Destination Wedding - Rome

Destination Event - Rome

Years ago when I designed my first wedding for an Irish couple, I was amazed that 124 guests flew over from Ireland to attend the wedding.  It was even more surprising that this couple decided to have a wedding so far from home with so many guests.  My question was, “why get married in Rome?”.  The answer was, “if we get married at home we’ll have 300 guests and not know most of them”.  In addition they enlightened me about the weather in Ireland.  Rome is famous for its sunny days even when the temperature is low.  The weather makes Rome a preferred location for destination events.  When you add to that a panorama of history, good food and great wine, you will be happy you chose Rome.

After many years of working for couples from all over the world, I must say that it is very exciting work.  When  a couple chooses Rome it’s usually because they really want this city.  They tend to either have very clear ideas about what they want for their decorations or are very flexible and give me the freedom to create works of art for their wedding.

Here is a list of Suppliers who work in the English language which you will find extremely helpful when planning an event in Rome.  You will find that many local suppliers do not speak English and having someone who you can talk to and explain your dreams to will make all the difference in planning a wonderful, memorable event.

 

www.romeweddingteam.com  - group of English speaking suppliers for every need

www.irishcollege.org  -  Catholic Wedding ceremony

www.st-teodoro.it – Orthodox wedding ceremony

www.parrocchiamaronitaroma.it  - Maronite wedding ceremony

www.stisidoresrome.com – Catholic wedding ceremony

www.intercontinental.com/hotels/gb/en/rome/romha/hoteldetail  - lodging, rooftop ceremony and reception

www.hairmakeupnails-rome.com – Hair and make up

www.palazzola.it –  lodging, Ceremony and reception location

www.tagliata.it – lodging, Ceremony and reception location (including garden wedding ceremony)

Remember you can always contact us for information…not just flowers.

Florally yours,

Debra

 

The color RED

Red Weddings

Many couples like the traditional white for their wedding decorations but I assure you that the photos will not be nearly as dramatic as using color in some way.  Even using a strong color as an accent will improve the impact the photos will have and let’s face it, the photos (and the skills of the photographer) the most important part of the event.  Years later the photos will be the only record of the wedding day.

Ceremony Designs

Red Flowers:
There is good reason why red roses are given to sweethearts. Red is symbolic of passion, love, and energy. Red runs through our bodies in raging rivers of blood. Red rushes to our cheeks when we feel the heat of our feelings. Red resonates with the root chakra and reminds us of our animal instincts.  Red is the spark that kindles our flames of desire.  Send red flowers to someone who needs a jolt of energy - this shock of color is sure to get their engines revving!
 Red Bouquets

My suggestion to you is that you look at wedding photos online and reflect on how you would like your wedding album to look.  This will help you decide if adding some color will make you smile for years to come.

If you have any questions, please feel free to seend them to me.

Florally yours,

Debra

Gattinoni Couture - Floral Seamtress

Floral Seamtress

 

When the phone rang and on the other end was Guillermo Mariotto, creative director for Gattinoni Couture my heart began to beat faster but when he asked if I was free to work with him on a special project my hands literally began to sweat.  He was looking for a florist who is also a seamstress and that’s why he called me.  My professional biography states that I am an artist, seamstress and florist.

 

The collection for Spring/Summer was dedicated to Food which is the theme for Expo 2015 which takes place in Milan.  Each garment in the collection was in some way connected to Food.  I was assigned to “Bread”, the element found on every table in the entire world in some form.  Specifically I had dried wheat which had to be hand sown onto a corset base using fine golden thread.

The Base

 

 The base was constructed by the skilled seamstress at the Gattinoni Couture atelier.

 

The entire construction required 53 hours of careful stitching in order to complete the entire garment. The combination of organic material (wheat) and sartorial skills was an incredible challenge for me but the skills that I honed will remain with me for the rest of my career.

 

Attending the presentation of the collection was the high point of the week that I spent working in the Gattinoni atelier.  It was held in an elegant restaurant, “Open Colonna” that specializes in recreating traditional Italian dishes in an unexpected way.  It was the perfect location for a fashion collection with a food theme.

 

Working for Gattinoni Couture will remain one of the most exciting events of my floral design career.

 

Florally yours,

 

Debra

 

Unusual Bridal Bouquets

Unusual Bridal Bouquets

The 2014 wedding season was particularly interesting for me.  Many couples presented me with challenging requests.  One woman walked in saying that she heard that we “work miracles”.  I love a challenge but that was a tough one even for me. 

Couples came to us who didn’t want any flowers at all but wanted us to create awesome decorations and others came who wanted literally thousands of flowers.  All of us at DebraFlower had a great time working together to realize the dreams of our customers. 

The bridal bouquet is specifically my responsibility so in the middle of all these unusual requests came the bridal bouquet.

 

My all time favorite was the bride that did not want flowers.  I designed a bouquet of lollipops for her and she loved it.

 

 

Then came the bride that asked for contrasting textures. I created a bouquet that included items that are not often seen in a bridal bouquet.

Large sunflowers create a challenge especially when the bride is petite but loves them. 

 

Color, color and more color……Luisa made it clear that she wanted as much color as possible.

 

 

I had such a wonderful time finding ways to make my clients dreams come true.

What’s your dream?

Debra

Wedding date and location

Wedding date and location

During the holiday season many couples decide to get married.  Boyfriends use their holiday gifts as a way to make a marriage proposal to their girlfriends.  Once the holidays are finally over it’s time to decide on a wedding date and location.

My experience is that many couples forget to consider many  important aspects of the date and location they choose especially when it come to the decorations that they are dreaming of for their special event.

Most flowers will cost more near holidays not only in your country but in other countries.  When there is a special holiday in France, flowers will be more costly worldwide.  If there is a bank holiday on a Friday and you are getting married on the weekend many flowers may not last well from the days before the holiday to your wedding date.  Make sure to ask your floral designer about these issues.

For those of you considering a destination wedding it is even more important that you carefully think through your decorative dreams and the location you want for your wedding date.  If you love the English Garden style remember that warm weather locations like Italy or Spain are not your best choices.  Also ask the location or florist about holidays near the date that you are choosing for your wedding. For Example, most of Italy is on vacation during August and in particular August 15^th almost everything is completely shut down.

Before you set your date and choose your location please be sure to consider your decorative dreams and the availability of flowers at that time.

 

 

The photos are Borgo di Tragliata and Villa Palazzola.  I would love to meet with you to help guide you through the selection process even before you make that final decision.

 

All the best,

 

Debra

Winter Wedding

Winter wedding

I love winter weddings.  Of course I have said this a number of times but since we are in the month of December it’s the right time to say it again.  My observation is that winter wedding dresses are really very special.  While going into the church a bride can wear some very dramatic white or ivory covering.  Hair and make looks great all day long in the cooler weather.

 

Last weekend I designed a wonderful winter wedding.  We were able to use flowers and greenery that are not available during the summer months which means that our designs were so very special and everyone commented on how beautiful they were.  This wedding was designed with Dutch Tulips.  We were able to reuse the flowers for the reception because the cool weather kept all of the arrangements in an ideal condition.  Winter weddings really do have so many advantages.

 

Bride and Groom

 
Communion table

 

I hope you enjoy these arrangements as much as we did designing them. 

 

Florally yours,

 

Debra

Borgo di Tragliata

Borgo di Tragliata

The Borgo remains one of my favorite places to work.  The possibility to have all aspects of the wedding day at one location makes it easier for not only the floral designer to manage but also for Couples to have their destination wedding.  The Borgo has a staff that speaks English and German which creates an ease for those couples organizing from outside Italy.   DebraFlower is one of the florists on the suggested list of suppliers for English speaking clients at the Borgo.

The bridal bouquet

 The Bridesmaids

 The Pews

 The kneeling bench

 The communion table

The Top table

 The Guest tables

 

Bridal bouquet and Bridesmaid bouquets are all delivered about two hours prior to the ceremony.  Afterwards we take just a short walk on over to Saint Isidore's Church to set up all of the decorations so the Church will be completed before the arrival of the guests and more importantly the Groom.  We personally make sure that the buttonholes have put on each Groomsman correctly.  Our staff is always on hand as the bride arrives to enter the Church just in case she has some special last minute need.  Finally after the ceremony we remove all of the deocrations, ensure that the Church is in order and the we walk to the reception to set up, often using flowers from the Church to save on expenses and show kindness to the environment by reusing flowers whenever possible.  All of this is done with minimal use of cars or trucks.

 

Oh how I love to work at the Borgo!!!

 

See you soon,

 

Debra