A Blissful Congratulations!

I want to take this post to send out a most thrilled and sincere congratulations to one of my best friend's new career move. Kara Hillier Superfine was my colleague at Botanicals as one of their Senior Wedding Designers, and she is now joining forces with Renny Pederson, one of the top wedding planners in Chicago. Kara is officially the Senior Wedding & Event Design Consultant for Bliss Weddings and Events. She is an incredible planner; she is passionate about detail; she has an eye for perfection; and she is one of the most stylish, eloquent, and hard working women I know. This seems like such a perfect fit, and I am so proud of her. Felicitations!

Kara has a blog that she has wrote more about this new adventure as well as previous posts about weddings and events she has worked on. Be sure to check it out: The Art of The Occasion.

Real Wedding: Sabine and Greg II

The reception for this exquisite wedding took place at the Armour House at the Lake Forest Academy. This incredible estate was designed and built in the beginning of the century and has beautiful architectural details throughout the building. Plus, two million dollars was put into the landscaping at that time, so needless to say - the grounds are stunning!




































This couple chose the perfect combination of traditional elements mixed with modern touches. Their place card table is one of my all time favorites. Peonies are so beautiful in early summer, and we simply bunched them up here in various white ceramic containers to let their natural beauty be the focus.

The guest tables were draped in a luxurious green damask linen. The flowers were designed as a tight and compact pavé atop a custom mirrored cube. And the sparkling crystal cut votive candles completed the look (seeing the reflection of their flicker in the mirrored container was gorgeous!).

Decor by Botanicals, a branch of HM Designs
Wedding Consultant - Renny Pedersen

Real Wedding: Sabine and Greg I

This is a gorgeous wedding that I worked on that took place at the couple's summer home in Lake Forest, IL. They live most of the year in Germany so they hired the wonderful Renny Pedersen of Bliss Weddings and Events to pull together all of the amazing details of their vision. The fresh flowers were designed by myself and Jesse Deckard of Botanicals, a branch of HM Designs.
















The ceremony was framed by two enormous focal arrangements designed in rusted garden urns. These lush collections of flowers included fluffy Dutch hydreangea, bright fuchsia peonies, green jasmine vine, hanging amaranthus, garden roses, and tons of unique foliages. Additionally, each white chair down the aisle was adorned with a textural pomander of coordinating flowers tied to the chair by ivory satin ribbons.

This backyard setting is SO dreamy. I love the way the full trees create romantic shadows over the area and how the antique water fountain is the perfect focal point!

The reception is gorgeous as well, so more to come...