Will I help with flowers for the Savoy? Definitely!

I enjoyed my first day of work experience this week, helping with flowers for a wedding reception at the Savoy Hotel. It was hard work, and my shoulders are still aching from all of the heavy lifting, but I absolutely loved it. The women from Urbanstems as well as the freelancers were all incredibly friendly, and it was such a joy to work with them. I rather expected to be prepping flowers or getting water, while they did the creative work, but I was encouraged to get stuck in. I helped with the wreath table arrangements in which we placed bowls with floating candles or tall vases with another arrangement, and one of two huge urns that were at the front of the ballroom. The theme was white but very ‘natural’, so there were buckets and buckets of Vendella and Avalanche roses, white hydrangeas, lilies and alstroemeria, green lisianthus, and lots of ivy. The leftover roses were used to decorate the stage and the table for the wedding cake, and I think the whole room looked gorgeous once we had finished.

Photos from the Luxury Wedding Show

Emily from Urbanstems kindly sent me some photos from the Luxury Wedding Show - one of a model who sported one of their bridal bouquets during the catwalk show, and another of their stand. Just have a look and see why I was so wowed by their flowers.

Eye-popping wedding flowers

Today I went to the Luxury Wedding Show at the Millennium Hotel in Grosvenor Square. The first stand to catch my eye was Urbanstems, a florist based in Potters Bar in Hertfordshire. There were table centres atop of very tall vases and a long garland with bright pink and purple flowers, including the most beautiful hydrangeas. There was a hot pink bridal bouquet, made up of roses, calla lilies, chrysanthemums, and some bling. Pearls and diamantes are often used in bridal flowers, but they don’t always work for me; these definitely did. Some of Urbanstems’ bridal bouquets featured in the catwalk show, and they looked amazing. At a time when the main fashion for wedding flowers seems to be vintage or classic (i.e. white), these bright bouquets looked modern and, dare I say it, sexy.

The women there were kind enough to chat to me about floristry during a quiet period. It was lovely to speak to people who are so enthusiastic and knowledgeable about their work, and who were happy to offer me some last minute advice for the wedding I’m doing next weekend. There’s a huge gallery of wedding flower photos on their website, which is well worth a look.

I was mainly interested in wedding flowers, but I was curious enough to stay for the catwalk show. I’m glad I did! It began with Kerry Birkett, a First Artist from the English National Ballet, dancing to Swan Lake in what I think was the ballerina-style wedding dress that was especially designed for her. She’s getting married next year, and I’m sure the wedding guests will be in for a treat as she and her husband (English National Ballet Soloist, Zhanat Atymtayev) do their first dance.