When one of my closest friends from college asked me to do the flowers for her sister’s wedding in Philadelphia this July of course I said, Yes, but when I found out Mara & Jim were getting married at Artesano Iron Works Gallery I got really excited. We love Vermont weddings, but if we are going to travel for a destination wedding a unique cityscape is the perfect contrast.
Food was a huge part of the theme for this couple. Mara told me she loves artichokes, fresh herbs and purple & lavender flowers (but nothing too “fluffy”!), and then she pretty much let me do my thing with the designs. Some of my favorite flowers in this wedding include the sweet peas and scabiosa in the bouquets…and of course, the huge artichokes on the tables!
The bride’s bouquet (above) includes dark purple sweet peas, lisianthus buds, scabiosa, lavender & white roses, lavender freesia, fresh lavender, rosemary, mint & oregano. Her bridesmaids wore a deep purple-plum color and carried bouquets with a few more green & white accents. Bottom left photo shows a single purple sweet pea.
I love this balcony. These are two of my favorite pics.
They exchanged vows in the courtyard and then guests moved into the gallery for the cocktail hour and reception. Mara looked stunning and I could see Jim whisper, “You look so beautiful,” more than once during the ceremony…as if he didn’t even notice anyone else!
We were prepared for an indoor ceremony since it rained most of the day prior to the wedding so we adorned the doorway with fresh flowers & greens. The doors open to the courtyard.
Artichokes were featured on all the tables. Wine bottles displayed the table numbers and to complete the look tapas were served on the tables when guests sat down.
There are a few fantastic iron candelabras in the gallery and the artwork is impressive. Anyone who knows me could easily guess that this butterfly sculpture was my favorite piece.
To mix it up and keep with a foodie theme some of the tables had white pillar candles nestled in split green peas and lentils with rosemary, lavender & rose accents, oh yeah, and artichokes!
The bride and groom made donations to Heifer International for their wedding favor (one of my personal favorite charities, too!) and each table got a different donation such as a pig or a bee hive. Don’t you think starting out a marriage with such a lovely gesture makes for a great beginning! It truly was a wonderful day. Congrats to Mara & Jim on a beautiful wedding day–it was a day filled with happy faces and your smiles said it all!
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