This wedding was a pure joy, heavenly in fact!!! Hannah & I were on the same page right from the start, the slightly strange part of this chapter of the Flower Design story is that Hannah & I met each other "face to face and in person" for the very first time on her wedding day, Hannah & Paul live in Canada and had planned their long distance wedding in it's entirety via telephone calls, Skype and e-mails, the flowers were no exception, Hannah had been following my Blog for sometime so she did know what she was letting herself in for!
We exchanged e-mails regularly and enjoyed a unique "Event Florist & Bride" relationship, somehow it all seemed more focused, Hannah's brief was exacting, yet clear and I love a challenge; purple Orchids and white Roses were the signature flowers representing our Bride & Groom, Red Roses for Lancashire and the White Yorkshire Roses needed to be included, Hannah & Paul also loved seriously vibrant colours and truly beautiful flowers (that bit was easy!) and the rest as they say is history...
Jason & I were up at the crack of dawn, we loaded up the van with exquisite flowers and headed for Oxford, the sun was shining and the sky was blue, perfect wedding day weather, the lovely Hannah and her entourage of beautiful Bridesmaids and family were getting ready in one of the suites at The Randolph Hotel in the centre of Oxford.
Hannah's wedding bouquet was created from a heady collection of fragrant spring blooms including Fresh Lily of the Valley, White Ranunculas, David Austin's English Garden Rose Patience, delicious White Peonies, White Lilac, Viburnum Opulus, aromatic Rosemary, scented Sweet Peas in Lilac and Deep Purple and the seriously magnificent "Purple Magic" Vanda Orchid.
The presentation of the bridal bouquet
The Bridesmaids Bouquets were a smaller version of Hannah's Bouquet again in vivid Purple, Lime Green and White a perfect combination to tone with their purple gowns
Hannah's lovely Mum looked stunning
We created an epaulette Corsage of Vanda Orchid, Champagne Grass, Rosemary, White Heather and fresh Ivy
We caught up with Paul and the Groom's Men in the "Morse Bar", we pinned on Paul's rather special Groom's Boutonniere, it included fresh Rosemary, Champagne Grass, Dendrobium Orchids, an English Garden Rose Patience and vivid lime green Hypericum berries.
Paul's Ushers and Groom's Men were presented with Boutonnieres of Rosemary, Hypericum and a single Akito Rose framed by Ivy leaves
Christ Church Cathedral is within the grounds of Christ Church College
This photograph of me has prompted a very serious diet!!!!
The flowers in the Cathedral were so beautiful by the Altar a gogeous pedestal of white Lilies and Roses
Framing the ceremony space two column designs of Red Lancashire & White Yorkshire Roses
The Groom's fabulous Mum wearing a Red Lancashire & a White Yorkshire Rose Corsage
Hannah's two Bridesmaids looked completely fabulous, their beautiful bridal bouquets complimented their deep purple gowns perfectly
We included White Ranunculas, Sweet Peas in purple and lilac, fabulous white Peonies, fresh Lily of the Valley, Lilac and lime green Viburnum Opulus and Hypericum Berries
Hannah arrived looking utterly breath taking
Hannah was wearing Purple Orchids and rolled white Rose Petals in her hair
The Cathedral Choir were amazing, Jason and I were honestly moved to tears by the music
Huge Congratulations to Hannah & Paul from all of the team at Flower Design Events
The celebrations moved on to the Tythe Barn in Launton
Where little posies of fresh flowers on the outdoor tables were bathed in gentle spring sunshine ready to greet the guests as they arrived back from Church
Each table had an individual collection of spring flowers
Gorgeous Pin Cushion Scabious, Fresh Lily of the Valley, a Sunshine yellow Rose, Anemones and a Vanda Orchid
Inside the Tythe Barn the Bar was dressed with a huge vase of Pussy Willow, Alliums, Arum Lilies, Solomons Seal, Hydrangeas, French Tulips "Flame", Roses and Agapanthus
The ledges and low bar tables in the "Cow Shed" were treated to fresh flowers and tea light votives
The Wedding Breakfast was to be served in the main Tythe Barn with all of the guests sat around one uber long table
We dressed the table with simple posies of single variety blooms arranged in clear glass column vases in a variety of heights
I wanted the designs to have rhythm and movement, the posies were carefully placed to encourage the eye to travel along the table enjoying the view!
A posy of Roses, Peonies and Hydrangeas for our Bride to throw
The posies included many delicately fragranced blooms including Lilac, Sweet Peas, Freesia and Lily of the Valley
Blue Bells, Lilac, Hydrangeas, Single Peonies and fragrant Dill
Orchis, Germini's Alliums, Craspedia, Tulips, Dill & Ruby Red Roses
Glorios Lilies, Dahlias, Craspedia & Hot Pink Peonies
The Piano Key Cake topped with a posy of signature Orchids & Roses
This was such a stunning wedding and we feel hugely privileged to have been a small part of it, many thanks to Hannah & Paul for choosing Flower Design Events to create their wedding flowers!