I met Stephanie and Rob at the first bridal show I participated early this year. They are very nice and sweet. ^_^
Stephanie and Rob bought most of the materials themselves, which is great in terms cost control.

Stephanie wanted something different for her centerpiece and in our first meeting, she showed me pictures of a branch centerpiece idea.
So after doing some research, we've settled on using manzanita branches. Since this wedding has many crafty ideas, I've listed few tips and tricks for those of you who are interested to recycle this idea for your own event.

But before that...Check out the pictures from the wedding! ^_^ 














Click here to see the full photo album


@@ Tips and Tricks @@

Materials for the branch centerpiece:
Clear cylinder glass vase
Ribbon (1.5-2" width)
Manzanita Branch (www.nettletonhollow.com)
Beaded garlands
Silk maple leaves
Glue dots (1/2" diameter; can be found in scrapbooking aisle of your local arts and crafts stores)
Glue dots (3/8" diameter)
Pruning scissors
Hacksaw and table top vice (to hold the branch while you cut it off with the hacksaw)
Colored mini pebbles for vase fillers (that somewhat double as the branch stabilizer)








When you purchase the branch, they don't come trimmed. So you would have to trim off the weak, small branches while trying to shape them aesthetically. Some of the branch branches out and that means you can't fit them easily into vase opening, so that means you would need to shorten the bottom of the branch using the hacksaw and vice.

Place and attach ribbons around the vase using the smaller glue dots (3/8" diameter), trim the excess.

Place beaded garlands on the branch - the key is to create an illusion that the branch is full without using excessive amount of garlands.

Randomly place the silk maple leaves using the bigger glue dots (1/2" diameter).
You can choose to give the centerpiece a fuller look by placing more leaves on the branch.

Hang the tealight lanterns on the branches. Make sure you pick a stable, sturdy branches to hang these.


Materials for the tealight candle lantern:
Clear "planter-shaped" tealight candle holder
Wire (I believe I used the 22 gauge flower wire - just make sure it's thick enough but still flexible)
Hot glue gun
Ribbon (1/4-3/8" width)
Glue dots (3/8" diameter; can be found in scrapbooking aisle of your local arts and crafts stores)





The first thing we need to do is to create the wire hanger.
What I did was:
- Encircle the wire on the bottom of the top part of the holder (on the above picture: it's the are right underneath the ribbon)
- Secure the "circle" by twisting the wire
- Repeat the process for the second hanger
- Place the two hangers and twist the top part together as to create the "hanger"

Using hot glue gun, apply hot glue on wire that touches both sides of the top part of the holder to secure them.

Place ribbon around the top part of the holder and try your best to cover the hot glue.
Attach the ribbon using glue dots, trim the excess.

Turn on the LED tealight candle and place it in the holder BEFORE you hang it.


I hope I explained this process well and that you find it useful.
Please feel free to email me if you have any questions in regards to this idea. ^_^


Before I close this entry, I would like to give a SPECIAL THANKS to my "new assistant" ^_^ : Rosalind a.k.a Rosie! Thank you very much for your hard work! I really appreciate it! 


Many happy wishes to you, Stephanie and Rob!

Thank you so much for this opportunity. It was an honor to be a part of your special day.
I really appreciate it. ^_^

Thank you for giving me the opportunity to be a part of your special day! ^_^

Ceremony & Reception Site:
The Brossman Center
7301 Germantown Avenue
Philadelphia, PA 19119

Contact:
Rita Faison @ (215) 248-7339 -or- (866) 548-7339

 

 For more pictures from this wedding, please visit Papertini's Online Album.

I first met Megan about 2 years ago when she contacted me to help out with floral arrangements for Concert Opera, an event that she helped organized. Ever since then, we always maintain a great relationship. She even helped model for my photoshoots! ^_^ So when she asked me to do her wedding flowers, I was really honored.

Megan has a big family, so from the get go she knew that she would have a big bridal party. She wanted to keep the bouquets simple but striking. She came to me with a solid idea of using ivory roses and aubergine mini callas (the super dark purple mini callas) for the bouquets. The combination of these two colors was perfect against the unique green of the bridesmaids' dresses. I cannot even explain to you what kind of green that was. It's kind of close to sage and/or willow, simply a very unique shade of green. It's very pretty for sure, as you can see from the pictures. ^_^ Her talented photographer was Matthew Wright of the figtree photography. I really like the dramatic shots he took for this wedding! ^_^
 

Since Cairnwood Cathedral already has such intricate designs, we decided to keep the ceremony decor to a minimal. Just a couple of pew bows to mark the family rows and a couple of altar arrangements. She bought the vases for these arrangements and they were so plain, so I decided to cover the inside of the vases with Ti Leaves and that helped bring out the colors. I'm glad that worked! ^_^
 

For the reception centerpieces, she wanted all tall and full, carrying the same color scheme. We reused her bouquet to adorn her sweetheart table and kept the same design for the place card centerpiece. Megan's reception setup was different than Dominique's. Megan used the patio area for the dining (using tent), one room for the dessert room, the others for dancing and cigar bar. Her event was catered by Jeffrey Miller Catering whose staff were friendly and professional. I definitely enjoyed working with Shelley, their event coordinator.

 

Prior to the big day, the mother of the groom asked me to do the rehearsal dinner centerpieces. Megan would like to keep the same color scheme without breaking the budget. So I used the aubergine mini callas to a minimal for these centerpieces (yes, they are pricey, ladies!). I placed the mini callas in a way that one could imagine as if they were "butterflies" on the flowers. ^_^ 

I would like to take this as an opportunity to express my sincere gratitude to Megan and Brett. Especially Megan, whose full trust in my creativity comforts me greatly. This event gave me so much confidence in what I can do and I really appreciate Megan's kind words and encouragement. I'm humbled and most importantly, I'm forever grateful.


For more pictures from this wedding, please visit Papertini's Online Album.

Congratulations, Megan and Brett!
Many Happy Wishes for you always!! ^_^