Hobart Wedding in February

Photography by Acoma

I provided flowers for a beautiful wedding in Hobart this February.  The ceremony was held at Runnymede House, a National Trust property in New Town.  

Photography by Acoma

The interior of the house provided a gorgeous light for photographs.  I love these photos by one of Tasmania's most talented photographers, Acoma.  Stunning!

Photography by Acoma

The colours of the wedding were silvery grey, with burgundy bow ties.  I love the classic colour combination of grey and red and the February flowering natives were a perfect fit.  

Silvery grey foliages were a must, and I used the Eucalyptus Crenulata with its silvery bloom covering the young leaves.   Leucadendron Silver Tree worked in with the silvery grey theme, with its shimmery soft silky leaves.  Risdon Peppermint was the other foliage I used.  

Brunia Albiflora is a perfect addition for a silvery grey wedding.  The balls of the Brunia are exactly that, and the way they catch the light makes them appear to glow.  I love them!

Each bouquet had a Pink Ice Protea and some red Banksia Occidentalis.  I also used some Scarlet Ribbons pincushions.

Safari Sunset Leucadendrons in deep burgundy, their summer colour, were used to add darker tones.  Highlights were added with a stunning flowering gum that has white flowers but red buds.  They came from a very large, mature tree that was completely covered with blossom this year.  

Flowering gum ... sigh!

Another lovely addition is the bright red cones of Leucadendron Jubilee Crown.  Their little cones look like berries in amongst the flowers. 

And of course, because of the silvery grey/natives theme, we had to add in some beautiful mature gum nuts, which have silvered with age.  

Photography by Acoma

Photography by Acoma

The controlled colour scheme really worked with the dresses.  Aren't they stunning!

Boutonnieres for the men included leaves from the flowering gum Corymbia Ficifolia, peppermint foliage,  Leucadendron Jubilee Crown cones and flowering gum buds around a large silvery gum nut. 

Photography by Acoma

The grooms boutonniere had some added Brunia.  

Photography by Acoma

I think they went fabulously with the burgundy bow ties!

I also made a floral comb bursting with flowering gum, Brunia, peppermint, and with some Jubilee Crown cones and a little bit of wax flower. 

Photography by Acoma

The hair comb was worn by the mother of the bride -  a special touch. 

Chair decorations used Brunia, Jubilee Crown, Safari Sunset, Silver Tree and Flowering Gum.  The soft grey ribbon was used throughout the floral designs.  

Photography by Acoma

The reception was held at Stefano Lubiana winery north of Hobart.  Burgundy Leucadendrons were placed on each plate and gum foliage was scattered down the centre of the tables.

Photography by Acoma

Natives work so well in a "rustic" setting.

Photography by Acoma

Its really special when the bride is so happy with the flowers that she apologises for sending through too many photos of the wedding!  Theres no such thing! 

Photography by Acoma

It was a pleasure to be involved in this beautiful wedding, and to be able to share so many stunning photos with you all.  

His and Hers Wedding Flowers in Autumn

Photo by Jon Jarvela

Sometimes, I am asked to provide the simplest of wedding flower orders - a bride's bouquet and a groom's boutonniere.  I find that these weddings are really memorable, because so much effort goes into making the one bouquet and buttonhole just right.  In Autumn 2016, I was asked to do a simple bouquet and boutonniere for a couple who were getting married in the Huon Valley.  

The bride provided some pictures of the styles and colours she loved.  The inspiration came when I saw what the groom had picked out to wear.  

I loved the sage green in the tie, and the golden yellow and apricot too.  I decided to go for a bouquet with plenty of creamy white and green, with touches of apricot and bronzy gold. 

For the bridal bouquet I used a Protea White Ice, two types of banksia - Banksia Baxterii, the Birdsnest Banksia, and Banksia Marginata, a local native.  Brunia Albiflora in full flower was used along with flowering Eucalyptus Cordata, usually used as a cut foliage.  The apricot came with the use of Fountain Pincushion and Leucadendron Safari Goldstrike whose new growth is tinged with a pinkish bronze.  

The foliage I used includes Grevillea, again with a bronze new growth tips, flowering lemon-scented Leptospermum and the shimmering Leucadedron Argenteum or Silver Tree.  You can also see, peeping out on the left of the above photo, some creamy Leucadendron Pisa cones with their outer bracts removed.  

Other foliage included Eucalyptus Cordata, and some Cootamundra wattle in bud. 

For the groom, I used a small Banksia Marginata in creamy yellow, Grevillea foliage with an orange bud, Cootamundra Wattle with its little buds, tea tree (Leptospermum) and Eucalyptus foliage. 

Photo by Jon Jarvela

Autumn weddings in Tasmania really are special!  

Winter Wildflower Wedding

Winter weddings are few and far between in Tasmania. The colder months are quiet times for those who provide services for weddings.  This makes me a little sad at times because as a native flower grower, it seems such a waste to miss out on all the gorgeous seasonal flowers that winter brings.  

I was really excited to get a winter wedding request.  It was a small simple wedding with the bride and groom flying in to Hobart from the mainland.  A simple bouquet and boutonniere were all that they needed, but it was such a great opportunity to "play" with some winter blooms.

The brides dress was in deep green silk with rich dark blue patterning.  I decided to go with green and blue and add warm yellow and orange.  The inspiration began with the banksias that were in flower.  In the basket are some Banksia Marginata which grow wild on my property.  The flowers are light fresh lemony yellow.  Wattle was just beginning to bud and I loved the yellow hints with the great texture.  I also picked some branched of Blue Spruce - what a great colour!  And its structure is fantastic too.

Another banksia in bloom was the Banksia Brownii.  Its flowers are less lemony yellow and have a purplish tip.  Brownii foliage is just gorgeous too, and some found its way into the bouquet.

Banksia Ericifolia was flowering prolifically.  I love the rich orange colour with the purple tinges on the tip.  It really worked will with the other banksias.

Going all out with texture, I also added some early Berzelia, some Eucalyptus buds, some Tea Tree and, as blue green highlights, some sweet little succulents.

Winter can be so beautiful!

I love the happy little gum buds sitting proud of the bouquet surface.

You can see the purplish tips of the Banksia Brownii and Banksia Ericifolia here.  I love the way the colour adds depth to the colour scheme.  You can also see just a few Phylica Plumosa flowers.  I picked the very first flowers just days before the July wedding.  Phylica is such a brilliant flower for weddings.

The boutonniere had Phylica too, teamed with the Blue Spruce, Tea Tree and Berzelia, as well as some gorgeous blue green succulents.

It was such a great opportunity to "play" with some stunning winter blooms.  I hope more couples decide not to wait for the warmer weather!

Impromptu Autumn Wedding

Some people plan their weddings months, even years in advance.  This autumn I did some flowers for a wedding planned in only a few weeks. It was a small flower order with just a bouquet for the bride and a boutonniere for the groom, but it an experience I thoroughly enjoyed.  

My inspiration came from seasonal colours.  I love the pink of the peppercorns in autumn.  They are like little pink pearls and I love the way they fall softly.  The leaves are lovely too.

The Sugarbush or Protea Repens, being autumn flowering plants, were just beginning to really pop and their pink blush matched perfectly with the peppercorns.  The Leucadendrons you can see with a purplish pink blush are a Leucadendron Discolour called Lemon Spice.

I love the orange Banksia Ericifolia too, so they blended in well with the pinks and soft greens and yellows of the leucadendron varieties.  You can also see Protea Pink Ice.  Risdon Peppermint foliage covered in tiny buds, added a highlight of silvery blue-green.  Colour, structure, texture - the peppermint is a great foliage for weddings.

The boutonniere used peppercorns too, and a silvery grey gum nut, a mature seed pod from Corymbia Ficifolia, the spectacular flowering gum.  Foliage includes Leucadendron Pisa, Leucadendron Salignum, Risdon Peppermint and some early buds of Thryptomene.

Congratulations Karina and Corey from Red Brick Road Cider House in Launceston.  It was a pleasure to be a small part of your big day!

Relaxed Native Wedding in Early Summer

K & S Photography

 What a great setting for a relaxed summer wedding - the Coal River Valley is a beautiful part of Tasmania with many fabulous wineries.  Pooley Wines is the setting for this wedding I was privileged to provide flowers for.  

The three bouquets combine pastel summer tones with the textures of native foliage and gum nuts.

In the bouquets you can see Wax Flower, Eucalyptus, Dryandra Formosa, Proteas and a number of different Leucadendrons including Pisa, Safari Goldstrike and Safari Sunset.  There is also some late Berzelia.

K & S Photography

I love the style of this informal, yet well-considered wedding theme.  

Early wax flower, some still in bud, combined with gum nuts, eucalyptus foliage and the soft silvery yellow of the Leucadendron Pisa bracts surrounding silvery cones - simple rustic boutonnieres.

K & S Photography

A beautiful country scene!  And great photography by Kat from K & S Photography.   

K & S Photography

They look so happy!

K & S Photography 

There were so many lovely details included in the celebration.  Floral centrepieces were created in vintage fowlers jars and suited the long table style of seating.  Bunches of flowers were also hung on the doors of the beautiful old stone barn where the wedding was held.  You can see a Leucadendron Silver Tree cone, more gum nuts, Silver Tree foliage, Leucadendrons and Proteas.

Native summer blooms are combined with foliage, gum huts and twisted willow.

The pincushions are Scarlet Ribbons which are early in their season here, and are softly purple and red coloured.  

Little details provide personality to a wedding.  This wedding had loads of personality!  The chair decorations were simple but added soft summery colour to the ceremony seating.  

K & S Photography