Red Wedding Flower Arrangements

“Flowers are love’s truest language”: so wrote journalist Park Benjamin in the 19th century. The sentiment remains just as compelling today. As every bride-to-be knows, the right flowers are a fundamental expression of the perfect wedding. But brides are often flummoxed when it comes to the specifics of realizing a beautiful and personal floral vision. Should the arrangements be lushly romantic or sleekly understated? Which flowers are best for the season when the wedding will take place—and for its setting? How much should you spend on flowers? (Where should you splurge and where can you cut back?) How do you go about choosing and working with a professional florist? Do you dare to try to make your own wedding bouquets? These are just a sampling of the questions that Karen Bussen, one of the country’s top wedding experts, addresses in Simple Stunning Wedding Flowers, the gloriously illustrated follow-up to her essential wedding-planning book, Simple Stunning Weddings. As always, Bussen offers advice that’s as down-to-earth as it is aesthetically fresh and inspired. And her guiding principles—that “less is more,” and that breathtaking elegance is achievable on any budget—are sure to calm an overwhelmed bride’s frazzled nerves.

When you imagine your wedding, what do you see? Maybe you dream of exchanging vows before an intimate gathering of family and friends at sunset, followed by a chic and elegant dinner under the stars in balmy weather. You can practically see yourself at the altar, taste the cuisine, smell the gardenias, and feel the music playing when you join your guests to party at the reception. But before your wedding comes together with all the romance and glamour you’ve imagined, you’ll need to make decisions about the details. Is your color scheme bold and rich or soft and ethereal? Will you be married in your mother’s garden at the end of a serpentine path or on an exotic beach with the ocean crashing in the background? Do you desire an elegant sit-down dinner or a fabulous cocktail party with a great DJ who keeps the party going late into the night? With so many choices, it can be hard to decide where to begin. Now there’s no reason to get overwhelmed, because wedding designer extraordinaire Colin Cowie is by your side every step of the way. In Colin Cowie Wedding Chic, he shows how to weave a thread of style throughout your celebration, from determining the overall feeling and mood to the smallest and most personal details of the event. Following inspirational introductions from Colin about every part of your celebration, each detail is captured with magnificent photographs: bouquets; ceremony décor; centerpieces; reception décor; food and drink; cakes; invitations, favors, and gifts; appearance for the bride, groom, and attendants; ritual and ceremony; and music and after-party. Brimming with the kind of style that has made Colin the number one wedding planner in the world for celebrities, heads of state, and even royals, Wedding Chic finally gathers all of the options in one dazzling, easy-to-reference place. With photographs of more than 1,001 gorgeous details, it is simply the most comprehensive, varied, and beautiful resource a bride-to-be could ever wish for—one that is certain to make the wedding a celebration to remember forever.

Celebration. A time when friends and family come together in a breathtakingly beautiful setting to rejoice in one of life’s milestones: a wedding, a birthday, an anniversary. Collected in this book are dozens of the most recent, most extraordinary celebrations created by the unparalleled event planner Preston Bailey. These are events shaped by Bailey’s use of myriad elements, especially his extraordinary work with flowers, but also including architecture, set design, furniture making, lighting and art installations, and even tableware and textile design. In the first half of this visually spectacular book, arranged thematically to give hundreds of design possibilities to the reader, Bailey lays out the key elements to successful celebrations, including the importance of making a single dramatic statement, the elements of table settings, the impact of the ceremony space, the magic of tents, and the power of details. In the second half of the book, Bailey presents the best of his most recent work, exceptional parties shown in their entirety. The reader will find innumerable inspirations for planning a breathtaking, unforgettable event.

The wedding bouquet, like the center jewel in the engagement ring, is a focal point for the celebration. The bouquet’s colors, arrangement, and even fragrance, can express the mood and style of the ceremony, from the bridal gown and attendants’ attire to the décor of the reception room. How to decide? Each of the 300 bouquets displayed here comes with lavish close-up photos and careful descriptions of each detail, with recommendations for the kinds of dresses and ceremonies they best complement. Every color theme receives special treatment (with price range indicators), from whites, ivories and creams to yellows and oranges, reds and pinks, blues and purples, as well as variegated and original color schemes.