What I've Been Working On...

Where has February gone and why haven't I posted anything lately??? Good question! 

Virginia, Kansas City, Columbus, Ohio, 

Duluth, Minnesota, Midland, Texas, Tennessee, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Las Angeles...  

It's wedding planning season and we've been busy making burlap wedding bouquets that have been shipped all across the country! 

When I tell people I make burlap wedding bouquets, most think its just for country / western weddings, but here's the thing - Philadelphia and L.A. are big cities (that's just about as for from the country as you can get!) 

I've had customers submit their photos and some are very rustic elegant, without the country feel to it, while others are very rustic country. (Check out the featured wedding tab to see customer submitted pictures.)

Recently, there's been several new color combination request. This dark purple and jade (light turquoise) is very springy and makes me happy! This order shows small and medium size bridesmaid bouquets.

This navy burlap wedding order has two toss / junior bridesmaid bouquets (top) and a small bridesmaid bouquet. 

 A medium size jade bouquet. I get questions regarding the different sizes of the bouquets, so these pictures show the different options. The medium size bouquet is similar to the bridal bouquet, since it has the lace collar (does not come standard on the small and toss bouquets) although it is not near as full as the bridal bouquet. Budget conscious brides have been ordering the medium size for themselves recently.

 This is a turquoise toss bouquet and boutonniere.

 Navy bridal bouquet, toss (bottom left) and small bridesmaid bouquet.

 So February has been very gloomy and rainy. It forced me to take pictures indoors and unfortunately, I don't have great indoor lighting or space to spread out 10 bouquets... Anyways, this order was completed with navy, gold, tan, and white burlap roses and extra white lace.

 Two toss / junior bridesmaid bouquets, one small and medium bouquet, along with two turquoise boutonnieres.

 Have I mentioned turquoise goes with just about any color? This was a new request for hunter green with turquoise!

Again, I had to get creative with the pictures, because of the rain and gloom, so I went to the farm and took pictures in the hay barn, while Jeff was feeding the animals. 

 Wristlet corsages accompanied this ordered. I imagine these are going to be worn by the mothers of the bride and groom.

This order was different, where the bridal bouquet was jade and the attendants bouquets (medium for maid of honor, 3 small for bridesmaids) had turquoise. Kind of an ombre effect with shades of turquoise and I like that idea! I would love to see pictures from any and all of my wonderful customers and feature your wedding pictures here! 

 On a happy note, the daffodils started blooming this week, reminding us that spring is coming soon! I meant to get outside and pick me a big bouquet yesterday, but didn't get home before it started raining again. We are dealing with flash flooding and heavy rains this week, so they are droopy at the today. This girl is ready for some sunshine and yard working time!

We also had our first baby calf recently! I had told the girls (cows) at the farm that it was TIME to start having babies. The very next day, this sweet little thing was born! 

So that just about sums up what's been happening lately - head down working on helping all of you with wedding flowers, checking on the critters at the farm, and trying to stay warm, dry, and waiting on sunshine.

I better get back to work now, I've got to get all our stuff ready to go to Uniques and Antiques tomorrow, work on a few more bouquets, answer several emails, and Friday is Career Day at the school and have to do a presentation (9 times) to elementary age students. I'm a little nervous about all that and got to get all my supplies ready... Wish me luck and hope they don't find me too boring!

An Extra Special Wedding Bouquet

 This was an extra special burlap and lace bridal bouquet to make! Watch the short video below for an explanation of what made this a sentimental keepsake for one bride to be.

Joy ordered this bouquet in coral and navy and ask if I could use lace from her late mother's wedding dress. Of course, I said yes! Instead of chopping up the dress, she sent me the veil and all the lace in the bouquet (except for the lace bouquet collar) is from the veil. She surprised her sister with this sentimental, keepsake bouquet! I love getting to add something that holds special meaning to arrangements.

By the way, Joy has already given the bouquet to her sister, said she loved it, and give me permission to share the story.

Burlap Color Chart

Today, as I was organizing fabric, I decided to finally create a burlap color chart of all the color options that I currently have in stock! A few years ago, I didn't know there was so many colors of burlap - now I have 44 colors on hand!

Some of the colors marked with a (*) are limited availability or discontinued colors. 

Please note colors can vary between monitors and different lighting situations. I photographed this color chart in natural light, on an overcast day. (Will try to get another picture, with sunlight, for comparison sake.) Colors can also vary between bolts. For example - all 3 red samples were sold as "red", but you can see the difference between fabric cuts and different suppliers. Same for lime and royal blue.  

Custom burlap wedding bouquets, boutonnieres, corsages, headbands, pillows, etc are always available from my etsy shop. Please message me to discuss your specific needs and I can create a custom listing for you. If you don't see your color on my chart, please ask, as I will check on availability from my suppliers. 

Little Mermaid meets Burlap and Lace

The theme for this wedding is "Little Mermaid meets Burlap and Lace". 

She has gorgeous red mermaid hair and the groom is a boots and jeans guy and together they participate in trap shooting gun competitions. The weddings colors are red, mint, tan and cream, with ivory lace. The bride to be chose the "jade" burlap, as she thought it was closest to her chosen shade of mint. Each wedding package can be customized  to reflect the couples color, theme, personalities, interest and of course number of attendants, etc. 

Bridal bouquet with red, jade, tan and white burlap roses and ivory lace

Medium size burlap bouquets for maid and matron of honor

Small size bridesmaid bouquets

As we discussed the details and ideas of her wedding, she ask if I was able to make shotgun shell boutonnieres and she nearly cried when I said yes. The groom really wanted the shotgun shell bouts, but she didn't see any in my shop. From time to time, I do have request for them and was happy to make them. My nephews were happy to contribute shells to the cause! I went to take their senior / family pictures last week and there was lots of skeet shooting involved and I snatched up all the empty shells from them! They also promised to save me more and get me more colors of shells. (Currently I have red, yellow and a few black.) The boys participate in the 4-H shotgun competitions, were they just placed 1st and 4th in their divisions.  

Shotgun shell boutonnieres with burlap rose

Shotgun shell boutonnieres with burlap rose - the ring bearer is getting a little mini burlap rose for his flower. 

Red rose wristlet corsage

Jade burlap wrist corsage

Neutral colored wrist corsage

I certainly hope we get to see pictures after the wedding! I know it will be a gorgeous event and I can wait to see how they pull it all together! 

Jessica and Gary's Rustic Wedding

Spring wedding season is upon us and I always enjoy getting to see pictures from customers! Jessica and Gary were recently married in Arizona and shared pictures from their rustic wedding with me. 

Jessica carried a burlap bouquet with turquoise, brown, tan, and white roses, while the groom wore a brown burlap rose boutonniere. 

Thank you for allowing me to be a part of your wedding! Sending my congratulations and best wishes  to the bride and groom for a wonderful marriage and happy ever after! 

***All photos were used by permission from Jessica and were taken by LIA Photography (link to their Facebook page.)

All Things Pink

This time of year, my yard turns all shades of pink from roses, crepe myrtles, hens and chicks to petunias, periwinkles, and zinnias.  The butterflies are attracted to the pink lantana in my flower beds, 

while I'm in love with the periwinkles and  zinnias among the rusty milk cans at our steps. 

I placed an old wheel barrow frame among the sweet potato vine and zinnias to "Molly proof" this flower bed. One of the dogs thought laying in there was a perfect spot, but I thought differently and my fix has definitely been keeping the flowers from getting smashed. It's junk with a purpose! 

Speaking of pink, Brittany won this pink and white burlap and lace wedding bouquet from the Moore Farms Rustic Weddings giveaway on Facebook recently. 

She ordered coordinating bridesmaid bouquets and boutonnières for her upcoming wedding. 

Pink and brown burlap bouquets, boutonnières and corsages from another recent custom order. 

Hope everyone has a fabulous week. Oh, and in case you were wondering - there have been no more snake sightings! Hopefully my screams and moth balls have sent him gone for good!