First Descents Annual Gala

Another nonprofit organization based here in Vail that is very dear to our hearts is First Descents.  First Descents offers young adult cancer fighters and survivors - (ages 18 to 39) - a free outdoor adventure experience designed to empower them to climb, paddle and surf beyond their diagnosis, defy their cancer, reclaim their lives and connect with others doing the same.

For the past three years, First Descents has been holding a fundraising event called the First Descents Ball at the Ritz Carlton Bachelor's Gulch.  We have had the immense privilege of working alongside their wonderful team and creating floral design for the event.  This year's centerpieces were organic and natural looking. We used tons of greens and not so many flowers, which contributed to a creative and fun look.

Three different centerpieces filled the many tables in the Ritz's ballroom; two tall concepts were placed on the outer tables, while the tables toward the middle of the room held a shorter design.

The first concept (and my personal favorite) were salal leaf balls.  In additional to the salal were mini green hydrangeas and trick dianthus.

 

The other tall arrangements were also very simple, loose and wild greens, curly willow, and pheasant feathers in some of our favorite vases to use!

The squatty centerpieces held greens, mini green hydrangeas, trick dianthus, looped curly willow, and pheasant feathers.

It's always such a pleasure to work alongside the FD crew, and we look forward to many more years of partnership!

Grand Marnier event at Game Creek Club!

Vintage Magnolia had the fun honor of designing an event for Grand Marnier a few weeks ago at the Game Creek Club on Vail Mountain.  GM gathered employees here in Vail as a reward to their incentive program - all leisure, no work allowed! 

Using Grand Marnier's signature color - RED - we created a floral concept that fit in perfectly at Game Creek - a gorgeous on-mountain location for weddings and events. Birch vases and mercury glass votive candles completed the look. 

In these hollowed out birch tubes, we placed red roses of different varieties, red tulips, red hypericum berries, red dianthus, and seeded eucalyptus.

To get a feel for the long tablescape...

Along with the mercury votives, small arrangements were placed in between the long centerpieces.

Last but not least, the few round tables held the below arrangement...

 

This event was quite a bit of fun to design. We don't do too much monochromatic designing for weddings, and it's a cool look for the right event!

Flower care in your home...

After arrangements leave our shop, there are many different ways you can keep your flowers lasting long and looking fresh.  Here are some tips from the gals at Vintage Magnolia into maximizing your flowers' lives!

Keep flowers in a cool spot (65 to 72 degrees Fahrenheit), away from direct sunlight, heating or cooling vents, directly under ceiling fans, or on top of televisions or radiators. Most flowers will last longer under cool conditions. Sensitive flowers like hydrangeas are very particular about temperature and will react negatively to adverse conditions.

After a couple days, give flower stems a new cut with sharp knife and refresh the water in the vase.  Clean water will always help flower life.  Cut stems at an angle under running water.

Phalaenopsis orchid plants do not require much attention, just a few ice cubes in the soil each week for a bit of moisture.  Make sure that once the ice cubes melt, you pour any excess water from the bottom of the container.

As always, if there's ever any sort of problem with a floral arrangement you take home from Vintage Magnolia, please call and let us know!  Enjoy all the spring flowers....

More amazing winter weddings...

As spring is rounding the corner, we'd love to show you some gorgeous pictures of winter weddings we had the privilege of designing. Each wedding you're about to see is nothing like the one before, so it was great fun to be able brainstorm and design such different concepts. 

This New Year's Eve wedding at The Westin in Avon was bright and fun - using tons of colorful hydrangeas and orchids in three foot tall vases.  Accents were demask ribbon and tones of silver.

This New Year's engagement party was elegant, with hanging silver crystals, silver overlays on the table, and gorgeous white phalaenopsis orchids stemming from the arrangements. Deep brown and green magnolia leaves provided a darker accent to the white flowers.

We also had the honor of working on the wedding of my own senior year of college roommate, Kyrie!  She spent most of her childhood here in Vail, and although she and her fiance are currently living in Minnesota, they decided to wed here at the beautiful Sonnenalp Resort in Vail Village. We used lots of pine, pine cones, pheasant feathers, as well as white lilies and French tulips in their arrangements for an elegant, yet rustic look.

 

A few weeks ago, we designed a very feminine and romantic wedding at Splendido, using shades of pale gray, very light blush pink, and white.  Loads of candlelight offset the flowers and large windows in the restaurant, resulting in just one of the prettiest looks we've seen in a long time.  As we're waiting on the professional pictures taken that evening, here are a couple we were able to grab on our way out the door!

The evening before the wedding was the rehearsal dinner in the private room at 8100 - at the Park Hyatt. The tone for these florals was very different - simple and organic, in small birch vases. The beauty of this look was found in its simplicity. 

Thanks for looking! Next up... how to properly care for your flowers at home to get the most our of your arrangements!

Valentine's Day 2012...

...was crazy busy but went oh so smoothly!  We again remember how much we love our clients, and love the people that live here in our beautiful Vail Valley.  We were very impressed with a lot of the fellas in town, as we started receiving Valentine's Day orders two weeks in advance! Of course, we had an equal amount of day-of orders that we were able to fulfill, as well.  We somehow ordered almost the perfect amount of product, from roses to parrot tulips, orchids, antique hydrangeas, and more, and had so much fun designing everything from three dozen roses to small table centerpieces for restaurant reservations!

We wanted to share some of our favorite Valentine's Day arrangements with you!

 

Four-sided piece featuring two dozen cherry brandy roses, seeded eucalyptus, ruscus, tulip branches, and folded ti leaves.

 

Three dozen multi-colored roses - yellow, pink garden roses, and cherry brandy, as well as forsythia branches in a fun bronze vase. 

 

It's not always all roses!... pink-white hydrangeas, Sumatra lilies, and modern green antherium give Valentine's Day a totally unique look. 

 

Antique pink and green hydrangea, trick dianthus, white lilies, milva roses, and wine-colored calla lilies with blooming branches make up a fun and colorful arrangement!

 

A dozen hot pink cherry roses... one of our new favorite varieties of roses. These roses were huge, bright, and so fun. 

 

Blue and pink antique Dutch hydrangeas, parrot tulips, silver brunia, and dark pink calla lilies framed by camellia and veriagated pittisporum leaves.

All in all, what a great Valentine's day.. week.. month, so far! We're heading out to set up a rehearsal dinner at Zach's Cabin in Bachelor's Gulch, then a beautiful Sonnenalp wedding tomorrow. Pictures to come!

Hope to see you soon... 

Winter Weddings in Vail

Although summers are a busy time in Vail to wed, we here at Vintage Magnolia LOVE winter weddings.  Pines and shades of white, candles and berries, and snow falling all around - what's not to like? 

One of our favorite weddings of all time took place last winter at the Vail Chapel, followed by a reception at the Sonnenalp. Both sites are perfect for snowy weddings - the large window behind the altar at the chapel provides a stunning backdrop, and the Sonnenalp's atrium is truly the equivalent of being inside a snow globe.

These gorgeous photos are courtesy of the amazing James Christianson, http://www.jameschristianson.com/, who captured this winter wonderland wedding perfectly. 



Fun holiday centerpiece ideas!

With the holidays right around the corner, (as much as you might be in denial, it's true!), we're loving when people want creative centerpieces!  Punch bowls, pewter pitchers, large wooden containers, and more... we can fill it with fresh flowers and accents to fit any home.  While the pine and amaryllis centerpieces we've started doing are gorgeous, it's also fun to step outside of the box when it comes to the holidays, and design using fruits and vegetables, candles, pinecones and more.  Check out some ideas below and let us help spice up your holiday arrangements!

Use a cool apothecary vase and fill it with a variety of "wintery" accents... pine cones, cranberries, chestnuts, etc.  You can even spray paint some of the nuts and pinecones gold or silver to jazz it up a little!



A cool wooden container looks full and unique with citrus and greens.  Press some cloves into oranges, (use a toothpick to poke holes in the skin first), and make your own orange pomanders! The fresh orange scent, combined with the cloves, is a festive aroma that's not overpowering. 

It's like a seven-layer dip in a vase! Using different fruits and berries, create rows in a taller vase for a colorful and unconventional holiday look.  Top it off with some pine to ensure a holiday feel, or even throw some silver ball ornaments on top. 

Garland isn't just for the mantel!  Use long pieces of pine or magnolia garland - fresh or artificial - and wind it down or around your dining room table.  Scatter some votive candles throughout, or, like the picture below, use glass cylinders containing cranberries to hold your candles for a pop of color and a bit of height to your tablescape. 

We're sure that no matter what your table decor looks like over the holidays, it's going to be beautiful! As always, let us know if we can help. Happy December 1st!