Monday

San Mateo County Hidden Gem

The Pulgas Water Temple in San Mateo County, is a small, unique, gorgeous wedding venue that I came across a few months ago located at 80 Canada Road in Woodside, California.

  It was built in the 1930s by architect William G. Merchant to commemorate the 1934 completion of the Hetch Hetchy Aqueduct.  Here are some specifics on having your wedding ceremony at this location:

Guest Count:  100 guests max, with limited parking

Available times:  April to October 9:30-11:30 or 1:30-3:30.  2 hours maximum which includes set up and tear down.

Price:  $150 non-refundable

Limitations:  The site does not allow rehearsals on the property.  The site is closed on Sundays.  To have amplification or any other electric needs, you must bring a 150 foot extension cord.  They do not have their own chairs so you must rent them.

All in all, its a gorgeous venue for a low budget, quick wedding ceremony and definitely something to look into.  For more information, you can call them at 650-872-5900 or visit the site here.  Here are a few pictures:





Saturday

The Language of Flowers

A fellow classmate of mine told my class about the premier novel by Vanessa Diffenbaugh called, The Language of Flowers".  I chose it as my book club pick for our January meeting, and just finished it today.

Set in San Francisco, The Language of Flowers is a  beautifully woven story of a girl, Victoria, who has been in the foster care system from birth.  At the age of nine she is sent to yet another home, but this time she is introduced to the world of flowers and the meaning behind each bloom.

The parts I loved the most about the book were the references to the San Francisco Flower Mart and the idea of using flowers not for their looks but for their meanings.  In the book, a woman who is unhappy in her marriage is given a bouquet of Jonquil to take home and its meaning, domestic happiness, changes her marriage.  A lonely woman looking for love is given red roses (love) and lilac (the first emotions of love) and realizes the man of her dreams is right in front of her.

The novel was inspired by the authors own experience with foster care children and a Victorian floral dictionary.  It turns out, the "Language of Flowers" got its start in the Victorian era.  When flowers were given to a young lady, usually by an admirer or friend, it was a secret message.  A secret tryst, or an exclamation of love or telling someone how you loathe them was sent in a simple, beautiful bouquet of flowers.

After doing some research, I've been inspired to post weekly on flowers and their hidden meanings, starting in January.  I will also include the time of year they are readily available, in case you ever want to use them for your special event.

Until then, I highly suggest you go out and get a copy of this book.  You will be in for a special treat!

Tuesday

More talent at College of San Mateo

Last night was the final for the more advanced class.  Our task was to find some sort of inspirational piece like a poem, a piece of art, a song or an object and translate that into a floral design.

My piece was inspired by this design by Paula Pryke:


The container that I had wasn't tall enough when I tried it out the night before, so I did something a little different.  I also used glass balls instead of the glass test tubes in the design, and instead of lisianthus, I used mini cymbidium orchids.   I also used white anthuriums as a focal point.  I call it "Winter Wonderland"





There are tiny floral lights inside each of the balls covered in a fake snow that I got at a local florist shop.  To add a bit of sparkle, I put beaded oasis wire, and set the entire design on a mirrored container and then set that on a round mirror (the mirror broke in transit which is why it doesn't look round).


Here are the rest of the designs from the night.  I will try to remember what the inspiration was, but there were a lot.


The song Merry Christmas, Darling was the inspiration for the design below.  


The next few pieces were holiday inspired pieces






The design below was based on the branch that the designer found at a farmers market.  The branch cost her $3!!



This pave design was based on the techniques of Gregor Lersch






The designer of this piece was inspired by a poem about music







The story behind this one is the loss of the designers brother-in-law.  A very beautiful waterfall with tropical flowers since he loved Hawaii.


The design below was created by my friend Brenda.  She loves working with thick sticks and she wanted a centerpiece for her table.  She is a fantastic designer and I've learned a lot from her.



This design was based on a designers piece at the 2011 Symposium.  







The designer of this is from Ireland and having a candle in the window is a Christmas tradition that dates back to Henry VIII.  



This fun design is inspired by the creators horse.  He loves apples so she incorporated apples into the design and that is one of his old shoes.


This designers friend asked her to create a holiday piece for her cabin in Tahoe.  



This design is called "Over the Water and Through the Woods"  from the top view, you can tell, but there is red dogwood that is in an arch shape and it had clear stones under it for the river.  Very cute.


Another design that was inspired by 2011 Symposium.  The frame is made out of corner bead which is used by construction companies when they are doing stucco work.  This is another friend of mine who has helped me multiple times on events.  She is awesome!


The advanced class has some amazing talent as well as amazing teachers.  Its a shame that the College decided to cancel this amazing program so they could build a parking lot.  

Hope you enjoyed these designs! 

Talented Students at College of San Mateo

The end of the 2011 Fall Semester is here, and I wanted to share a few of the designs my fellow students in Monday nights "beginning" class created for our final exam.  Half the students in this class have not ever taken a floral design class before.  The others, like me, have had several classes over the past few years.  See if you can tell the beginners from the more advanced designs:























And this was my final design using red roses, green hydrangea, holly branches and wired rose petals draped across the design.

Monday

And the winner is...

Last week, I started a contest on Logotournament.com to create my company logo.  Today, I picked my favorite logo.  It was the one that felt the most like me and what I want to do with my company.  Its sassy, classy and whimsical and I hope you like it!


Wednesday

Logo contest part 2

The contest is going strong.  I have had 21 entries so far and soon I have to pick my top 5.  Here is the link if you would like to check it out.  Let me know which one you like best and why!



Tuesday

Logo contest!

This week, I decided it was time for an official logo for my company, but I am not a graphic designer and had no idea what exactly I wanted in the logo.  So, thanks to the world wide web, and my father, I found Logotournament.com .  Basically, I fill out a form about me and my company and send it out to graphic designers all over the world.   So far I have 9 entries and 2 top runners.  After a few days, I will find my top 5 designs and then if I can, I will post them on here for people to vote on.

Its very exciting stuff!  Can't wait to have the logo...next step a website!

And I haven't forgotten about the "How To" blog post on holiday designs.  Keep checking in for that post, it should be any day now!  Until then, enjoy this holiday design I created last night: