Friday round up

Here is a round up of some of my favourite links from around the web found over the past couple of weeks.

Poladroids at Pia Jane Bijerk,

Parisian street style at Garance Dore,

fabulous paper graphics by Yulia Brodskaya

and gorgeous photographs from Bloom by Iris Velghe found via Kris's colour stripes.

Enjoy!

Silk corsage

Here is this week's college piece, made with silk flowers. These weren't the best quality silks I've seen but I'm quite pleased with the shape and neatness of this piece of work. I think I'd prefer to use fresh flowers for buttonholes and corsages for the bridal party at my own wedding, but this type of design could also be used for pew ends, cake toppers or hair decorations, all of which I think would look great in silks.

As January draws to a close lots is starting to happen in my garden. The first snowdrops are out and crocus and tulip shoots are tunnelling their way up out of the cold damp soil in search of daylight. Today I noticed that one of my Hellebore buds had finally opened. I couldn't resist picking it and making this boutonniere.

Rose Corsage

We're working on corsages at college at the moment and have to make up our own corsage design for an assessed project in a few weeks. Here is my first attempt. Next week we'll be using silk flowers.

Boutonnieres

It was back to college after the Christmas break last week. We're doing wedding work from now until Easter and started off with wiring techniques. Here are my first couple of attempts at a boutonniere. These are pretty traditional. Over the next few weeks I'm going to experiment with some less conventional flowers and foliages.

Dutch demonstration

A couple of images from the demonstration by Dutch florists Bert Kuiper and Dini Holtrop that I attended yesterday.

Why I love..... amaryllis

There is something rather deliciously rebellious about the idea of wearing yellow tights. This picture reminds me of the Jenny Joseph poem 'Warning' which begins with the line 'When I am an old woman I shall wear purple...'. Except that, whilst I may very well wear purple, I'm sure I won't be wearing yellow tights when I am an old lady because to get away with such a look you really do need to be blessed with youth, a fine turn of ankle and fabulous legs.

Earlier today I went to a demonstration by two young Dutch floral designers, Bert Kuiper and Dini Holtrop, which included loads of great ideas for using Amaryllis.

Like wearing yellow tights, incorporating Amaryllis into a floral arrangement is a surefire way to make a big statement. It will bring a welcome burst of exuberance into your home during the long dark winter months, and if you decide to don a pair of yellow tights as well you really will feel as if spring is just around the corner.

Wedding favour boxes

If you are looking for wedding favour boxes Kris at Kris's colour stripes has kindly shared these. You can download them here.

While you're there check out her beautiful blog for tonnes of colour palette inspiration.

Wedding flowers

This week after months of gathering ideas I finally got round to putting together an inspiration board for my wedding flowers. We are getting married in Spring, my favourite time of year. I plan to have Avalanche roses and hellebores (of course) as the main flowers for my bouquet. The colour scheme will be mostly green and white.

Image credits:
Dress: Marylise
Archway: h for hellebores
Cake: Marks and Spencer
Table arrangement: via weddings by Zoe Lingard
Shoes: Benjamin Adams

Favourite finds - winter white

It's a beautiful crisp white winter's day here today so I thought I'd share some of my favourite white things, like these Not Rudolph coat hangers by Birkiland. Yes, I know Christmas has been and gone but I'd still happily hang these on my wall.


I have a huge collection of Scandinavian vases, but am in love with the simplicity and practicality of this 'Betty' vase by Helsinki based designer Lincoln Kayiwa.




How amazing would this dress be for a winter wedding?

Snow queen marabou vintage fabulousness via Peonies and Polaroids.

Connecting with your inner princess

I was reading some of the wedding graduate posts over on A Practical Bride earlier today and what almost everyone without exception says is that all of the little wedding details that you spend months planning just go out of the window on the day, which is as it should be really. As someone who had never really given a thought to how (or even if) she might get married, and who had certainly never craved a fancy wedding, at first I was sure that I wanted our wedding to be as simple as possible. After all it's the being married that matters, not the wedding... right? I have absolutely no interest in favours or pew ends or finding exactly the right shade of chair cover, and don't even get me started on champagne glasses decorated with paper butterflies. The only things that really matter to me are marrying the man I love, having a nice dress to wear and being surrounded by a handful of special people.

But a few weeks after Mr H popped the question, after I had taken out a subscription to 'Bride' magazine and spent more hours than is really healthy glued to my laptop trawling wedding sites, he remarked "this wedding thing has really unleashed your inner princess hasn't it?". I reluctantly have to concede that he is absolutely right. Somehow I have begun to connect with my own inner princess, and I have no idea where she came from. Despite myself, and Mr H will mock me for this, I have to confess to finding this sweet little ring pillow by Easter Yu rather lovely.