Campbell's Weddings

Campbell's Couples

It's been the most fantastic experience working with so many wonderful Campbell's Brides since we started.  We've loved meeting with you, talking through your plans and making specially tailored designs to suit each and every one of your beautiful, beautiful weddings.  We seem incredibly blessed to work with so many really creative Brides who are happy to be guided by us, but also want to put their own spin on their wedding flowers.

If you're thinking of joining our happy 'family' of Brides who choose natural, romantic, pretty seasonal flowers; want something a little different from the mainstream and are looking for lots of ideas and inspiration; why not download our free style-guide Inspire? It's full of lots of lovely images and ideas for your special day.

But before you zip over and do that, why not pour yourself a cuppa and look through some of our recent bride's flowers and read why they chose them?  Enjoy!



Hello all

We're back feeling all rested after a fab break and thought we'd put together this blog post for you which features the lovely Briony & Phil, whose wedding took place at the beginning of August at the very beautiful Wentworth Church and then the gorgeous Whitley Hall.

When I met them earlier in the year, Briony told me she absolutely loves scent and that this was a really important feature of the flowers we chose.  She also adores big, blousey, beautiful blooms and, as we were planning for mid-summer, this wasn't going to be a problem at all!

With her four adult bridesmaids wearing dresses of dusky pink and soft mink and Briony in an ivory drop A-line halter-neck with bodice embellishment of pearls and crystals - the colour scheme just had to be soft, muted shades of raspberry, shell-pink, rich buttery creams and soft powdery blues.

Here are just a few of the designs we put together ...


We used freesia, veronica, brunia, setaria, lavender, ammi, peonies, astrantia, eucalyptus, echinops, vintage cream roses, Yorkshire lavender, hydrangea and eryngium in Briony's bouquet




The adult bridesmaids had very similar flowers to Briony but we left out the peonies and added some gorgeous blush pink dahlias and some dusky pink lisianthus


 Flowers were pretty much everywhere - we created three of these textured designs to sit along the top table, with the guest tables featuring a pretty wreath ring, filled with huge church candles. We decorated a huge fireplace with a  large scale mantle arrangement and filled all the tiers of  the cake with flowers finished with a large topper too. Sadly I was still in iPhone mode at the time (pre whizzy camera purchase) and the shots I took didn't make the final edit!  

However, here are some which Briony sent ...


One of the bridesmaids took this shot - a lovely big fat bumble bee landed on Briony's bouquet just as we all chatted about how natural and scented the flowers were!


Sensible precautions against the very lovely, but very hot day!

Here's a few more of the day with everyone looking fabulous ....







So beautiful, don't you think?

Here's what Briony had to say in her email ...

"Hi Tracey

Myself and Phil just want to say a big thank you for creating the most beautiful flowers for our wedding day. 

They far exceeded our expectations and many of our guest complimented them too. Nothing went to waste as our close family each took home a wreath. They were absolutely breathtaking and smelt amazing! Honestly, words cannot describe how grateful we are. 

I have attached a few pictures for you to take a look at. 

Love and best wishes,

Briony & Phil x"

How lovely!

We're constantly updating our portfolio on the blog so pop over to have a little look at all the pretties we have waiting for you, alternatively, we also have lots of ideas and lovely pics on our website - if you clink on the link you'll be whizzed over to our Wedding Flowers where you'll find so much more!

Tracey x

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Hello all

Today we bring you the story of Cathy & Brett's beautiful wedding which took place at the end of May this year at the very lovely City Hall here in sunny Sheffield.

When Cathy & I met at a wedding fayre last year, we talked briefly about how she wanted really pretty, soft, feminine pastels in whites, creams, apricots and blues.  Once we met up for a consultation we also talked through her idea to use silver as an accent colour too.  It didn't take long to choose a stylish bouquet of soft pastels, hand tied in a posy style using blue hydrangea, creamy, scented tuberose, white ranunculus, silvery brunia, white phlox and  ‘Finess’ (apricot coloured) roses.  We also decided to conceal the binding point with a band of silver satin ribbon with a lace overlay to pick up the 50's styling of her gorgeous ivory satin gown with a silk georgette beaded overskirt.

We also secretly decided to incorporate some really personal details in the shape of a really fab lego man in Cathy's sons buttonhole and a funky little union-jack guitar lapel pin badge into Brett's buttonhole.  Just before the wedding, Cathy dropped these off with an extra little lapel pin which she asked to be put into her Dad's buttonhole.  I have to admit that it made me shed a tear when I saw it and, indeed, it had the same effect on Cathy's Dad too, apparently!

Here are a few of her designs:-






A close up of all those lovely textures and gorgeous colours in Cathy's bouquet






Cathy's memorium with little pictures of loved ones attached to her bouquet


The bridesmaid's bouquets were the same as Cathy's just a little smaller and with a different finish


So, when I delivered all the flowers, the little flower girls were there and one of them looked at me wide eyed when I said that one of these was for her and said "Is it a real wand?" to which I couldn't help replying ... "Well maybe, it is a very special day where magic happens isn't it?"  (I hope she wasn't too disappointed!)


Brett's buttonhole with a little guitar shaped badge and a little rockstar lego man for her son, Charlie



Her Dad's buttonhole with the loveliest sentiment ever 


 The ladies buttonholes had a little phlox added to them to make them just a little more feminine





Cathy sent me some of her 'official' photos too ...















Along with this rather touching and lovely email ....

"Hello Tracey!!!


Finally back in the land of the living and back to reality with a bump… work and rain!!
Just wanted to say a HUGE thank you for the beautiful flowers and all the work you put in to make them just perfect!
Everything you suggested and cleverly put together worked brilliantly with our theme, and the colour of the blues were just perfect and worked so well with the bridesmaid frocks!! Absolutely stunning!
I can now fully see and appreciate how much thought and time you put in to your work, and what a fabulous lady to have on the 'wedding team'!! If anyone is looking for anything floral I will be sure to pass on your details.
I've attached a few piccies for you… THANK YOU AGAIN!!
Cathy xxx"

Photocredits:  Campbell's Flowers & Simon Bunney Photography




Hello lovelies

Whilst Kate and I get on with lots of exciting plans chez Campbell's, I thought I'd take the opportunity to catch up with some of this year's totally fabulous weddings, beginning with the Spring wedding of Sammy & Harry.

Sammy, it has to be said, is probably one of the most laid back lovely Brides I've ever worked with.  Recommended to me by my lovely friend Amy from Pure Enough, Sammy and I hit it off straight away.  When she told me that her bridesmaids were wearing royal blue and that she was to be married in mid-March, I just knew that hyacinths were going to be a feature of her flowers!

On talking everything through, we decided on very natural, soft and pretty posy-style bouquet with a 'hand picked' look in lovely whites and creams for Sammy, using blooms such as cream ‘Vendella’ roses, white ranunculus, white hyacinths, white spray roses, cream wax flower, rosemary and eucalyptus cinerea. As a pretty embellishment we decided on a cream satin band overtied with a narrow blue satin ribbon in a bow with short pretty trails.

For the four adult bridesmaids we created similar bouquets but added a lovely depth of colour by replacing the white hyacinths with gorgeous Delph Blue hyacinths instead.  Beautiful.  We also decided upon a tiny version of the Adults' bouquets for Bethany, her flower girl.

On the day, all went well and off I set in Dory to deliver a van full of scented goodies.  Unusually, I had arranged with Sammy to deliver all the buttonholes to the guys first (purely because geographically it was easier and quicker) - imagine my surprise when I got there only to find no-one home!  Some odd things can happen to a flowery person on peoples wedding days, but delivering to an empty house was definitely a first!  Anyway, a kindly neighbour came to my rescue and managed to locate them all and they turned up not long afterwards! 

Everyone loved their flowers and the bridesmaids were just blown away by the gorgeous scent of those amazing hyacinths.  You just can't beat Spring flowers for a Spring wedding!

Here are a few pics ...



A close up of Sammy's bouquet



Full of lovely textures and scents 


Two of the bridesmaid's bouquets 



A tiny version for the flower girl



The ladies buttonholes featured little mini spray roses along with wax flower and the creamy roses



The groom's buttonhole



... and a simpler version for the groomsmen with rosemary for remembrance





Heavenly scented thank you bouquets



I loved working with such pretty, scented flowers and hope that they've given you some fab ideas if you're planning a Spring wedding next year too!

If you're looking for a bit more inspiration then try downloading our latest issue of Inspire or pop over to our website and check out our blushing brides for much more.

We'll be back very soon with Jenny & Matt's story of succulents, purple flowers and snow!

Tracey x

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Hello all, well the wedding season for 2013 has really kicked off here at Campbell's Flowers and HQ has been awash with flowery gorgeousness ever since Rachael & Wayne's Spring wedding at the beginning of March.

Rachael originally got in touch after a visit to the lovely Chloe at The White Room where she bought the most fabulous Claire Pettibone gown which features gorgeous dark lavender-grey detailing and a wonderful silk floral corsage at the back.  During our consultation, Rachael told me that the whole colour theme of the wedding would be a fabulous Spring-like yellow and that daffodils were an absolute must!  She also wanted to feature colours such as slate grey and the lavender-grey colour from her dress.

Sometimes, working seasonal blooms into colour schemes can be a bit tricky, but not this time.  I suggested we use bright yellow open daffodils in the bridal and bridesmaids bouquets and combine this with softer creams of sweet scented narcissus.  To balance the colour between the soft creams and bright yellows, I recommended some pretty lemon ranunculus. Then we could bring in detail colour from her gown, by using scented dried lavender, seasonal lilac for texture and more scent and finally, an absolute favourite of mine, dark moody helebores! Just gorgeous!

The bridesmaids, we decided, would carry the same bouquet as Rachael, just a little smaller and the buttonholes would be a really simple, stylish, vintage-inspired lemon ranunculus with a little lavender.  As any of you who have worked with me will know, I'm a stickler for detail.  So, I suggested a gorgeous dark lavender satin ribbon for Rachael's bouquet teamed with a very simple, vintage brooch.  The bridesmaids' bouquets featured lemon organza ribbon and the buttonholes were finished with a tie of the same, to complement the cravats the groomsmen were wearing.

Tables were to be kept gloriously simple but incredibly striking by using the sunniest, Springtime open daffodils packed into slate grey pewter jugs (which caused some headaches of their own, trying to get them to open perfectly for the day!). As Rachael and Wayne's ceremony and reception were both at Whitley Hall we decided upon a statement design in a pewter chalice, using all the flowers from the theme, which would double as a ceremony and top table arrangement.

Here are the final designs, which I just absolutely loved creating ...


Rachael's bouquet close up


The bridesmaid's bouquet's finished with lemon organza ribbon


More of the bouquets



A close up of the ribbon detail from Rachel's bouquet


The men's buttonholes


 Ladies buttonholes




The gloriously opulent ceremony/top table design ...



... and a close-up of the gorgeous flowers we used



British grown beautiful daffodils


As you can see the daffs opened perfectly for the day - but they certainly needed quite a bit of persuading! 







I'm just so happy that everything worked out just how we wanted it to, buy working with amazing seasonal flowers and I even managed to get some lovely British grown blooms into the designs too!

Rachael also sent me some shots by her wedding photographer Shakespeare Photography - here are just a few ...















A HUGE thank you to Rachael for sending these through to me - congratulations to you both.

Tx


Photo credit: Shakespeare Photography

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Katie & Adam - Red Lippy & Winter Berries


Hello lovelies!

Today I bring you one of our lovely real weddings from last year featuring the fabulous Katie & Adam, who were married here, in Sheffield, in mid November.

Katie and I hit it off the first time we met - she's the wedding co-ordinator at one of the top hotels in Sheffield and we got chatting at my first ever wedding fair, at her place of work! I was so excited when she mentioned she was getting married, I'm afraid I was a bit over-enthusiastic (something she reminds me of when I see her!!).  Luckily though, Katie really loved my designs and so we got together for a consultation and just completely hit it off.

She adores gorgeous red, velvety roses and so I suggested using red Naomi, a deliciously scented, absolutely stunning, big, beautiful rose. We teamed these with her favourite purple tulips, some hypericum berries for texture all offset everything with pretty lilac and magenta roses, creating a fabulous rich and sumptuous bouquet. To make sure the bouquet worked with her 50's styled gown, we kept the bouquet quite compact and a strong 'ball' shape.




I'm so happy to say that the lovely Jo from Creative Images photographed the day and has been incredibly kind and generous by sending me some really gorgeous shots of the day ...





We created a similar, smaller bouquet for the bridesmaids and left out the berries to make Katie's bouquet a little different and the weeniest bit more special!



The boy's buttonholes were really simple and elegant, using the gorgeous roses and a little berry





Their venue was the stunning City Hall in Sheffield, with it's Art Deco fabulousness - everything looked so beautiful. Candleabras were decorated with simple corsages of flowers, as were the backs of the chairs and it was wall-to-wall candles everywhere!

















Such a fabulousness, and what I want to know is how did that gorgeous lippy stay on all day and night?!

My thanks to Katie and Adam for choosing me to be part of their day - I was also lucky enough to be asked along to the evening, which was just the best fun ever!

Tracey x

Photo credit Creative Images : http://creativeimagesphotography.co.uk/

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Joan & Jim - Love is all you need


Hello lovelies, a couple of week's ago, we had the pleasure of designing beautiful rich, opulent, vintage-style flowers for Joan and Jim's lovely, simple, understated wedding.

The first time I met Joan for a consultation, she told me that her favourite colours were gorgeous plums, deep purples and lilacs and she brought along with her Jim's rather fabulous silk tie to show me just what she had in mind!

Talking through her ideas, we quickly settled on a dark 'Cadbury's' purple double lisianthus, lilac freesia (an absolute must for its scent), beautiful 'Purple Power' roses (again, fabulously scented) and a scattering of violet coloured lisianthus to bring the colours together.

Both Joan and Jim had unexpectedly found themselves falling in love in later life and so wanted their day to be a very stylish but quiet celebration with all their friends and family and chose to get married at the Town Hall and follow this with a fabulous wedding breakfast at one of Sheffield's top hotels.

Originally Joan had wanted a bouquet, but had a change of heart once she spied the most fantastic clutch which coordinated perfectly with her cream and black shoes and elegant silk day dress of cream with black swirls and capped sleeves featuring the most adorable petal detail. The whole outfit was accessorised with the prettiest of facinators.  In the end we came up with a lovely double rose wrist corsage and made a feature of the beautiful deep purple satin ribbon, making sure there was enough to tie it securely and finish with a pretty bow and trails.

Here are a few pics of our designs


Joan's pretty, vintage-inspired double rose wrist corsage


 Jim's buttonhole


A long and low table decoration for the top table


A close up of all the lovely colours together


The top table was huge!


A close-up of the simple hand tied posy designs for the table decorations


Always lovely at an Autumn or Winter wedding, we used tea lights and vanilla scented candles on the tables


The little cake topper


We also made a whole series of 'corsages' using freesia and lisianthus, which adorned the cake table - unfortunately the cake lady was under a bit of pressure so we left her to it, which meant we didn't get a photo of the really pretty cakes and the lovely cake table.  In addition to this there were two chocolate cakes too which were all covered in fresh flowers!

We really enjoyed working with Joan, she was such a lovely lady. I'm hoping to update you very soon with some gorgeous photos of the happy couple - but in the meantime, I won't give their exact ages away but will tell you that Joan is in her 60's and Jim his 70's!  Happily, love knows no boundaries.

Tx







Ascenza & Franco - Lilacs, Lavenders & September Flower



Hello all, today's Campbell's couple are the lovely Ascenza and Franco who were married on a very wet and windy day this week.

When Ascenza came to visit me she told me her theme was lilac and lavender and that she especially wanted a bouquet with lots of scent and that her wedding was in September.  Now, I'm not sure if you have noticed, but we have really pretty pale purple daisy type flower which is a member of the aster family and grows wild along our roadsides at this time of the year.  It's aptly nicknamed September flower and when I mentioned this to Ascenza, she absolutely loved the idea of including it in her bouquet.  We both also loved the idea that when she saw it growing every year, she would be reminded of her wedding day.




As Ascenza wanted a really soft, feminine and romantic hand tied posy I suggested we go for a 'just picked' style and showed her some of the bouquets I had made this year - she loved them all, so I knew it would be really easy to find just what she wanted.

We finally settled on pale lilac freesia for scent and its gorgeous shape - I love the tendril-like quality of its shape.  This was teamed with dried lavender, cream spray roses, the aforementioned aster, a little green bell and some gorgeous eucalyptus which complimented the colours beautifully.  The bouquet was kept very simple and was finished with a lovely cream satin band of ribbon, fixed with pearl headed pins. Here are a few photos of the finished design and I can't wait to see the 'official' ones soon!




Franco's buttonhole of spray roses and lavender was finished with a tie of cream satin ribbon



Congratulations to such a lovely lady - I know I will think of her every time I see September flower in the hedgerows each year!

Do you have a particular flower which reminds you of a specific time of year?  If so, I'd love to hear from you - I might even feature your story in one of our posts too!  Email me, or leave me a message below and I'll get back to you asap.

Tx







Clare & Brian - Kilts, A Ceilidh and Purple Prettiness


So, as promised, I bring you today's 'real wedding' between Clare and Brian. When Clare and I arranged to meet for the first time, she asked if she might bring her gorgeous little toddler, Harry, along with her. Of course I had no objections at all, being a Mum and quite used to small people, but I did worry that perhaps Clare might not get all the attention she deserved as the Bride.  I know from experience that being a Mum to young children is so all-encompassing that it isn't a natural response to put yourself first.

However, I needn't have worried. We managed just fine to juggle Harry's needs around our discussions.  A perfect example of multi-tasking!

Clare told me that Brian is Irish and that he and his Best Man would be wearing Irish 'Black Spirit' kilts and that in the evening they were having a Ceilidh. She also told me that she really loves lisianthus and particularly the really dark, beautiful 'Cadbury's' purple colour. She also felt sure that she wanted a very  pretty, delicate, unstructured, natural bouquet.

With these ideas as I starting point, I suggested a very simple hand-tied, posy style bouquet of dark purple single lisianthus, dried lavender for texture and scent, blue nigella for softness, creamy spray roses to 'lift' the colour and white astrantia (which is actually limey-greeny-white) for a very 'just picked' meadowy look.  Finally I suggested eucalyptus as a lovely bluey-grey-green fragrant foliage to link all the colours and bring the design together.



Clare was really happy with my suggestions and we decided that as she is really petite, and her dress is a really simple, elegant fitted satin ivory gown, her bouquet shouldn't be too big and should look very light and almost ethereal.

Now as you will all know, flowers are my absolute passion, but with my job comes a certain level of responsibility to deliver on the day what has been agreed upon in advance.  I always add a proviso that substitutions may have to be made, but it's not something I often or ever like to resort to.

However, because I deal with a product that is natural, it doesn't always perform in the way you might expect.  Clare particularly had her heart set on blue Nigella (or Love-in-the-Mist) but, try as I might, I just couldn't get any.  I tried four different British and Dutch suppliers but without any luck at all.  It transpires that at this time of the year it is grown outdoors and the terrible rains we had have rotted the flowers in the fields, so none was available.

So I contacted Clare and suggested a couple of changes and bought instead some wonderfully fragrant and simply gorgeous mint, which has a really short growing season, it just couldn't be any more seasonal.  I also bought a pretty little blue thistle, again for texture.

Here are the designs which, happily Clare loved when I delivered them to her


A close-up of the gorgeous materials 'Crema' spray roses, lavender, white astrantia, eucalyptus 'baby blue', mint and eryngium (thistle)


Clare's pretty, natural bouquet


Another close-up of all those lovely textures and colours


Clare and her bridesmaid's bouquet..  I met Olivia, who is nine, when I delivered the flowers and, happily, she told me she loves mint - which is lucky as both the bouquets were so delicately fragrant with eucalyptus, lavender and scented roses.


The buttonholes used the spray roses, eucalyptus and lavender - finished with a tie of cream satin ribbon


The boy's buttonholes



A close-up of the exquisite 'creme de la creme' roses




Sweet little table decorations


I loved making Clare's flowers, she's such a caring Mum - she even told me she's made a lovely dark purple silk sling to carry Harry in, if he needs a bit of 'Mum' comfort later in the day.  I can't wait to see the 'official' photos and will post them for you, once I get them and hope that Clare, Brian, Jack and Harry all had a truly wonderful and memorable day.

Have any of you or your friends had experience of last minute changes to your wedding plans and were they to your liking?  Would you be devastated if something wasn't as you planned? Or, like Clare, would you trust your floral designer to make something you would be happy with?

I'd love to know your thoughts, and will, of course, get back to you if you have any queries about seasonality.

'til then, enjoy!

Tracey x









Olivia & Stephen - It's A Family Affair



Feeling a little nervous at my first ever wedding fayre as Campbell's Flowers, Olivia came over with her little girls to look at my vintage inspired wedding flowers.  Beaming at me, she told me that not only was my style exactly what she was looking for, but the colours I'd chosen were perfect too ... and could she book me to design her wedding flowers? There and then. Just like that!

Needless to say, my jitters soon disappeared.

During our consultation she showed me a lovely card she had which perfectly showed the colours she was looking for - soft, pretty pinks and brighter magenta set off with a gorgeous powder blue.  Olivia was absolutely certain that she wanted her bouquet to include cottage-style, pretty, flowers and so we decided upon 'Sarah Bernhardt' peonies, pale pink double lisianthus, light pink bouvardia for texture, tiny bright magenta 'Video!' roses and lovely dark pink astrantia. Her beautiful flowers were teamed with soft bluey-green wispy eucalyptus which softened the whole bouquet and made it look really informal and 'just picked'.

She and Stephen both have little girls and Olivia told me that she wanted all four of them as bridesmaids, but was concerned that they whatever they carried should be really delicate and not too big or overpowering. So I suggested making little posies from pale blue delphinium to introduce the powder blue colour which she really loves.  Olivia was thrilled, and I must admit I was really excited as I'd never made anything like it before and thought they would be so pretty.

Olivia got in touch just the other day and kindly let me have a few of the professional photographs by  Frances Milburn Photography


Olivia's bouquet


A close-up of the gorgeous peonies, bouvardia, astrantia, lisianthus and eucalyptus


Lisianthus buds are always paler than the open blooms and add a lovely natural, soft creamy-pink colour to the bouquet


The little buttonholes featured a tiny 'Video!' rose, a lisianthus bloom and a delphinium floret and were finished with a tie of co-ordinating organza ribbon


I added a little lavender to the delphinium bouquets for the little bridesmaids for additional texture and depth of colour





I was also asked to make a romantic, vintage style design suitable for the ceremony table


Here it is in place, all ready for the ceremony


Here are the wonderful shots Olivia sent me ... 











You can see what a fantastically chilled, laid-back Bride Olivia was - it was such a pleasure working with her.  She sent me a little 'thank you' email which I was delighted to get:-

"Hi Tracey,

I just wanted to write and thank you so very much for the beautiful flowers you arranged for our wedding - they were stunning and far exceeded what I had hoped for!

Very best wishes

Olivia"

Isn't that wonderful? I had such a lovely time designing Olivia's gorgeous seasonal Summer flowers - there's such a vast range of materials to work with during July.

What about you? Do you have any preferences? Are you in love with peonies and summery pastels or are Autumnal golds, Wintery berries or Spring bulbs more your thing?

As always, it's great to hear from you and if you need any advice or help with choosing your wedding flowers - I'll do my best!





Emma & Peter - Sunshine on a Rainy Day


Today I bring you another 'real wedding' which I had the pleasure of designing this weekend.  I met Emma at a wedding fayre in January this year and we hit it off straight away.  Shortly afterwards she came to see me for a consultation with her Mum and sister and we had a lovely time in the 'girl cave' choosing her flowers.

Emma's described her dress as a full length gown of lace and her bridesmaids were to wear 50's style dresses in cream with yellow sashes.  She really wanted to emphasise the yellow and absolutely loved the idea of incorporating bright yellow roses into her design.  She'd liked the designs she had already seen of mine and was certain that she wanted an unstructured hand tied design finished with lace ribbon.  We looked through a few magazines and came up with some pretty daisies to soften the roses and then decided upon some cream lisianthus for texture.  We also incorporated freesia for scent.

For the bridesmaids we decided to keep the designs really simple and a little more structured to work with the 50's styling and so kept it really quite vintage with gorgeous cabbagey roses. I ordered 'Cream Dolmitti' which are absolutely beautiful and smell heavenly and teamed them with some lovely crinkly yellow 'Ilios'.

Emma's mum chose a wrist corsage on a very glamorous diamante and pearl bracelet which used all the elements from Emma's bouquet and Peter's mum had a more traditional corsage.  When I delivered the corsages and buttonholes I so glad that I always use corsage magnets as Mum-in-Law was wearing a very beautiful shot silk jacket which would have definitely spoiled had I pinned her corsage to it.

The guests all had simple yellow rose buttonholes with a tiny sprig of foliage and the groom had a few extras from Emma's bouquet by way of lisianthus buds and daisy.

We talked at length about table decorations and Emma decided upon some really pretty sweet little posy arrangements in tiny goldfish bowls which she bought so she could give as gifts to her special guests who had helped with the wedding.  They looked gorgeous at her venue and were a little replica of her own bouquet.

Here are a few snaps I took of the designs before they were delivered:


Emma's pretty, pretty, posy with lace detail 


Gorgeous, gorgeous roses


Mum's delicate wrist corsage




A guest's buttonhole 


Mum-in-Law's corsage


Buttonholes and Mum-in-Law's corsage all packed up and ready to go!


Table decorations at the very beautiful (and light!) Losehill House
where the reception was held


The table place settings were named after places around the world the Bride and Groom had visited and had a lovely photo of them in each location


Here's a montage I made earlier!


I love the bright sunny colours Emma chose. What would you choose? Are you all about soft, delicate pastels or are these vibrant colours more your thing?

We spotted the Bride and Groom on the way to the venue in their cute little vintage car - I can't wait to see the 'proper' photos.







Natalie & Karl - Happily Ever After


You might remember a few weeks ago I posted a blog about the very lovely Natalie and Karl who married in Gretna Green and then planned to return to Sheffield to have a great party with all their friends and family at the Sheffield Ski Village.

They chose their venue for a number of reasons - they wanted somewhere inexpensive, the freedom to do their own catering (they've close relations who could do it for them) and somewhere a bit different and a bit quirky.  There was a fabulous new bowling alley there and talking to Natalie, I remember the two of us laughing about how great the photos would be of all her guests in their finery complete with blue and red striped bowling shoes!

Alas, it wasn't to be ... days before they were due to leave for Gretna, the Ski Village sadly burnt to the ground and Natalie and Karl were left without the prospect of the huge party they had envisaged.  As I wrote at the time, the local media were brilliant and eventually The Magna Centre came up trumps and offered to put on a night to remember, complete with buffet and music.

Natalie got in touch recently to let me know that all went really well with the journey up to Gretna and that the flowers travelled perfectly in their little vases of water, wedged into a sturdy box packed with cellophane and tissue paper.  The party afterwards on their return was fantastic and she attached a few photos of the day - which I thought were so lovely, I just had to share them with you ...


Mr & Mrs Smith at Gretna Green


Natalie's bouquet of soft blush roses which she wanted to look like 'melting chocolate and vanilla ice cream!"



The little personal touches are always so lovely to see


Natalie's daughter, Megan, had a miniature version of Natalie's bouquet


The lovely table arrangements which Natalie gave away as 'thank you' presents



The happy couple!


Massive thanks to Natalie and Karl for getting back in touch after their honeymoon - it's always so lovely to hear from Brides after the event, especially when they say wonderful things about you and your flowers! You can read what Natalie had to say if you click on my 'Testimonials' page!

Natalie and Karl are such lovely people, I'm so glad their plans came good in the end and that they had the best time ever - a truely happy ending! If you or any of your close friends have a disaster that got put right just before or on their wedding day, I'd love to hear your stories.





Rachael & Ali -  Serious Glamour at a Peak District YHA


Hello all.  As promised, I'm bringing you the wedding of Rachel and Ali who have chosen their venue as Hartington Hall, nr Buxton in the gorgeous Peak District.  Hartington is now a Youth Hostel, but don't let that fool you - it's rural loveliness is complemented by the most gorgeous halls, reception rooms and snugs.



As you can see, not quite the YHA experience I've had in the past!  

I came to work with Rachel through one of her closest friends, Nicola, of Perfect Finish.  Nic and I met at my first wedding fayre and immediately hit it off, she was really friendly and lovely to me as I was a little bit nervous to start with.  We then bumped into each other at a second wedding fayre, where she saw my little jug table arrangements and told me that they would be perfect for her friend Rachel.



So, after a quick email exchange, Nic ordered 6 table arrangements on Rachel's behalf.  A couple of days later I bought all the jugs (just in case - I hate it when someone orders something and then you can't get them during the crazy wedding season!).  A couple of months later, Nic asked if I could add three bridesmaids posies, a wand and some buttonholes to the order! Again, we had a bit of an email exchange and then Nic came to see me to pay the deposit.  In all this time, I still hadn't met Rachel - something I've never done before and whilst I trusted Nic as the perfect intermediary, I just didn't feel comfortable designing flowers for someone I'd never met.  The relationship I have with  my Brides is incredibly important to me.  I have a very clear picture in my head of how a design is going to look, but it is essential to meet someone and go through the consultation process, in order to accurately convey any ideas to a Bride who isn't, after all, a florist!  So we met up and talked over the plans she had for her wedding.  

Now I have a theory that there are only three degrees of separation in Sheffield - and Rachel's wedding proved this to me!  It transpired that her divine dress is from Chloe at The White Room, her fabulous heirloom bouquet is by Debbie Carlisle of DC Bouquets and her hair is by the lovely Dani at Wigs & Warpaint.  All of us are part of Chloe's 'Wedding Mafia' - suppliers she considers offer wedding excellence to Brides in Sheffield.  When I told Rachel, she was delighted and said how wonderful it was to know that everyone who she had chosen was really good (her words!).

During the consultation, Rachel told me that she hates pink and wanted the table arrangements to be  natural, just-picked designs in whites, creams and greens.  I suggested adding soft greys in the form of brunia albifloria to the arrangements which would work beautifully with the platinum details of her dress and the crystals of her bouquet.  The Bridesmaids would be wearing simple dresses of ivory, so I suggested adding an element of colour by introducing the soft, ethereal blues-grey tones of lavender and bluebells - eucalyptus provided a perfect link to the greys and blues.

Here are the designs I made, which had to be all packed up for travelling yesterday as the wedding is today, Saturday 19th May ...


Three pretty, dainty little bridesmaid's bouquets, finished with lovely grey raffia


A close-up of the bridesmaid's bouquet - I used lavender, scilla (bluebell), wax flower, astrantia, roses, achelmilla mollis, rununculus and eucalyptus


A cute little wand for the Flower Girl


Ladies' buttonholes were pretty little  sprigs of bluebell, lavender, tiny white roses, ranunculus buds and eucalyptus - finished with a tie of grey raffia


The Mens' buttonholes were 'Avalanche rose', lavender and eucalyptus




The designs looked so pretty together, I couldn't resist a styled shot!



A detail shot of those gorgeous colours


The table decorations also included ammi and bear grass for more volume.  Ammi really likes to be in water so, whilst beautiful, doesn't lend itself very well to buttonholes


Nearly all packaged up!



I made Rachel a little present of a 'throwing bouquet' - Debbie's heirloom bouquets are just too much like works of art to be lobbed across a room!

That's it! It was really lovely wedding to work and and I can't wait to see the 'official photographs' - they will be incredible I'm sure.

Congratulations and the best of everything to Rachel & Ali.




Joe & Rach's Vintage Wedding - Barns, Wellie-throwing, Tug-o'-War, Camping & much much more ...


Joe and Rach's wonderful wedding had a lovely country fair and vintage theme. They were married at the Botanical Gardens in Sheffield and then travelled out to Shatton Barn in Derbyshire where the beautiful surrounding meadow hosted a coconut shy, tug'o'war and welly-throwing! The Barn was decorated with handmade bunting, homemade favours, cakes and summer cottage flowers.




The gorgeous Botanical Gardens in Sheffield.




Rachael's Dress was designed by Elizabeth A Edwards, who specialises in eco-couture http://www.elizabethaedwards.com/weddings/greenweddings.html




Rach wanted a bouquet which looked as though it had been hand-picked from a meadow and loved my idea of using lots of soft foliages and grasses. I used flowers you'd expect to see in an English Country Garden in a full range of colours, which really evoked a Summer border.  The binding point was finished in natural raffia, in keeping with the theme.




The soft grasses in Rach's bouquet are really visible in this lovely shot. The fantastic photographer was Alison Fawcett  http://www.fawcett.org.uk/about.html .






The inspiration for the flowers!





Simple, pretty hair flowers of white double lisianthus.





Metres and metres of bunting went into decorating the barn.


Rachael also supplied me with the jam jars decorated with pretty ribbons and I hand-tied the designs and cut each one individually to fit the various sizes.




Tug'o'war in the stunning Derbyshire Peak District.  You can just see the tents in the background where all the guests, including the Bride and Groom, camped overnight!



Favours made with love.  The children had sweeties in jam jars!




Joe's buttonhole was a miniture version of Rach's bouquet.  All the other guests wore a simple single white lisianthus with eucalyptus, bound with natural raffia.  I suggested lisianthus as Rach wanted a flower which hinted of a white rose of Yorkshire, without actually using a rose!





I used peony, spray roses, three kinds of lisiathus, stallion chrysanthemum, solidago, veronica, wax flower, aster, panicum grass, bear grass and eucalyptus in the bouquets and arrangements.



Afternoon tea


Such a wonderful day, with such lovely people.  But would you be brave enough camp out on the first night of your honeymoon?!

T x




A couple of years ago was lucky enough to be asked to design the flowers for Samira & Martin's wedding at the beautiful Hargate Hall in Derbyshire.  The theme, in terms of colour palette was to be rich dark purples, plums and silver, with lots of twinkly fairy lights and sparkles.  As two ardent clubbers, one of the most important aspects of the day would be the line-up of DJs guesting throughout the night!

The couple had chosen Hargate Hall, set in the stunning Peak District National Park as the perfect venue for their day.  Set in sumptuous rolling grounds, The Hall itself contains self-contained apartments, beautiful communial rooms, a stunning staircase with balcony and an enormous permanent marquee in the gardens. Perfect for an extended weekend of partying, barbeques and compulsory chilling!


Samira wanted a really glamorous shower bouquet to stand out against her beautiful Maggie Sottero dress, and adores exotic flowers such as orchids and zantedeschia lilies.   I used stunning Vanda orchids, purple and violet double and single lisianthus, 'Sweet Intoxication' Roses and scented lilac double freesia together with 'Black Magic' calla lilies and eucalyptus parvifolia to create the lovely flowing shape to her bouquet. I also incorporated bear grass sprayed silver into Samira's bouquet to link in with her overall colour theme, with crystal beads to reflect the beading detail in Samira's dress.

 .
The adult Bridesmaids carried hand tied posies using almost the same materials as the bride - stunning Vanda orchids, double and single lisianthus in various shades of purple, Roses with crystal beads and scented lilac double freesia.

The groom wore a buttonhole of two double purple lisianthus, with eucalyptus parvifolia and crystal beads.  The guests and ushers all wore single purple lisanthus and eucalyptus parvifolia.

I also made a long and low flowing arrangement for the ceremony table and a mantelpiece arrangement for the ceremony room, both of which had lots of impact, cascading naturally. I decorated the backs of the chairs with simple hand tied bunches using the same materials.  For the tables in the marquee, Samira chose Phaleonopsis Orchids in goldfish bowls for simple elegance.










 



The Clubland table placements



The Father of the Bride's speech was not only rapped throughout, but asked for (and got!) audience participation!





How many Bride's can say their Dad, Mum and sister all  DJ'ayed at their wedding?! The evening was a clubbers paradise with guest spots by DJ's from as far away as Australia keeping the party going all the way through till daybreak.




I just love weddings that really reflect the Bride and Groom's personality, and this one was so much fun to be involved with, the materials I worked with were a joy - as were the lovely couple.




5 comments:

wilkinssolutions said...

I am very interested by reading this.. Its very helpful us..keep posting such an interesting things.
Wedding Flowers

Campbells Flowers said...

Thank you so much for leaving such an encouraging comment - I certainly will keep updating and bringing you our weddings, Bride's and their stories. Tx

Claire said...

What beautiful flowers. Its lovely to look through and read and get inspiration. Thank you.

Campbells Flowers said...

You're most welcome Claire, thanks so much for your encouraging comment and if I can help you with choice of flowers, seasonality or anything else, please do let me know. Tx

Unknown said...

I think flower are the most important aspects of wedding. Flowers are most beautiful way to express one's feeling. Flower bring color and life. I think flowers are most important for all others occasions like birthday, marriages, aniversries.
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