MODERN DAY FLORAL » PETAL TALK

A Day with David Beahm

jenn — Wed, 06 Apr 2011 14:33:51 +0000

Happy Wednesday! I hope you had a very relaxing weekend and enjoyed time doing what you love. I spent the better part of my agenda free weekend catching up on blog posts and updating new images to facebook which was absolutely fantastic! As I sat writing this post, I couldn’t help but feel like a heel for not writing this post sooner. Since stepping off the plane from New York I have been going full tilt.

A few weeks ago I was invited to join 16 other designers from all over the country to meet in New York for a floral and event designers dream vacation. Holly Chappel of Holly Chappel Design was the mastermind who organized this exciting field trip. Day One: Hands-on class with the talented David Beahm and a tour of the New York flower market. Day Two: Attend a taping of the Martha Stewart show followed by a tour of Ovando Flowers, the list goes on. This was my first trip to New York and I was completely blown away.

We arrived at David’s design studio bright and early Monday morning after our tour of the beautiful flower markets. The studio had a fresh urban vibe high exposed ceilings, crisp white walls painted concrete floors filled with an eclectic blend of modern and antique furniture. Not to mention who wouldn’t love to have a wall filled with that many magazine covers!

We spent most of our morning immersed in a hands-on class. The conversation centered around how to take a standard container and create several different looks. This relaxed environment allowed for a lot of Q & A time with Holly, David and his assistant Jeremy.

After a delicious catered lunch we participated in an exciting challenge of designing a tablescape for someone famous. Whoopi Goldberg, Dr. Suess, Queen Elizabeth and Frank Sinatra were among the infamous guest tables. Imagine how excited I was when I drew ole’ blue eyes name out of the hat. Who had more swagger than good ole’ Frank himself? We were given card blanch to use anything in the prop closet. It was a frenzy but everyone had a fabulous time bringing all their fabulous famous people to life.

We closed our day out with David sharing an encore of his Engage 10 presentation, a powerful meditation and champagne celebration. David is a man of great talent who is so open and willing to share. The day was incredible and I left feeling so inspired and renewed. I look forward to sharing everything I learned with our clients. This is exactly why I take these trips. What an experience!

Modern Day Floral welcomes Spring!!

jenn — Thu, 24 Mar 2011 18:45:25 +0000

With the warmer weather upon us (we hope!), we are getting extremely excited for our upcoming weddings! We have met with some really incredible soon-to-be brides and grooms over the past several months and we can’t wait to help create the wedding of their dreams!! So get excited all you readers, we’re going to be blogging up a storm this summer! Kick-off for us is in less than ONE MONTH!!!

image courtesy of Shutterbug by Jen

Upcoming Class!

jenn — Wed, 16 Mar 2011 12:54:10 +0000

Style your Wedding

helping you create a stylish event that is uniquely you

Details, Details, Details

it is all in tiny details

April 5th, 2011 from 6:30pm – 8:30pm

All classes are held at 444 Bridge St, NW Grand Rapids, MI 49504

(located between O’Toole’s and Renee Austin Wedding)

*Please RSVP to events@moderndayfloral.com

SPECIAL OFFER!

10% off all regular priced merchandise at Renee Austin for attendees! Deal is good for 14 days after the class!

What’s your Wedding Style?

jenn — Mon, 22 Nov 2010 19:42:15 +0000

Congratulations all you newly engaged couples!! We hope to become a valuable source to you as you make your way through the planning process! One of the few first things you’ll want to tackle is determining a wedding style… this will help you when narrowing down your dress, the wedding colors, venue selections, flowers, linens, ect.

There are several things to keep in mind when determining your wedding style:

–First, make a list of what you think makes a beautiful, memorable wedding day.

–Ask your fiance to do the same.

–Come together to look at the lists. Once you’ve identified elements that are on both lists, decide how to best accomplish your mutual goals.

–Remember, don’t be afraid to mix and match styles and traditions that reflect both of your personalities. There will be certain elements of the wedding that will be more important to either you or your fiance… so be sure to listen to each other – the day belongs to both of you!

–Check out books like “Style your Dream Wedding” by Susie Coelho, find inspiration on InStyle Weddings website and some really great and unique ideas on Colin Cowie’s site!

This day is all about you as a couple, so make it that way! And HAVE FUN! Wedding planning can be very stressful, but you shouldn’t feel like you HAVE to do things a certain way. Be creative! And let your personality shine through. You will enjoy your day MUCH more if you are being true to who you are as individuals and as a couple.

Enjoy a few images of some really great weddings we’ve designed over the past few years! Each couple had several details that made their wedding unique to them… down to the groom’s special socks, the exotic twists to a traditional bouquet and the new traditions the couple made that they will be able to celebrate for years to come!

image courtesy of Amy Carroll Photography

photo courtesy of Jen Lynne Photography

Photoshoot with Lisa Kae Ruff!

jenn — Tue, 05 Oct 2010 15:24:17 +0000

My husband is still one of those disbelievers of social media. Although he has a facebook page and a twitter account, he finds the whole thing, well, a bit crazy. I, on the other hand, am your typical social media junkie. I check my iphone immediately when I wake up and sleep with it next to my bed. It’s not uncommon for me to wake to the magic “ding”, which for most of us junkies, is music to our ears.

It was just a few short months ago when one of my favorite Grand Rapids photographers, Lisa Kae Ruff, posted this tweet. ”Any GR florist out there interested in working on a unique project?” Of course, I immediately emailed her to let her know Modern Day was definitely in!!! Lisa is an incredibly talented photographer and I jumped at the opportunity to work with her. See for yourself.

The flowers and color selection were as eclectic as the table design elements. A earthy blend of queen anne’s lace, willow eucalyptus and buplerum paired with craspedia, garden roses, hypericum berries and sweet spray roses really gave life to this homespun tablescape.

Thanks Lisa for allowing us to work alongside you on this project. Great work as usual!!!

The Knot: Bridal Bouquet Feature

jenn — Thu, 27 May 2010 02:54:46 +0000

Modern Day Floral has been nationally recognized for the second time featuring one of our bridal bouquets that we designed for Jodi Bos of In Any Event and we couldn’t be more thrilled!…(especially when it is one of my favorites!!).

Our yellow ruffled bouquet with custom couture handle from the Bride and Bloom shoot was featured in the national publication of The Knot in the Fall/Winter 2010 edition. And we are so excited! I have to admit I’m not sure what I love more, the adorable little yellow dress or the yummy quartz necklace? I’ll take one of each please!!!

Click here to see the more details about the bouquet and the shoot.

Special thanks to Jen Kroll for taking such a stellar shot and for working with the magazine!! Great work as usual.

Personal Touches

jenn — Mon, 10 May 2010 12:54:20 +0000

Adding personal touches are a wonderful way to show your personality, incorporate style or even be used to remember someone you’ve lost. We’ve worked with some amazing couples throughout the years and their style and idea make for some wonderful eye candy and inspiration.

Image Courtesy of: Jessica Johnston

Adding an antique broach to your bridal bouquet is a perfect way to incorporate “something old” or “something borrowed”

Image Courtesy of: Lotus Photographic

Look closely at the middle image. Can you see the rings? These gorgeous pieces we’re borrowed, given and handed down from various family members. I love when a bride can add a little bit of who she is and where she came from to any wedding element.

Image Courtesy of: Jessica Johnston

This couple wanted a gorgeous focal point for their ceremony that could double as a close, personal, intimate setting for their reception. What better way to enjoy dinner than as husband and wife.

Image Courtesy of: Jessica Johnston

The Expansion of Modern Day Floral: Part One

jenn — Fri, 19 Mar 2010 14:37:53 +0000

Three and a half years ago, I opened Modern Day Floral in downtown Grand Rapids. My vision for the business was a quaint, urban boutique where customers would come in to chat, sip coffee and shop. I wanted my puppy Jack to come to work with me and enjoy the carefree attitude of the “boutique life”. I envisioned a boutique that made you feel like you were shopping in downtown Birmingham, or better yet, a swanky little neighborhood in Chicago… unique and artistic floral designs and the “go-to” place for gifts and accessories.

Over the past few years, things have drastically changed from my original vision. We still had the cute boutique with great florals and unique gifts, however we started servicing another need in Grand Rapids… Weddings and Special Events. And boy, did that take off in a way I never could have imagined. My assistant Erin often teases me about how far removed Modern Day Floral is from my original business plan. I couldn’t have written a greater plan and certainly not without the help of a supportive family, unbelievable customers, an incredible staff and a deep love for this business.

In the spring of 2009, I opened the event design division of Modern Day Floral. A Modern Event was formed in an effort to accommodate the growing need to service Grand Rapids and Michigan brides along with event planners, hotel event coordinators, caterers and special event clients. Through the education and offerings of specialty rental of china, couture linens, chiavari chairs, soft seating in addition to a host of services that will help simplify the planning process. I’m proud to work alongside a talented group of industry experts who bring their passion and expertise beautifully to the center; Jodi Bos of In Any Event, Ben and Laura Harrison of Harrison Studio and Barb Hoak of Sweet Cake Design.

A little sneak peak into my consultation room at the warehouse and of course, I couldn’t forget Jack!

In the short time we have been downtown, we have outgrown our retail space in the Ledyard Building. I’m excited to announce that coming in late summer, we will open a state of the art floral and event design center which will combine both our retail and production under one roof.

This past week, you may have heard the news about the development just west of downtown Grand Rapids. Israels will be moving their clearance center into Klingman’s and will be transforming the space north of the John Widdicomb building into a state of the art design center. We are proud to announce that we will be the first to move into this new design mecca!! The build out begins in a few short weeks and we are so excited to take our business to the next level. Thank you for all your support and we couldn’t have done it without you!

Grand Rapids Wedding Experience

jenn — Wed, 17 Mar 2010 17:11:17 +0000

The first Grand Rapids “Bridal Experience” took place earlier this month at the Amway Grand Plaza Hotel. With so many beautiful ballrooms, it is one of the best venues for a bridal show. This particular show was unique because each individual ballroom was staged to represent a specific area or event during the course of a wedding day. This creative new format gave not only brides, mothers of the brides, bridesmaid and friends a chance to see incredible vendors in action, they were also able to envision how perfectly their wedding day would come together!!

The gorgeous Imperial Ballroom was our design area to showcase our work. The room was staged as the dancing portion of a wedding. We were thrilled to bring our Modern Day flair to this classic beauty!

Our tall gorgeous urn designs containing color enhanced curly willow, billowy hydrangea and phalaenopsis orchids. It stood over 12 ft. tall which perfectly complimented the majestic ceilings. And of course to add a little drama the designs were draped in crystals and uplighting, definitely my favorite touch!

Here’s a little peak of the small complimentary design to the large urn. White feathers were used to help beef up the design while adding an extra soft textural element to the focal designs.

A mix of modern and traditional! I love the drape of the phals and the calla lilies… so dramatic!!

Soft and romantic… a perfect fit for the Imperial Ballroom.

An antique gold and ivory tapestry posie pocket with white hydrangea is just one of my favorite special treats for the head table chairs.

What would a wedding show be like without bouquets to hold?? To help brides get a sense of the weight of a bridal bouquet and to start imaging what they’ll look like walking down the aisle is one of our favorite aspects of a bridal show!

An all white classic bouquet containing hydrangea, ranunculus and tulips finished with a black and white custom couture handle.

This sassy little number made an encore appearance because I loved it so much when it was designed for our fall bridal show.

With the growing popularity of the vintage garden wedding, this liliac and rose bouquet with a beautiful curly willow armature and beautiful sheer ribbon trendals was a perfect choice.

Jewelry or bouquet? I’ll let you be the judge. :)

Last but not least, a group shot! Here is part of my dynamite team! From left to right: Lauren, Aaron, Myself, Brittany, Rueben and Jonathan. Missing from the image: Emily, Karen, Erin, Charlie and Michelle.

Wedding Fashion Show

jenn — Fri, 05 Mar 2010 16:23:23 +0000

For the past several weeks, I have been working with an ubber talented group of individuals to create Grand Rapids’ swankiest bridal fashion show. This weekend, if you are looking for your wedding dress, bridesmaids dresses, bouquet inspiration or just a good time, stop by 25 Kitchen and Bar to see some of the hottest wedding trends for 2010!!!