tangerine & michael
Oh sweet Tangerine, where to even begin?! Tangerine is the type of person you can’t help but be drawn to. Her smile & energy is infectious. Throughout the process of working together she radiated joy. Both her & Michael knew what mattered most to them with their wedding day & their approach was so intentional. You can tell from the photos how much their people mean to them. And likewise, how sweet it is to know & be known by them. As if wedding planning isn’t enough of an undertaking, T&M wrote notes to each & every guest which were waiting for them at their place settings. The whole day was thoughtful, intentional & beautiful.
When it came to florals, Tangerine had such a fun plan! We played with a mix of neutrals & really soft tones. Their wedding color palette was almost entirely white & black with just touches of some soft color through the florals & napkins. The napkins, being a really soft light blue tone, complimented the flower colors so well. While color is such a powerful visual design tool, when it comes to floral design I think it can be so cool to not be overly prescriptive. When it comes to digital design or textiles colors are so important - they have to be exact, shifting a tone slightly can completely change the end result. Florals, on the other hand are so unique when it comes to color. A white flower could truly come in any shade of white, ivory, cream, ecru… you name it. Depending on the season or the weather any given year, flower colors can shift. Which is incredibly inspiring & freeing as a floral designer. We can lean into a deeply monochromatic style & that has such a striking visual effect or we can lean into the nuances of subtle shades & pastels. Like we did here, creating a whole color palette that reads so soft & delicate. Technically speaking, we had a wide range of pastel tones represented - but the end result is just so subtle. These soft tones really popped so well against the black & white dresses & tones of the venue.
There was one exception to this thoughtful floral color palette we developed & that was the ceremony backdrop. JM Cellars is home to a very large, unique arch structure for their primary ceremony space. It’s truly a one of a kind wood structure. As a wedding florist, I always enjoy seeing how different couples & designers approach this piece - the scale often inspires some creativity! One thing Tangerine was determined on from the outset was this archway. She knew she wanted the whole front fully covered. And, all white! This was the only all white piece of the day & I was all here for it. I think it can be a fun opportunity to play with more than one color palette when you plan the ceremony colors separate from reception. An all white ceremony can unfold to a more colorful reception. Adding a level of experiential-ness to your days design. In this case the all white was a really fun way to make the arch pop well given it’s scale & the lush outdoor setting. This install became home to hundreds of roses, mounds of hydrangea, buckets of ball dahlias, and a slew of local, wild fairy roses, lots of vines & more! The scale paired with all local floral made this a really fun install to behold.
My very favorite part of Tangerine & Michael’s day was getting the opportunity to share the ceremony space with T for the first time. She just so happened to be arriving to the venue with a little time to take it all in while we had just cleaned up the completed ceremony. I took Tangerine down to the site & she was her classic, infectious & incredibly kind self. It felt like I got my own first look of sorts as her florist. She was beaming as she got to walk down the aisle & take in all the floral on her own time - in the calm leading up to the big event. The first thing she said was “this is exactly what I hoped it would be. You did it!” Nothing feels better than making wedding day dreams come true!! The ceremony photos from T&M’s day just remind me of why weddings are so special. You can feel all the emotion & all the joy through these images. It just makes me fall in love with my job all over again.
JM Cellars is a very inviting venue. The different spaces they have for ceremony, reception, cocktail hour & dancing make it feel like you get to explore around this beautiful property all day. Enjoying a new setting for each part of the day. The dining tables are most often placed on the patio. The space is somewhat long & narrow making the tables kind of flow through the space. Which feels so inviting as a guest! Given the space, they planned for a mix of rounds & rectangles to curve & flow throughout, opening up to the largest part of the patio where T&M sat & speeches were shared. When it comes to a mix of rounds & rectangular tables, I think it is such a fun opportunity to add some nice variety to your table top designs. For me this often means a fuller arrangement in the center of rounds & smaller, more continuous floral elements running along the middle of a rectangle. The rounds provide the opportunity to make fuller, lush arrangements while the rectangles create a moment for more texture, height variety & a mix of vessels & materials. We finished off the tables with some fun fruit touches which complimented the soft florals & felt like they fit right in with the winery setting. Tangerine & I also decided early on that we needed some fruit in honor of her amazing name, of course!
The florals flowed perfectly with their fun loving & welcome personalities mixed with the formal, classic wedding feel. The color palette added just enough personality to the overall elevated aesthetic & the end result just perfectly suited Tangerine & her day. I don’t always say this, but I would do it all again in a heartbeat!
Photographer: Laurken Kendall
Planning: Cottrell & Co Events
Venue: JM Cellars
