Wednesday 18 November 2009

Sympathy Flowers




As well as the happy events we get involved in on a weekly basis, we also provide floral tributes for a large number of funerals.  Whilst they are sad events, they are so important to family and friends and it is imperative that the flowers are just right for such an occasion.  We work to understand whether there were any favourite flowers, any particular colour schemes that worked, and also whether there were any particular styles that the individual would have favoured.  We also think it is nice for the family to include their own personalities and thoughts in the flowers...e.g. we made a hornet for one family as the gentleman was a Watford FC fan, but we had to make sure that it looked grumpy as he was never happy watching them play!

As the main family flowers, we often provide coffin sprays which are a focal point during the funeral.  They are generally 4 - 5 ft in length, but can made to any size.  They also vary in style and in colour according to personal choice.  Some people prefer the more contemporary styles we provide, whereas others want them to be soft and flowing.  Colours can be muted and simple, or vibrant and noticeable...the one multi-coloured coffin spray at the top of the blog was designed for a gentleman who loved buying flowers, but always chose one of this colour, one of that etc and ended up with mixed and vibrant vases full of flowers.  We've included a variety of styles and colours below from some recent funerals.







Some families prefer to all follow a theme and yet provide their own tributes as can be seen with the sunflowers below.  We may even have multiple tributes to place onto a coffin top to ensure that each member of the close family has a tribute they feel comfortable with.


When designing names or words, it is important to remember that these have to be placed alongside the coffin, rather than on top, and hence are not usually the main floral tribute.  We always take great care in adding stylish and unusual top sprays on the letters and once again using flowers that have a special meaning for the family.





All manner of shapes can be provided and we have provided teapots, butterflies, a 3d cats and teddy bears, daleks, tardis, steam train etc....the list is endless.  They all take a little time to prepare but can look stunning.  Our recent favourite was the multi-coloured textured butterfly...the raised hydrangea body looked very striking and as a large piece, it was one that really stood out.




Finally, we provide tributes of smaller sizes for friends and for more distant family.  Often we will follow the colour scheme or style used elsewhere but sometimes, customers will just have an idea they would like to work with, or will see something they like in our portfolios and we will adapt them to suit.  We have included a few different items below.





It is well to remember that all our sympathy flowers are designed individually and with great care and attention.  This is the last thing that can be done for someone, and it is important to get it right.  We will spend as much time as is needed to ensure that this is the case.  We hope you like the work featured.

Combe By Candlelight



Last week, we were asked to dress the upper sections of Combe Bank School for a Candlelit event for future wedding couples.  We were thrilled to be given the Chapel as part of our brief, as we know how great this can look by candlelight.  We decided to keep with ivory, green and a touch of gold for this room, given the interior decor and it looked really elegant.  We used Green Tea and Maroussia roses, green and ivory cymbidium orchids, Skimmia Kew, Anthuriums, Longiflora Lilies and ilex and other foliage.

  
We candlelit the aisle with freestanding candlesticks and also low level Smart Candles which looked really effective and quite atmospheric both in the evening, and during the daytime.


We then decided to use a warmer theme of reds, lime green and oranges in the entrance hall alcoves and kept the arrangements large and "wooshy" incorporating battery operated fairy lights as well as the Smart Candles....it's just as well that the batteries last a long time, as we forgot to turn them off in the Entrance Hall when we left and only discovered them when we turned up for Saturday's event.  Oh well, it goes to show that they will last through any event!






We based ourselves in the Adam Room for the event and were lucky enough to talk to lots of lovely wedding couples.  We even managed to persuade one groom that the colour scheme his bride wanted was perfect for the venue, and managed to persuade another couple that it was such a great venue that they came back for a personal show-around the following day!  For the Adam Room, we decided to keep the decoration quite simple with a large mantelpiece arrangement, roses through chair backs and two mirrored cubes on the celebrant table.  We used a range of purples and pinks, which worked well with the fabulous ceiling and it looked equally good in candlelight and the following day in natural light.



We love Combe Bank and it was so nice to see it fully dressed and looking lovely as it gave the couples a better idea of how it could look for their special day.  The weather was truly horrible on both days, so it shows how keen couples were to view the venue and brave the weather.  Teresa from http://www.inspiredweddingvenues.com/  did a great job with all the organisation and advertising and I think everyone would agree what a great event it was....we look forward to the next one.




Monday 9 November 2009

Neil's Birthday Party at the Hop Farm





At the weekend, we provided the flowers for Neil's "significant" birthday party at the Hop Farm. Cynthia (Neil's wife) wanted a vibrant mix of lime green, orange and black, and given the close proximity to Halloween, we decided to add a hint of "battiness" to the flowers. The bats were very happy flying around the tablecentres, which we kept largely low in height but with an exotic Strelitzia and some Anigozanthus in the centre to give a sense of height whilst remaining open and guest friendly. With the ceiling in Whites at the Hop Farm being low, beamed and adorned with hops, we feel that the lower table centres work better in this environment.




For the buffet table, we added a taller, dramatic arrangement full of exotic flowers and to finish the bat theme, we added edible sugar bats to the table....Ozzy Osbourne eat your heart out!


On each table and on the buffet table, we added tall frosted Smart Candles to give a flicker and glow when the lights were lowered later in the evening. As we were lucky enough to be invited along to the party, we could see the candles to their best effect later in the evening. It was a lovely party and I think Cynthia's choice of flowers were perfect for Neil and the overall colour scheme. It was also great to be invited, although a little nerve-wracking knowing that people knew that we had supplied the flowers. We hope everyone liked them.

Friday 6 November 2009

Natalie and Lee's wedding at Boxley Church and Detling


Natalie and Lee had a few problems in the run up to their wedding, and ended up having to change venues, chase the wedding dress after the shop shut down, and change the design of the cake, but it was all worth the worry for Natalie in the end....she looked calm and radiant on her wedding morning and they had a lovely day. Poor Natalie has ended up with a terrible cold after the wedding and on her honeymoon, but I'm sure the photos will cheer her up again when they arrive.

Natalie wanted a contemporary ivory and chocolate brown theme and wanted her flowers to look a little different. We thus opted to use split and rolled Pandamues and variegated aspidistra leaves throughout her shower bouquet along with china, bear and lily grass. The flowers chosen were Hot Chocolate and Avalanche calla lilies along with Gletsjer roses. The overall result was elegant and yet fresh and a little different.

For the bridesmaids, we opted for elegant overarm bouquet of Gletsjer roses along with split and rolled black tie leaves and were finished with ivory and chocolate brown ribbon.

For the Flower Girl, we provided a large Gletsjer rose wand surrounded with chocolate brown narrow and fluffy feathers and then finished the stem with chocolate brown and ivory ribbon.


And as for the cake....what a great idea...I know Natalie had some traumas regarding her choice of cake, but the idea of a layer of French Fancies and a large version for the top tier was inspired. The floral topper we added to the bottom tier just brought everything together with the rest of the flowers.

Annette and John's wedding at Tudor Park

Annette and John's recent wedding was a very soft, romantic and pretty wedding which was reflected in the choice of flowers. Annette wanted a particularly soft look to the bridal flowers and we used Sweet Avalanche, La Belle and Avalanche roses to give the main colour palette and added ranunculus and freesias along with aromatic rosemary to give a very English and slightly vintage feel to the flowers. Annette's bouquet was particularly pretty and we used the full mix of roses to give a little extra colour. A nice extra touch was the naming of the guest tables using each of the flowers used in Annette's bouquet....very pretty.

For the bridesmaids, we scaled the bouquets down according to age and seniority of the bridesmaids, although all were similar in style to Annette's bouquet. The Sweet Avalanche rose was omitted from the bridesmaids' bouquets to give a slightly paler feel and to contrast better against their dresses.



For the reception, Annette wanted very simple tablecentres and we used large fishbowls for the guest tables with gerbera heads floating on the surface of the water, and grasses simply curled around the edge. The bowls were placed on mirrors to reflect the light and finished with a light sprinkling of rose petals to bring the bouquets into the reception theme.


For the top table, we very simply scaled down the size of bowls and mirrors and placed one either side of Annette and John, and one at each end of the table. The front of the table was finished with Sweet Avalanche rose petals.


We've been distracted by spots before our eyes!

In case those of you following the blog think we've suddenly stopped working....I just thought I would show you why we've been a bit distracted recently and haven't got around to blogging some of our weddings and events.....we have been busy honestly, but have spent spare time getting our little monster sorted. We will post a few more blogs this weekend, but in the meantime, meet Wallace the new Distinctly Floral Dalmatian at just over 8 weeks old!


As you can see, we now have another team member to go with Gromit (team photo below), and Wallace will be learning the ropes soon....when he's stopped trying to chew everything in sight...not great for our flowers to go our looking chewed, so he's banned from the studio at the moment.



Hope you think our new recruit works well with the team. We're bespotted with him (to steal someone else's pun!).