Southern New England Wedding Magazine announces its 2017 front cover....and it is filled with local and American grown flowers!

“Do whatever brings you to life, then. Follow your own fascinations, obsessions, and compulsions. Trust them. Create whatever causes a revolution in your heart." - Elizabeth Gilbert, Big Magic: Creative Living Beyond Fear

In 2016 I set out to achieve one of my career goals, to have my floral designs published in print. Up until this point I had never had my work published in a magazine or even a newspaper. Only on blogs, websites, and on social media which has always been an honor and something I am super grateful for as it is a win for the Slow Flowers Movement! However to me, print is the highest of these honors, preserving your work or words for a moment in time, not to be replaced by the next big thing.

Although I did not know how this dream would come to be, I knew I needed to surround myself with great people who shared a similar aesthetic as me and who created work that I believed in. So I called in my dream team! The first step: great photography! Photography that invites you in to its warm and glowing pictures, allowing you to imagine yourself in the very spot where the picture was taken. This meant Maaike Bernstrom. For anyone who knows Maaike and her work you know that her ability to capture the natural light is out of this world! Her photos are so crisp and clean that each image tells the perfect story of the day. To compliment Maaike's style, I knew that part of the inspiration behind this shoot needed to be about the rural farming landscapes, beautiful golden sunlight, and the seasonality of the time of year.

Seasonality? Well that is what The Local Bouquet does best! As the core of our mission, all of our designs use 100% local and American-grown flowers that are seasonal and sustainable. I wanted to let the flowers be showcased in a very natural and effortless way. Flowers were chosen that were rich in color and full of texture including locally grown dahlias, lisanthus, ornamental cabbage, shiso, smokebush, and private berry. From the bouquet our bride held, to the table we set, the whole shoot aimed to inspire any bride getting married here in Southern New England by highlighting the abundance that Fall offers.

To achieve an effortless yet refined look, I brought in another local talent, Jenna Kinghorn from Styled by Jenna. Jenna is a home and events stylist who has an incredible eye for setting the most perfect table while adding chic and cool elements that are outside the box like this plaid shawl turned table cloth. Jenna's style makes you want to stop and stay while taking in every last detail. With the locally grown flowers as her inspiration, Jenna chose warm tones, bringing in softer natural elements like the linen and jute runners and warmer metals including the copper and antiqued brass. A touch of modern was added with the glassware but then a more traditional pattern was picked with the place setting- all of which was graciously provided by The Pottery Barn.

This stylized shoot would not have been complete without the unique and locally made elements including the beautiful hand woven table runner and napkins found on the table which were made by Amy C. Lund. Finally, the stunning calligraphy by Posh and Prep owner, Julie Mancini joined our team to add the perfect element of romance and natural beauty to the look.

In the end, not only did this shoot get a four page spread in Southern New England Wedding Magazine's 2017 issue, but it received the huge honor of getting front cover. Talk about a career high! I am so thankful for the amazing team that helped create this vision and I love knowing that an American grown bouquet will be on newsstands for the entire year, inspiring brides near and far! Pick up your copy today!