I had a lovely meeting today with one of my favorite old friends, Samantha, who is getting married this April. Today I presented Sam’s proposed wedding design and walked her and her sister through all of the details that I envisioned for her day.

After our initial meeting weeks ago, I was inspired to create a wedding design based upon Sam’s vision and direction, while also seriously considering her future husband, George’s, fairly different take on design.

Sam was inspired by a fantastic black and white photograph of her grandparents, taken years ago. The photo had a simple elegance about it…It had a slightly glamorous feel, yet still felt modest. The image radiated love and companionship.

Sam had a title for her wedding, Modern Romance. She wanted it to have a classic and warm feeling, without feeling ‘expected’ or ‘cookie-cutter’. Her chosen color palette of red and white evolved slightly over the last few weeks to a focus on classic whites for the ceremony, shifting to a saturated, rich, monochromatic collection of bold reds, cranberries, crimson and claret for the reception.

Now, George had a slightly different vision for the wedding design…He and his grandmother used to love the original movie, Dracula, and therefore liked the idea of incorporating some Gothic touches here and there.

I quickly put together this inspiration board for the couple…One that captured Sam’s vision and taste while also incorporating a bit of George’s vision (perhaps even more than Sam expected!)

I see Sam and George’s wedding as a sophisticated soiree, laden with romantic, glamorous touches and unexpected ornate black accents. Featured flowers in the tailored creations will include numerous varieties of velvety red roses, miniature calla lilies and cascading hanging amaranthus. With our graphic ornate black risers and compote bowls, vintage black glass votive cups, billowing fabrics and warm candlelight-inspired lighting scheme, Samantha and George’s wedding will be the perfect balance of glamour and elegance…A wonderful way to start a life together.