Inspire.Collaborate.Succeed.

There is an exciting workshop happening on May 12, 2010, here in Maine.  Inspire.Collaborate.Succeed has been created by Brea McDonald and Dawn Kelly, a photographer and floral designer who I have had the privilege of working with.  Oh yes, and yours truly will be a guest speaker at the workshop!  Hope to see you there!

Here are  some of the details, and please visit the link above to learn more specifics about the agenda:

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Inspire Collaborate Achieve

Are you new to the wedding
business?  Been in the business 
and want to be published?  
Need to get your creative 
juices flowing?  Then this 
seminar is for you.  
Come learn how to 
stage your own photo shoot, 
the action steps after you 
are done, how to submit 
your work, and how to 
network with your 
‘dream vendors’.


The Details
When:  May 12, 2010
Where:  York Harbor Inn 
- York, ME
Time: 10am to 4pm
Investment: $250.00 
($200 for ea additional 
member in your business)


There will be a informal question 
and answer hour after 
the seminar from 4pm-5pm.
We have worked out 
special rates at the Inn 
for anyone who may be 
traveling. 
 Rates are as follows:
Standard Queen – $99.00
Deluxe Queen or King – $149.00
Luxury Queen or King – $209.00
Email us at 
brea@breamcdonald.com or dkelly@soireefloral.com to sign up.

Maine Seasons Wedding featured on the Wedding Chicks Blog!

I just learned that one of my weddings was featured on the Wedding Chicks Blog! You can see more of the gorgeous pictures of this wedding on the blog post in the above link.  

This wedding was photographed by the lovely and oh so talented Sharyn Peavey-gorgeous images, as always!

I was so pregnant at this wedding, I remember having to move 130 chairs from the ceremony area to the reception tent during the cocktail hour.  Up a hill.  That is when I learned to strongly suggest that chairs be rented for both the ceremony and reception, unless the client wants to hire my staff or provide their own to move them!   All of the things I have learned over the years seem obvious now.  Isn't that how hindsight works?

Life is partially for learning we must remember!

Patchwork Quilt for a Friend's Daughter

I have wanted to work on a fabric item for a friend of mine who happens to be an incredibly talented photographer, mommy and lady-finally it is done!

Whenever I think of Sharyn I always think of this color palette-vibrant, interesting, fun and so pretty. Not surprising, Sharyn embodies all of those characteristics!

The front of this little quilt is in purple, magenta, lavender, gray and pale pink. I made some little yo -yos in coordinating fabric to accent the front.

For the back I wanted to do something with a little more contrast...I fell in love with this black and white checked fabric and thought it made the feminine little quilt a bit more sophisticated and serious.

And maybe some of you know that I had a break down recently. A long awaited breakdown. The new sewing machine is a dream. Not as meaty feeling and hefty as my antique machine, but buttery and smooth and loaded with fun stitches! I had to sample some one of my faves for this quilt. I love this little star stitch....the body of the quilt was stitched on my old machine, as it was fading, so the new machine had to have an option to drop the feed dogs-I have had it with the puckering of machine stitched quilting and it isn't likely I am going to have the time to pick up hand quilting anytime soon!

Not perfect, but colorful and cozy and made with love. That is what counts, right?

Recycled Toddler Sweater Dress

My husband e-mailed me this link-from the desk next to me the other night...he said, " I am sending you an e-mail, go look"  So I did and of course I had to make this little dress from a pile of my sweaters destined for Goodwill...Instructables is a fun web site, one which I never have time to peruse, but my husband checks it regularly and sends me the links he thinks I will like.  What a peach he is. 

Cozy and cute!  I had some little fabric yo yos left over from a Christmas project and they were just the right accessory for the dress.  Ava said, "I don't know about this dress, I think it needs sumting..."  A built in brooch if you will.  For a 2 year old who actually requests to wear brooches.  I mean really!  After I sewed on the "brooch" I was told, "Now this dress is beeuutiful mama"  Oh dear.  I am headed for trouble when she is a teenager, aren't I?!?

Just when I thought it was over, I was instructed to, "please make a hat to go with this beeuutiful dress".  Toddlers really keep you on your toes and you have to be mentally ready for anything at anytime.  I scanned the room, a hat, a hat....what can I make into a hat to match....a hat, a hat...think, think, panic, think...

I saw the straw hat I recently got at Baby Gap, just because I couldn't leave it there...it was in the boy's section with a blue madras band on it...

Off went the blue band and on went a custom pink ribbon band, complete with a yo yo applique, attached with good old hot glue.  Then I was told, "OK, now this is the best ensemble that I have ever seen in my  whole life!"  Ensemble?  Really? Wow.  Where could she have possibly heard that word?!?

That should fulfill my seamstress duties for the week.  I soaked up the sweet mommy appreciation too, I know it will be in limited supply in the not so far away future...

Creative Vintage Wedding Centerpieces

A fun way to incorporate vintage style into a wedding design: I am scavenging these vintage medicine and tincture bottles for one of my Maine brides this summer...I can't wait to see them at the wedding on the guest tables with flowers, mixed with tons of votive candles and canning jars of larger floral arrangements....

I am going to keep the color pallete for this wedding under wraps for a bit, it is going to be so gorgeous! 

I love the thrill of the hunt...  When I see a dusty box full of these little sweeties tucked in the back of an antiques shop, I get frantic, like I found the golden ticket...maybe I am a bit obsessed, maybe I am just really into treasure hunting... Either way, I feel so fortunate to have clients who love these special treasures too. 

I like to think of it as recycling with style: Using ordinary things in extraordinary ways....a good idea, and one that allows me to justify my scavenging habits!

With spring upon us (soon, I hope!) I get the fever to make my first trips to the "shops", the junk shops, the antiques barns and flea markets in the area, to hold me over until it gets warm enough for the yard sales to start...oh yeah and for the epic treasure hunting trip of my lifetime: Brimfield Antiques Show in May!!  Oh dear, it is too much for me to even type the word "Brimfield"!! 

Happy hunting!

Maine Flower Show

We went to the Portland, Maine Flower Show yesterday, despite gale force winds and rain.  We all needed a bit of spring!

One of the first exhibits was of a greenhouse with a cabbage garden, so pretty, I love them just for ornamentation!

This booth also featured a lettuce fence, which is brilliant, I think we will have to try this this year- a great way to dress up a fence and avoid bunnies and other creatures from gorging on your salad greens!  Self watering system of installation, with just gutters is also smart!  Hung on a slight angle so that water runs from the top down to the lower row...you can see the water coming down on the lower right of this picture...

And I have to mention the Hobbit house, a sweet little structure that also made us want to build this in our backyard.  Ava wanted to go "lie down and have a snack inside that little hut", still too little to know about Hobbits!  It was a pretty perfect installation, with little birch logs lining the roof...

Oh the color, what a treat on such a qunitessential Maine gray spring day! 

Lilacs and Maiden Hair ferns and the biggest Columbine flowers I have ever seen...

A stone stool for a little fairy...

And the real reason we went- our friend and stone mason, Matt Carter, of Green Island Stonework did a stone arch installation that we just had to se.  All  hand built with no mortar! 

Of course they won an award, the design and craftmanship was gorgeous. 

Ahh, who wouldn't want one of these perfectly antique looking stone structrues on their property?  There were even inquiries to temporarily install this for a wedding-wouldn't that be perfect!?!

There were waterfalls, tons of spring blooming bulbs,  and the smell of mulch in the air....makes me have the fever to get out there and dig! 

Maine Seasons Events in Wellwed Magazines!

I have been so excited to share this, but as it was an exclusive feature, we all had to keep it under wraps until the magazines came out. Sara of Griffin-vites Watercolor Stationery, photographer Brea McDonald and I collaborated on a fun summer wedding design photo shoot way back in June of 2009, and it can finally be shared! Shot at a private residence, the green summery backdrop was just right for this design.

Amazing that it takes that long to see a photo shoot published in a magazine at times...

(Brea Mcdonald Photography)

The "Berry Inspired" feature came out in Wellwed in New York, Wellwed Cape Cod, Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket, and Vermont Vows this month. These magazines are so pretty, so well designed, with so many little details and fun graphics, I am honored to be in them. You can read the magazine feature here.

(Brea Mcdonald Photography)

Of course I scavenged in my stash to find some great props and personal details that I wanted to include to create a personal, colorful, fun and seasonally simple wedding design. White milk glass, fresh strawberries, white daisies, vintage tea cups, pieces of a vintage yo-yo quilt, a vintage kitchen scale, several antique quilts, a rustic tin box, and a little antique film camera, some garden chairs, vintage cooler, hand sewn ring pillow and assorted porcelain dessert pedestals were pulled together for this design.

(Brea Mcdonald Photography)

Sara took the strawberry and daisy concept and created an incredibly stylish wedding paper suite to include menus, invitations, reception, photo booth and beverage cards as well as favor tags and table numbers. Without even meeting in advance, Sara completely understood the design and aesthetic I was going for and totally exceeded my expectations with her creations. The fact that she is beautifully smart, humble, super talented, funny, sweet and genuine doesn't hurt either!

I even made a little gingham dress for you know who to sit at the "kid's table" amongst the over sized pinwheels... (Brea Mcdonald Photography)

Brea Mcdonald worked her photographic magic, climbing up on ladders, leaning into trees and crouching down low to capture all of the angles in the design elements. When we got to see a preview of her work, I was floored. Brea's photos make everything just that much prettier...the light, the crispness, the color, along with Brea's easy going, positive personality and sense of humor very much impressed me. How had I not worked with these two gems yet?

I have said this before, but I am humbled and incredibly fortunate to be surrounded by creative, real, supportive and talented women in this industry. Every day I am grateful for their friendship, humor, ears, opinions, encouragement and capabilities.

(Brea McDonald Photography, L-R: Brea, Sara and Meagan) Griffin-vites custom stationery is so pretty, so textural, with a splash of whimsy, it feels nostalgic and fresh to me all at the same time-I love the green ric-rac! (Brea Mcdonald Photography)

I whipped up a bouquet to reflect the colors and the feel of summer...loved the red polka dot ribbon! (Brea McDonald Photography) The luscious desserts were provided by 111 Maine Catering and fit the call for hand made, local and familiar summer desserts in lieu of a wedding cake. Strawberry shortcake, lemon squares, lintzer cookies and strawberry pie prettied up the dessert table, clothed with an antique quilt. Jennifer at 111 Maine is a caring, passionate, talented chef, who loves cooking and preparing food and offers her clients local, fresh and delicious food with an ease and professionalism that is so critical in the catering field. Jennifer is flexible, easy to work with and enjoys creating a custom menu for each client-another local gem!

(Brea Mcdonald Photography) Another antique quilt from my grandmother and a vintage Brownie camera created a great "photo booth" opportunity... (Brea McDonald Photography)

(Brea McDonald Photography)

It was such a great experience to work with these talented creators, and being published with them is even better!