Floral Wedding Bliss

One of the most magical days of my life was my wedding day. It was so special because of all the love Charles and I felt all weekend long with our family and friends in the Berkshires. As the bride, what made the wedding so spectacular in my eyes, was having all the details we worked so hard at over the past year come together on that day, and transport us to a gilded era of a black tie affair with Champagne flowing, flowers everywhere, a big brass band playing and having all of this done at the Elm Court, a Vanderbilt Estate in Lenox, MA. 

Since this blog is dedicated to either flowers, food or wine I wanted to post an entry about all the flowers at my wedding from the centerpieces and bouquets to the creative pieces spread around the estate. Maybe this will inspire others searching for a similar theme, or if anything it will allow me to relive the magic.

My beautiful flower girl Cloe & lovebug Gigi

Our wedding on August 27, 2011 was the weekend of Hurricane Irene! I didn't believe in having a "plan B" for rain prior to knowing there was going to be a hurricane heading our way. So we set up for the ceremony   as we originally planned in the back of the Estate with a 50 foot red carpet and a vista over looking the mountains and trees behind the cresdenza. 

Thankfully I have a pic of what we envisioned, because the rain drops started to  come down and we moved over to a spontaneous plan b on the terrace. 

A Red Carpet as opposed to white adds a stunning backdrop
against the bride's dress & tuxedos for photos.
A way to save money & time on flower pots is
bring the pots to a local landscaper to do them for you. 

Although the ceremony didn't take place where I had envisioned it, I didn't even notice when the time came and my father walked me down the aisle. I guess that's the magic of the day when everything just feels perfect.

Colorful Gladiolas for the Ceremony.

         

I had known I wanted the reception done in white with bursts of deep eggplant and some sage green for slight accent colors. So I decided I wanted the ceremony to be different with lots of color. I love gladiolas -- they're a flower that just makes me happy when I see them -- they're lively & fun! Incorporate your favorite flowers in your wedding because it will make a difference when you see them in the photos.

Butterflies remind me of my late yiayia (grandma in Greek). When my yiayia Mary died, soon after I was suddenly seeing lots of butterflies  around me, sometimes in the most random places that you wouldn't expect a butterfly to be. And every time I saw them they made me smile and feel warm. So on our wedding day we let out butterflies as a gesture to my yiayia being there in spirit. 

A big reason Charles and I chose Lenox as our wedding destination was for its natural splendor. We loved Lenox for Tanglewood, and its overall arts and culture, but Nature is very important to me, and we both appreciate natural wonders. So we wanted to incorporate the majestic scenery all around us in our wedding photos. 

My next blog will be about the reception flowers that were throughout the interior of the Estate.


I will end this blog with a poem by ee cummings that one of my best friends dedicated to Charles and I and read during the wedding ceremony.  


i carry your heart with me


i carry your heart with me (i carry it in
my heart) i am never without it (anywhere
i go you go, my dear; and whatever is done
by only me is your doing, my darling)
                                  

i fear no fate (for you are my fate, my sweet) i want
no world (for beautiful you are my world, my true)
and it's you are whatever a moon has always meant
and whatever a sun will always sing is you

here is the deepest secret nobody knows
(here is the root of the root and the bud of the bud
and the sky of the sky of a tree called life; which grows
higher than the soul can hope or mind can hide)
and this is the wonder that's keeping the stars apart

i carry your heart (i carry it in my heart)