“Wow…the wedding of the year?” you may be thinking as you read the title of this post. Well, to us it truly was!
And no, we’re not talking about Prince William and Kate’s wedding either! We’re talking about Sarah’s wedding. “Who’s Sarah?” you ask. Good question! It’s our owner’s daughter—that’s who!
And what a day it was! It is always exciting to work with brides and grooms and help them plan for their special day, but when it’s your own daughter, the excitement rises to a whole new level! Please allow us to share the spectacular details with you.
Once Upon a Time…
Sarah dreamed of having her wedding under the great oak at the Philippi Mansion Estate in Sarasota, FL ever since she attended her eighth grade dance there.
And the art deco vintage-inspired wedding and reception was absolutely resplendent as Becki Creighton, our owner and Sarah’s proud mom, assembled the dream team which left no detail of this magnificent event unattended! And it was a small miracle, too, as the wedding took place 4 days AFTER Christmas!
The ceremony itself took place outdoors under the large oak tree on the gorgeous property just as Sarah had envisioned. Affairs in the Air went into overdrive and hung 3 stunning crystals chandeliers to look as though they were hung from the huge oak tree. They had to work guide wires from outside supports as we were not allowed to do the actual suspension from the trees. They made it work and the ceremony was absolutely incredible.
Affairs in the Air also did a fabulous design with lighting on the back patio of the mansion as well! The red and amber up-lighting had a leaf pattern in it that stretched across the whole back of the building and it looked magnificent! We have worked with Affairs in the Air for many years and they never cease to amaze us with their ingenuity and attention to detail!
Since the couple did not want a traditional wedding or reception, they opted for a more relaxed party feel—particularly at the reception—which suited the two of them to a tee! There were no table assignments and lots of hi top tables. Each table featured a different flower arrangement!
Decorating for the reception was a joy! The tree theme was carried inside for the reception and we used large black trees on some of the larger tables for a dramatic look. The 6′ tall black trees had euphorbia on the branches and we suspended hanging chandelier votive candles with lots of crystals and prisms.
We also added 3 rose topiary balls in red, yellow and orange. The topiary balls were a fun pop of color and a nice creative touch! At the base of each tree, we used 12 cylinders with floating candles wrapped in bling and set 3 additional topiary balls on top of 3 more cylinders to pull the color down on to the table. It was gorgeous and Sarah loved it!
The mantel in the mansion was a composite design of several rose topiary balls in all sizes and lots of candles…in fact, thousands of roses and flowers were used for this day for both the wedding and reception.
Affairs in the Air did an immense amount of draping inside the mansion rooms to create the art deco feel Sarah wanted. They used black draping in some rooms and white in others. You’ve got to check out the before and after picture of the draping in the mansion in the gallery below…you won’t believe the difference!
They also did 4 spandex art deco columns which featured huge brightly colored floral arrangements we designed that flanked either side of the mantel and doorway. Words truly can not describe the exquisite look of it all!
And to continue the tree-theme, Debbie Bock, our shop manager designed a wishing tree instead of sign-in book and created leaves the guest wrote their wishes on. These leaves with precious messages were attached to the tree set in a cloud of roses and hydrangea. It was one-of-a-kind!
The food and cake were works of arts in themselves as well! Karl from Old Heidelberg Bakery made the striking black and white wedding cake with art deco touches and Alla from The Cake Zone created the artful desserts on beautiful trays around the cake. And Jamie Barrett from Simply Gourmet outdid himself with the Tapas style food that Sarah and Marco wanted for their special day. It was all delicious and beautiful!
This day will forever be preserved in our memories thanks to the beautiful pictures done by Evelyn England of Sage Art Photography and the outstanding video by Tibor Imley. Please take a moment and look at all the gorgeous photographs of this phenomenal day in the gallery below.
Bobbi Hicks of Weddings by Bobbi helped get Sarah down the aisle and was assisted by Jen Moore from Notary to Go. They did a fantastic job and made the day go so smoothly.
Sarah’s amazing hair and makeup was done by Tammy and Joe Gamso from Fresh Salon and Spa. The hair and make-up went beautifully with Sarah’s classic look!
Sarah’s classic look was complemented by her classic white rose wedding bouquet which featured touches of bling! Every girl needs bling on her wedding day. Her bridesmaids wore dazzling green vintage-inspired dresses and carried bouquets of deep red and coral roses.
We can not thank everyone enough who made this day possible…you are more than business partners to us, you are precious friends! Thank you, thank you, and thank you!
The day truly was a dream come true for us at Flowers by Fudgie! It was an absolute delight to work on this wedding and make Sarah and Marco’s wedding dreams a reality! We had a beaming bride and mother!
And we would LOVE to do the same for you! If you are looking for a florist in Sarasota , Flowers by Fudgie would be honored to work with you. We are here to serve you and make your wedding day dreams come true! Contact us today!
