Garden-inspired pew décor and boutonnières

School's been back in session for two weeks now, and it took me a while to readjust, but I'm slowly settling into my new schedule and am excited about the classes I am taking. One of them is a wedding design class, and our first project was to create an aisle or pew décor: a small arrangement that can be produced in multiples and would be attached to the sides of chairs or pews lining an aisle. Given that it is an accent in the overall decoration rather than a focal point, a pew arrangement should typically contain a limited amount of flowers to be economical, and ideally it should be possible to create the mechanics of the arrangement in advance, and then add fresh flowers on the day of the event, or even on-site.

We were given a piece of aluminum mesh to work with for our base, and I tried to offset the industrial feel of the metal with a garden-inspired selection of flowers and a somewhat organic-looking design. I like the contrast between the manmade, metallic, rigid mesh and the curvy lines of the tulips and lavender and the softness of the geranium leaves and the moss. I wrapped the mesh cone in angel vine to tie it all together. I think this would look great for an outdoor wedding!

We also practiced our boutonnière-making skills in the same class session, and I had fun creating two boutonnières to match my pew décor. I love making boutonnières and corsages — it's fun to work small scale, and it really brings out all the details of whatever plant material you use.