Royal Wedding Wow: What does all this hoopla mean for Utah brides?

As I watched the Royal Wedding I was transported to a younger freckled-face version of me getting goose bumps while watching a Disney fairy tale. Today, I had butterflies seeing the future Queen of England with her cool-as-a-cucumber face walk down the aisle to the sound of the glorious church bells clanging in the background.

First off, the dress. I LOVED it! It was classic, yet modern and modest, yet fitted and a bit sexy with the see-through lace and the plunging neckline. Tailored, yet feminine as well. We will be seeing versions of Sarah Burton for Alexander McQueen's gown for years. In fact, I wouldn't be surprised to see it this year walking down the aisles of some our Utah venues. Unlike Princess Diana's over-the-top (some might throw in the word "cream puff" here) gown, the style of Kate's dress is gracefully understated and thus, less-expensive versions of this dress will be very accessible to the average wedding gown consumer (or "commoner" if you would like to practice your British accent here). Bridal boutiques, stock up on this one.

The flowers....thumbs up! Hollywoodlife.com reports, "Shane Connolly, the florist responsible for decorating Westminster Abbey with eight maple trees, also designed Kate Middleton's gorgeous bouquet. Kate requested the wedding theme to be 'unpretentious, simple and natural,' which is also reflected in her flower arrangement."

Royal Wedding Flower Trends? Number one: smaller is better. Number two: all-white bouquets are here to stay. The mix of the lily of the valley and the hyacinth in her bouquet must have smelled like an English country garden in the spring.

Debonaire. 007. End of story.

Now, for the evening gown. Sorry to say this, but I was anticipating something a little more mermaid shape and less 'cute'. I think she could have gone for a little more pizzaz, however Kate can wear a paper sack and still look amazing, so I'll give her this one.
On the other hand, the evening gown on sister Pippa is GORGEOUS! (Here's a piece of advice to anyone getting a spray tan for their wedding. Try it a few times BEFORE you actually need the tan.)

If there was any question before about Kate Middleton being a style icon, then after this Royal Wedding she has sealed the deal. The best part of her display of simple modernity with classic regal touches is that, like photos of Grace Kelly's wedding, this wedding style is truly timeless.

Beyond the aesthetics of any wedding, the most valuable lesson Kate has given future brides-to-be is this. Your wedding style should interpret who YOU are above all else. Obviously I don't know Kate personally, but what I could interpret from her wedding style is that she did not give in to the pomp-and-circumstance of the crown she's wearing. And while she's not a rogue among the army of royals, her unpretentious bouquet and modern dress leads me to think she's a little bit of a rebel to tradition. Kate has left her style stamp on history, so if your a bride-to-be reading this, what's your style stamp going to be?

Eat your heart out Lady Gaga

I wallowed this weekend because I was not dancing my derrière off at the Lady Gaga concert. I'm not a die hard fan (thus not willing to commit $250+ per seat for tix) just a lover of her catchy tunes and iconoclastic theatrics (and in dire need of a dance party), so I just had my own little pity party in my studio.

But look what came of this wallowing! I had a destination bride getting married on skis at the Park City Mountain Resort (love it!) and I had a special delivery to a friend from her book club to congratulate her on the arrival of her second baby girl.

Dear Lady Gaga,

You may be making millions in a Bad Romance not answering your Telephone with your Poker Face being followed by the Paparazzi, but here I am making The Little People smile on their special days.

Love, Val

Bridal bouquet

Junior Bridesmaids Bouquet

Bout.

For baby girl. I wasn't thrilled by any of the traditional baby girl pinks at the wholesaler, so I went with this coral/pink color (in the double French tulips and the snapdragons), which coincidentally is Pantone's Color of the Year: Honeysuckle.

This may look a little boring now, but just wait until the ori lilies and double tulips open!

StellaPosy in Utah Style & Design magazine!

While it continues to snow outside, pick up a copy of the Winter issue of 2011 Utah Style & Design (before the Spring issue comes out April 1st). We helped Angie Parrish of D'Lish Personal Chef Services with her table decor for a hearty pizza dinner with her girlfriends. Take a look at the photos done by Heidi Larsen, Utah Style's Art Director.

Darling Angie. Behind the scenes, she made this meal look like a piece of cake.

Angie requested the florals to be natural and rustic. She provided a simple sheet of kraft paper as a runner and with her Ikea candles, I just added some birch logs, the floral centerpieces, and some fragrant seeded eucalyptus to the tablescape. Of course, the pizza is the star of this display!

We threw one of the boxes of flowers behind the espresso panna cotta, but again the food is the definitely the focal point...as it should be.

OK, Worst-Photo-Ever Alert! It was a Sunday afternoon and I was not prepared to be photographed. Yucky, yuck. But let's get back to the flowers. In the sidebar of the article, we provide 11 tips for using florals and non-floral items for your at-home entertaining.

SPOILER ALERT: StellaPosy will make an appearance in the Summer issue of Utah Style & Design magazine (here's praying I'm a little more photogenic in the next photo!).

Thanks Utah Style & Design, Heidi and Angie for a wonderful collaboration!

Decorating for the corporate event

Upon first glance of our website one would think, "Of course, they do weddings." While most of our business relies on weddings, we definitely have our share of corporate events. They range in function from 3-day destination corporate retreats to intimate, casual luncheons.

The main concerns from the client when getting hired to design a corporate event are:

#1. "I need to stay within a very tight budget."

#2. "I don't want it to look like a wedding."

#3. "I want it too look really nice."

Here are some ideas....

This was an event for an international financial company at Silver Lake Lodge in Deer Valley just a few weeks ago. From working with the event producer previously, I knew he prefers a more masculine looking, so I suggested using a dark espresso bengaline linen (not shimmery or shiny like a lamour would be) accompanied by these florals using white kale, thistle, safari sunset, and daylilies. I was a little hesitant about using those purple hydrangeas, but I needed that color and something to soften this apres-ski dinner against the more textural blooms.

I cannot say enough about this little number. Simple, modern, and chic.

These inexpensive ($40-ish) centerpieces are perfect for a casual luncheon. (These were for a springtime lunch at The Governor's Mansion)

Up at Stein Eriksen Lodge, we worked with the pastry chef to help display these mini cupcakes as the centerpiece. We sat the dish atop a twig bundle, then sprinkled green cymbidium orchids beneath and at each place setting.

StellaPosy provided the linens, the tables, the seagrass chairs & barstools, the flowers and the candles for this tented winter cocktail hour. (This was before the Great Recession hit and thus, the clients had a bit more of a budget to spend on JUST the cocktail hour!)

If you need to hire an event designer for your corporate event, give StellaPosy a call!! 801-959-5728.

Utah Bride & Groom Magazine Photo Shoot: Behind the Scenes

Tennis anyone? The "Love Match" spread in the new 2011 issue of Utah Bride & Groom magazine came about last year during my first meeting with photographer Rebekah Westover. (We had worked together on a previous wedding, but like all weddings, we were so wrapped up in getting our jobs done, our paths never crossed the day of). We became instant buddies over coffee that day at Cafe Niche in downtown Salt Lake. Not only were we both passionate about our jobs, but we had both just had our second child. I was just so relieved to commiserate with someone who was balancing a busy work life with an infant who was up every 2 hours like mine.

After all the sleep deprivation chit chat, we finally got to wedding business. I expressed to Rebekah that after all my vintage and/or rustic weddings (which of course, I LOVE), I was really craving a bride that was looking to design a preppy and contemporary wedding. What I had in mind was a cross between Kate Spade prepster and a contemporary contrast the evokes images of Kelly Wearstler's interior design at The Viceroy Hotel in Santa Monica (ever been? it is SoCal and so cool).

That's when Rebekah's wheels started turning and she came up with the idea after a phone call with Tessa Wolf at Utah Bride to do an "Inspiration to Reality" article where wedding pros come together to create our own "wedding" based upon this design concept.

What about location? Well, let's just say I had a connection at this oh-la-la private residence.

Here are some of my favorite flower shots from the photo shoot. Enjoy!

Table #1

Close up of table 1. Not just one main centerpiece here. Ever heard of a "tablescape"? Well, here's an example.

Rebekah brought along those yellow chairs and I love what they did for many of the shots. I also dig the reflection in the pool.

The green trellis pillows (and the navy ones on the couch) came from Willa Skye Home at Etsy.com. As a side note, the service was superb considering I was begging them to ship just a few days before the shoot. And now I'm enjoying these pillows on MY couch at home.

With the mountain and the reflection of the table in the pool, this is my FAVORITE shot.

I have 3 words for you here: ALPINE EVENT RENTALS. These guys brought out one of their brand new white leather sofas and outomans for the shoot. I've used them for several events, so let me just say, they are hands-down the BEST company for the job. Thanks Shane & Wyatt!

The centerpiece below was so simple and architectural using football mums, mini calla posies, phalaenopsis orchids and steel grass.

The pearls + the pockets + the bow tie = PREPPY love.

Notice on table #2, I stacked a few of the centerpieces on top of empty black vases to give some dimension to the table decor. If I could use phalaenopsis orchid plants (from The Orchid Dynasty) for every wedding, I would.

Funny story about the place settings! I purchased the plates and chargers from World Market. Before the shot started, neighbors were rushing over to check it out. Being interior designers and entertainers (of the food variety, not the other kind of entertainer), they graciously offered up their collections of goblets and silverware. Talk about some snazzy neighbors!

I loved these yellow "tennis balls" on the crystal candlesticks.

My hubby and I have had these darn tennis racquets through several moves between Utah and California and back again. I am so pleased I was finally able to put them to good use.

Game. Set. Match.