From Sketch to Wedding Day - My Creative Design Process
Every large-scale installation I create begins with a sketch on my iPad. It’s how I plan scale, shape and movement before a single stem is ordered. This drawing is sort of like a first draft of the idea: where do I want height? Where do I want to add more depth? How could I cluster colours or individual flower varieties to suit a fine-art, garden-style palette?
Why Do I Sketch? Words can only go so far, especially if you’re not surrounded by flowers every day. A sketch shows exactly what I’m imagining; the sweeping shape of an archway, the height of aisle meadows, the flow of flowers down a staircase or the curve of a marquee ceiling installation. It helps me to refine the design: I can test proportions, adjust the silhouette and map out a clear vision of a design before we arrive on site. I can talk about flowers all day but that doesn’t mean that I’m conveying my ideas to you as my client. Creating a visual instantly puts my thoughts into something that you can see and process too. From there you can tell me what you love, and what you may not like so much resulting in a design which perfectly suits your style and the vibe of your wedding. Whether that’s a church flower arch, a country-house staircase or a flower-heavy, luxurious table scape
I use my iPad to take swatches from the actual flowers I plan on using and then incorporate those particular shades into my designs. Seeing the colours next to each other lets me check how blush leans into apricot, how cream lifts mauve and where deeper notes should anchor the whole design. Sketching helps me plan those transitions so the colours feel considered rather than accidental. I love to have a plan to follow so can concentrate and focus once we arrive on site.
I don’t often take photos of the making stage itself, I’m really terrible at remembering to pick up my phone and we’re usually too busy flowering on a prep day. I love the moment when the studio is lined with buckets; everything is conditioned, separated by variety and colour, and ready to go. It’s so exciting to see the bridge between the sketch and the final piece and it’s when the plan starts to feel real - the moment a luxury installation moves from paper to petals.
On a wedding morning, the sketches become our working brief. They show focal points, transitions and the overall flow, so everyone is aligned from the start. Not only does a picture help me to connect with my couples when we’re planning the designs, they help my team to flawlessly visualise what I have in mind too. It can be really tricky to quickly pick out the elements I love in lots of inspiration images, so a sketch brings all of them together in one place and clarifies the route to large-scale installations like ceiling florals, rambling rose arches and aisle meadows
On your wedding day, we follow the plan as best we can and respond to the flowers and the light in the space. As florists, we’re always adapting. Sometimes a seasonal variety might not be available because of adverse weather conditions, a rose might come in slightly pinker than planned or perhaps a variety comes in and looks so gorgeous that it has to take a more central role. All of the planning and sketching in the world won’t stop us from making decisions that make sure the designs look as beautiful as they can possibly look. I make sure to never feel trapped by the confines of perfectly matching a sketch. Creativity can spark from anywhere and combining that feeling with the inspiration of the original sketch means we can realise designs that are gorgeously exceptional in every way. Thoughtfully designed, artistically lead florals that feel alive in their setting.
Lots of LoveBex xx
