You are going to love this best-of contribution from Jenn Pineau of Sugar Magnolias. These gorgeous floral images make me long for Spring… well, that’s only partially true… I actually long for Spring anyway .  As you sill see, Jenn is an artist with anything that grows and has an impressive breadth of knowledge about flowers, plants and herbs. Her narrative with each photo (in the caption) is so much fun to read… she obviously really gets to know her brides in order to reflect their personal style so brilliantly in her work.  I know you’ll truly enjoy the magic of her floral creations!

Maggie & Blair got married at The Haven in Charlottesville then walked to their reception at Random Row Books. We incorporated the reception location by making over 200 paper cranes from the pages of old books. Fun and a great way to recycle! Photo provided by Billy Hunt Photography.

Maggie & Blair at The Haven in Charlottesville - Photo by Billy Hunt Photography.

Ashley & Justin were married at Keswick Vineyards this fall. Turquoise vintage canning jars with pink and white dahlias made for a sweet southern centerpiece. Thanks to Eric Kelley Photography for sharing the beautiful photo.

Catherine & Mike were married at the Inn at Westwood Farm and they were such a blast to work with. They loved herbs, succulents, wood, and oranges (a theme picked up from the fact that they were married in Orange, VA) These wreaths were made for the bride and groom chairs. Rosemary, sage, succulents, rose hips, and clementines.... oh the aroma!! This artistic shot came from Joyeuse Photography.

Christina & Joel were married in Leesburg this November. They came all the way form California and wanted to incorporate some California textures with succulents and artichokes. We enjoyed the wintery feel of their color palette and this bouquet shot by JMK Photography.

Jennifer & Harrison are the proud owners of Brookville Restaurant on the downtown mall in Cville. The restaurant focuses on seasonal, locally grown foods and they wanted the same standard for their wedding flowers. Jennifer wanted a grand, cascading bouquet in which we included dahlias, rosemary, tuberose, sage, mint, and trailing strawberry plants.

Jennifer and Harrison had their reception at Montalto, the event space at Monticello. They wanted something different for their centerpieces and wondered if we could incorporate edible elements. We created entirely edible wreaths with veggies bought from the cville farmers market and scattered chestnuts and persimmons on the table. Included in the wreaths were eggplants, radishes, rosemary, green strawberries, brussel sprouts, persimmons, and pears. Jennifer let us know that the guests at one of the tables ate their centerpiece... probably not a common occurrence! Thanks to Jen Fariello Photography for capturing and sharing these images

Amanda and Gavin were married at the Inn at Westwood Farm this November and we loved working with them! Besides being great, laid back, and fun to work for they also had great style! We incorporated Tallow berries, dahlias, strawflowers, dusty miller, and guinea hen feathers in this bouquet. We loved the result! Cramer Photo took this gorgeous shot.

Hali & Tony were married on a beautiful day in June at Panorama Farms. Hali loves daisies and wildflowers. She wanted to focus on a yellow, green, and white palette for the wedding decor. In this bouquet we used green cone flowers, queen annes lace, helianthus, st. Johns wort, gooseneck loosestrife, rosemary, and autumn fern. Every bit of it was harvested from local growers. Thanks to Aaron Watson Photography for this well executed photo.

Jaclyn and Andrew were married at Veritas Winery this July in a beautiful and traditional style. We made large candelabra arrangements with vintage prisms strung through and silver mercury glass votives at the base. JMK Photography is responsible for capturing this moment.

Leah & Nic were married this September at Wintergreen resort and we had the pleasure of working with them to achieve Leah's vision. Even though the only bits that were locally grown in this bouquet were the berries and smokebush foliage we still loved the end result and more importantly, so did Leah. Thanks to Jason Keefer Photography for zooming in on this bouquet!

This is a bouquet made for a photo shoot we participated in for the Hooks summer wedding edition. I love the garden gathered feel that this bouquet gives, probably even more so because every bloom was harvested fresh from local gardens/growers. This is a perfect example of natures arranging as all these flowers bloom naturally at the same time. They blend together beautifully, clearly they were meant to be together. Stunning photo taken by Jen Fariello.

Contact Information for Sugar Magnolias:
~ contact: Jenn Pineau
~ address: 27 Jacks Shop Rd., Rochelle, VA
~ website/blog: http://www.naturecomposed.com/
~ phone: 540-948-4408
~ e-mail: sugarmagnolias.naturecomposed@gmail.com

I‘m so pleased to welcome to the Charlottesville Wedding Blog the talented Jenn Pineau of Sugar Magnolias.  Jenn’s artistry with flowers is absolutely brilliant… I love her work…  and she wants to be sure you know that, “Sugar Magnolias’ designs are composed of flowers in season and all blooms are harvested locally.”   Thanks for your beautiful work, Jenn and welcome to the blog!

First, a King Family Vineyard wedding, photographed by Jack Looney…

This one is from Westwood Farm, photographed by Aaron Spicer…

Another Westwood Farm wedding, this time photographed by Rebecca D’angelo…

And lastly, a Veritas Vineyards wedding, photographed by Jack Looney….

Contact Information for Jenn Pineau of Sugar Magnolias:
~ website: www.naturecomposed.com
~ phone: 757-509-1102
~ e-mail: flowers@naturecomposed.com

At the suggestion of a mutual friend, Sandy Goodson of Verde Natural Florals kindly sent me a wonderful selection of photos of some of their lovely wedding bouquets and arrangements from the recent past. Sandy has a horticultural background and will work with you to choose affordable and socially responsible flowers for your big day. Thanks so much for your beautiful work, Sandy!.

Contact Information for Verde Natural Florals:
~ website: www.verdenaturalflorals.com
~ phone: 434-996-6847
~ e-mail: sandy@verdenaturalflorals.com

Check out the Southern Weddings Blog today and you’ll see featured the work of our friends at Easton Events as well as the incredibly beautiful creations of Floral Images at a wedding last summer at Farmington Country Club.  Charlottesville is just full to spilling over with talent… be sure you see Part 1 and Part 2… enjoy!

We’re getting to the end of this “Best Of” series but I have a several more  fabulous posts for you over the next couple of weeks before we’re done!  Anne and Bill Holland of Holland Photo Arts sent me the most generous and spectacular array of their work from 2008 and I spent way too much time trying to figure out how to pick and choose which photos to post.  Then I thought, “Hey, this is my blog and I can post every single one of those photos if I want to,” … and I do… so I am .   So, Holland Photo Arts Best of 2008 will be presented in 3 parts and I know you’re gonna love ever single one of them as much as I do… thanks Anne and Bill!

Contact Information for Holland Photo Arts:
~ website: www.hollandphotoarts.com
~ phone: 434-295-9681
~ e-mail: info@hollandphotoarts.com
~ blog: hollandphotoarts.wordpress.com

The Bride’s Cafe is a colorful and beautifully done wedding blog created by Janie Medley of Janie Medley Flora Designs right in our very own Richmond, VA. Janie is an incredibly talented floral designer and The Bride’s Cafe blog is full of her love of beauty and of weddings. Tons of photos and great ideas for your own wedding… but mostly it’s a feast for the eyes… enjoy!

Michelle and Kevin were married last weekend at the ever-spectacular Keswick Hall with just 50 of their closest family and friends in attendance… including Kevin’s 3 beautiful children: Trey, Finn and Keely. At every turn there was nothing but beauty… from the fantastic flowers provided by Floral Images to the magnificent late afternoon autumn sky that framed every picture… not to mention the gorgeous couple! The light and sky were certainly a photographer’s dream and their photographer, Robert Holley of Sterling, VA took full advantage of the day! Rob was kind enough to send me a selection of his photos and I am thrilled to be able to share them with you today… enjoy!

Contact Information for Robert Holley Photography:
~ website: www.robholley.net
~ phone: 703-473-4556
~ e-mail: rob@robholley.net
~ blog: http://robholleyphoto.blogspot.com

Today I am pleased to share a just a taste of Meredith Montague’s wonderful photos of Megan and Tim’s wedding last month. Megan and Tim were married on the patio of Glenmore Country Club with the colorful, rolling Blue Ridge mountains in the distance. I hope that you enjoy Meredith’s beautiful work (contact info. at the end):

Beautiful flowers from Patterson’s Flower Shop:Cakes by Brenda Johnson: 434-823-5882

Contact Info. for Meredith Montague Photography:
~ website: www.meredithmontague.com/weddings
~ phone: 434-981-9718
~ weddings@meredithmontague.com

I don’t often have the opportunity to get to know the floral designers who provide the beautiful bouquets and arrangements I see at the dozens of weddings I go to… but eventually I plan on making a point of meeting them all! This morning I had a wonderful time visiting with Randy and Joey of Floral Images (see contact info. at the bottom of this post) at their shop on Goodman Street right in the heart of the Belmont neighborhood here in Charlottesville. Over the years I’ve seen lots of Randy and Joey’s fantastic work but had never had the chance to meet the artists… so I made an appointment!

Randy and Joey ran a retail shop for 17 years before making the switch to focus entirely on weddings and events. Joey shared with me that without the distraction of retail they are able to take the time that’s needed to work extremely closely with the venues and especially with each bride, keeping her dreams and preferences at the heart of the project! So whether you prefer a fairly straight-forward, classic design or want to stretch the limits of your creative imagination, Floral Images can do it! I’m so happy to share these beautiful photos by Jen Fariello of a small selection of Joey and Randy’s beautiful creations:

Contact Information for Randy & Joey at Floral Images:
~ address: 106 Goodman St. #A2, Charlottesville 22902
~ e-mail: floralimages368@aol.com
~ phone: 434-971-4744

Original Art With Nature

I don’t remember how, exactly, I came across this amazing site but as soon as I did I knew I had to share it with you. Flowers Into Paintings, by Missy Cannon of Lafayette, Louisiana, combines flower preservation with fine art. Missy offers a service like no other I’ve seen and her creations which come in many sizes, are truly spectacular. She takes actual fresh flowers (your bouquet: hint, hint) and combines them with her beautiful painting to create a work of art that will last forever.

Missy’s website has several gallery pages showing the tremendous diversity in her beautiful work. She also provides detailed instructions on how to ship your flowers to her after your wedding to be sure they’re in good shape when they arrive.

This would be a great wedding gift: both a unique preservation of wedding memories and a beautiful piece of art for their home… one of a kind!

Missy operates out of her Gallery on Westmark Blvd. in Lafayette, LA… but if that’s not convenient, spend some time looking at her online galleries and then give her a call at 337-706-7166.

Enjoy!