flowers and fun finds...

 

It doesn't happen often, but occasionally after creating arrangements for events, I might have a few extra blooms to enjoy.  When that happens, I gather up some vases, boxes or random containers that have been found, collected or rescued, and voila....we are able to scatter the joy of flowers in our home!

A neighbor shared his favorite flower with me.  It was a perfect addition to our kitchen corner window display.

A daughter collected some fading blooms from a dahlia farm where I was cutting for an upcoming wedding.  While I worked on wedding arrangements, she was busy doing her own decorating in our home.

Regardless of color, style or container, the goal is always to...

Distinguished, Dashing, Darling Dahlias

It is the time of year that dahlias are in full bloom in Michigan - and many fall brides love the look of them in their floral arrangements.  I recently provided flowers for a very sweet couple, and dahlias were on the list of flowers to have.  Because I didn't have enough white dahlias growing in my own garden, I had the pleasure of going to the Hamilton Dahlia Farm in Hamilton, Michigan to hand pick the blooms that would grace my bride's day.  I'm looking forward to seeing the professional wedding photos, but in the meantime, here is some of the fun that we had leading up to the special day:

Rows and rows of colorful dahlias:

Close up shots:

Farm helpers had been busy cutting for market day:

Paige, age 12, was thrilled that while mom was cutting white dahlias, she was allowed to pick up the colorful and perfectly beautiful "dead heads" that were on the ground.  Armed with a bucket full, she immediately started using her creativity when we returned home:

 

Wedding flower delivery day:

I'll share more wedding day photos as soon as I see them.  In the meantime, you might see some of my wedding day snapshots show up on the Forrester Farm Facebook Page - or here on the blog :)!

A "Stop and Smell the Flowers" kind of day.....

I don't know if it is true for you, but our summer has flown by fast!  For the one week that I wasn't working on wedding flowers or was out of town, we hosted family from out of state and threw a graduation & birthday party for my son.  It has been one busy summer - and this week, I'm catching up.  Reclaiming the jungle of a yard, organizing bedrooms, shopping for school clothes and college dorm supplies and.... remembering to stop to smell the flowers :)!  Today, we'll even relax and take in a fabulous floral scene while enjoying music at the local botanical gardens:  Frederik Meijer Gardens and Sculpture Park. 

A wonderful perk to all the summer weddings I've worked on - 

the "left-over" flowers that call for a vase in my home.

Enjoy your day and remember to stop and smell the flowers!

(Maybe even up close!)