Perfect Day

Yesterday was my 14th Wedding Anniversary.  Yes, 14th !!! On the 28th November 1997 I acquired the title Mrs.Clarke.  A title I feel very lucky to have.  Mr.C became part of my life at a time of sadness and chaos and brought with him lots of love, kindness and calm.  It wasn't long before I was head over heels and after a whirlwind romance we set the date.

We were married on a cold but bright day in November at the lovely Stanneylands Hotel in Wilmslow.  I wore a cream dress by Hilary Morgan Over the years this has spent time in my daughters' dressing up box and the detachable train made a great 'roof' when den building. Now redundant it is packed away as you never know this may one day be 'vintage'.  I carried a bouquet of Cream Roses with a Salal leaf collar by Chelsea Flowers and our cake was by Edible Art near Stockport.

It was only a small wedding, I didn't have bridesmaids, table centres, ushers, flower girls, etc. etc........... just a bride and groom with family and friends, a gorgeous wedding breakfast followed by lots of wine and dancing. Perfect!! Speaking of perfect, I know there will be many of you out there who think they have the perfect partner but, I am sorry to disappoint, as in fact the perfect partner belongs to me.  (If you ignore DIY skills that is!)

14 years on we are still happy, still in love and we have 2 beautiful daughters.....now that's perfect.

Pretty Pastels

Recently I've blogged about having a neutral colour scheme for your wedding flowers or opting for a bright palette. But, lets not forget the pastels.  Using pastel shades for your wedding flowers will create a soft feminine look and these soft pretty shades work really well with Vintage inspired weddings.

Here is some of my work using pastels shades to inspire you........

 From Pinks ......

To Lilacs.....

 Finishing touches ......

Cakes we have dressed with baby pinks and also vintage style roses...............

And finally we have used pastels when dressing venues......

Flowers by Rosa and Co (of Course!!) images by us, Matt Stansfield and Caroline White and Lisa Gardner

White or Bright (Part 2)

So if wedding flowers in neutral tones are not for you then take inspiration from some of our work using more brightly coloured flowers.  Choose from pink, red, yellow, lime, orange, blue and purple.  This selection is just the tip of the iceberg, so let your imagination run wild and be a 'bright bride'......

Images by Lisa Gardner Photography Jenny & Keith McAvoy and also thanks to Laura at  Laurel Weddings who created the gorgeous Mango Calla and Red Rose/lime Green Orchid bouquets for Rosa and Co.

Lookin' Lovely....Lindsay!

Just a sneeky peek at Lindsay and Jonathan's wedding at Rookery Hall........

                                                         Images by Melissa Cross

image by Sue Copeland 

Job Done

A little peek at some of Fridays wedding flowers ready to go to Rookery Hall ........

And the candy coloured germinis ready to dress Shaw Hill Golf and Country Club ......

The full story of these weddings will follow but both couples had fantastic days and were really thrilled with their flowers!

With the flowers for this weekends weddings successfully done, I think its time for a well earned sit down, cup of tea and not forgetting a lovely cake.

So stop by the blog tomorrow and I will be doing just that with the very lovely Louise from Jelly Tots & Dolly Mixtures  She will be sharing the story behind her gorgeous Cupcake Company and of course her gorgeous cakes.

(image and logo by Sixes and Sevens Design )

The Devil Is In The Detail

So this week I am blogging about the preparations and work involved for this weekend's weddings.   It seems the motto is the same for florists as it is for painters and decorators. 'Preparation is everything' and cutting corners will show on the day.  Making a wedding day appear to have come together with ease, with everything running smoothly and looking perfect is what separates the 'men from the boys' in terms of wedding suppliers.

In a recent blog post  the lovely Kelly Hood from Boho Weddings and Events  listed just some of her duties which she carries out during - On the day co-ordination.  This long list does not include all her other duties she performs whilst preparing for a client's wedding.  But it is this attention to detail which creates a perfect day.  By the way Kelly....if you are reading this, if you ever need anyone to help with the 'opening champagne' role,  I am always available!

Also the gorgeous Janey Butler over at Sweet Days and Roses  takes so much time and care in her preparation for her clients' big day.  She will go that extra mile to source the perfect prop or accessory to make the day look perfect.

Here at Rosa one of our brides is having beautiful candelabras as her table centre pieces.  Now I could have given these a quick wipe down and assumed that guests would be so taken up with the day that they wouldn't notice the splodges of now hardened melted wax from a previous wedding.

 Or  I could pay attention to preparation and detail and take the candelabras apart and wash, clean and polish each piece.

Finally putting them all back together again and thread strings of pretty crystals on each one. 

Preparation complete......now it is time to dress them with arrangements made using champagne coloured vandella roses.