what I love: 2013 - Big Things!

Hello lovelies, and happy 2013! (I know I'm SUPER late to the bandwagon on that whole happy new year thing, but please forgive me! We've been busy.)

Speaking of busy, we've marked some major milestones in the last few months here at Invited! To begin, we've officially opened our LA office, and Pavaune (that's me!) gets to spearhead that office. I'm a California native, so it's kind of like a little homecoming. Needless to say, I'm thrilled! Our LA clients seem to be pretty ecstatic too!

So I'm pretty sure you're wondering... who's running the DC office?!  That's the even more exciting news! Ruby Dichirico joined the Invited team last year, and she's heading the DC office. She's absolutely unbelievable. With more than 100 weddings under her belt, all of you DMV brides will absolutely be in the best hands!

photo credit: Leo Druker Photography

What's more?! Annie Oudom, who's been with Invited as one of our fabulous assistants for about 2 years now, has been promoted. She is now a day-of coordinator! After 2 years of experiencing all the ups and downs that DC weddings could throw at her, she's ready to take on wedding days as the head honcho!

photo credit: Leo Druker Photography

Finally, we were lucky enough to have Leo Druker photograph us for all-new company head shots. It was an incredibly fun time shooting with him, and now we can speak firsthand as to how at ease he makes his clients feel! I'm beyond thrilled by the shots that came of it, so thank you Leo!

photo credit: Leo Druker Photography

Needless to say, we have some very big things in store for 2013 - from coast to coast!

who I love: whitney houston

The world is devastated, no doubt by the loss of a music goddess, Whitney Houston, whom I consider the Beyonce or Jennifer Hudson of my day. With her all-powerful voice, strong beautiful presence, and fierce attitude this woman rocked us to the core with songs like "I Have Nothing," that when belted, made us feel more alive and definitely, understood. Not to mention songs like "I Wanna Dance with Somebody" that made us feel like doing just that!

Photo credit: Rolling Out

Among other favorites, I remember "I Will Always Love You," from The Bodyguard, a movie I never tired of watching, even 20 years after it's debut. It's not too often a singer can crossover into Hollywood and be successful, but I believed in the love between Kevin Costner and Whitney. She was just that good!

And even her recent works, "I Look to You," which included a few recent favorites like "Million Dollar Bill" and "Didn't Know My Own Strength," doubled us over in awe of a voice so powerful and lyrics so moving that we thought nothing - not even death - could ever take away that voice away. Now that it is gone, I'm sad that circumstances didn't allow us to celebrate this woman's achievements - as many as there were - a lot sooner, or at least more often and in her presence. It's undeniably heartbreaking to see another great artist silenced by causes that could have most certainly been avoided.

This week who I love is a woman who we all loved, Whitney Houston.

who I love: barbara of growing wild!

I have the privilege of working with some amazingly talented professionals in this business, and one woman who I absolutely love working with is Barbara Von Elm of Growing Wild Floral Co. This is a bouquet she made for one of my April brides. Totally gorg!

Photo credit: Meredith Perdue

I thought it'd be fun to do a little Q&A with Barbara so you could get to know a little about the woman behind the flowers and why I love her as much as I do!

How did you get into the wedding business?

I was doing a Home and Garden show in DC selling my dried arrangements and a mother of a bride thought I would connect well with her daughter’s natural style... My first 2 weddings were actually done with dried flowers. I was knocked out when I started working with fresh (alive!) florals.. Sooooo much prettier!

Tell me about your farm.

I love my farm. I moved to my 65 acre farm in Delaplane (60 miles west of DC) from Alexandria in 2003, after my 2 daughters went to college. I literally packed up my dogs, cats and horses and moved west. Then I designed and built a house with a studio where we do all of our design work. 

What sets you apart from other florists in the area?

I am putting a lot of time and resources in growing organic florals for the business. We currently are focusing on high-end florals such as peonies, hydrangeas and my favorite cash crop—dahlias. Sadly, since we do up to 5 weddings per weekend (in high season), most of our flowers still come from the wholesalers…I am shooting to get 10 percent of all flowers used from the gardens.

What are good go-to flowers for the Spring? Fall?

Early spring (March-April) brings the classic Spring flowers including tulips, daffs, lilac, and hyacinths. It also is a good time to get flowers like ranunculus, anemone, that are cool weather flowers.

Late Spring (May-June) brings the ever popular peonies! 

My fall favorite is the dahlia. However,  one can find lots of other fun flowers including zinnia, sedum,  and of course, hydrangea.

What advice would you give to a bride on a budget?

Go for seasonal flowers or those that are available all year round (e.g. roses, etc.) and put your money in your bouquets and your centerpieces. Your bouquets (including bridesmaids) are in most of your pictures and your guests will be looking at the centerpieces all night long so that's what they'll remember. 

How much should a bride expect to pay for wedding flowers?

No more than she can comfortably afford.  At the end of the day, it is not about flowers.

What’s your favorite part of this job?

I love to find new ideas that brides bring to the table and I LOVE making gorgeous bridal bouquets! When I begin, I have no idea what it will look like. The flowers will take on their own personality. I let them do their own floral thing. They rarely disappoint unless I try to force them (that is why I ask for flexibility from my brides... it's when you get the best work)!

What is your favorite flower?

Love them all. Some are easier to work with. Some are so fragile that they are not practical.

If you hadn't noticed, Barbara, like me, is a woman who loves her work, and I love that! I'm not the only one who loves Barbara, either! Her clients do! Check out all the recognition she's received:

To see more of Barbara's work, visit her website: www.growingwildfloral.com or email her at growingwild@msn.com, and let her know we sent you!
 

attention!! brand new weekly feature: who I love!

We've got some big changes in store for This, I Love over the next few months, and I'm so anxious about them all that I had to give you one of them a little earlier than the others!

We're starting a brand new feature, y'all: WHO I LOVE!

Every Monday, I'll be introducing you to someone I adore - whether it be a fellow blogger, an invitation designer, an awesome florist, maybe a great interior designer! You can be assured that it will be someone fabulous... and someone that you'll want to know too!

So keep your eyes peeled for the new feature which will be coming to you soon!!!