I believe in love...

 

...and I see it everyday of my life. So much in fact that now and then I need to keep myself in check and watch a scary movie to find some balance. Seriously. I live in a beautiful bubble. Love. Love. Love. Now mind you, I meet dozens and dozens of engaged couples a year. I have attended hundreds of weddings. At the shop, I witness tender moments. I witness kind and gentle hearts, every single day. If the blue velvet couch in my little flower shop had a voice, it would whisper, "love lives here."

I believe in love. I have experienced it. I have also experienced total and complete heartbreak. Sometimes they go hand in hand. The key is to move on. Forgive and believe. Open your heart. Life is so damn short. Let your heart beat fast. Find that someone who makes time, stand, still. Who, when you gaze into their eyes makes you forget everything else. Simply everything.

Do not be afraid dear friend. Jump.

Rocky Mountain Bride Magazine

I am published! And I didn't even know it. Last summer my flowers were featured in Rocky Mountain Bride magazine. Lisa, was one of my favorite brides. I use her photos on my print material, everywhere that I can. Yeah! So exciting.

Happy Valentine's Day to Everyone.

Today is February 15th. A single day post Valentine's Day. Love was certainly in the air yesterday. Young love, new love and even mature love, we saw it all. It warms my heart. The traditional dozen red roses were popular as well as balloons, chocolate and teddy bears. What a great holiday all in the name of love.

Wedding Flower Trends 2010

Just a few pics from the Painted Primrose table at the Boulder Wedding Showcase held at Rembrandt Yard. I really had a lovely time meeting newly engaged brides, moms, sisters, friends and even a few husbands-to-be. Call to book your appointment and let's chat! 720-280-8409.

Since When Does the Florist Make the Rules?

So yesterday, I met with a newly engaged bride-to-be. She says to me "I am wearing a formal wedding gown with a short train and lots of beading, do I need a cascading bouquet?" "Not unless you're Princess Diana." I answered. It appears that another florist told her that she HAD to have a cascading bouquet, a hand-tied would just not do! Seriously? In this day and age when a canine can be your flower girl and the best man can actually be your best woman. I can't even think of one wedding rule. O.k. maybe one...you can't marry a relative. So brides, if a florist tells you something out of left field, recruit another florist. If a florist thinks your ideas are questionable, call me. At The Painted Primrose we don't make rules. If you have your heart set on a bouquet of orange and blue Bronco's colors, our job is to not judge, but to make it beautiful! After all, this is your day, not mine! (AP photo)

Holiday Marriage Proposals

Did you know that 26% of all marriage proposals happen during the months of November and December? I must admit, that I fit into that statistic. Last New Year's Eve, my newly betrothed proposed to me. Come to think of it, my first husband, back in 1986, proposed to me on New Year's Eve as well. Hhhmm. I honestly believe there is something very magical about that night. (It also happens to be my birthday.) So best wishes to all of you single ladies hoping to hear those four beautiful words....After he does, and you say yes, wipe your tears and book your venue, than call your florist!
This photo is of Lone Hawk Farm in Longmont, CO.

An Autumn Wedding at The Hotel Boulderado

Enjoy these new pictures from a recent wedding that I designed at Boulder's Hotel Boulderado. Yet, another fabulous bride and groom. I am so lucky. Credit for the pictures go to Julie McGehan Photography @ www.juliemcgehan.com The cake is by Shamane @ www.shamanesbakeshoppe.com The bridal bouquet is made from white calla lilies and nandina foliage. The large floral urn is accented with locally grown burgundy dahlias, velvety as can be!

This Weekend's Wedding Bouquet

This weekend's wedding bouquet is designed with beautiful shades of white with a touch of autumn orange. I used white "Avalanche" roses, white ranunculus, white freesia and white hydrangea. The bride wanted to incorporate a touch of orange bittersweet which gave the bouquet a modern touch, asymetrical indeed. Quite fitting for this weekend as we were delighted with a touch of snow falling on our orange autumn leaves.

The Knot magazine

I just received the oh so amazingly beautiful, professional photos of the flowers I designed for The Knot party which too place this past summer! Jared Wilson of Jared Wilson Photography did a fabulous job of shooting at Denver's Theorie. I loved working under the direction of Nicole Milvaney from Denver's Rsvp Shindig, my favorite wedding and event planner. I was so excited to be chosen to take part in this very cool and hip party. www.theknot.com

A Painted Primrose Wedding with Denver's RSVP Shindig

I love working with Nicole Mulvany from Denver's RSVP Shindig. Nicole is an amazing wedding planner. Calm, cool, collect and extremely organized. I appreciate that she trusts the talents of each vendor that she hires. "She let's me do my thang!" This was an autumn mountain wedding. The bride wanted to accent both her bouquet and the groom's boutonniere with pine cones. Nice touch. Visit Nicoles blog at http://rsvpshindig.livejournal.com/

A Painted Primose Wedding at the Red Lion Restaurant

We just finished a wedding at the Red Lion Restaurant in Boulder, CO. The bride's favorite color is purple. I used a gorgeous stem of lavender hydrangea for the bouquet accented with lavender orchids, purple lisianthus, pale yellow Eufloria roses and lavender sweet peas. This bouquet is one of my very favorites from summer 2009, as was the bride! Thanks Lauren, you were a joy to work with!

Oh, by the way, The Red Lion has a new wedding ceremony arch. Apparently the bears used the last arch as a toy. Red Lions, tigers and bears, oh my!

Catering by Design

Last night I had the pleasure of sampling some amazing food from Denver's very own Catering by Design. I had a lovely chat with Ingrid Nagy part of the husband and wife team who own the catering company. The food was delicious! The potato bar was a great interactive affair. All of the food servers were really pleasant and they made certain that no one left hungry. One thing that I really like about the new trend of catering is that you don't have to provide a sit-down plated dinner for your wedding. You can walk from station to station, mingle, pick and choose and have it your way! Thanks Ingrid, it was great! www.www.cateringbd.com