In Full Bloom by MJL with Nicole Cook Photography on the American River

I've said it before, and I will say it again (over and over), I just adore Nicole Cook!  She is such a wonderful photographer and was kind enough to snap a few shots of my flowers from a photo shoot we collaborated on a few months back.  Click here to see some photos with our gorgeous model, Peyton!  Nicole and I were lucky enough to have the talent and keen eye of Jessica Palmer from Polish & Pout for this shoot too!  Jessica is incredibly knowledgeable and regularly shares wonderful tips on her blog and instagram about make-up, hair, fashion and more!

For more life In Full Bloom by MJL follow me on Instagram, Twitter, & Facebook. Or, click through to my website! www.infullbloombymjl.com

Garden Party Baby Shower | Blue, Yellow, Green & White Decor | In Full Bloom by MJL Flowers | Sacramento, CA

My mom and I had a great little luncheon by the pool this week for one of our tennis ladies who is due to have a baby boy in a few weeks!  We are all so excited for her.  Decorative umbrellas draped with crystal garland hung in the patio cover as if there were showers.  We stuck with green white yellow and blue colors and went for a modern look with single varietals in each vase and beautiful turquoise glass filler in the vases.

 

Flowers in Pink, Peach & White with Pops of Yellow!

Hydrangea, succulents, stock, ranunculus, craspedia and banskia were all used to create this lovely "Thank You" arrangement!  A great bonus is the recipient of this arrangement can transplant the succulents once the cut arrangement has died.  I wish I could somehow channel the smell of these flowers through my blog! A breath of fresh floral air!

A County Wedding

 Adding color to a green golf course was the job I was given at Mike and Rachel's wedding at Castle Oaks Golf Course in Ione, CA.  The bride and I studied photos of wedding ceremonies and decided on an arbor with shepherd hooks and rose petals lining each side of the aisle.  She loves purple but wanted to incorporate pink as a contrasting color with the bridesmaid's "aqua" colored dresses.   

 Each shepherd's hook had a variegated aspidistra leaf folded over with purple aranda orchids, a black florigene carnation and pink hanging amaranthus tied with moss covered wire and cream satin ribbon.

 The flowers in the arbor included dendrobium orchids, phalaenopsis orchids, lisianthus, variegated aspidistra, variegated lily grass, deflexus, hanging amaranthus, picasso calla lilies, football mums, hot pink alstroemeria, italian ruskus, agonis, purple aranda orchids, and giant hot pink dahlias. 

 I draped white organza fabric around the arbor to add some dimension and make it pop against the background of the green golf course and giant oak tree.

The toss bouquet is pictured below. Rachel wanted more purples and whites in her bouquet but the bridesmaid bouquets included hot pink too! I will add more photos of the wedding that include the bridesmaid bouquets when I get a few better pictures.

While (I) In Full Bloom by MJL designed and executed all of the bouquets, boutonnieres, corsages and aisle decor, the centerpieces and reception decor was designed and executed by an amazing woman named Lori Halverson.  She lives in the Sutter Creek/Ione area and has been doing flower arranging for about the same time as me.  We worked together to design the entire event as if it was done by one florist.  The task was slightly challenging but once we got the ball rolling everything came together beautifully! If you are interested in contacting Lori for her services you can email her at lorihalverson@att.net or call her (209) 607-2736. 


You can contact me (Monica) about my services at InFullBloombyMJL@gmail.com or (916) 717-2745.

Riverbank Marina Silver Anniversary Arrangements

 

Soft greens and elegant whites in lovely silver vases.  I cannot tell you how fun it was for me to finally add some succulents into my arrangements! Thank you Twelve Anchors for your order today!

Gerbera Goddess Wedding in Napa Valley

Here's a peak at the yellow and white "gerbera goddess" wedding flower concept I executed last weekend!

Napa Valley Wedding - Green, White & Black

Beth Baugher of True Love Photo was gracious enough to share her amazing professional photos with me so I can show you!  You can find the True Love Photo Blog HERE!   Thank you Beth!

The big day arrived at last for Adam and Becky!  The event took place at the Bride's family's home in the hills of the ever-stunning Napa Valley.  A proposal in Italy was inspiration for the wedding with a family style meal consisting of pizza, pomnes frites with green aoli, fried risotto balls, pasta, chicken, steak, bread and salad served up for dinner by KINYON! Culinary Services.  Needless to say, no one went hungry! 

In Full Bloom by MJL put together all of the flowers and I used mostly hydrangeas and roses with some peonies in the bridal bouquet.  I wrapped the bridal bouquet in extra lace for the gown and pinned Becky's late grandfather's wings to it as well so he could be a part of her big day.

Mini bottles of olive oil adorned each place setting as a party favor to guests.  Black and apple green were the main colors chosen for the wedding.   The table centerpieces included white hydrangea, vendela roses, green tea roses, green trick dianthus and dried preserved orchids.  The bride cut and painted manzanita branches from her family's property to use in the centerpieces.  She was very resourceful and did a ton of DIY projects for the wedding!

Dinner might have been the coldest outdoor dinner I've ever eaten, but jackets and blankets were passed around to keep everyone comfortable.  During the reception fire pits were lit that guests huddled around to warm up and the dancing helped too!  I may have experienced temporary insanity taking on the Maid of  Honor duties and doing all of the flowers but looking back on it I wouldn't change a thing.

***All photos in this post are copyright by TRUE LOVE PHOTO! Visit True Love Photos website and blog!

Sacramento Antique Fair

The Sacramento Antique Fair takes place on the second Sunday of each month under the freeway at 21st  between W & X.  After months of putting off and having to wait because on conflicts in my schedule I was able to go last weekend. Since I recently completed my first brooch bouquet, I was on a mission to find more brooches.  For those of you who know me well, I am usually successful when shopping and Sunday was no exception.  The brooches pictured above will be added to a bridal bouquet I am putting together in September....lots of purple, pink and orange!


http://www.sacantiquefaire.com/

Leftovers

In the rush before the wedding I didn't get a chance to use up all the flowers! It's a shame to let them go to waste so my lovely Mom gets an arrangement!

Apple Green, Black & White Wedding in the Napa Valley

Becky and Adam were married last weekend at Becky's parent's home in the hills of Napa, CA.  I was her Maid of Honor, and, I did the flowers too! It turned out absolutely beautiful and Becky was the most stunning bride I've ever seen...Adam is one lucky man!  Beth Baugher of True Love Photo was the photographer (these are my not-so-professional photos below but hopefully I can link some her pictures once they are available).  She does great work!  The rest of the bridesmaids and I had the pleasure of getting our hair done at Bloom Creative Hair Design on Main Street in Downtown Napa.  They did a fantastic job and my hair even looked great all day Sunday!  Carrie Aldous did a fabulous job on my make-up too!

Such a beautiful backdrop of rolling hills with grapevines.

The Bride's Bouquet!

The bridal party wrapping up with the photos before dinner.

You can click here to see the rest of my photos from the wedding and click here to see the pinterest album that shows all the elements that went into the arrangements!

A Tropical Wedding Reception

 Diana & Carl were married in Hawaii back in December but still wanted to celebrate their new beginning together with friends and family!  I was hired to add the appropriate tropical ambiance to the venue and the only specific request I had was that I use bobble heads (Carl is a collector) in the decor. 

 It was tons of fun for me to decorate for this event because I had free reign to do what I thought would look best (as long as I staying within budget)! I put together five centerpieces with the dashboard hula dolls, five centerpieces without, 24 small vases with a cymbidium blossom, a massive arrangement for the bar, three cylinder vases filled with tropicals in water with a floating candle on top.  I also added bright fabrics, greenery, candles and votives with green floralytes.  Those simple extra touches add a lot to catch the eye.

Trops on Order

After reviewing photos of tropical decor I decided on ordering the following flowers for the wedding reception this weekend.  Check back next week to see how it all turned out!

Source: weddingaces.com via Monica on Pinterest

Green Cymbidium Orchids

Source: flickr.com via Monica on Pinterest

Red Dahlia

Source: flickr.com via Monica on Pinterest

Green Trick Dianthus

Source: australianplants.com via Monica on Pinterest

Yellow Protea Pincusion

Source: firstcutdallas.com via Monica on Pinterest

Orange  Aranda

Source: google.com via Monica on Pinterest

Dranena Massangeana

Source: junglegardens.co.uk via Monica on Pinterest

Heliconia Hanging Rostra

Creating a Tropical Haven

Source: google.co.uk via Monica on Pinterest

I am stoked that I have been hired to decorate a wedding reception this weekend in a local Davis, CA restaurant!  The party is for a great couple who gave me their budget, a few parameters and then let me loose on the design!  The happy couple eloped and married in Hawaii over the holidays so they want to stick with a bright, tropical theme.  I usually start my brainstorming process by looking at photos (usually online) to get some ideas for specific flowers and color schemes I want to use.  This time I created my own pinboard on Pinterest to help myself along with this process.  Here are some of the photos I saved.

Source: thecakeblog.com via Monica on Pinterest

Isn't this cake just great?!

Source: stylemepretty.com via Monica on Pinterest

I love how these arrangements are very organic and simple with the leaves and pink ginger.  The way the sun is shining in the photo is lovely as well.

Source: google.com via Monica on Pinterest

The protea pincusion and orchid combination is a great tropical design.

Source: lotushaus.typepad.com via Monica on Pinterest

This is ultra modern and sleek.  Just take floral spray paint, paint your leaf white and add the cymbidiums.  It is a beautiful design!

Source: advantagedms.com via Monica on Pinterest

This is a very beach-y look with the shells at the base of the arrangement!