event design

Feeling the Authentic Post V-Day LOVE!

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Is it weird to feel the love strongest after Valentine’s Day? Not for a floral design company. We’re authentic romance enthusiasts.

It’s a rush running all over town delivering happiness in solid form to people.  And on Valentine’s Day it’s overwhelming – too fast, too furious and all goes by in a blink.  So the day after “the day,” it finally comes washing back over you quite how much of an effect you had on people’s day, romances and relationships in that 18 hours of sheer madness. And it feels really good.

I often comment about how lucky we are to work around beauty and love all day long.  And that’s meant literally – the beauty of flowers, and the glow of engaged couples is intoxicating.  It’s hard not to be happy helping brides to be pick out ways to make their weddings beautiful.  But there’s something so pure about delivering Valentine’s flowers to a girl who doesn’t think they are for her, or watching a couple married 30 years turn to teenagers over a bouquet of red roses.  Secret admirers, mothers to sons, there’s just something special about that Valentine love.  So pardon us if we’re still reveling in it. We’re suckers for romance, it kind of comes with the territory.  We’d better be, or we couldn’t be in this wacky, crazy business, or at least we wouldn’t be very good at it.

Authenticity makes the difference whether you’re running for president, or if you’re running all over town with a van full of Valentine’s flowers. We are who we are, and that makes our business what it is, and our events (particularly weddings) what they are.  Us? Happy and grateful.  Our business? On a terrific roll.  Our weddings?  Beautiful, and authentically romantic.

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Big Fat Greek Wedding Traditions. Opaaaaa! Ouzo for Everyone!

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Greece is suffering some economically terrible times.  However, people are always getting married, and so there are parties going on in the midst of the austerity.  They may not be quite as big and fat as in years past, but a Greek wedding is never anything but a joyous celebration.

Most Greek weddings take place under the aegis of the Greek Orthodox Church, which has some lovely wedding rituals, including the bride and groom wearing ceremonial crowns that are tied together with ribbon to signify the bond between them.  The bride and groom hold lighted candles, and make three circles around the altar to represent their journey through life.

Chris & Alethia's Wedding: Courtesy of TheBrideAndGroom.com

At the reception, the party gets underway.  Live music is de rigeur, Plates are broken for good luck, and money is traditionally thrown at the musicians.  Traditional foods such as spanakopita and baklava are served, and are easy ways to bring a little bit of Athens to any wedding.  Toasts are raised with ouzo, a strong licorice flavored spirit.

One last tradition to be very careful with, should you choose to adopt it, is that of breaking open a pomegranate on the ground representing fertility, and good luck.  As an event planner, this makes me apoplectic.  My bride is wearing white, and you’re stomping on pomegranates?  Where’s the ouzo? Opaaaa!

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And The Bride Wore Red…Chinese Wedding Traditions (Happy Year of the Dragon)!

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Gung Hei Fat Choi! Happy Chinese/Lunar New Year!  In honor of the Year of The Dragon, the next stop on our cross cultural tour of wedding traditions is China.

A pre-wedding beauty ritual observed by brides since ancient times sounds right out of a high end spa.  The bride would bathe in water infused with essence of pommelo (a variety of grapefruit) to cleanse her of her impurities, and a “good luck woman” would comb out her hair.  Not to be out-done, the groom also prepared by donning a hat made of cypress leaves.

One fun element, more seemingly suited for an episode of the Newlywed game than wedding day is the “Procession to obtain the bride” The groom and his party go to the bride’s house to collect her – but it’s not so easy as all that. The bride’s sisters “block” the door, and an obstacle course of trivia about the couple an other games must be navigated before the couple, with her parents’ blessing departs for the groom’s family’s home.

English: Bride and groom at a traditional Chin...
Image via Wikipedi

Last, we have what is a more contemporary tradition. Modern Chinese couples have taken to having elaborate “glamour shots” taken in their wedding clothes, and other outfits, in different settings.  Is this much different from any bride and groom? Do Chinese bloggers note the rise of the American tradition of the “engagement shoot?” Truly, we’re quite a colorful culture ourselves, no?

Be well, and love well.

-Dinah

 

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