Winter Peonies
While I strive to work with locally in-season blooms and try to be mindful of our carbon footprint, I sometimes have to make certain exceptions. Like for Peonies - I would do anything for a great bunch of peonies, anything. In the early winter months Peonies make a bit of a comeback, the florist's market is full of moody red buds coming in from South America and other warm climates. I almost feel bad that they have to arrive in snowy New England. This past December we had a ton of them in the studio for a special winter wedding.
Featured in The Boston Globe
Last week The Boston Globe's annual Wedding Issue hit newsstands, and I am so beyond thrilled to say our work was featured. I was extra excited to see our bouquet featured along side the talented Lauren Wells Events {as well as many other amazing local vendors.}
PS. If you snagged this issue or have a chance to check it out online, the cover story spotlighted Race Brook Lodge, out in the Berkshires. Well. That's where we had our own wedding a few years ago! It's a secret little hidden gem that boasts it's own farm and gastro tavern and backs right on to the Appalachian trail, rusticity at it's best. All in all, we were in seriously good company in this issue. A huge thank you to the Globe for including us in this amazing round-up!
Big Sky Country
It's really nice out today {for January in New England} nearly 50 degrees and sunny. Such a stark contrast to the recent freezing temperatures! Last week had me dreaming of summer, and those dreams took me back to our trip out west to Colorado, which I realized I never shared. We spent a week out in Breckenridge, a beautiful town nestled in the mountains where we stayed in a breathtaking cabin home that had a river right in the backyard. We enjoyed {unbelievably} fresh air, picked wildflowers, took long hikes, and enjoyed good company. I even rode ATV's through the mountains in Vail....normally I'm too chicken for things like that. It was my first time out to the middle of the country and I can't wait to go out that way again - there is just a certain simplicity to life out there. I think the mountains remind you that we are in fact just small beings, and really, really lucky to be on this earth.
Where it all Started
I absolutely love what I do. Since I was a little girl Ive had a serious love of nature, and flowers. My sister and I had a favorite game we used to play when we were children. We would go out back and hang out underneath our favorite tree, and pretend to concoct magical potions with flowers, berries, twigs and I'm sure a little mud. It wasn't until later in life that I realized I should be chasing that passion, after all I still thought flowers were pretty magical. My left brain had driven me through life; attending business school, working my way through college, and landing a great job in finance after graduation. Despite my relative professional success, years went by and I was unfulfilled. It wasn't until family and friends planning DIY weddings began to ask me if I would help them with their flowers did it occur to me that my creative outlet could possibly be my career. From that moment I began to teach my self as much as possible. I bought books, took classes, and started practicing every free chance I had.
It is scary to reinvent your self. It is scary to walk away from a stable career to chase a dream. But I think it would be even scarier to let your dreams slip through your fingertips. Scarier to wake up in 20 years and ask, what if? Luckily for me I had the support of my husband, family, and friends. Less than two years ago this was just an idea, and today I am the owner of a growing boutique business that I am so incredibly proud of, and sometimes it still surprises me. The moral of this story? YOLO, so get after your dreams now.
*Photo By Ruth Eileen Photography*