Practically magic

Floral or foliage installations for weddings are perfect for transforming even the most humble spaces into a magical tableau. They envelop you like you are caught in a fairy bower. This hawthorne fireplace installation transformed a rustic 1930s CCC picnic shelter at a Washington State Park beach into a moody, wild Scottish bothy.

I chose only to use hawthorne branches as their berries are in the perfect season in late September, and the gnarled shape of their branches gives an intangible ancient quality. Like they grew from the ground in this spot. I am drawn to installations that look truly natural and not contrived or fake. I find too many flower arches and installations end up looking horribly fake. You wonder why? You will never see flowers growing in perfect sprays or arches in nature.

Farmer florists, like me, usually have more access to large quantities of seasonal materials like flowering or fruiting branches that can create a kind of installation magic that looks as though it grew right there on the spot.

Added bonus? This type of branch and foliage mantle installation is usually a more affordable style of floral installation than those with cultivated flowers. And they evoke a more naturalistic, wild, and evocative look.

What other types of foliage could I use at other times of the year? I imagine delicate, snow-like blossoming fruit tree branches in early spring, bowers of ripening blackberries or raspberries in summer, towering tomato vines in summer, and colorful leaves of deciduous trees in autumn. The possibilities are endless!

Click here to have Fabled Flora create such an installation at your event in the greater Seattle area or Western Washington.