Website: www.scarletpetal.com

As one of the leading special event florists in Chicago focused on weddings, our artistry and professionalism exceed our client’s expectations. We offer inspiring, alternative creations in contrast to today’s commonplace floral arrangements. At Scarlet Petal, we lend our expertise to more than just flowers. We understand the importance of looking at an event holistically – our vendor relationships with linen, lighting, and photography professionals ensure the breathtaking ambiance complements your venue and is captured as a beautiful memory for years to come.

La Partie Events is a boutique florist and event design company based in Southern California.  Our passion is to create unique and beautiful floral decor for each event we embellish.  Our designs are elegant, fun and creative.  We value a high level of friendly, professional customer service for all of our clients.

La Partie Events
310.430.0919 office
info@lapartieevents.com
www.lapartieevents.com
http://lapartieevents.squarespace.com

Event Planner: Soiree Parfaite
Flowers: Shannon G
Cupcakes: Vanilla Bake Shop

Thanks so much for sharing this with us Leslie, we can’t wait to see your wedding pictures as well!

Check out all of these delectable candies you could fill your dishes with…yum yum!!!

Credits: Jan van Eyck, Fleur de Lisa Cakes, Rebecca Adrian, Paris Hilton, Vintageous, Adorations, In Style Weddings, Spazooie

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It’s your last chance to enter the giveaways from Castle Bride Couture & Brooke Griffin. We will be selecting some winners very soon!

Anyway, I’m right in the middle of my busy wedding season which is why this blog has slowed down a bit but I’m hoping to be able to commit a little more time to this blog over the next few weeks, we have some exciting things coming up…more on that soon.

Today I wanted to get back to my vendor spotlights so that all of the talented professionals who helped me to pull my wedding together get their amazing work showcased. Today’s is Syzygy Event Productions. They are responsible for all of the decor at my wedding, (minus the table linens and lighting) and boy did they outdo themselves. I gave some general ideas to Julie Shanklin and her team and they ran with it and created the most amazing nightclub feel in the sculpture studio of Halcyon House.

The space is an amazing blank canvas of concrete to begin with…where the owner/ resident of the home sculpts during the week.

But once you add some draperies, lighting, furniture, chandeliers, staging and a dance floor, the place was transformed.

I didn’t get to witness it but I heard they put the design on the coffee table by hand, wow!


You can’t see it that well in this picture but behind each tufted bar (in the background) was a little functioning waterfall.

5 black chandeliers hung low from the ceiling added a little something

Syzygy also provided a cool black and white dance floor in an irregular pattern as well as staging for our band.

We utilized the driveway just outside the studio as another lounge area with a bar, white couches, a photobooth and a cappuccino bar with vintage doughnut machine that made hot doughnuts to order. So yummy!

I honestly don’t know what I would have done without the help of Julie and her whole team! If you’re planning an event in the mid-atlantic region and you need some help with decor, definitely check them out!

Wedding images by Greg Gibson.

Now since our wedding design was much more modern nightclub than garden party, I knew I wanted to keep the florals somewhat simple and monochromatic. I wanted them to enhance the space and blend in without seeming too “wedding”. Since we opted for a loungy reception with furniture and small tables, I also wanted to keep the florals small and unassuming. My one main request, was “no, big, round, tall arrangements”. Nothing says “wedding” like a big, huge ball of flowers blocking everyone’s view of one another. No offense to florists or brides who love that look, we just wanted something more understated.

Here are all the personal flowers as they were delivered.  I opted not to have any boutonnieres at all. The first reason for this is that Gary bought the most beautiful John Varvatos tuxedo with a skinny lapel and the idea of pinning a big, stupid flower on it seemed crazy. The other reason is that as a wedding photographer, I get tired of seeing these sad, crushed wilted flowers hanging off of the men by the end of the night. Just not my cup of tea so we scrapped them altogether.

My bouquet was very simple….black mini calla lillies with an ivory ribbon. Subtle and stunning.

My ladies carried bouquets of anenomes mixed with other white flowers tied with fuchsia ribbons.

My flower girls got their own little pink bouquets…as did the mothers.

And here are the reception flowers…simple and stunning.

I have always adored tulips!

If your reception space is dark, adding some subtle pin-spotting will highlight your floral decor.

Well that’s all for now….stay tuned for more of my wedding vendors coming soon.

(All photos by Greg Gibson)

BTW, they come in white & turquoise as well but sadly those are still full price.

Introducing Mauri & Brad…

Gown by: Monique L’huillier
Event Design by: Anne Dutton for Engaging Affairs
Floral Design by: Brian Bonita, Floral Events Unlimited, 301-585-2772

These were called “Shamrock Shakes” in honor of the bride’s Irish heritage

The escort card table was fabulous with all sorts of varieties of white flowers. They also hung that big, brown silk curtain to tie the hotel decor in with the wedding’s color scheme.

The floral tie backs that were holding back the curtains.


“Startinis” with fresh starfruit

The reception was held in the grand ballroom at the Mayflower Hotel, which has been in the news of late as the location of choice for NY governor Eliot Spitzer’s prostitution scandal.


This couple selected a star theme since the wedding was on December 30th and they wanted to avoid it feeling too “holiday”.

Star shaped gobos projected onto the dance floor.

With a large guest list, they had to overflow the tables up into the balcony. They went with a slightly different table design to keep things looking fresh.

A tower of cupcakes replaced the traditional wedding cake. This was actually the first wedding I ever saw cupcakes.

And krispy kremes for favors, everyone LOVES these. You can’t go wrong serving doughnuts to people who have had a few drinks.

I decided to ask John a few questions so that he could share is expertise with us.
1. How did you get into the lighting business?

I started a as roadie for local music groups and worked my way up to ZZ Top, Gladys Knight, Rick James, Hall & Oates etc.

2. Lighting is such an important yet often overlooked aspect of any
event. Can you tell us what lighting does for a room to create impact and drama?

It creates a mood It changes how a room looks. It can set your event off from another that was done in the same room.

3. Can you explain about the different types of lighting that a bride
might want to consider for her wedding?

Uplighting is a wash of color on a flat wall surface to give the wall
some shadows and character.

Pinspotting is shining a strong narrow beam of light at the table arrangements to bring out the color of the flowers. It makes the flowers “pop”

Gobos are projected images such as a monogram, or a leaf pattern, it can be sharp focused or soft focused. If its soft focused it will look like the sun coming thru the trees and hitting the sidewalk some shadow, some light, no real hard edge.

Spotlighting the wedding cake is another thing that really makes it “pop”.

4. From what you know about my wedding and the venue, what would you
suggest that we should do for a lighting scheme?

Uplighting of the walls, stairs and columns, Spotlight the Sculptures, Pinspot some of the tables.

5. If you’re on a tight budget, what do you think are the lighting elements that will give the most bang for the buck?

Uplighting is the easiest and it changes the color and look of the room.
A custom monogram or other gobo on the dance floor is nice also. It lets your guests
know that you thought of everything.

6. How far in advance should a bride book a lighting company?

As early as possible, but not more then a year before.

7. Anything else you might want to share?

Lighting is often overlooked and last to be considered. It should be thought about early in the planning as its harder to change late in the planning.

Here are a few images that I pulled from Johns website shot by the very talented Rodney Bailey at my wedding venue, Halcyon House.

If you’re getting married in the DC area, I highly recommend John…and I know my stuff!