Recent Fruity Centerpieces

 Oh man, was Thanksgiving wonderful this year. Best. Holiday. Ever.

Even if it did make these centerpieces unseasonable overnight.

Here they are with pomegranates, persimmons, oak, and clematis from Napa, calendula from Daly City, roses and viburnum from Petaluma, arbutus and koelreuteria from South Bay, ranunculus from San Diego, chrysanthemums from Yorba Linda, scabiosa from Half Moon Bay, oncidium and veronica from Watsonville, and rose hips from Eureka.

Hope your Thanksgiving was awesome!

The Last of Late Summer

From a while back, strawflower from Daly City, chrysanthemums from Yorba Linda, hydrangea from Napa, eucalyptus from Solano, and delphinium from Pescadero.

A Mountain and Ocean Wedding Week

 J&S spent the week of their wedding enjoying the ocean, mountains, and woods surrounding the colorful beach town of Bolinas, where they rented a lovely house with their friends and family.

 J's bouquet included lisianthus from Yorba Linda, oregano, scabiosa, and stock from Half Moon Bay, roses from Petaluma, brake fern from Eureka, oak and abelia from Napa, gomphrena from Daly City, and veronica from Watsonville.

 The flowers to wear also featured ivy, rosemary, redwood, and lavender from Napa.

 Congratulations, J&S!!

Leftovers

'Swan' roses from Garden Valley Ranch in Petaluma, parrot tulips from Arcata, and begonias from Napa.

A Ridiculous Cake

The last time I made a ridiculous carrot cake Elizabeth was somewhere off at sea, no doubt suffering from a diet rich in overly cooked frozen vegetables and generously salted commodity meats. Not surprisingly, she felt her loss sharply. Luckily, last week saw the happy confluence of Liz back in Napa, her birthday, the second summer fig crop (laaa!), and some fantastically blown open leftover spray roses. Obviously a ridiculous carrot (and fig) cake was going to happen.

A Wine Country Wedding

Chicago couple J&J married surrounded by their closest friends and family at an intimate wine country wedding tucked up in the Sonoma hills. They had perfect weather, which made me very happy. It also made me very happy to meet J&J in person. (Congratulations again! You make a lovely couple!)

Amazingly, the whole elegant affair was coordinated from afar by Jolene Sullivan, an event planner and designer based in Denver. I cannot praise this woman enough. Specializing in smaller weddings and celebrations (though she's experienced coordinating very large events as well), she favors an understated, crisp, and natural aesthetic, allowing the surrounding environment and a few carefully selected details to set the mood (without overwhelming it). In addition to this uncontrived approach to design, Jolene is a master of organization, tact, and articulate and prompt correspondence. And she is super nice. In other words, she's everything you could ever want a person in charge to be. And lucky for us, Jolene has family here in the Bay Area and loves an excuse to visit. : )

 

The flowers to hold, wear, and share included roses and passion vine from Petaluma, garden roses from the amazing Garden Valley Ranch in Petaluma, stock, oregano, kale, and scabiosa from Half Moon Bay, oak from Sonoma, parrot tulips and hyacinth from Arcata, brake fern from Eureka, freesia from Pescadero, bearded iris and anemones from Watsonville, and one bunch of campanulas from (GASP) Ecuador (I thought they were from Watsonville and didn't realize my mistake until I unwrapped them back in the studio. I figured by then the damage was done. Sigh.)