When a floral designer gets married, it is definitely something to be noticed. But when our very own in-house floral designer gets married, you know it will be a stand-out affair! Giselle’s wedding took place on March 15th, 2014 at Hotel Arista in Naperville. The celebrated occasion was rooted in vintage, Hollywood glamour and full of dreamy details! Her blush colored gown and the soft romantic floral elements (just look at those amaryllis blooms!) each contrasted with the crisp grey of her bridesmaid’s dresses and the classic styling of Hotel Arista. The match was made to be, just like Giselle and David’s love for each other!
Snow was almost completely melted off the ground on wedding day! Unlike the rest of our frigid Chicago winter, the day was brisk, and the sun was just breaking through the winter clouds. Even before the ceremony started, the hotel was bustling with vendors and guests alike, each waiting for Giselle to make her way down the aisle! The ceremony room was filled with silver Chiavari chairs for the guests, while a white crushed velvet aisle runner led the way to the elegantly draped alter (all by Jasmine of course!). The aisle was lined thick with pink and white ombré rose petals (okay, LOVE!) and the chairs were dressed with a simple and sweet hand-tied bouquet of blush tulips, white snapdragons, and topped with a ribbon bow.
David was beaming as his bride made her way down the aisle. He looked sharp in his grey three-piece suit with his groomsmen behind him in our black Jasmine 962 Ralph Lauren Saville tuxedos!
“We kept them clean and classic; all of them had black vests and varying silver colors of ties and pocket squares. They all looked absolutely dapper!! …Who doesn’t love a man in a tux?!”
The bridesmaids made their way down the aisle in our knee length B2 dress, B153063 featured in the color Iron, which stood as the perfect backdrop for their rosy bouquets! The delicate pink Sophie roses, soft white tulips and anemones were accented with black mini calla lilies and mauve-y cymbidium orchid blossoms. The unexpected black accent added quite the dramatic touch; all a part of Giselle’s vision,
“I knew I wanted it to be romantic, feminine, with some artistic and retro glamour!”
Giselle herself was simply radiant in her blush wedding gown featuring a dropped waist and ruffles on ruffles on ruffles! Her bouquet held a stunning array of pink hydrangea, mauve cymbidium orchid blossoms, white parrot tulips, pink mini calla lilies, and massive white amaryllis blossoms! Acting as her something borrowed, a white handkerchief from her grandmother peeked out from beneath the blooms.
“I felt so beautiful the day of, my dress was perfect, my hair and make-up were flawless, and my jewelry was gorgeous—I was totally ready to walk down that aisle like a rock-star!”
A dazzling bejeweled choker necklace and tear drop earrings, courtesy of Haute Bride, also from Jasmine, and her retro-glam makeup (just look at those lashes!) completed the glamorous bridal look!
The reception was dim and intimate; the smokey grey walls adding to the overall ambiance of the room. Rising above half of the tables were ivory and blush filled pomander balls that stood tall on glossy silver candelabra bases. The stylish arrangement was another favorite of Giselle’s glamorous vintage inspired vision!
“I had the idea in my head of what I wanted them to look like—but seeing them in the reception room I was blown away!”
Each pomander was filled with over fifty pink and white roses, pink hydrangea, and dendrobium orchid blossoms! On the remaining tables sat low glass vases filled to the brim with pink tulips (the bride’s favorite flower!) and roses. So fresh and romantic!
Reused from the ceremony, the alter ties and pew ends were placed coolly on the head table. Pearls and petals draped effortlessly over each other. The combination of light pink flowers, with steel grey linens, and gleaming white dance floor was edgy, sophisticated, and all around glamorous!
A member of Giselle’s floral team, Michelle comments on the events of the day, “I was fortunate enough to be able to design some of the flowers for Giselle’s wedding, as well as be a participant and guest! It can be challenging to bring a bride’s vision to life, but there is something so rewarding about seeing the bride’s eyes light up when she sees the finished product! So how do you surprise a woman who does this day in and day out? Especially one with a very specific vision and concept! My goal was to have everything look even more magnificent than she imagined. I still wanted her eyes to light up like every other bride that walks down the aisle, and to go the extra mile to achieve her vision and aim beyond it. I wanted each detail to be absolutely beautiful for her! I was so happy to be a part of it!”
Giselle’s smart styling and effortless blending of classic and contemporary elements makes her wedding one of the stand outs of the season! And one that we will surely not forget here at Jasmine!
Final thoughts from the bride herself: “It was amazing!!!! I love looking at pictures of the day and reminiscing on how wonderful everything turned out!”
As a Wedding Floral and Décor designer, it was difficult to choose a lot of the details because there are so many options!!! I picked out my color palette early on, since the blush pink dress was the first purchase. I knew I wanted it to be romantic, feminine, with some artistic and retro glamour. For invitations I knew I wanted something contemporary yet romantic. I’ve always liked the ease and look of pocket invitations. I designed the invitation in my color scheme, added romantic script, and it was perfect!!! I had way more fun selecting invitations than I would have imagined, there were so many options available! (My guests all commented and told me how beautiful the invitation was and many of them have saved it as a memento!)
For the bridesmaid’s dresses, I loved the way the Jasmine Bridesmaid color Iron (Charcoal Grey) looked next to my dress so that was a really easy choice. As for styles, I knew I wanted them to be short and flirty and in a chiffon material. I love bridesmaids’ dresses that have good movement, and you can’t ever go wrong with a chiffon! For the style, again, I wanted something different so I opted for a dress that had a nontraditional keyhole back neckline.
For flowers and décor, I scanned several Pinterest boards looking for a pink, grey, black, and ivory wedding, as any bride does when she’s planning. All the images were beautiful but not quite what I was looking for. As I do with many of my brides, I knew I had to come up with something new based on what I liked. Choosing the flowers for my own bouquet was the most difficult! I have designed so many beautiful bouquets with roses, so I did what most people would do, I went the opposite direction. Although delicate, I used White Amaryllis as my focal flower, accented with blush Cymbidium Orchids and light pink Calla Lilies, and black centered white Anenomes. For the bridesmaids, their bouquets were blush and white, and I added black calla lilies to create some excitement. Even though I designed the bouquets, I was just as excited as any bride is to see the finished product! Same goes for centerpieces, I had the idea in my head of what I wanted them to look like—but seeing them in the reception room I was blown away. I am so lucky to have such an amazing team that goes above and beyond whether it’s for me or a client. The tall centerpiece, a pomander atop a silver candlestick looked stately and softened by candlelight. The shorter pedestal glass centerpiece complimented it beautifully, and I made sure I included my favorite flower in it- tulips!!! After I chose the flowers, all the other décor components fell into place- Silver Chiavari Chairs, Platinum Pintuck tablecloths, blush pink up-lighting, and pin-spotting lighting to showcase the centerpieces. For the ceremony, although I chose all the details—walking into that room was nothing short of magical. The runner paired with the stage and backdrop looked amazing, and Michelle surprised me with a pink ombre petal lined aisle!!
For my day-of wedding look, I opted for a cat-eye and bold lipstick to offset the romance of my gown. For jewelry, I chose all my (and bridesmaids!) accessories at Jasmine, the Haute Bride line is to die for!!! The settings are beautiful, the crystals sparkle like crazy, and they have a ton of options. I had been eyeing a bold necklace for some time, and I was so giddy with excitement when it turned out to work out perfectly with my day-of look. I felt so beautiful the day of, my dress was perfect, my hair and make-up were flawless, and my jewelry was gorgeous—I was totally ready to walk down that aisle like a rock-star! My bridesmaids all got their hair and make-up professionally done with the help of Jasmine’s make-up artist Deanna and the evidence is in the pictures, because they all look AMAZING!!!
Ceremony: Hotel Arista, Naperville, IL // Reception: Hotel Arista, Naperville, IL // Bridal Jewelry: Haute Bride Necklace & Earrings // Makeup: Jasmine Galleria (Deanna) // Bridesmaids Dresses: B2- B153063 purchased at Jasmine Galleria // Groomsmen Tuxedos: Black Jasmine 962 Ralph Lauren Saville Tuxedos rented from Jasmine Galleria // Floral Design: Jasmine Galleria // Ceremony Décor, Stage, Linens, Up-lighting, Chairs, Aisle Runner: Jasmine Galleria // Photographer: Just Love Me //
