Claire and Lu's wedding at Chapeldown

We first met Claire and Lu at Chapeldown's Open Evening in 2009 where Claure loved the venue and Lu was not so sure (we thought!).  Little did we know that Lu had planned the whole wedding day and venue as a Christmas surprise for Claire...how lovely is that.  So Chapeldown it was and we started planning a theatrical themed wedding.

Both Claire and Lu had chosen gorgeous ivory dresses but wanted their flowers to be different yet complement each other.  So for Claire we provided a hand-tied bouquet of deep red Black Baccara roses along with ivory roses, finished with a simple looped grass edge and with crystal pins added.  For Lu, we decided on ivory calla lilies in an overarm style, finished with a burgundy feather.

Both Claire and Lu had bridesmaids, so we decided to use a single calla lily with feather for Claire's bridesmaids so that they tied in with Lu's bouquet and contrasted Claire's roses.  For Lu's bridesmaids we reversed the flowers and used a single rose to tie in with Claire's bouquet.

Buttonholes were simple calla lilies with loops of grass and aspidistra leaf.

For the tables, Claire and Lu had already seen one of our exotic martini vase arrangements and were completely "sold" on them straight away.  We therefore provided large martini vases filled with ivory sisal and fairy lights.  We then added an exotic arrangement of monstera leaves, palms, aspidistras along with red and ivory oriental lilies, Black Baccara and ivory roses, anthuriums and grasses.  Each had dramatic ostrich feathers added and the mask table name provided by Claire and Lu.  We finished the tables with a mirror and rose petals for the final touch of drama. 

We then dressed the gazebo in the herb garden with a loose foliage garland with wired roses, anthuriums and lilies to reflec the flowers used inside.

Despite being extremely nervous, Claire and Lu both had a wonderful day with friends and family and all their hard work, planning and surprises paid off.  They are a fantastic couple who look after each other wonderfully and we hope their gorgeous wedding day is the start of a long and fabulous life together.

Carrie and Stuart's fabulously colourful wedding at Chapeldown Winery

Carrie is a customer of ours from back in the day, so when we met to talk about her fabulous wedding, it was no surprise that Carrie wanted a different, contemporary, eclectic look.   I think the photos are going to say it all for this fab wedding.  As well as multi- coloured turquoise, orange, pink, purple and green, Carrie wanted a messy, unstructured look and to bring in some of the Chapeldown surroundings, which we did with roses, rosemary, ivy and lavender.

Carrie's dress is a fabulous fitted ruched strapless gown with a very full bottom and with her figure, it's going to be a show stopper.  She wanted a bouquet that reflected the rest of the wedding, and we decided on a partly hand-tied more European style bouquet with wired extensions using all the colours and flowers used elsewhere.

For her bridesmaids, we decided hot pink, purple and orange was the order of the day with Cherry Brandy roses, Serena gerberas, Vanda orchids, ivy and grasses.  We wrapped the stems in orange ribbon and then criss crossed hot pink ribbon over the top.  The Flower Girls carried Serena gerbera wands surrounded by turquoise feathers and then wrapped the stems in colours that they chose themselves, with one being hot pink and gold, and the other being purple and turquoise.

Stuart wore a Vanda orchid buttonhole with orange chincherincee and foliage, with the Groom's party wearing Cherry Brandy rose buttonholes along with purple lisianthus, rosemary and ivy.  Stuart's Mum wore dendrobrium orchids, chincherinchee, eryngium and foliage.

For the ceremony in the beautiful Herb Garden, we provided a very full and colourful arrangement for the celebrant table in the gazebo with the entrance dressed with a messy ivy garland with lots of colourful flowers wired in.  The aisle chairs had different coloured organza bows with non matching flowers through the back...lovely!  Even the sunshine came out to see it all, which was a very different look from when we arrived in torrential rain....thank goodness it decided to behave itself for Carrie and Stuart.

Now to the marquee....a fantastic burst of colour featuring roses, anthuriums, orchids, eryngium, gerberas, gloriosa, chincherinchee, celosia and loads of other flowers.  We provided bows for the backs of the chairs as an alternative to the normal chair covers and sashes and I have to say I loved the look, with each having a different flower through the back of the bow. 

Each table then had a full floral surround to a chrome candelabra.  We used different coloured candles in the candelabra, attached different coloured bows to the top, draped each with messy ivy and wired flowers and finally finished them with delicate invisible wire trails of cerise pink dendrobrium orchids that looked as though they were floating over the tables.

For the top table, we went to town with a full and fabulous arrangement in the middle of the table extended out along the length of the table with a messy trailing ivy garland with flowers wired in at intervals.  A bit of a show stopper!

We then added a candelabra to the present table and a low arrangement to the wine vat by the bar.  Finally we added a few random flowers to the cake table so as to complement and not to detract from the wonderful and unusual cake designed by Stephanie at Posh Puds Patisserie (http://www.poshpuds.com/).  Their attention to detail and dedication was great and we've thoroughly enjoyed working alongside them.

I know how much work and thought Carrie has put into this very special day (including making the homemade jam for each guest, made to her Mum's recipe), and also know that it will be an emotionally charged day for all, but just hope that it lives up to her and Stuart's expectation.  We think it is an unforgettable wedding set-up and hope the rest of the day is just the same.