A Swan House wedding June 12 & 13, 2009

NOVEMBER 13, 2015 **Let me apologize for no photos of the bride, groom and wedding party, as the family has requested we remove all identifying information and photos. 

For those of you who read this blog (all 14 of you!).. you know we had a very busy weekend June 12 & 13th... 2 weddings & 4 receptions. Here are the first set of photos... 10,000 thanks to Greg & Sandra Scott of Picture This! Photography (today is their umteenth aminavesary and she still got these to us).
To set the tone for you readers, the bride & groom started planning last year... they hired our close friend Ashley Baber who attended the first meeting. During that meeting, two words wound up in almost every sentence or description- 'Great Gatsby'... 1920's. The bride had a very definitive look she wanted and it was our job to pull it together. Friday June 12 was the ceremony, held at historic Swan House, on the portico side, in the lawn. Her color scheme was white, green, blue and hints of lavender.. she wanted a very natural look. With the help of Cali Bamboo, we covered the asphalt drive with banana bark mats - something the bride insisted upon; the challenge was the wind that afternoon, but they stayed down for the ceremony. The bride & groom wanted enough flowers to make a statement but not over the top... the niches in the retaining wall were a natural spot to place florals.. in classic garden urns. Peonies, hydrangea, hybrid delphinium, roses in several hues, allium, eryngium, Philadelphius (mock orange), spirea, clematis, immature Snow Ball viburnum, orchids, oriental lilies and callas burst from the urns. The ceremony was conducted between 2 decorated poles, dripping with flowers & greenery, finished with gorgeous smilax.

The bridal bouquet featured traditional June bride gardenias, accented with white peonies, spirea, phalaenopsis orchids, freesia, variegated hosta, lisianthus in pale lavender, roses and trailing wild clematis... the flowers were a perfect compliment to her 'nod to vintage' dress... just gorgeous. The groom wore a navy blue suit and lavender tie - his boutonniere was a gardenia.

A petite arrangement of peonies & gardenias was placed in the groom's grandmother's empty chair.. her favorites.

Guests moved to the lower back lawn at the Swan House, below the fountains for a small Jazz reception... it was HOTTERNHELL that afternoon, but the flowers held up for the duration. Inni Ross, our favorite at Legendary Events provided catering.. flawless as usual! Next time Inni, let's do this indoors!

Once the lawn reception was over, guests were shuttled to 103 West restaurant and were treated to a 1920's inspired night club setting. (A very special thanks to Heidi and the entire staff for making our job as easy as possible) The bride's special touch was the head table.. not your typical straight line.. we created a custom design for her.. breaking the linear movement with florals dropped below table height.. and towering vases of flowers, peacock feathers and palm fronds. Sherry Chisholm at Rainforest Plant Rental did a great job for us.. bringing up King Maya palms for ambiance..thanks Sherry! Chivari chairs & silver cabaret lamps from We Rent Atlanta partnered with linens from Wildflower Linens for an incredible look.. the guest tables had the Orchid Ottoman and the head table was dressed in iridescent Orchid. The chair covers for the bride & groom were sewn just for this event.. and really made the statement she wanted. We found Art Deco ball card holders for the guest tables and silver peacock card holders for the head table. For those of you familiar with 103 West, their vintage statue of reclining Cleopatra sported a Peacock fan... just for the night.

Part 3 will be posted later, for the 3rd reception held at Capital City Club of Brookhaven.

Still more weddings & receptions

Whew....barely got our wind back from this past weekend... Friday June 12, one of our couples will exchange vows at the beautiful Swan House... on the Portico Lawn... just wait until you all see what has been planned! The bride & groom  love the Great Gatsby novel and movie.. so everything has the flavor of the 1920's & early 30's. Following the ceremony, there will be a light reception on the lower lawn below the fountains...with a seated dinner at 103 West -which will be transformed into a nightclub feel. Can you say lots of texture, palms & peacock feathers?? Saturday evening, a larger reception will be held in their honor at the Capital City Club of Brookhaven...

pictures to follow.....

Saturday evening will see Jennifer Collins & Matt Walker will stand in front of their family and friends in the historic Biltmore Imperial Ballroom for their nuptuials. The guests don't have far to travel for an incredible reception... just down the hall to the Georgian Ballroom.

Joan King & Kevin Hills June 6, 2009

As promised...here are some photos I managed to sneak in after setting up the reception at The Commons, Fort McPherson. Joan is active duty Army (SFC) and Kevin is in the Reserves (Sergeant Major) as well as a civil service employee. During the planning process, Joan & Kevin told us that their desire was to 'transform' the space into their "Platinum" reception.. but within their budget. Our dear friend Marina Miller (EventDrapery.com) did a spectacular job creating a romantic touch with the fabric... coordinating the drapery ties with the linens. BBJ Linens - Dee Lane...you ROCK!! The Nile Blue lamours & damask brought everything to the highest level.. accented with the celedon and cornsilk. So all of you will know, when Joan met with Dee Lane & me at their new location, Joan was a bit concerned how we could pull all of her favorite colors together.. at which point, Dee Lane brought out the couture cake overlay.. old gold mesh with all of Joan's colors in a floral pattern.. the tears started gushing... that's when we in this business know we've done it to perfection. The photos show how you can pull together pattern, color and texture to achieve a truly Platinum look on a budget. Our friends at We Rent Atlanta - shout out to Lauren for your help.. provided the chairs; Mark Brickman, owner of Baker's Man did a superb job on the cake. Coordinator was Shujuan Shannon of To Have and To Hold, photographers were Springfield Photography and I cannot emphasize the extraordinary talents of Steve Moore, The Moore Agency.... he works majic with the makeup brush and combs... Joan was stunning...no other words come to mind...just stunning... I almost cried when I saw her at the church! Steve...fantastic!!

Enjoy our photos of the reception site... once the photographers send me images, we will share with all of you.... have a great week!!!

Praise from Mother of the bride Lantrip/Friend wedding June 6

Larry & Greg,
I am beyond speechless. The flowers that Foxgloves and Ivy did for Amy and Marco's wedding were absolutely the most stunning I have ever seen. I was so overwhelmed at the beauty of it all-from the church to the courthouse-it was just as you said it would be. It truly hurt my heart to leave at the end of the evening and leave all those beautiful flowers behind. Amy and Marco have left for the Dominican Republic so I haven't been able to discuss the wedding in detail with her, but she did tell me she thought the flowers were the most elegant of any wedding she has ever been to. She and Marco danced the night away, and were VERY HAPPY with everything. Thanks for the part you and your staff played in making her wedding perfect.
Lisa Lantrip

3 weddings & 3 receptions

This is a very busy weekend for us here at F&I - 3 weddings & 3 receptions.... Jan Thomas & Michael Reene are getting hitched first thing tomorrow morning...intimate ceremony...family only. Their reception is at the Buckhead Club....

Joan King, SFC United States Army is marrying Kevin Hills Saturday afternoon at First Baptist Church of Stockbridge... with the reception following at The Commons on Ft. McPherson. Her colors are white, sage, green, yellow and a hint of lavender (reception only). Event Drapery will decorate the walls; fruitwood Chivari chairs from We Rent Atlanta and gorgeous linens from BBJ Linens - photos available at the first of next week. Shujuan Shannon of To Have and To Hold has done a wonderful job as the coordinator and everything will be captured by Springfield Photography.

Finally, Amy Lantri and Marco Friend will tie the knot in the Chapel of First United Methodist Church of Decatur, with a reception at the Old Decatur Courthouse. Amy and her mother chose a clean pallate of white and silver/pewter/grey for her events..always classic but with a twist. Ashley Baber of Ashley Baber Weddings is Amy's coordinator.. Linsey Starr of Affairs to Remember is responsible for the catering, ThirtyFive Atlanta is photographing both events.

We hope to have images for you Monday... even if they are ours... we're not too bad at the photography thing!

Katie Gainer & Matt Kulinski May 30, 2009

This past Saturday, Katie & Matt were married and celebrated on what was the hottest day of the year so far in the ATL! Not too worry though.. everything was fantastic.

Sacred Heart Catholic Church, very historic, was the site of the ceremony.. for those of you considering them... remember, they don't allow florists to provide floral decor for weddings!!! That's all I'm gonna say!

Drew Newman was the photographer, however, he's out of town until the 13th of June, so the only images I can present are the ones I took at the reception site. Once he has returned, he has promised to send images for here. Photography was outside, across the street under the shade of the trees in Suntrust Plaza.. a welcome relief!

After the ceremony, everyone boarded The Trolley and headed up to the fabulous Ritz Carlton Downtown.. a quick trip on Peachtree Street...

The staff at the Ritz Carlton Downtown were great to work with.. as always.. a special shout out to Sam, newly titled, 'Director of Ambience' by F&I. Paul & Robin are consummate professionals in assisting brides with their special day. Oh, did we mention they have completed the renovation of the ballroom?? Well, they have and it is so beautiful!! Quite a departure from the previous decor - makes it easier for a bride & groom to put togehter great looking receptions! Cool tones of silver & grey and some really nifty lighting for that extra WOW! If you are looking for a great venue to host your party or reception, give them a call... it's worth every penny!!

The bride chose an interesting color scheme... bridesmaids were dressed in 'Bahamian' blue dresses, accented with red.. very bold but beautiful. The feel of a hint of Summer in the Carribean was continued in the ballroom.. low & high centerpieces in fresh seasonal flowers - concentrating on the reds, pinks and whites... If you look closely, Katie & Matt were able to provide a very personal touch to the event. They collect antique postcards from Atlanta and when we had our first meeting, they wanted to know if we had any ideas.. come on now, we are FULL of ideas, as any of our past brides will tell you. We all settled on them making color copies of the postcars and laminating them.. F&I placed them in the vases with the flowers. Each table was assigned a name of a distinctive building or area of old Atlanta.. what a hoot! The guest escort cards were reproductions of antique post card backs.. in red ink... PERFECT!!

It was a great night... ending about 11pm.. since we had been working from 8:30 am... it was nice to finish a bit earlier than usual.

The images are from us... hope you enjoy.

Leeann Buergler & Dan Attanucci

Leeann & Dan celebrated their wedding & reception last Saturday, May 23rd. The ceremony was at the Cathedral of Christ the King - and the party was in the Egyptian Ballroom at the Fabulous Fox Theatre! Here are a few photos we took... the bride's bouquet was all miniature callas, mostly white with a hint of the lavender form.. handle was finished with ivory ribbon and ivory lace - echoing the gorgeous dress Leeann was wearing. The detail was a decision we didn't tell Irene (mom) or Leeann.. a beautiful pearl buckle which coordinated with her pearl drop earrings & necklace! Mom burst out in tears when she saw the bouquet. Bridesmaid bouquets were baby blue hydrdrangea, native Camassia (Indian Hyacinth), lilacs and 'Picasso' miniature callas. Reception was catered by the incredible folks at Affairs To Remember, always a pleasure to work with; wedding planner was Margie Sikes of Affiars of Elegance and the band... Atlanta Beat! One of the great perks of our industry is to set up events and receptions while the bands are rehearsing.. and I am telling you...they ROCK!!!! Leeann's wedding cake was from none other than the phenominal Mark Lotti of Mark Lotti's Classic Cheesecakes & Cakes. Hair and make up from the legendary Steve Moore (The Moore Agency). The photographer, Liana Lehman, will send photos when she has finished production.. she travels..a lot.

In the meantime, here is the email we received from the mother of the bride:

"Larry -

IT WAS FAB! I had SO many compliments on the flowers - you and Greg are AWESOME! Lots of people asked who the florist was - but you were so much more than just a florist! You had a vision of so many things that made a lot of sense - thanks for your wonderful suggestions!

We truly appreciated all that you did... Irene "