Carley & Theodore | Saratoga, Ca | March 2010

This past weekend I had the chance to flex my event manager skills. One of my best friends got married to a wonderful man who loves her dearly, and I got to play not only floral and event designer, but event manager at their reception. Oh man, it was a lot of work, but it was so worth it.

Amazing photographer Michael Buchanan (www.mbb-photo.com) joined me in my efforts, and in no time at all, he had some photos for me to show off. Mike has a great eye for detail, and the work that I have seen come from his portfolio previously, made it entirely clear that he needed to be part of shooting this wedding.

The Entryway Centerpiece that was my pride and joy

Gotta Love the lighting in this church!

These flower girls were sooo sweet! The littlest one was cute as a button. I guess their kissing balls were too big for them, as they are clutching them like they weigh a ton!!

The Communion Table Arrangement

CAKE!!!!!

Who doesn't love Cymbidium Orchids? I had to go to three suppliers to get these, but since Carley REALLY wanted them, nothing would stop me from finding them, and making my bride happy!

Courtney at work. Delivering flowers for the bridal party, and family members is the second most favorite part of the wedding day. The first? Seeing the bride's reaction to her bouquet, and/or event decor.

The couple of the day! While I'm not sure what they are looking at, I had to post a picture of the bridal bouquet and grooms' boutonnière.

The Amazing HUGE wedding party. This is by far the most people I have done personal flowers for. But what can I say, Carley is quite the popular girl, and who wouldn't want to help this genuinely sweet gal on her wedding day?

Two of my favorite photos from the Grand Entrance at the reception.

Now this was cool. Carely wanted to make sure everyone had a chance at catching the bouquet during the bouquet toss. Rather than throwing just one bouquet, why not throw several? What a surprise as the bouquet broke into smaller pieces in the air, and several of the ladies had a chance at being "NEXT". Mu-ha-ha-haaa!!! More wedding floral design!

To Carely and Theodore. You are an amazing couple, and I wish you nothing but the best. Thank you so much for including me on your special day, as I'll cherish these memories forever.

Love

Courtney Marie

Photo Shoot Collaborations!!

Woo-hoo! I'm finally done with my Quantitative Reasoning for Business Course, so I FINALLY have time to post something exciting. I few weeks back I did a couple photo shoots with two KILLER bay area wedding photographers.

Amanda Lock Photography is one of the sweetest, bubbly, energetic photographers that I have ever met. Amanda is the kind of photographer that makes you laugh, and feel super comfortable in front of the camera. Not only did she produce amazing photos, contributing to my portfolio, but she also got some awesome shots for the models. One of those models is a good friend of mine and is a bride to be.

We snuck into a bookshop for this image. Poor Carley had to walk through the bookshop like it was no big deal... just a bride hanging out in a bookshop.

Our "bridesmaid" model. I couldn't believe how lucky I got with the color scheme in this shot. I actually thought her dress was going to be more purple than blue, but the iridescence made this bouquet "pop" in ways that make me blush.

I just love this shot. So unusual, but so brilliant at the same time. Amanda clearly has a well trained eye, and can make anything look spectacular!

So finally a shot of me in my "natural" state, being a total dork, and getting caught doing it.

New Blog!!

I'm thrilled to have a new blog for my clients to view my latest work, and be the first to see any special projects that I'm working on. Just as a little history on how Courtney Marie came about...

I come from over five years in the event and wedding industry. I spent two of those years in a floral design studio in Aptos, where a majority of my education in floral design came from. For the last three years I have been working as an event manager/coordinator for a hi-tech company. Corporate life is my bread and butter, and I do floral design on the side to make sure my creative side is satisfied.

I work with brides and couples who are hosting small and large events, and I work within a large range of budgets. Most of my weddings start around $200, and go up to $1500, but I will certainly complete a small bridal bouquet and boutonnière for couples who are hosting a private, or intimate event. Given that floral design is a passion, I never require minimums, and I certainly spend a lot of time with my couples, unless the couple prefers contact to be kept to a minimum.

So what can I say about Courtney Marie Floral??? My designs are incredibly organic. I work with a lot of unusual materials, but of course if a bride requests a traditional bouquet, I'm happy to complete that as well. I think it's incredibly important to get to know my couples so I can produce designs that fit their personalities, and so that I can hopefully add to their excitement as they come up on their big day.

Please see my website for my full portfolio, but come back to see what new projects I'm working on.