Whitney asked all attendees of her bridal shower to bring a brooch to the party. When all was said and done, she had 57 mini treasures to carry with her down the aisle and to hang onto as the ultimate wedding keepsake.

Preceding her down the aisle were 15 lovely bridesmaids, carrying a classic mix of white roses, hydrangeas and tulips.

The reception was held at the historic Tidewater Inn in Easton.  Colors of navy, white and silver filled the charming venue.  Centerpieces of white hydrangea, garden roses and roses were held in silver bowls and placed on half of the tables. On the other half, silver manzanita branches were adorned with white orchids and romantic crystal hanging votives. Around the beautiful arrangements were three separate vases, filled with a mix of white hydrangeas and roses. These colors were the perfect compliment to the dark grey table linens, provided by the amazing folks at Rentals to Remember in Annapolis.

As if all of these components aren’t memorable in themselves, Whitney’s brooch bouquet is a memento that will last a lifetime. Best wishes for these newlyweds!

Cheers to the extremely talented David Hartcorn Photography for the beautiful photos from the event!

]]> http://littlehouseofflowers.com/blog/?feed=rss2&p=344 0 http://littlehouseofflowers.com/blog/?p=315 http://littlehouseofflowers.com/blog/?p=315#comments Mon, 30 Apr 2012 18:30:36 +0000 admin http://littlehouseofflowers.com/blog/?p=315 This picture-perfect garden wedding was idyllic for any Chesapeake Bay lover. Though an early afternoon thunderstorm had us apprehensive about the outdoor ceremony at Silver Swan Bayside, it rolled away just in time for us to put up the arbor on the humid August day.

Fully embracing the hottest trend of the season, the couple chose various shades of purple as the theme for their wedding design. The bride carried a mix of lavender freesia, lavendar lisanthius, purple hydrangea from South America and stunning white roses from Ecuador.

The venue’s grassy lawn was brought to life by the centerpiece arrangements: Queen Anne’s lace, trachellium roses and Californian lisanthius (one of our favorites due to its soft fragrance and fluffy blooms).

Absolutely loved the table linens from our friends at Rentals to Remember in Annapolis and the floral detailing on the aqua cake.

This Kent Island wedding was a refreshing change of pace from the  sometimes busy ceremonies in Annapolis; can’t help but love bay breezes, shining sun, and a relaxing time with friends & family!

Couples planning on getting married at the Naval Academy book months in advance and have almost no opportunity to reschedule. This couple braved the storms, proceeded down the aisle,  exchanged their vows, and celebrated the rest of this afternoon (I’m so happy they did!).

From start to finish, the reception was a trialing, collaborative, yet successful effort. Though the power was out in their venue, The William Paca House, chefs from Ken’s Creative Kitchen cooked on gas stoves to make sure dinner was executed without a hitch and everyone’s tummies were full.

The bride wore a classic trumpet-style wedding gown, modernized with ruffled flowers at the bottom. These gorgeous details enabled us to add multiple textures into her bouquet and reception centerpieces.

If this wedding doesn’t show the real meaning of love (and optimism!), I’m not sure what does! Enjoy their inspiring story through the photos below, courtesy of the talented Wendy Hickock Photography!

The bride carried a colorful mix of green hydrangea, pink roses, lavender calla lily and a gorgeous variegated purple and white dendrobium orchid from Thailand.

The color palette popped perfectly against the bridesmaid’s satin magenta dresses. Dendrobiums were added to the centerpieces with cream candles and crystal marbles (love this!).

As you can see from the photos below, the venue perfectly embraced the couple’s personality and really brought the floral arrangements to life. A special thanks and shout out to Michelle at Historic Inns of Annapolis and Wendy Hickok Photography.

Beautiful couple. Beautiful venue. Beautiful photos. Beautiful bouquets. Enjoy!

We were lucky enough to service several Naval Academy weddings last season and wanted to share with you some of our favorites.

This bride wore a gorgeous white flowing gown with a strapless sweetheart neckline. She carried white gerber daisies down the aisle, the perfect compliment to her black belt with intricate beading.

To add a touch of flair, each bridesmaid carried a different color bouquet of bright Canadian gerberas.  I love this!

The second wedding took place on Memorial Day weekend. Though outside was hot in temperature, this ceremony was calming and classic. The beautiful bride carried simple white peonies, accented by green tea roses from Ecuador.

True to the Naval tradition, bridesmaids wore navy dresses and carried sweet yellow carnations. (P.S. – How cute is their photo?!)

Our third bride carried a gorgeous bouquet of white and salmon peonies from the Southern US. Fun fact: Peony season typically begins down south in mid-April and finishes in New Jersey sometime in late June.

A special thanks to Natalie Franke Photography, she took these beautiful shots of the inside of the majestic Navy Chapel, located on the campus of the U.S. Naval Academy.

Naval Academy weddings held at the Chapel are steeped in such a great tradition; it’s always an honor and an amazing experience to work with these eager brides and grooms!

Floriography, the language of flowers, started in the Victorian-era as a way for people to symbolically communicate personal thoughts and feelings. Some of these may surprise you; ranging from a secret love to heartlessness, popular flowers have a wide variety and interesting representations!

Gardenia You’re lovely, secret love, good luck
Gardenias are most widely used to express your secret love for someone.

Daisy Innocence, loyal love, purity, faith, cheer, simplicity

Pink Gerbera Daisies

Lilac First or new love
Perfect for a wedding ceremony or as a gift for a new mother.

Rose Love and passion
Each rose color signifies a different meaning:

Red: enduring passion; white: youth and innocence; yellow: friendship and happiness; pink: grace; orange: enthusiasm and desire.

Red Roses Arrangement

Tulip Hopeless love

The black center of a tulip is said to represent a lover’s heart.

Amethyst Tulips Bouquet

Lily Humility, sweetness, return to happiness

Blazing Orange Lily Arrangement

Orchid Refined beauty

Today’s culture incorporates orchids as a means of symbolizing rare and delicate beauty.

Green Dendrobium Orchids

Stephanotis Marital bliss; desire to travel
One of the most relevant for a newlyweds (wedding ceremony and honeymoon!).

Hydrangea Thank you for understanding; heartlessness

Arrangement with White Hydrangeas

Sunflower Loyalty and best wishes

The open face of this flower represents the sun itself, happiness and warmth.

Hello Sunshine!

So next time you’re picking out an arrangement for that special someone, or even when considering wedding bouquets, take a look at the deeper meaning to the most popular florals. Not only will it add character to your arrangement, you will create a beautiful visual of your emotions in the process!

If I had to describe my most memorable ceremony from the 2011 wedding season in one word, it would be flawless.

The ceremony was held on a warm summer day at one of my favorite venues, the Annapolis Marriott Waterfront.The views here are nothing short of breathtaking and it is one of the best settings for a true Annapolitan wedding. From the sunny blue skies to the crisp white gown and everywhere in between, this wedding was perfection.

The bride’s bouquet was a gorgeous mix of fuchsia South American garden roses, pale pink Ecuadorian roses and cymbidium orchids from New Zealand.The elegant assortment was accented with simple but chic stephanotis embellished with crystal pins. I love the way this simple touch transforms a once ordinary bouquet into a graceful yet incredibly dazzling piece of art!

South American roses

Preceding the glowing bride down the aisle were her stunning bridesmaids, carrying a similar arrangement of fuchsia South American roses and incorporating trendy fuchsia tipped tangerine stems. Green hypericums were a vibrant and fun ornamental addition to the bouquet palette.

South American roses & green hypericums

I said it once and I’ll say it again. Flawless. I think this wedding stands out to me because it was a true reflection of this unique couple’s classic yet vibrant persona. Congrats and best wishes to two of my most favorite newlyweds!

The esteemed annual awards program recognizes the top local wedding vendors from the WeddingWire Network who demonstrate excellence in quality, service, responsiveness and professionalism within the wedding industry. While many industry awards are selected by the organization, Little House of Flowers was selected based on its stellar reviews from past newlywed clients.

Little House of Flowers is recognized as part of the top five percent of wedding professionals in the WeddingWire local vendor community, comprised of over 200,000 wedding professionals throughout the United States and Canada. The Bride’s Choice Award recognizes the best local wedding vendors across 20 service categories, from wedding venues to wedding photographers, based on their overall professional achievements throughout the past year.

“WeddingWire is thrilled to honor the success of the top-rated wedding professionals within the WeddingWire Community,” said Timothy Chi, CEO, WeddingWire. “Since the launch of the Bride’s Choice Awards™ program four years ago, thousands of outstanding wedding professionals have been recognized by the bridal community for their supreme service and dedication to the wedding industry. It is with great pleasure that we congratulate Little House of Flowers for their continued professionalism and commitment to enriching the wedding planning experience for engaged couples.”

We are happy to announce that Little House of Flowers is one of the very best Flowers & Decor within the WeddingWire Network, which includes leading wedding planning sites WeddingWire, Project Wedding, Brides.com, Martha Stewart Weddings, and Weddingbee. We would like to thank our past clients for taking the time to review our business on WeddingWire. Thanks to their positive feedback we were able to receive the WeddingWire Bride’s Choice Awards™ for 2012.

For more information, please visit our WeddingWire Storefront today at http://www.weddingwire.com/biz/little-house-of-flowers-gambrills/43f4603938795b3c.html.

To learn more about the Bride’s Choice Awards™, please visit www.WeddingWire.com.

About WeddingWire, Inc.
WeddingWire™, the nation’s leading marketplace serving the $70 billion wedding industry, is the only online wedding planning resource designed to empower both engaged couples and wedding professionals. For engaged couples, WeddingWire offers the ability to search, compare and book over 200,000 reviewed wedding vendors, from wedding venues to wedding photographers. WeddingWire also offers a comprehensive suite of online planning tools for weddings, including wedding websites and wedding checklists, all at no charge. For wedding professionals, WeddingWire is the only all-in-one marketing platform for businesses online and on-the-go. WeddingWire offers one simple solution to build a professional network, improve search visibility, manage social media and reach mobile consumers. Businesses that advertise with WeddingWire appear on WeddingWire.com, ProjectWedding.com and other leading sites, including MarthaStewartWeddings.com (NYSE: MSO), Brides.com and Weddingbee.com.

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With the holiday (and engagement!) season coming to an end, now is a perfect time to regroup and take a look at emerging trends for the upcoming wedding season.  From colors to bouquets, from lounging to lighting, it’s important for any soon-to-be-bride to take a look at this list before the big ‘I Do’!

Hues for Spring 2012 will incorporate splashes of energy with warm neutrals. Tangerine Tango, Solar Power, Bellflower, Cabaret,  Sodalite Blue, Cockatoo, Margarita, Sweet Lilac and Starfish top the list from the leading color authority, Pantone.com.

Photo courtesy of www.Pantone.com

How do you incorporate this palette into your floral arrangements? Think roses, gerbera, stock, carnations, delphinium, asters and orchids. These flower and color combinations exude elegance while adding vibrance and sophistication, essential elements for any fashion-forward bride. Loose and textured bouquets are said to emerge down the aisle this year, a refreshing change from the traditional compact flower assembly.

Don’t forget about the men! 2012 grooms are predicted to want a say in their boutonnieres, creating an opportunity to make your wedding day even more unique.

Photo courtesy of www.lovelabridal.com

I am so excited to incorporate these trends with a couple’s vision for their special day and to share the outcomes with our blog readers! Stay tuned…