We're thrilled to introduce our guest blogger and floral design aficionado, Erica Jones from Orchids N' Blooms, who is going to make monthly appearances on the stylWed blog. Please enjoy her inside look at all things floral!
What do you call forty-two days of subzero temperatures, 108” of precipitation, and some of the largest snowdrifts urban landscapes have ever seen? New Englanders call it the Winter of 2014, one that will go down in history as the harshest winter the region had experienced in decades. No wonder, then, that the notion of Spring was so badly needed “up North.”
Fast forward to the month of April – a time when most forget their winter woes and look forward to a bit of springtime whimsy. We couldn’t think of a better way to kick off the season than with an intricate, botanical fashion piece…
Enter Fiona, a two-week-long design project the Orchids N’ Blooms (ONB) team undertook for a local, upscale shopping plaza. Celebrating vibrant flora and lush gardens, Fiona made a wonderful addition to other horticultural exhibits that were featured at the center’s annual Spring event.
Donning a bouffant skirt of moss, fresh cymbidium, and phalaenopsis orchids (hundreds of them!), Fiona stood statuesque amongst passersby. A bit of Aubergine tulle that had been fashioned into an exposed petticoat, served to soften the design overall.
Individually applied ruscus leaves adorned Fiona’s emerald corset and full stems of the foliage gave her mane a “wildish” look.
After a cumulative 96 hours of in-studio preparation, Fiona was ready for her debut into the world of fashion & fame. Onlookers marveled at her detail; the ONB team marveled at the fact that she was finally complete (after what seemed like endless applications of fresh blooms).
If you have the chance to pay Fiona a visit before the “Step Into Spring” event ends (May 11th), please do. Just one gaze and all recollections of the ice, wind, and brisk cold of yestermonth will be gone.
Erica Jones, Creative Director & Lead Designer
Orchids N Blooms, LLC
Photos: Courtesy of Nicole Chan Photography