Wedding Flowers in Shades of White

Last weekend I had fun working on flowers for the wedding reception of a friend's son.  The arrangement above for the guest sign in table was my favorite.  The white hydrangea at bottom center came from Costco, but the other elements came from my backyard.  This arrangement included 'Little Lime' hydrangea, clematis seed pods, pink snowberries, 'Crocus Rose' English roses, spearmint, 'Autumn Bride' heuchera, white astrantia, honeysuckle, contorted filbert, and curly willow.

Garden flowers and foliage are more delicate than what you usually find for sale at a florist shop.  Florist flowers are bred to be durable for shipping and lasting longer in a vase, so they often look sturdy instead of ethereal.  Of course this arrangement didn't last more than a couple of days before wilting, but it looked good for the reception.

This bowl arrangement was a table centerpiece.  I was able to make four of them with ingredients from my garden plus the purchased white hydrangeas.

Because the wedding colors were shades of white, I used many different textures to add interest.

I snagged the last couple of shots at the reception.  These arrangements of hydrangeas from my garden and from Costco looked just okay until I added eucalyptus from Costco, and then the arching stems of greenery made the whole thing fabulous.
It was a blessing that the wildfire smoke wasn't too bad on the day of the wedding and outdoor reception, as the day before the whole valley was filled with heavy smoke.  It seems like half of Washington State is on fire right now.  We are grateful for the firefighters who are working so hard to curb the blazes and are praying for the families of the men who were killed last week while fighting the fires.

This last shot gives a glimpse of the happy couple and the 'naked' cake.  I'm not sure if anyone ever ate any of the cake, but it looked lovely on the table.  It was a wonderful day and we wish the best for the newlyweds.