART 2

Back in April I planned to write a two part series about setting up my floral studio here in Washington. I have wanted a professional space of my own for many years and I personally enjoy behind the scenes glimpses, so I wanted to share this transformation with you. I am still putting the finishing, finishing touches on the space, so I am going to make “The Makings of a Floral Design Studio” into a three-part series, with one more still to come. All good things take time, right?

After getting the walls painted, all of the boxes of vases and supplies unpacked, and a handful of canvas prints hung up while my mom was in town earlier this year, I continued to focus on the aesthetic of the space, really, the feeling of the space. I always envisioned my studio to be colorful, cheerful, and welcoming. Since the studio doesn’t have any windows my mom had suggested putting up forest-themed wallpaper to give the illusion of being outside. There’s a number of studies saying that being in nature actually makes us happier and healthier. For simplicity reasons we decided on a floor to ceiling tree decal. Mom had gone back home by the time the decal had arrived, so my wonderful husband helped put it up. After we got the branches up I spent the next few hours sticking the leaves on…one at a time. I learned that decals require a lot of precision and patience! All good things take time, right? 😉

applying a tree decal on a wallinside of a floral design studio

 

After finishing with the tree decal and adding a few framed pictures of flowers, I went about tackling the functionality of the studio. The first step involved getting organized. I spent the next week sorting supplies, cleaning vases, and arranging all of it.

florist work spacefloral vases on shelves

 

The next step was to create a functional consultation space where I could meet with clients. Ever since I had first dreamed of my own studio space I envisioned a big table smack dab in the center of the room. My previous consultations had always involved taking over a coffee shop table. I would use the table as a platform for brainstorming and idea generation. It would be filled with inspiration images, a sketch pad, paint chips, and vases. The table was incredibly useful, a place where we could mix, match, play, and really get involved in the design of flowers. I just love when tactile elements can be used in collaboration. So, I needed a big table of my own.

My first attempt at a table was a total bust. After assembling one I bought online, I realized I didn’t like the way it looked and the way it fit the studio space. After going back to the drawing board I decided on a counter-height table, which feels more appropriate for a creative space. I love the look of butcher block and found the perfect counter-top at IKEA. My husband (did I mention that he is wonderful?) then built legs for the table.

building wooden table legs

We placed the butcher block counter-top on the legs to see if it would hold and how it would look, and I immediately knew it was the perfect table for meeting with clients. Handcrafted, wide, and sturdy. Just right!

brown floral design table

To give the table a more finished look, I decided to paint the legs. First I primed and then painted the legs a soft green color, similar to the green of my logo. I am generally drawn to cohesion and to see the evolution of the studio is joyful!

painting table legs greenwedding floral consultation table with green legs

 

Stay tuned for the third part of this blog series! I hope to have a video clip of the space so you can see how it is laid out and how the space flows. Better yet, I invite you to stop by and see the studio in person. I would love to invite you over and  make you a cup of coffee or tea. We can spend some time collaborating on gorgeous floral designs! After-all good things take time, right? 😉

TROPICAL VIBES AT SEATTLE’S OLYMPIC SCULPTURE PARK

One of the things I vowed last year was to be better at blogging. Back in Colorado with the craziness of wedding season, in addition to the other aspects of running a business, blogging had become a low priority…one that I rarely got around to. I even went an entire year without a single blog post! That is hard for me to admit, as I really enjoy writing. As a business owner, I am so appreciative of the vast amount of knowledge that lives online and I love learning from others. I want to contribute the expertise I have gained over the years as a Florist, and share the beautiful weddings and events that I am a part of to give floral inspiration to others.

I missed this Tuesday’s blog schedule, as I was in Hawaii, celebrating my parents’ 25th Wedding Anniversary. My sister and I had been planning a surprise dinner celebration for our mom and step-dad for over a year and it finally happened this past weekend. At the Kauai Marriott Beach Club, where our mom and step-dad first met almost thirty years ago, we held an intimate celebration with twenty-three friends and family. A lovely sit down dinner followed an informal ceremony on the beach. The evening was amazing and magical, and is an excuse I am willing to allow myself as to why I didn’t publish my weekly blog post on the schedule I had set. Like the palm trees, we need to ebb and flow with the winds and give ourselves a little grace.

So, this post is a couple days late, but I am excited to share with you beautiful images from Liam and Amanda’s wedding reception earlier this summer at Olympic Sculpture Park, courtesy of Molly Blair Photography. Liem and Amanda were actually married earlier in the Maldives, but they held a large reception in Seattle, so all their friends and family could celebrate with them. They wanted to bring the essence of the Maldives to their event, so we chose a mix of colorful, tropical flowers. Liem even sported a baby pineapple boutonniere!

I love juxtaposition of using tropical flowers in a non-tropical setting. And, especially, because tropical flowers always remind me of Kauai.

colorful tropical wedding bouquetgroom kissing bride holding colorful bouquetgroomsmen wearing colorful boutonnierestropical wedding centerpiecetropical centerpiecetropical centerpieces on white tablestropical arrangement on a welcome tablewedding reception at Olympic Sculpture Park in Seattlebride throwing toss bouquet

 

FLOWERS CAN POSITIVELY IMPACT THE WEDDING EXPERIENCE

I read an article the other day in The Atlantic about the connection between beauty and happiness. The article begins with the claim that, “Looking at lovely things can improve quality of life.” It goes on to discuss findings from the Goldberg study, which concluded that being surrounded by beautiful things/items/objects/areas had the greatest effect on people’s happiness, even more-so than the things we usually associate with happiness, including wealth, relationships, careers, and health. Needless to say, beautiful things are very important.

Which leads me to the importance of beautifully designed floral arrangements and how they can positively impact the wedding/event experience – a topic I have given a lot of thought to over the years. Once, early on in my career as a Wedding Florist, I was told by a bride that flowers weren’t important, because they were just going to die soon afterwards. I have heard this sentiment also expressed by other brides in online discussion forums. And it would make me sad when someone didn’t see the immense value of flowers. Yes, flowers in floral arrangements will indeed die. That is a fact and cannot be helped. But the impact that gorgeous floral arrangements and floral installations can make at your wedding is almost, I believe, invaluable, especially when our well-being is directly impacted beauty.

On my Investment Page I share testimonials from those who have been positively impacted by beautiful wedding florals and I will share them again here:

The Power of an intentionally handcrafted Bouquet

“Holding my bouquet made me feel more connected to the natural setting of my wedding. It didn’t really come all together before you delivered my bouquet and once I saw it, I felt immediate joy and connection to that place we fell in love with when we toured River Bend. I remember feeling like I was holding a bit of the fairy magic of that place when I got the bouquet, and it really helped set the tone and the mindset of the day for me.” ~ Ashlyn, Bride

bride holding a colorful wedding bouquet

The Power of a thoughtfully designed Ceremony

“The mantle piece Holly created for Jessica and Elijah’s wedding brought a lush warmth to an otherwise blank space. The blue and white florals and greens really pulled the whole look together and reflected the overall joy and elegance of the couple standing in front of them as they exchanged their vows to one another.” ~ Sarah, Wedding Planner

greenery and flowers on a mantle at a wedding ceremony

Flowers, greenery, and other decor elements that are purposefully combined together in an artistic expression of your vision can altar the entire experience of your wedding by elevating the aesthetic and enlivening the atmosphere. Flowers and other botanical elements bring life and a distinct energy to spaces. Not only are floral arrangements visually appealing, but they also can exude lovely scents. And if you stop to really take them in you can even feel their presence. That’s where the magic happens.

Years later your guests might not remember that your table centerpieces incorporated ranunculus or peonies or ferns specifically, for example, but they will remember the energy of your event – that it felt beautiful, that it felt natural and alive, and that it felt joyful. That’s the subtle power of great floral design and that’s why I believe that investing in florals is such an important part of celebrations.

 

 

LOCALLY GROWN DAHLIAS

colorful dahlias

It’s the middle of August and I love this time of year because that means locally grown dahlias are available. Washington, I’ve been learning, has a similar growing season for dahlias as does Colorado. Dahlia season starts at the beginning of August and goes through the end of September. Every once in a great while you can still get locally grown dahlias in early October, but that all depends whether the first frost of the season has occurred. Yes, you can get dahlias that are not locally grown at other times of the year, but dahlias do not transport well and many times the flower is compromised. The good solid two months of locally grown dahlias, however, is absolutely fabulous. I will take two wonderful months with these beauties!

Back in Colorado my go-to farm for locally grown dahlias was Arrowhead Dahlias. Julie and Calvin, the owners, grew so many beautiful varieties and always were a joy to visit. Being at Arrowhead you always felt like you were immersed in a sea of color and beauty. It was one of my absolute favorite places for flowers! Here in Washington there are a few dahlia-only farms and many other farms that grow dahlias, along with other varieties of flowers. The Seattle Wholesale Growers Market is a central point for locally grown Washington dahlias.

If you are getting married in August or September, I encourage you to consider incorporating dahlias into your floral arrangements. Here’s why I love locally grown dahlias:

  • There are SO many colors to choose from!
  • They are fresh, strong, and hearty.
  • They have a high petal count and often a full, bulbous shape – they make a great focal flower!
  • They go well with many different event styles: natural, organic, garden, boho, rustic, classic, elegant, etc.

 

Below are some of my favorite designs using these magnificent, special flowers. Enjoy!

bridesmaids in burgundy

Picture courtesy of Jessica Christie Photography

colorful bridal bouquet with burgundy dahlias

Picture courtesy of Caitlin Hamilton Photography

Indian mandap with white flowers

Picture courtesy of Dylan Burr Photography

wedding reception dinner tables with flowers

Picture courtesy of Dylan Burr Photography

jewel toned bridal bouquet

Picture courtesy of Drake & Co. Photography + Films

colorful and unique bridal bouquet

Picture courtesy of Mallory Olenius Photography

 

 

FLORAL INSPIRATION TO COMPLIMENT A PICTURESQUE VIEW OF SEATTLE

This past weekend I helped another Seattle Wedding Florist. The east side venue where their wedding took place  was located on top of a hill and had an incredible view of Seattle, Lake Washington, and the surrounding area. It was gloriously breathtaking.

While the ceremony was located at a different part of the property, I thought how lovely it would be to say your vows with this incredible view of Seattle as the backdrop. From a design point of view I wouldn’t want to block the view, but rather incorporate flowers and greenery to compliment the view.

The first design I sketched out involves Queen Anne’s Lace…lots and lots of Queen Anne’s Lace. In Colorado during the summer you’ll notice wild sunflowers everywhere. The wild flower of the Pacific Northwest is Queen Anne’s Lace. Delicate and unassuming you could easily overlook it, but once you notice it you cannot un-notice it. And the simplicity of just the Queen Anne’s Lace is beautiful. And, at least in Woodinville where the studio is located, it’s everywhere. How perfect would this ceremony backdrop be for such a spectacular view of Seattle?

simple and elegant wedding ceremony flowers

The next design I sketched out was inspiration that evolved from the idea of an infinity pool popping into my head with how blue and expansive the sky was. The idea then evolved into inspiration of ocean waves, which I loved. This ceremony decor would be built using all shades of blue hydrangea and then incorporating false spirea for added wisps of movement. Are you loving the blue on blue as much as I am?

Blue hydrangea wedding ceremony backdrop

 

Incorporating flowers into your wedding ceremony, even if you are getting married somewhere with a beautiful backdrop, can make the setting unique and even more stunning.

WEDDINGS ARE AWESOME – AND I’M NOT JUST SAYING THAT BECAUSE I’M A WEDDING FLORIST

My husband and I recently celebrated our second wedding anniversary. Our wedding feels like it was yesterday, so hitting the two year mark reminded me, again, how fast times goes by. I still think of myself as a newlywed. Can one still be a “newlywed” after two plus years of marriage? That is a debate for another day, I guess.

Though my time to be a bride has come and gone, I often look back at our wedding photos to relive the profound joy that we experienced. I felt compelled to write this post, because there is an abundance of articles on the internet about wedding regrets, why elopements are better than formal weddings, and even why weddings are a complete waste of money. I am in the wedding industry, yes, but putting aside my Wedding Florist hat, I wanted to share with you why I feel that weddings are important, amazing, and worth the investment. Because I loved my wedding so, so much, here is my case for having a grand celebration.

Deep Expressions of Love; Shared, Heightened

The two parts that I love most about a wedding is the ceremony (I always, ALWAYS cry at wedding ceremonies!) and the reception speeches. I love the raw, authentic feeling of personal vows and getting to see a glimpse into the depths of love and emotion. There are not many occasions in life that allow for such intense, public displays of affection. And while I think the act of saying your vows out loud to your significant other is profound in and of itself, I feel that saying them out loud in front of those who know you best transcends a new level of connection, which extends to everyone you love. Vows are incredibly powerful!

groom saying wedding vowsbride and groom saying vows

Wedding speeches can also be raw and emotional. The importance of a wedding – the joining of two people and of two families coming together creates a collective bond. Wedding speeches and toasts are one of the expressions of this union. I love how every speech has a different feeling to it, given by the person delivering the speech. Every person that stood up at our wedding to say something delivered a message of love, thought, and heart. t was so beautiful to hear.

wedding speechbride crying at a wedding reception

The Epitome of Beautiful, Personalized Decor + Delicious Food

I cannot think of other celebration that would call for an abundance of flowers and decor that has been designed for specifically for you, with your particular style and taste at the forefront. The transformation of a space that reflects you and your partner is incredible to see realized. Wedding reception food, as well, also adds to this elevated experience. The food you eat on your wedding day will have been created for you, specifically, with intent and your preferences. Meaningful, beautiful things draw us in and can enhance our experience.

outdoor wedding ceremony

You Get to Dance Like No One is Watching

The last time that I had a full-blown dance party was at our wedding reception. That’s two years too long!! Especially so, because I love dancing. But as life evolves there seem to be less and less opportunities to dance without any inhibitions. And dancing with those that you love to commemorate your wedding is one of the most joyful things that I have witnessed. Everyone is together, having fun, and celebrating. Being silly. Being free.

people dancing at a wedding

I am pretty sure this was the moment I realized a Michael Jackson song was starting to play.

bride and groom dancing at a wedding reception

Being Surrounded By Loved Ones

There has never been another occasion where I have had so many significant, special people in one place at one time. They were all there to have celebrate and support our marriage (and to have fun!). It was the most incredible, magical time that I don’t think could ever be recreated. And that makes it even more special.

outdoor wedding ceremony

 

As a Florist in the wedding industry for several years I knew that weddings were lovely and beautiful. I was part of that behind-the-scenes transformation process, after-all. I would feel that deep contentment and peace with being a wedding guest. But I didn’t really know how fun, amazing, and truly magical a wedding could be until my own wedding experience. The memories of that day and of that weekend will be with me forever. It is truly a gift that keeps on giving.

Have I convinced you yet to have a formal wedding?

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    FLORAL INSPIRATION AT TWIN WILLOW GARDENS

    I recently joined a professional networking group, the Snohomish Wedding Guild (SWG). The SWG resides in Snohomish, WA and includes wedding vendors in all categories: venues, caterers, planners, florists, officiants, hair and make-up, deejays, rentals, and so on. While the Guild is open to all businesses, venues and event spaces have to be physically located in Snohomish County.

    Every year the Snohomish Wedding Guild hosts the Snohomish Wedding Tour, a self-directed tour of multiple Snohomish venues, each venue with a team of exhibiting vendors. It’s an incredible display of professionalism, talent, and creativity. It’s a wonderful opportunity for couples who are thinking of having their wedding in Snohomish County to meet with potential vendors in person and to get a feel for their style and personality.

    I attended the Snohomish Wedding Tour this year as a guest and the first venue I visited was Twin Willow Gardens, which I fell in love with immediately. What an absolutely stunning location! At Twin Willow Gardens forest paths lead to gorgeous flower gardens and a tented reception area sits in the center of the gardens. There is also a full cement patio with a beautiful antique firehouse door backdrop. The beautiful outdoor setting actually reminded me of my own wedding, which was held outdoors in Colorado. I was flooding me with the fondest, most wonderful memories.

    The Cedar Chapel, the main ceremony space at Twin Willow Gardens, is down a wooded path that leads to an opening with a large, hand-crafted wood beam arch centered in the back. This ceremony space is absolutely magical – you feel like you are in an enchanted forest! I was so inspired by this beautiful ceremony setting that I sketched out several potential floral backdrop ideas. The ideas just kept coming! I hope you also fall in love with this ceremony space and are inspired by the feeling of this stunning place just as much as I was.

     

    Enchanted Forest Floral Lunaria Tree

    For this backdrop I decided to “re-grow” the tree to the left of the arch by creating a “trunk” made of Combo roses, Quicksand roses, Champagne sweetheart roses, mood moss, and sheet moss. The branches would be made from curly willow and adorned with dried lunaria and fairy lights. I had come across a lunaria backdrop once in a wedding blog and was taken aback with its strikingly simplistic beauty. From that moment I, too, wanted to create something amazing with dried lunaria! And how perfect would a lunaria tree be at Twin Willow Gardens?? The cedar wood arch would get a lovely curtain of Spanish moss, white astilbe (you could also use Queen Anne’s Lace, Pepper Grass, or False Spirea), and ribbon, with Champagne rose blooms attached at the bottom of the ribbon strands.

    lunaria tree with floral trunk sketch

    Enchanted Forest Floral Willow Tree

    I actually did this sketch before the dried lunaria tree. I thought it would be fun and oh-so-fitting to create a willow tree for Twin Willow Gardens. Instead of dried lunaria fixed to the curly willow branches I would use willow eucalyptus. An asymmetric floral curtain would hang from the arch behind the tree.

    willow tree with a floral trunk sketch

    Enchanted Forest Illumination

    I love the look of old growth, undisturbed forest. To achieve a natural shape of growth movement I saw the cedar arch covered in moss, branches, and fairy lights. The curly willow would start from the ground and climb up the arch. Floral clusters would wind their way up the tree trunks, but also go part-way up the arch. The arch would be covered with a base of mood moss and sheet moss. Spanish moss and white delphinium would hang down from the top beam.

    enchanted forest wedding ceremony

    Patterned Quilt Inspiration

    For some reason when I looked at the cedar arch structure I also envisioned a quilt. Probably because it has such a solid, rectangular shape. While I personally tend to gravitate towards asymmetric designs, I decided to sketch out a quilt-inspired pattern created from floral pomander balls, illuminated grapevine balls, and chevron-style lines of hanging delphinium, stock, and spray roses. The wood beams of the arch would be covered in mood moss, sheet moss, and rose blooms.

    ceremony flowers hanging from arch

    Diagonal Dried Lunaria

    For this last sketch I decided to go with a very simple design, which goes against my tendency to incorporate lots of texture and lots of movement. Fairly recently in a wedding publication I had come across a backdrop of dried lunaria in the shape of a curtain. It was absolutely gorgeous and ignited a love of dried lunaria in me. In following the sharp angles of the cedar arch, I decided to split the arch into two pieces with a diagonal piece of wood, wedged in between two corners. Dried lunaria would stick out from either side of the diagonal piece of wood. This would be a modern, artistic interpretation of a feather or perhaps even of a fern.

    wedding ceremony with lunaria

     

    So which ceremony design do you resonate most with?? Are there other colors/shapes you would like to see? Let’s see what show-stopper we can create together!

    THE EVOLUTION OF A CREATIVE BUSINESS

    I was utterly new to the world of formal entrepreneurship when I first started my floral design business back in 2011. At first I was primarily focused on figuring out all the legalities with running a business. While the business name was important, I initially didn’t give it that much thought. I actually came up with my first business name relatively easily and quickly. It was a name that I thought was perfect: Designs Abloom.

    After spending about six months formally as Designs Abloom (registering with the Secretary of State, getting set up with the Colorado Department of Revenue, printing business cards, etc.) I started having doubts about my chosen name. My mom would get confused and sometimes refer to my business as “Flowers Abloom”. I reasoned that if my own mother couldn’t remember the name of my business then how could I expect anyone else, who wouldn’t care half as much, to remember correctly? I decided that Designs Abloom, the name I had once thought was great, was actually so vanilla (vanilla – not bad, but nothing special or unique). To me, the most successful businesses had a company name that was either witty, cool, or sophisticated…or all three, and especially memorable. Hence, naming a business something silly or lame or vanilla was a precursor to utter failure. Naming my floral design business, therefore, was not something to be taken lightly.

    What followed was two years of re-naming agony. For the first multiple weeks I brainstormed all the possible floral design names I could come up with. I had decided that using my name would be best (after-all, there was another Florist in town who had started her business a few years back and was more successful than me. And that Florist had named her business after herself). So I came up with a list of potential business names:

    Holly Ann Floral
    Holly Ann Floral Design
    Holly Ann Flowers
    Holly Kerr Floral
    Holly Kerr Floral Design
    Holly Kerr Flowers
    Holly Floral Design
    Holly’s Floral Celebrations
    Holly Ann Floral Unfold
    Holly Flourish
    Holly’s Floral Radiance
    Holly Flowers Designed
    Holly Ann Designs Abloom
    Holly Kerr Designs Abloom

    All of my friends were included in the voting of these business names, which involved several rounds of emails: Pick your top three names. Which of these top three names do you like the best? Are you sure this name seems good?

     

    While this was going on I happened to stumble upon another Florist whose business name involved a color + name of a flower, which I really liked. And another, though smaller, round of possible business names was generated:

    Green Feather Floral Design
    Silver Locket Floral Design
    Crimson Locket Floral Design

    After lots of indecision I briefly decided on Polka Dot Blossoms for my new business name, the idea coming from one of my brides who wanted polka dot ribbon for her bouquet wrap. I thought the polka dots were kind of cute. And my plan was to wear a polka dotted scarf to every floral consultation. Who could forget a Florist in polka dots?? Now that was memorable.

    Not too long afterwards I then came to the conclusion that the best part of a wedding was the bouquet toss, and so I registered my business as Toss Floral Design. That name lasted for more than a year before I was informed of all the not-so-pleasant meanings of the word “toss”. A new business was needed.

    In early 2013 I was sitting in my car on my lunch break fretting about what the heck I was going to call my floral design business. I literally felt like I was back at square one with any ambitions to build a successful floral design business. How was I going to do anything if I couldn’t even decide on a business name?? In typical Holly fashion I was looking online to other Florists for inspiration when a testimonials page caught my attention. The page was titled, “Love Letters.” In that moment my business became Love Letters Floral Design and stayed that way until the end of 2018.

    One would think after all the time, attention, investment, and effort, that name Love Letters Floral Design would be forever. But with the move to Washington and having to start my business over, I decided to re-brand and settled on Holly Yee Floral Architecture. You can read more about this decision in a previous BLOG POST and learn the BACK STORY of why I chose the term “architecture”.

    All the name changes and the aesthetic design changes that my business has gone through is *almost* amusing. This business journey has been quite the long and winding ride, you could say! I have learned that while the business name does carry some weight, ultimately, it’s just a small amount of weight. What’s more important is your craft, your customer service, your relationships, and your mindset. Take it from me – don’t let the agony of choosing a business name hold you back for too long. On the other hand, maybe it’s the slow and winding road that you need to take to get you to the place where you really need to be. You can be your own judge on that one.

    FLORAL INSPIRATION AT AXIS PIONEER SQUARE

    The other week I had coffee with a lovely Wedding Planner and Event Manager, Melissa. Melissa owns Bright Side Events, but also manages events at AXIS Pioneer Square. She took me on a tour of AXIS after finishing our coffee and I immediately could see why so many love this Seattle event venue. AXIS Pioneer Square is located in the historic Globe Building of Pioneer Square, which was built in 1890 for the Globe Navigation Company, a shipbuilding operation.

    AXIS Pioneer Square opened for events in 2013 and the 10,000 square foot facility can host up to 550 people when using both the Main Space and the Corner Gallery. They do a variety of events including wedding ceremonies and receptions, corporate events, and parties. Inside the walls are a beautiful exposed brick and the floors are hardwood. 18 foot built in brick arches stand prominently in the center of the building, adjoining two large open areas.

    Inspired by the wall of world globes at AXIS Pioneer Square and the fact that the venue lives in the historic Globe Building, I thought it would be neat to create a backdrop that looked like a map of the world. This world map design would be fun as a photo wall for a corporate/community/social event.  The continents would be created out of reindeer moss, the different colors of moss corresponding to the different geographical features within the various continents. Fairy light would be embedded in the moss to mimic cities at night.  Both light blue and dark blue delphinium would swirl around the continents representing the vast, moving ocean. It would be spectacular!

    floral backdrop at AXIS Pioneer Square Seattle

    I was also inspired to bring to life another idea I had for a floral backdrop at AXIS Pioneer Square, this one perhaps more fitting for a wedding ceremony. Occidental Square, a public park, sits just outside of AXIS and is lines with tall trees, ornate street lights, and potted flowers. It’s a gorgeous setting that I wanted to essentially bring inside. To create this I would build two trees, birch poles for the trunks and birch branches for the tree branches. Silver dollar eucalyptus would be used for the leaves and (of course!) strands of fairy lights would wind their way up both trees. Centered inside both trees would be two English style street lamps with globe lights. A large floral basket would hang from each street lamp and would include smilax, nandina, Beatrice garden roses, Cardin Mill old English roses from Grace Rose Farm, yellow spray roses, and snowberry.

    wedding reception at AXIS Pioneer Square Seattle

    AXIS Pioneer Square is a clean design slate (and a gorgeous one for that matter) and there is so much potential for unparalleled transformation of the space. Are you holding an event at AXIS Pioneer Square? I would love to help you make it a historic, monumental occasion!

    Holly Yee

     

    Hello and welcome! Thanks so much for taking time to stop by my part of the internet. I have been working with flowers for a long time and I just love helping people make their celebrations absolutely stunning. It is an honor and a priviledge to be a part of weddings and other special events.

    In addition to floral design my other loves are yoga, coffee, the outdoors, and my husband and all the amazing people in my life.

     

     

    Feel like talking flowers?

     

    OUR STUDIO IS OPEN BY APPOINTMENT ONLY

    17708 134th Avenue NE,

    Woodinville, WA 98072

     

     

    CONTACT US

    Email: holly@hollyyee.com

    Phone: 425.877.9287