Natalie Galasso Designs

Emily and Matt ~ "Simple Gifts"

2012-02-28T13:12:00.000-08:00

Emily and Matt were married in July at the Ahwahnee Hotel in Yosemite National Park. They found the theme of "Simple Gifts" while searching through music for the wedding and found it to be fitting throughout. They colors they chose being in some tan hued roses, buttercreams, spring greens and touches of blue and using them with her grandmothers fostoria glasses and an eclectic collection of milk glass vases. Each table was a bit different but all blended to look the same. I made my organic pergola with using some birch branches I have with some natural moss vines and twine to tie it all together. The touch of babies breath wreaths and base of branches helped tie in the simplicity of the event. We even had a little deer friend come over to check out our quality control. He just needed a mid day snack.

Valentines - Pop Up Shoppe

2012-02-07T18:25:00.000-08:00

Its that time of year again!!! We are announcing our Pop Up Shoppe for Valentines that will be taking place both Monday and Tuesday from 10am til dark out front of 3110 McKee Road on the corner of Olive and McKee. We will have a variety of flower arrangements, chocolate dipped strawberries and Valentine cookies. Perfect options for your loved ones, co-workers, teachers, friends, neighbors or to brighten your day!!Here are some sample photos of what happened last year. We have some new and exciting floral designs that will be created this year. Pre-orders are encouraged and delivery is available!! Prices on floral arrangements begin at $10. Chocolate Covered Strawberries are as listed...3 for $56 for $10 1 dozen for $20Everything is ready for a quick pick up with cute card enclosures and gift tags!!! See you all soon!

Rita and Stefan - Beach tones in Yosemite

2012-01-30T14:46:00.000-08:00

My friends Rita and Stefan were married in Calcutta, India earlier in 2011. Rita is finishing her thesis with Harvard and Stefan is a professor at Berkley and between the friendships they have established in the US, they chose Yosemite for another celebration of their union. This was something we planned in just a couple of months as they were packing up to move to Europe for the summer and thanks to Skype, we were able to still have a face to face consultation and view specific flower combinations to help her decide.She loved the bright fresh tones of bold blues, spring greens and peach and we threw in some touches of Yosemite with scabiosa pods and coffee berries. They decided on a morning ceremony at Sentinel Beach following with brunch for their guests so they can enjoy their days throughout the park. Her choice for centerpieces was to create an overall larger scale look but it was made of various small vases so each guest was able to take one as their favor. Guests signed wooden puzzle pieces for the guest book, everyone made well wishes out of handmade butterflies and danced before continuing outside for a fun group shot with the falls as a backdrop. This was such an honor to be a witness into such an amazing couple with an incredible group of friends who traveled from very far distances to experience this amazing day as well.

Sharon and Daniel - Speechless Details

2012-01-20T21:16:00.000-08:00

When it comes to think of how to title my various blog entries, its a pretty basic process....name the couple along with the style or theme of their decor. In the wedding inspiration world there are no such words to give this entire wedding, from venue down to the placemat, a proper description without jumping into the broad category of "rustic," so I choose to leave it as I have been left....speechless! Sharon and Daniel are both so amazingly talented and creative, they put the term DIY to new levels begining with their website that they designed and created. That entire style was the heart to each detail that went into this event. They were introduced to me through a previous creative and awesome client Courtney from Lucky Plum . I loved her style and artistic eye so much that she helped brand my company and created my logo! When Sharon first contacted me, I was a few weeks away from giving birth to my 3rd baby and when I looked at the link to the venue, Union Hill , Columbia, that they were to have their wedding....I melted!!! Where has this hidden jewel been all my life? A few months and a newborn later, the team of us vendors met onsite to get a first hand look into what their day will be like. With it being an October date it was hard to plan for an outdoor reception and after walking the grounds, it would be amazing no matter what the weather. The photos from the wedding day I had a chance to grab is just a small snippet of the variety of spots around the entire grounds. The little cottage where the groom and groomsmen get ready is a restored chicken coop, the bridal house is decorated in a shabby chic Victorian style and you go through a little trellis tunnel lined with distressed white old windows, small vineyard, an old cabin/barn house that has a large wooden table in the center with tall vaulted ceilings and tons of various paintings up and down all the walls. This is where there was a kitchen of amazing desserts being made by the grooms sister for the couples old fashion dessert table.Sharon tea dyed and stamped each napkin to blend with the pattern of the wedding. Incorporated hand painted signage and sewn flags for "Here Comes The Bride," utilized bare wood rectangle tables for a family style dinner and at the center of each table was a large flat picnic basket. In the basket was a collection of vintage china in various shades of pink and the silverware for each guest to grab and then dish up. The placemats were found through BHLDN. They carried their personalized logo throughout as well all the way down to their custom made stamp for their guest favors of homemade biscuit kits. The isle was lined with large mason jar arrangmenets which were then turned over to use in the sea of mason jars that were filled with flowers and candles that created the runner effect for the centerpieces. Her color choices were unique and blended together amazingly. The touch of the plum foliage, a soft pink accent some bold spurts of goldenrod and some over all rich fall hues and textures fit perfectly like all other details. The ribbon was supplied from The Ribboniere in San Francisco for the bouquets and boutonnieres and to highlight some of the mason jar florals. Sharon and Daniel also chose their bad ass boutonnieres which was my favorite part to design for the wedding. So excited to see the actual wedding photos from the incredible One Love Photo but in the meantime....enjoy.

Kelly and Roy - Peacock Elegance

2012-01-17T11:10:00.000-08:00

Kelly is an old friend of mine from my cocktailing days before becoming a mom and entering the floral side of weddings. She herself is an artist with a passion for fashion...I really didn't mean for that to flow but I guess it fits. She definitely has always had the vision of the use of peacock feathers in her wedding....long before they became the trend. When first communicating with her and pulling images of inspiration, we found a lot of colors going on as you tend to see with peacock feathers....teals, purples, even fuschia. With reminding that she wanted a very elegant and classy look, the colors were streamlined into a midnight navy blue, antique golds and creams with the use of the feathers and some accents of actual little peacocks for that slight touch of teal. The date was set for October 1st at Los Willows in Fallbrook, CA. So after a very busy September 24th weekend, I packed up the family and headed south. Thankfully with that being my home, I have lots of family for the kids to be well entertained while I tackle an event. Below are some details to highlight the day.

The bridal bouquet was designed with mini white calla lilies and mini white cymbidiums with clusters of white feathers finished with white Italian satin and an angel pendant that belonged to her grandmother.

Bridesmaid Bouquets were designed with vendella roses, eggplant calla lilies, an antique gold succulent and a cluster of peacock feathers. Finished with a navy satin and gold pinning. On the right is an antique gold succulent wristlet.

Kelly and Roy, thank you for inviting me to join this amazing team to make your day magical! Wishing you a lifetime of hapiness!!!

Soft Summer Rustics

2012-01-16T12:06:00.000-08:00

Claire and Taylor were married this last June at the Evergreen Lodge in Yosemite. Like most of my clients having a destination wedding, most communication is initially done through emailing ideas, descriptions and photo samples. They made a trip over to Merced to iron out the details with me. The lined the isle with hooks and mason jar arragements which turned into centerpieces, they brought the material and built their own driftwood arch which was enhanced with some gatherings of the wedding flowers and then of course some wedding party flowers. She was sweet enough to think of me in sending me some images from their wedding and with the sun shinning so much this winter, I've been already itching for some of these colors to come around again...Flowers we used in the designs are Juliet Garden Roses, Scabiosa Pods, Billy Balls, Asilbe, Coffee Berries, Bunny Tails, Fern Shoots, Sweet Peas, Gooseneck, Geranium, Scabiosa, Salidago and lisianthus.

No Place Like Home For The Holidays

2011-12-13T11:51:00.000-08:00

Every November/Decemberish when my wedding season comes to a close, it is always bittersweet. I initially think...phew, time to catch up on some deep cleaning around the house, extra quality time with the kids, take some family portraits for holiday cards, and for business sake...updating my blog and website to share the fun things I've been able to create this year. This year is a different story. I'm sooooo far back on some blog entries but still motivated to get them done soon.

This year has brought some new and exciting experiences. I was asked to decorate some of the shops here in Downtown Merced (photos soon) and then also to help out an extremely artistic and creative client, Sarah, who got married on October 1st this year that we did the florals for. Sarah has a historical home here in Merced which was built in 1900. She was asked to participate in the annual SPCA Christmas Home Tour. There were 5 houses on the tour.

There was very little I contributed to all of her amazingness that she showcased in each room but being a part of it has completely inspired me to take my own home decor to the next level (this year kid friendly of course).
I hope all of my viewers can get the same feel from some of these photos I took around her house to give a little more attention to our own detail to create the ultimate holiday experience right at home!!

love the contrast of the black urns that she used for the poinsettias. All of the garland definitely brings the holiday look.

She took a basic holiday greens wreath and enhanced it silver bulbs, red birds, lemons and the dried yellow billy balls leftover from her wedding.

The fan shapped wall piece I created with leftover flocked scraps that Sarah gave me and then we enhanced with gold seeded euc, holly and sugar pines then wrapped it in burlap. The photo on the right is her coffee table where she displayed some treats as well as history books that include information on the house.

Love the simple touches of the fruits she intermixed wtih the garland. The orange is such a great color to include.

Love the simple Anise wreath that she made more holidayish with simply wrapping the ribbon around it. Then in her huge front window she clustered various wreaths with a footed vase filled with pinecones at the base and fresh holly out of the top.

The white shabby chic buffet table was kept fresh and white. She asked for a flower arrangement with golds, yellows, creams and greens. Who knew it would look so amazing with all of the colors of the tree!

Some simple pussy willow to enhance her tall bud vases and then a Nature's Leaf Mistletoe that is dipped and preserved to last for all the years to come.

The birdcage was another element that she used from her wedding and still serves as a great decor piece for her dining room.

So in love with these emerald walls!

Cute enhancements for the kitchen windows.

Above her stove is the large gold frame with the antique keys and tags that her wedding guests wrote wells wishes to the new couple. It is the perfect fit to display in the kitchen.

There was fun treats for all of the guests including these adorable melting snowman cookies.

Sarah is a high school art teacher and her students all donated some of their artwork for her tour. All proceeds went to the SPCA.

This is the office room upstairs. She sprayed and hung a white branch over the couch and added some LED ornaments and white birds. I made the floral arrangement to coincide with the colors.

This is a random chair and table at the top of the stairs. Such a simple and perfect look. Love the use of orange again.

Upstairs guest bathroom. The animal print with some of the holiday reds and greens is adorable! Now enter....the carousel room!

This is the downstairs bathroom. So in love with this color combo too!

Ok....seriously this is a dream bedroom for me. The colors are amazing, all of it is so so perfect. Love the pale peachy pink with the pops of blue and then cute little candy cane touches, my favorite of the whole house!

Lastly....the master bedroom. Love how Sarah displayed the layered look to the wreaths and the freshness of the white, red and black combo.
Cookies and Treats - Candy & Couture Events

Weekend Update

2011-10-24T18:14:00.000-07:00

The best part about wedding season starting to slow down is realizing how behind you can get on your blog and sharing with the rest of the world the fun things we have created! So we can all prepare to start seeing more happening this fall.
This was my last extremely busy weekend for 2011 and I wanted to take a moment to share a couple clippets. Friday started with an elegant cowboy bridal shower, over to a super detailed and custom wedding at Union Hill in Columbia, to run back to Merced to shoot a Sweet 16 Birthday party then Sunday at the Ahwahnee Hotel for an adorable yellow and gray wedding. More to come from each event...

Shelbi and Nick - Autumn Charm

2011-10-12T12:21:00.000-07:00

If anyone knows me, you know I'm a complete junkie for anything fall. Of course whenever I get a new inquiry I'm always inspired to connect and capture every clients vision so I can take that and exceed all expectations with my floral designs but since I'm a lover of all fall colors, I melt each time I get that first fall palette booking. Shelbi was my first for 2011.

Ironically, she had been doing some random searches and comes across a Harmony and Jacob's wedding photos and Harmony just happens to work with Shelbi. I always get a kick out of the conncetions of living in a smaller town vs my typical clientele in Yosemite that I build online and phone relationships with from all over the world.

The first meeting Shelbi had melted me. We are an autumn match made in Heaven! She's describing the backyard, and using key terms like coppers, rust, chocolate brown, individual jars of jam, rich....I'm in love.

Below are a few shots from some of the details of the day...

If I can now take a moment to give a little shout out to my amazing up and coming business partner, Landon!! He's been doing wedding with me since he was 2 weeks old and already has such an eye for detail. He helped me by getting the ceremony buckets lined down the isle, took these photos and because the DJ was awesome, he let Landon hang out with him and even spin on the Wheels of Steel. Thank you Landon for being my #1!!!

Modern Elopement

2011-08-24T11:20:00.000-07:00

The beauty of my job is to change up styles with each event. It keeps my inspiration flowing and allows me moments of tapping into a more natural oragnic flow and also more structured traditional flares. For this month, I've had more mid week weddings than I do weekend but I love the constant flow of work.
This was just a small wedding that is taking place today, Wednesday, in Monterey. I love the brides choice of sticking with the black and white and then choosing to accent with a charcoal and pop of green. The feather gives it a simple artistic touch.

Zara and Bryan - Creative Elements

2011-08-19T15:49:00.000-07:00

The fun, yet sometimes challenging aspect of working in a "destination" location is learning to capture the vision of the day and fullfill all the clients dreams via email. Working with Zara was my perfect example of that. She had contacted me a few weeks before having the baby and gave me a brief description on the succulent element she would like in the mix as well as my favorite Yosemite touch, Thistle and brighter contrast of green cymbidium orchids and then a touch of pink which I chose Ranunculus. This has been the most difficult bouquet I've made to date but I couldn't be happier with this unusual combination. I know describe this as my "creative elements."

They planned a small intimate wedding at The Ahwahnee with a reception to take place in the Mural Room. Knowing I'm working with The Staffords is always exciting and I can never wait to see their gorgeous photos. This couple had soooo much love and passion all over these images I'm sure they had a field day narrowing them down for their blog. To see the full gallery please click here

Photography - Johnny Stafford Photography
Ceremony and Reception - The Ahwahnee Hotel
Hair and Makeup - Bellissimo Brides

Janae and Jason - Champagne Shades on a Rainy June Day

2011-08-13T11:08:00.000-07:00

Janae first met with me less than two weeks after I had my 3rd baby so needless to say, I was a little out of sorts. She gave me the once over on the details she had so far with her gorgeous subtle color schemes of creams, champagne and a pale pistacio. She also described the venue, The Vista Ranch and Cellars, which I had been highly anticipating doing a wedding there and they were my first.

I had done several events at this venue in the past but under new ownership, they renovated the facility perfectly! The main room for the indoor area has a rustic modern touch so any bride will be able to customize their visions to fit with the surroundings. They also did the most amazing job with the bridal house on the same property for the girls to stay in the night before and the couple to enjoy for their honeymoon night. It is designed perfectly for the ladies to have privacy with tall walls surrounding the perimeter, a salon area for getting ready, a nice open room for the bride to get into her dress and a couple bedrooms and kitchen. The house became a focal point for all wedding party photos since it was a rainy day.

In my experience, I have seen some crazy things happen to the weather on wedding days but never had I experienced such a crazy stormy day in June! Rain brings such romantic cozy feeling but who would think to have a back up plan? Thankfully due to the venue having the capacity to set up dinner inside, the ceremony site was tented and then reception was set for inside.

All worked out to be such a perfect day and Janae looked stunning. I was lucky to have such a gorgeous couple to photograph!

Janaes bouquet was designed with cream peonies, David Austin Garden roses, vendella roses, cream ranuculus, and cream spray roses. The bouquet handle was inspired by a pair of shoes Janae showed me.

Janae is a hair dresser and having the salon set up right in the bridal suite was a great way to capture her in her own element.

One of my favorites of the day. Her dad walked in moments before the ceremony began and so sweetly to fight back the tears, Janae was trying to distract herself by asking her dad for a knuckle touch.

Simple candlescapes with the champagne dazzle linens were so elegant. Cream roses in rectangle vases were the perfect way to line the head table and creat a beautiful runner effect.

Working with these distressed frames, another favorite of the day for me.

Janae and Jason chose to do years for their tables numbers and gave a story to each year...cute and clever!

Flowers and Photography - Natalie Galasso Designs
Venue and Catering - The Vista Ranch and Cellars
Make Up - Alex Hart
Hair - Becky Drum
DJ - Sounds in Motion
Invitations, Programs and Table Numbers - Jami Gibson
Cupcakes - Sweet Amanda B's

Yosemite Jewel Tones

2011-08-09T17:05:00.000-07:00

Lauren and Bryan couldn't be more adorable! They came to me one afternoon in spring to meet and go over flowers. In one swoop we covered all the items they were interested in with their chosen colors. They had more than 160 guests attend their wedding which took place on a Monday! Goes to show you the beauty of a destination wedding and the amount of love that surrounds couples on such a special day! The colors they chose for a July wedding were so powerful and happy and was the best representation of the love they share!

The ceremony took place at the Yosemite Chapel with the Reception to follow at The Ahwahnee Hotel.
Flowers used to design the bridal bouquet: stock, lisianthus, sweet peas, black magic roses, anemones, coneflowers, blue hydrangea and scabiosa.

Ceremony Location - Yosemite Chapel
Reception Location - The Ahwahnee Hotel
Hair and Makeup - Bellissimo Brides

Shely and Ryan - Orchard Glam

2011-08-06T12:47:00.000-07:00

When this project was first proposed to me by Melissa from Everyday Gourmet, she had the description of the set up being out in an almond orchard with the colors being ivory and burgundy so immediately I'm visualizing footed urns, rustic boxes, trailing vines, etc. Then comes my first client meeting with Shely and Ryan and I'm thinking I had this nailed and then after watching Shely glance through my portfolios, I'm noticing she is pulled towards the ballroom elegance. So, we take that and make it fit into the orchard setting to come up with our orchard glam!

The choices came down to such simple styles and overall that gave it a greater imapact. The flowers used were roses, hydrangeas, orchids and curly willow. Creating arrangements in all color using large vases with crystals gave it a more elegant finish and the short black vases added some modern twists. Having the design freedom to create the Altar arrangements which were then re-used on the head table was a style I've always wanted to try and was so amazed by the finish product!!

All guests tables were under the tent and thankfully Mother Nature turned down the heat a bit for this late June mid afternoon occassion. The dance floor was set in the middle of the orchard as well as some lounge couches and a full bar across the way. In addition to the traditional wedding cake, they chose to go with individual pies and cheesecake slices for guest to self serve. Below is a preview throughout the day!

Floral Design and Ceremony Coordinating - Natalie Galasso Designs
Event Catering and Design - Chef Melissa Gourmet Everyday
Ceremony Coordinating - Shannon Metcalf Events
Rentals - Event Extravagant

Videography - Andrew Hsu - Studio MSV
Cake and Dessert - Deny Cakes by Cindee Prader
DJ - Sounds in Motion
Ceremony and Social Hour Music - Laura Porter - Harpist

Peach, Platinum, Pewter

2011-05-26T13:59:00.000-07:00

While trying to vibe through color swatches, it is always important to try and visualize the full picture. I threw together some of the swatches with a palette of pale yellow, peach, platinum and pewter thinking how hideous it sounds but not sure how I'm feeling about the combination. Then I rummaged through some leftovers I had on hand and matched them with my color scheme. Working with the various textures and seeing the variety come together in a bouquet creation....ahhhh, love it! This is just a reminder to keep your mind open to new and unusual color combos and to also look beyond just seeing colors in such stiff forms and work within the colors. Besides flowers you can pull from vases, china, linen, fabrics, food, candles and ribbons!

Eclectic Love

2011-05-25T16:44:00.000-07:00

Being a big wedding blog surfer can become extremely overwhelming with the amount of details and styles that can go into a concept of a wedding. This past weekend I had a chance to design flowers for a couple who live in the LA area but had their wedding on the groom's family property on the outskirts of Merced. I had no idea such beauty was right here in this town. The bride gave me the cutest detailed map for the out of town guest to not only locate every available Starbucks but there is no physical address for this house. She used key markers like a bridge to take you on the long dirt road which passes the runway for their airplanes, all to take you up a little hill to this beautiful simple house with a 360 degree view of the rolling foothills and nature. It was a dream!
Jocelyn chose a rustic theme which can be so open. She sent over a few photo samples and when we met she brought the blue tinted mason jars, bud vases and pieces from my obsession store, Anthropolgie!! She bought the green and blue crackled ceramic pots there and with out a doubt...it made the whole style of the wedding as well as blend the flower choices with the other various pieces she provided. I can not wait to see her photographers images to share the layout of the day. Just shows how many different styles and colors can come together and fit perfectly.

Crisp, Fresh and Bright

2011-05-10T11:47:00.000-07:00

This was another random small event but the colors came in perfect timing of the sun finally shinning! I only needed to make a few centerpieces but thought I would throw together a bouquet while I was at it.

Spring Tropics

2011-05-09T14:33:00.000-07:00

This was a small event I had a few weeks ago and the only information besides which items were needed was that they were going with navy linens and the event would be outdoors and they don't want pastels so I came up with these and had so much fun with the colors!

Jackie and Chris ~ Backyard Chic

2011-05-02T22:04:00.000-07:00

If you live in or around Merced, you would know that Jackie is all style. She is the owner of Helen Louise and Him in Merced and is always dressed perfectly adorable with her high fashion jeans, boots and accessories each time I see her. We first met in December, 5 months prior to her wedding and she inquired about my services for flowers, photography and coordinating. This was a first for me and I love the challenge and was able to team up with Shannon Metcalf of Shannon Metcalf Events to provide the coordinating.
She is so sweet and laid back and knew exactly what she wanted for her day and allowed me the creative freedom to take it from there. Her colors were black, white and yellow and knowing the venue was in a backyard, we chose to use black footed urns and some fun linens to create the ambiance.
Little did we anticipate we had to switch venues two weeks prior to the event and notify all 175+ guests. Then, who would ever think that there would randomly be a freezing storm blowing through on May 23rd?
Everything worked out perfectly. The energy and crowd had nothing but positive love and everyone danced the night away!
Her bouquet was one of my all time favorites to design. Yellow peonies, roses, spray roses, ranuculus, billy balls, vanda orchids, and freesias. The handle was a white satin base with black lace and oversized white pearl clusters.

Chris is a major duck hunter so you may pick up a hint of that throughout the day. He gave each of his groomsmen a duck pin which we added to the boutonnieres.

Being in the clothing industry, Jackie found this fabric while going to market for an amazing deal so we were able to make a ton of overlays with it.

It was so cold when we went to take wedding party photos, soon the ladies were putting on the mens coats and the men began holding the womens bouquet. Perfect photo op!

Floral/Event Design and Photography - Natalie Galasso Designs
Wedding Coordination - Shannon Metcalf Events
Rentals - Classic Party Rentals
Hair - Becky Drum
Music - DJ Lamont
Catering - DeAngelo's
Invitations and Fine Stationary - Whimsy, LLC

Sabrina and Todd - The Colors of Yosemite

2011-05-02T11:06:00.000-07:00

A new computer has been long over due and having a genius for a friend to help build one to customize all of my needs is the coolest thing for me! I added a 27" LED monitor to the mix and magic is happening right in front of my eyes.
With all of the files to transfer, I get carried away on past events.
Sabrina and Todd got married in June of 2007, long before I became a "blogger." They planned their wedding from Georgia and everything was handled via email and phone. Through emailing photos of my work, taken by the ever so lovely and talented, Becky Spencer, they decided to hire her and she sent me some amazing images I have never got to feature.
The bold and deep reds and oranges with touches of yellows are perfect for the summer and fall months in Yosemite. They POP from all of the deep evergreen and granite backdrops.
The style of the flowers and arrangements are what I've always referred to as rustic elegance. They represent the classic styles with roses and have a little rustic whith choices like the wild honeysuckle.

Ceremony and Reception Venue - The Ahwahnee Hotel
Photography - Becky Spencer
Videography - Jason Young, Garner Films
Hair and Makeup - Bellissimo Brides
Floral Design - Natalie Galasso Designs

The Metcalfs - Wedding and Beyond

2011-04-28T13:36:00.000-07:00

Welcome to my second installment of my experience with relationships built at the start of planning to become a team member for the wedding and it flourishing into friendships that allow me to become a part of a past couples futures.
Meet Shannon and Josh.
Shannon is the longest member of the event planning team at the University of California, Merced. My shop was just a few doors down from her office. I can't remember which came first, professional needs for events or her inquiry about her wedding being held later in the year, October of 2008. Over the course of the next few months we met to discuss her wedding floral details. She has exquisite taste and I was swooned over her details and her romantic vintage theme. The wedding took place at Ironstone Vineyards in Murphys, CA. Her colors were deep reds, rich green foliages, with touches of a burnt orange. To add to the vintage touch we used cut crystal votives and footed urns. All wedding images were done by one of my favorites....Joel Flory!

After the wedding, I began getting to know Shannon more with our professional connection. She allowed me the opportunity to be a part of Michelle Obama's UC Merced Commencement in May 2009. It was the most unforgettable weekend of my life. We had 4 weddings already booked, over 55 centerpieces for the various events on campus as well as the podium decor, my then 6 month old daughter cut her first tooth and it was 116 degrees. I was given a plaque from the Commencement and it hangs next to my desk as a reminder... if I can make it through that, I can do anything. Shannon and staff did an amazing job with the amount of events, details, guests, etc they had to pull off in just 5 weeks of planning!! Since, we've worked on countless events from both me providing the florals for the UC and also the other way around. Shannon has an event planning business, Shannon Metcalf Events, which she has been able to coordinate weddings along side me.

Now we flash forward to the day after Thanksgiving, 2010. I'm 38 weeks pregnant and I believe judging at her cute belly, she was approx 28 weeks and her and Josh were expecting their first baby! These are a few of my favorite photos from their maternity session.

May I now present you to the sweetest, most alert newborn I've met. This is baby Case! Mom and Dad are sure going to have their hands full with the phone ringing off the hook from the little ladies. He's one handsome little boy...

Shannon and Josh, thank you for the opportunity to be a part of and capture glimmers of special times in your lives!

Introducing ~ Custom Flower Halo's for Photo Sessions

2011-04-15T10:26:00.000-07:00

Of course it doesn't hurt to have such cuties to always model for me and to also make the most of an updated family photo. I had made one of these for one of my stylish customers to bring to her sister for her baby shower. Now her baby is 4 months old and she called and asked for a mini version which of course gave me the urge to make some cute custom fresh flower Halo's for Antonella and Francesca. We ran down the street to the open field and let them start hammin it up for the camera. Email me if you are interested in family portraits and custom fresh flower Halo's for girls of all ages start at $25.00.

A little bit country...A little bit wedding glam

2011-04-14T12:13:00.000-07:00

Breanne and Roy created such a customized wedding that fit their style perfectly. Breanne is a horse trainer and Roy raises cattle. They live on a hill about the ceremony site over looking hundreds of acres of their property out in the golden rolling hills of Snelling. They had a huge pole barn where Breanne envisioned the reception. When we first walked the property she was showing me the area of the reception which was still full of hay and there was the coolest old rustic wagons that were perfect to tie into their style. Her colors were black and white and she asked for all bright, spring florals and that is exactly what we designed!
The personal details that they featured at the wedding was a mashed potato bar, cigar bar and signature martinis to greet the guests!

Caterer - Melissa Rassmusen - Gourmet Everyday
Cake - Deny Cakes by Cindee Prader
Rentals and Lighting - Event Extravagant

Joe and Nery ~ Spring Engagement Session

2011-04-13T16:43:00.000-07:00

Bold Metallics

2011-03-21T14:25:00.000-07:00

Metals have become a staple into when describing ones color scheme. This particular mock up was inspired by an upcoming wedding who has chosen a few purple shades and each of her bridesmaids will be showcasing a different metal with their jewelry and shoes. Choosing a bold color like a purple will definitely make it pop and give a modern, artistic design to the event.

Peaches n' Cream

2011-03-21T13:52:00.000-07:00

In honor of my favorite childhood Barbie Doll, Peaches n' Cream, I thought I would use that as the perfect way to describe some warm spring colors. These arrangements are so simple, delicate, feminine and fluffy and I decided to use a chocolate velvet ribbon with some orange pinning for the bouquet handle and an antique mini succulent to give the little arrangements a nice contrast. Peach is definitely my color for this year. I'm loving it paired with the warm hues of the browns and golds and also loving it with the grays!
I'm also introducing my palette swatch which every client is given that we create based on the theme and ideas discussed during our consultation. These actual colors are pulled from the arrangements displayed below.

Spring has Sprung!!

2011-03-21T12:27:00.000-07:00

It's official. Spring is here which means so is wedding season! I've been so inspired by this coming seasons creative brides. There are so many creative color palettes and variety of design options each of my clients is bringing out. The trend of this year so far seems to be DETAIL and every bride is leaving nothing unfinished.
With enjoying a quiet winter adjusting to the new baby and working towards the planning of this year I was missing the feel of flowers in my hands. Impulse got the best of me so I had a shipment come in and decided to go to town! Happy Spring to everyone!

Brides Choice Award for 2011

2011-03-12T10:47:00.000-08:00

Its that time of year again when Wedding Wire announces the industries best. Thank you to all of our 2010 clients for such an amazing year and we are looking forward to 2011 to bring us new creations and inspiration!

Best of 2010 Events

2010-12-31T12:15:00.000-08:00

I popped up this morning thinking WOW...where has the time gone for another year to come to a close. So in honor of a first successful year here at Natalie Galasso Designs, I thought I would whip together a series of some of my favorite events. Thank you for all of the creative freedom you have all given me. I'm so honored and excited to conquer yet another full wedding season! Happy New Year!

Francesca Adeline

2010-12-29T11:18:00.000-08:00

Well for anyone who didn't know or was wondering where I have been with keeping up on my blog entries...this is what has been happening in my life! This is our sweet little Francesca Adeline (named after both my grandparents). Born on December 8th weighing 7 lbs. 14 oz and 21 1/2 inches long. She came with a full head of dark hair and ready to nurse. Today she is 3 weeks old and is about 9 1/2 lbs already. She has finally straightened her days and nights out so I'm able to get a little sleep. Big sister Antonella is a great helper grabbing diapers and wipes for mommy and making sure Francesca always has her pacifier. Big brother Landon loves to hold her and burp her and help mommy by entertaining Antonella while I'm nursing. Her timing has been perfect as we are gearing up for another fabulous 2011 wedding season!!

Playing with Color

2010-11-09T20:38:00.000-08:00

Wow...I love it when I browse my external for old images of past work and then come across a surprise, fun mega session I did of my little sister Julia a few years ago. Just to begin in Downtown Merced, who knew we had so many fun building back drops which was a great way to explor color! Then we drove down the road to some farmlands as she's in her city chic designer dress, the people passing by probably had fun trying to figure out what was going on.
Here is for you Jugee as you wait the arrival of baby Zoey!!!

Autumn Red's - A Deep and Bold Bridal Bouquet

2010-11-09T13:30:00.000-08:00

This luscious and powerful bouquet was for Tanya's wedding this past weekend at The Ahwahnee in Yosemite National Park. I can not wait to see her photographer, Tanya Aminoffs pictures from the day! Tanya the bride became a fan of mine on my facebook page which is such a new and great way to make contact with future clients. I'm thrilled to have been a part of her day!!

Prep Time

2010-11-07T09:33:00.000-08:00

Just want to give a small taste of what a couple days before a wedding begin to look like around here. This was preparing for a 330 person wedding with fall colors pouring out everywhere!

Kristi & Generation Cupcake

2010-11-05T14:21:00.000-07:00

For any of my OC/LA/SD people looking to jump onto the fun of cupcakes when hosting a party, event or wedding, no need to look further, Kristi with Generation Cupcakes is the full service cupcake queen!!! She will certainly blow you away with her amazing detail from everything with the various icings, dusted with glitter and beads, over to her cupcake liners having little embellishments attached to them that coincide with her adorable and theme friendly cupcake flavor display cards and even the cleanly displayed boxes she delivers them in.

Kristi and I have been friends since high school and thanks to the world of social networking, we have been able to keep in touch. If there was anything to know about Kristi, it was always her sense and eye for art and fashion. I've been noticing her progress on pictures she has posted of her work and when it came time to plan my sister Julias baby shower, I was excited to get a chance and see for myself. Being in the coordinating and planning side of the industry and working with countless pastry bakers/bakeries, I can't tell you how much fun it was to be able to throw some photo ideas her way and really, she took it from there. She had a brief explanation of the way the day would flow and I wanted the dessert bar to be a focal point. Then she was given the color pallete of peaches, pinks and greys. Very feminine and eclectic.

Her finished work was literally so beautiful that my niece (3yrs old) had to keep going back to grab more cupcakes since she wouldn't eat any of them because they were too pretty. A cousin of mine that was in attendance also mentioned how awesome her variety of the mini cupcakes (bitesize) were so she didn't feel guilty trying a few flavors.

She asked my sister Julia - mommy to be, what some of her favorite flavors were and we had a wide variety. White cake with lemon frosting, spice cake with cream cheese icing, white cake with chocolate buttercream, cake pops, cake balls, and even saltwater taffy!

The entire set up definitely made the event extra special as well as fullfilling!! Thank you Kristi for the cake pops and balls and for ALL of your hard work. You are so very talented and I wish you the most success with your new companies future!!!

The Madrugas - Wedding and Beyond

2010-11-05T11:44:00.000-07:00

I have been saving this particular entry until I got a new layout going on for my blog so we can take a good look at some big pictures! Jessica and Morgan are the prime example on why I love every aspect of my job. Since expanding my wedding territory to down here in the valley, I now have the potential to not only build lasting friendships out of my clients but the fun part is to continue to watch their lives grown and help capture moments through some photography.

I met Jessica sometime early 2008 when she booked our services for the flowers for her wedding. We spent endless amounts of time on her unique color palette since her wedding was the end of August not to be too summery and not to be too fall. Ivories, greens, chocolate brown, burnt oranges and touches of a deep pink.

They had over 300 guests attending so we tried to have some extra fun with the ceremony decor and the escort card tree. They also chose to switch up the centerpieces. One with a large low square vase and heavy votives and the other with a candle scape.

For the ceremony site, we hung long strands of orchid lei's about 12' long with flowing simple satin ribbons in ivory, sage green and chocolate brown with a crystal to weigh it down and strands of crystals for some extra bling. Then down the isle a thick scatter of petals in ivory, raspberry pink and burnt orange.

Our escort card display was a blast to make and was also possible due to such a large amount of wedding guests. We hung long sage satin ribbons from the tree and also weighed them down with a crystal. At the top of each row was a chocolate sparkly letter so the guest can all cruise around looking for their cards which were all attached with a cute copper swirly clip.

Reception

Now we flash forward to their future together and October 2009, I was able to squeeze in some maternity pictures just 2 days before the TWINS got here!

Now introducing....Piper and Holden!! We finally got to snap a few at 3 months.

And we then got the entire crew when the twins hit almost 8 months.

Thank you Madrugas for letting me capture moments in your lives!

Countries

2010-09-16T13:06:00.000-07:00

The local Catholic School here in Merced did an annual fundraiser where they host wine and food booths from 10 different countries. I was asked to be a part in designing 10 different arrangements to represent each of the countries. This was a blast! I just looked up the country flags and tried to utilize flowers that represent each of these countries.

Germany - Black, Red and Gold

Nicaragua - Royal Blue and White

Portugal - Deep Red, Green and Gold

Ireland - Green, Orange and White.
I used Bells of Ireland

USA

Mexico - Green, White and Red

Italy - Green, White and Red.
I decided to go more Tuscan and throw in some Rosemary

Scotland - Royal Blue and White
I used the Thistle which represents the country.

Philippines - Red, White, Blue and Gold

Thailand - Red, White and Blue
They grow many of my orchids I design with!

Julia and Zane

2010-09-14T13:39:00.000-07:00

Julia is my baby sister and her husband Zane is my male me. They have been together over 10 years and FINALLY having a baby girl this fall. She is the last of our batch to add to the grandchild pool putting her baby girl in at #8 and a couple weeks later my little girl will be #9. They came up last week to stay with us so Nestor and I can get away to celebrate his 40th birthday. It was our first time leaving Antonella, who will be 2 on Halloween, and our last time to get that chance before the next baby arrives and the nursing begins...again. Luckily for Landon and Antonella, their "cool" aunt and uncle were available to send me away! We were only up by Yosemite for a couple days and literally did nothing but sit in the silence of nature. No TV, no cell phones, no computers. It was incredible to feel such peace!

In the time they were here, we had a couple small chances to squeeze in some photos of her cute belly. They are definitely going to be the hippest, most stylish parents in town and I can't wait to see the styles of this newborn! Rachel Zoe better move aside because my niece is coming along. Thank You Aunt Jugie and Uncle Sane for taking care of my babies! LuLu's

Stephanie and Mitch

2010-09-06T08:43:00.000-07:00

Last summer I decided to close my retail store front and get back to the importance of my inspiration which is always weddings. So the first couple that contacted me and wanted to have a consultation was with Stephanie, Mitch and her parents.
We did a full overview of the day because Stephanie already knew exactly what she wants...down to her awesome shoes. Over the course of the following year, everything just fell into place on details. They did all their own linens, centerpieces and set up and the place looked AMAMZING! Loved the style of the over all wedding and when you have a killer photographer like Ryan Jones, it ends up being a magical day!

Photographer - Ryan Jones

Cake - Eddie's Bakery Cafe

Ceremony - First Baptist, Merced

Reception - St. Patricks, Merced

Lisa and Steve Yosemite Wedding Featured on Style Me Pretty

2010-09-02T13:34:00.000-07:00

Smell that? It’s the smell of crisp, fresh mountain air. And it’s seeping from these photos along with an immense amount of wedding inspiration. Yosemite National Park is the grandiose setting for today’s forest wedding by Kate Miller Events. The majestic mountain backdrop for Steven and Lisa’s ceremony is complete paradise, isn’t it? And did you see him? The unexpected guest at the wedding? Yes, Mr. Deer! Just adorable. More details I adore from this wedding include the elegant black bridesmaid dresses, the tall luscious centerpieces and…oh my, that ring! More rustic wedding inspiration from this forest wedding can be found here. xoxo Chantale from La Belle Bride

The story of today’s wedding: When Steven proposed to Lisa at the top of a waterfall in while hiking in Yosemite National Park, they knew they must return to get married amidst some of the most amazing surroundings Northern California has to offer. The regal and historic Ahwahnee Hotel, where even Queen Elizabeth II herself came to visit, became the backdrop to this rustic chic celebration. In fact, the very same waterfall would become the backdrop to their actual wedding ceremony.

Lisa worked closely with Kate Miller Events to design the wedding of her dreams – we anchored the jewel-toned color palette to the rustic aesthetic of the Ahwahnee by utilizing an Ikat pattern throughout many of the details; a testament to Lisa’s love of interior design and it’s current trends. Lisa created DIY hand sewn satin rosettes for each place setting, and Kate custom-designed menus and programs with an Ikat print that mimicked the fabric wrapped vases and escort card table runner.

Lisa also commissioned bespoke walnut stationery Luxecut™ escort cards and table numbers (to later be used for future birthday cake toppers in an eco-friendly way). A calligrapher hand wrote each guests’ name on the cards in white ink, while the table numbers were embedded into the centerpieces. For the tall centerpieces, moss vines were intertwined with moss balls, and fuchsia and purple blooms accented the curle willow branches. The short centerpieces were a cluster of square vases covered in Ikat fabric and filled with fuchsia peonies and purple anemone, surrounded by creamy pillar candles and textural moss balls.

Photography: Sarah Maren Photography / Flowers: Natalie Galasso Designs / Event Planning and Design: Kate Miller Events™ / Ceremony and Reception Location: The Ahwahnee at Yosemite National Park / Invitations: Designed by a friend of the Bride / Escort Cards & Table Numbers: Luxecuts™ / Menus & Programs: KME Paperie by Kate Miller Events™ / Calligraphy: The Calligraphy Girl / Shoes: Cole Haan / Dress: Monique Lhuillier / Hair and Makeup: Article Salon & Spa / Groom’s Suit: Ferragamo / DJ: Exquisite Entertainment / Linens: La Tavola Linen / Rentals: Classic Party Rentals / Videographer: Red Plate Productions

VOW Award

2010-09-01T10:09:00.000-07:00

I just received a congratulations email from a friend and vendor of the industry on my nomination for a VOW award. I called her to say thank you but what is that? So she emailed me the link and when I clicked on the voting and looked under florist, I didn't see anything and she told me to keep scanning down to the wedding consultant/coordinator of the year award. Super honored and excited! All your support is greatly appreciated.

Kim and Steve

2010-08-30T13:33:00.000-07:00

Kim's mom Sue first contacted me just about Thanksgiving time last year to inquire about my services and experiences. After some back and forth communication, they decided to proceed with securing me for the date. By May, plans are in full swing and ready to be finalized so they made a trip to me in Merced and we explored all her ideas and visions. We began where I typically always do, colors. She had chosen spiced wine for the girls dresses and guys ties with tan suits. Wanting lots of natural elements to reflect her venue, The Evergreen Lodge, we were limited to flower choices when roses aren't very appropriate for her style and she isn't a fan of the calla lily. Now we have the fun and perfect outdoorsy dahlia and scabiosa to utilize as our base. Then during our consultation, yellows and blues were thrown into the mix. I have to be the first to admit this was a first as far as an over all color scheme for me to work with and I did have a slight hesitation with how this would blend mostly being on the verge of fall in the mountains. Geeez was I pleasantly surprised!!! Once I received the flowers and began prepping them, I was already feeling the flow. All the rest fell into place. I can't wait to see her photographers pictures. I didn't get a chance to get any boutonniere/corsage pictures which were actually one of my favorite details of the day.

Kim's bouquet was designed with Scabiosa Pods, Billy Balls, Dahlias, Dark Scabiosa, Salidago, Delphinium, Thistle, Button Mums, Green and Maroon Mini Cymbidium Orchids. Finished in a burlap with a wine satin knot.

This was the ring bearer's box of flowers. One of my favorite things to design for a wedding!
She had 8 bridesmaids. Kim gave me creative design to make all bouquets reflect each other but each be a little different. It is such an amazing feeling when you are given the power to show off my art.

She utilized the Evergreens arch they provide and we threw in some fall Liquid Amber leaves and some curly willow and I was blown away by the warmth of the colors! The blue was such a nice accent.
Chair Flowers were made with thistle, scabiosa, salidago, and pods.
Cool DIY projext, they collected and provided their own Sugar Pine Cones to line the isle with.

The green spider mum on each place setting look amazing on the brown linens with the other colors popping in the centerpieces.
Another DIY project...they made table names from vintage National Park postcards, double sided and attached them to a little cut of wood.
There were two style centerpieces. Both had a cut of wood as a base with pine cones, river rocks, reindeer moss, and votives around the base. One style, like below was with three different vases/jars, each with a solid flower in it. The other centerpiece was a tall cylinder with river pebbles in the base with a submerged mokara orchid stem and a floating candle.
DIY, Double up on the vintage post cards and then they lined each guest place card/rock in front of the table they were assigned to.

Kale Casen

2010-08-26T21:08:00.001-07:00

For those of you that may not know, I have a secret passion. Weddings and events have been my inspiration from the begining and in the midst of building my portfolio the past 7 years and becoming a mommy myself, I've come to find a deep passion for photography. I absolutely love capturing babies, kids and families.

In the planning process of weddings, I get to know and become friends with my clients and as luck would have it...they end up having babies.

This is little Kale. He is super precious and was born Monday, August 16th so also extremely new. He is the grandson of my right hand woman, Hope. She is with me each event I do and is willing to throw down some extra hard hours which is definitely something we do on event weekends. I got to bring Antonella, my 22 month old with me and since I am due this December with another little girl, I have been a little curious to how she is going to react when she has been our baby so far. It was a huge relief! She was kept a good distance but kept squealing "baby" and giggling....phew.

These are the first few shots I blew threw. I will have to do a second post when I get into further images with Kale's big brother and sister!

Meredith and Buro

2010-08-25T14:21:00.001-07:00

Meredith was such a happy and easy going bride to work with. After her mom and her had booked my services, I hardly ever heard from them until they made their consultation appointment a month prior to the wedding. I'm so thankful for the clients I get a chance to meet with because it helps me get the best idea of your personality and vision through my clients eyes. She showed me 4 bridal bouquet examples and we rolled it from there and there is pretty much nothing that she vetoed. She gave me ideas like wanting somewhat simple yet bright, happy and colorful with a touch of her husband to be's Hindu tradition. Their venue choice was of course, my favorite, The Evergreen Lodge. The colors chosen were a variety of oranges with highlights of pinks and purples. Her bouquet was designed with Vanda orchids, cockscomb, calla lilies, stock, spray roses, and a variety of orange and purple roses. Finish work was simple and less distracting with the ivory.

All boutonnieres and corsages were designed utilizing all the bridal bouquet flowers but each were a little different. This is always so much fun to put together!

I've been waiting for a chance to make garlands for a Hindu ceremony and we finally did! Love that she broke away from the traditional red and white and decided to stick with the weddings colors scheme.

She shipped me some fabric she found in Chicago and we made some alterations to it and utilized it on her ceremony arch.

Love how all the oranges and pinks pulled together with the attire and florals.

The Evergreen is the most awesome lodge. In the distance you can see the Teepees in a little kid play area.

Yellow Crazy

2010-08-25T12:54:00.000-07:00

I have been so yellow crazy this season from all shades! Buttercream, sunshine, mustard, golden, honey...every shade has been gorgeous! From a UC Merced event with a bold bright yellow with a cobalt blue and frosted light glass, to classic black and white with yellow as an accent color and over to a more country mountain Wawona wedding with accents of chocolate brown and sage green. It's been making a crazy appearance being paired with greys and charcoals as well. Yellow is definitely a statement and can be designed with many styles and themes. Peonies, Roses, Orchids, Yarrow, Salidago, Billy Balls, Freesia, Sunflowers, Spider Mums, Ranuculus, and Cockscomb....to name a few.Here are a few of my favorite yellows from this summer.

Harmony and Jacob

2010-08-17T12:51:00.000-07:00

This has been such a long time coming!! I'm so excited to take this time and share with you one of the most awesome days of my life....and it wasn't even my wedding! July of '09 I had decided to close the retail shop doors to get back to my focus of my roots which was always strictly weddings. In the knick of time, a customer returned to the shop to inquire about her son's upcoming wedding. If anyone knows me, they know I'm the ultimate sucker for fall inspiration and color schemes so I'm already into this. Then I hear the bride wants pumpkins and before meeting her, I'm already falling in love with her.

Literally, the day I'm hauling the moving truck and all merchandise out of the store, she comes in to meet with me and lay out all these ideas. Thankfully she saw past the craziness that surrounded us and the fact my 7 month old and 5 year old were at my feet...I knew she believed in me! Right off the bat, we gel and go OFF on ideas and because of that, her and her soon to be Mother in Law, Kaaren asked about my coordinating packages. It was a careful thought process I had to weigh out because their wedding date, October 31, 2009 was my daughter Antonella's first birthday. With a heavy heart, I declined.

A few weeks had passed and Kaaren had come by to purchase some of my Nature's Leaf as they decided on that as their guest favors and at that time she had asked me to reconsider and offered for my family to be in attendance for the weekend as well on location in Copperoppolis. How could I resist!!! I'm fully on board now.

In the next several meetings and mock ups we are piecing together details of programs, a leaf motif, the brides love for pumpkins and yes the wedding is on Halloween but we don't want an orange and black Halloween wedding but the most rich and elegant fall pallette. Fall was in the crisp air so we decided on rustic boxes filled with black fleece blankets tied with copper ribbons, antique rustic dough bowl filled with white pumpkins for the buffet, chocolate glittered pumpkins lining the isle with hurricanes with a pillar candle sitting on a bed of fresh cranberries. Ahhh! All perfect! So much deep, dark lush colors were going on we had to go as far as pulling in the rice paper votives from Luna Bazaar in chocolate brown.

All vendors were set, timeline coming to some final details for our itineraries for the wedding party to be printed, even had a make up trial session complete. It is now the week of the wedding. Suddenly, I had a crazy gut feeling come over me in a panic. There is something that isn't clicking with the photographer. Each time I had spoke with him in the weeks leading up to the event, he had a hard time with recalling the client, contiually stated they still owe him when he had been paid for months, had contracted for a 2nd shooter and kept making reference to not being able to find anyone because it was Halloween and most importantly their package included "all day coverage" and according to him, that meant if the ceremony was starting at 4:30, he would begin at 2:30 and have all detail shots, bridal party, grooms party, etc done in that time??? I was sick over it and had to act on it. I called Kaaren (Mother of Groom) and explained these deep nerves I was experiencing. All I could think of is how disappointed I felt Harmony and Jacob would be with the end result. If anything, I had to at least say my peace. However.....they all understood where I was coming from and listened to my experiences, we all united and jumped on board to scope out Plan B with it already being Monday evening!!! Who ever needs to find a photographer 4 days prior??

My first reaction was to call my sister, Bridget, whom is a photographer in Southern Californa. I had already been chatting with her about the shock and lack of profession this photographer was presenting to me and immediately, she offered to do it. It was a big decision on her behalf because she is a mother of 4 and Halloween is a big deal to most kids but she had that taken care of and was in it with us. Bridget, her husband and 14 month old made the 6 hour trip up and jumped right in.

The weekend is now here and I load up and head to Saddlecreek Resort in Copperoppolis. What a gorgeous city and venue! It truly is the "gold country." We spent the day friday getting unloaded and began attacking all the floral creations begining with our manzanita arch formation. By that evening, the wedding party was in place for rehearsal and then moved over to enjoy a gourmet pizzas and oyster bar while enjoying martini's around the fire pit.

Below is such a quick re-cap of the day. It took so long for me to weed through hundreds of images to try to display the day and I hope you all enjoy viewing them as much as I still do! Harmony, Jacob, Kaaren and Chris, thank you so much for inviting me to be a part of your day, believing in me to make all of the days wishes come true, for your continued support of my art, and most importantly... for your lifelong friendships!

This photo has pure love and passion in it!

Harmony's bouquet was deisgned with Black Magic Roses, Orange Roses, Flame Calla Lilies, Orange Vanda Orchids, Fern Shoots, Coffee Berries, Cone Flowers, Ruscus and Oak Leaves.

Such a gorgeous broach she found to give that extra special detail to the finish. There's also a little fishing lure that was her something old. It was a special token given to her by her special dad.Getting some finishing touches on before she moves onto hair!
I always love the work that goes into the bridesmaids helping get the bride into the dress. These are Harmony's two sisters. Haylee on the right had just had her baby 2 weeks before! Both mommy and baby were champions and we had a slight ceremony hold up while they baby had a feeding.Both Harmony and Kaaren both know how special this photo is to me. I have all enlarged color prints around my design studio from numerous events. This is the one black and white photo I have framed and hung next to the front door. I stare at it often. It is my constant inspiration and reminder on why I do what I do and why I love what I do. The priceless expression on Kaarens face says it all. The bridesmaids were all in Chocolate brown dresses and their bouquets were designed with orange roses, flame calla lilies, orange vanda orchids, orange ranuculus, fern shoots, and my favorite...orange pin cushions, then clusters of oak leaves encircled them. All finished with a chocolate satin.This was the officiant's boutonniere, a flame calla lily with a cluster of coffee berries.This was one of the best group of guys to work with. Obviously you can see how close they all are. Details of the Manzanita ceremony arch trees. Clusters of flowers, bittersweet berries woven throughout, amber and clear crystals hung with orange glass lanterns with candle lightThe ceremony was framed with the two large manzanita arrangements and on both sides were my dark brown wooden candle holders with cylinders and pillar candles sitting on the bed of fresh cranberries. In the center was a cocktail table covered in Classic Party Rentals Copper Dazzle linen and they had the unity candle.The chocolate glittered pumpkins with the hurricanes with candles and cranberries and the basic scatter of red and orange rose petalsThe back row was lined with the champagne and espresso satin ribbons.The parasols were a last minute addition and I LOVE them! So cute for the photos.The entire wedding party and immediate family did a private champagne toast following the ceremony.Fruitwood Chivari Chairs, Dazzle Copper Linen, Ivory with gold band china, espresso bengaline napkins, fruitwood chargers, copper footed urns with the wedding flowers flowing out
Harmony had the idea of displaying dresses from Jacob's mother and grandmother's gowns. We had four different gowns, each on a mannequin. In between two dresses was a cocktail table with a specilaty linen and a photo of the bride in that wedding dress from their wedding day and a card with their name, wedding date and location of their wedding. The absolute sweetest touch I've ever seen to any wedding! It displays more than a dress but the years and memories we share with our loved ones.

Each event has an "ah ha" moment for me that I will never forget. Seeing them during the reception sneek outside and re-walk the isle to the ceremony site when no one was around so they can hold on to their moment was amazing! This is one the best cake's I've seen. Love the personality and difference in design for each tier and the monochromatic flowers in between each tier. I used a tree stump from an ash tree for the cake base, a rumba chocolate specialty linen and then the chocolate brown paper candle holders clustered in three's. We sprayed her monogramed "M" from silver to copper so it completed the look.

It wouldn't be Halloween if we didn't throw a touch of fun and costume into it so these fun masks were from Pier 1. A cat and a bat...now I can write a Sandra Boyton book.

Floral Design, Coordinating and Makeup - Natalie Galasso Designs

Photography - Bridget Photo

Venue - Saddlecreek Resort

DJ - Sound Extreme

Rentals and Linens - Classic Party Rentals

Votives, Parasols, and Lanterns - Luna Bazaar

Jill and Nik

2010-08-16T14:09:00.000-07:00

Since finally getting my act together in this short, mid-season break to add to my website and begin my blog, I've realized I have to back track on some of the blog entries to the begining. This wedding took place last November at the Ahwahnee Hotel in Yosemite National Park. Jill had contacted me and came to meet with me in May to knock out some main ideas and visions and then within the next couple of months, everything was in place.

They had one of the larger weddings for this venue with 185 guests. The weather was definitely crisp and cold and the colors of fall were in full swing. This event was surrounded by the coolest group of great friends and family for one massive celebration. Jill definitely didn't leave any details unturned.

Her colors were ivory and plum but the event itself was a more formal occasion. Taking the elegance with the natural surroundings into consideration, we formulated the perfect feel. Since the girls were all dressed in plum, she wanted all the bouquets to be a mini version of the bridal bouquet which we referred to as a "white cloud."Her bouquet was designed with white peonies, white sweet peas, white ranuculus and touches of Lily of the Valley. Finished with a simple double faced Italian ivory satin.

She's gorgeous and handled the freezing breeze!

His boutonniere was designed with a tuberose bloom, white dendrobium orchid, lisianthus buds and thistle which is a native plant to Yosemite.

Love how feminine and fluffy. Such a nice contrast against the deep, rich plum.

This was Jill creation. She knew she definitely wanted a canopy type structure for her altar area and this took many tries and careful planning. Her main vision was to make it look as if it was coming naturally out of the ground and to not have to anchor with any other base. Very simple with a "less is more" type feel. We took Birch logs, drilled deep holes up the base of the logs with long metal rods to stake, then some natural twine to tie the top logs with an ivory chiffon drapped over the top. Her hurricanes and candles were from Pottery Barn.

Nik and Jill are the proud owners of the coolest company out there, Go Pro Camera. They had the entire ceremony blanketed with their cameras to make sure they captured the love from every angle possible. The invention is so amazing and versitile its going beyond the use of sports and extreme sports over to where my brother has given me the idea to use this to film myself making bouquets for all the D.I.Y. brides out there. Definitely stay tuned to more of that.

Jill chose to use a low, square black container and we used ivory, plum and greens. Calla lilies, beauty berries, peonies, dendrobium orchids, hydrangeas, lisianthus and articokes were all in the designs.

Such a gorgeous detailed cake. Seven tiers, each with crazy detail and a different design and the vintage cake topper completes the entire look. The cake is displayed in the huge underlounge fireplace area which we staggered with a ton of ivory pillar candles.

Venue - Ahwahnee Hotel, Yosemite National Park

Photographer - Rudy Arpia

Cake - Ahwahnee Hotel, Yosemite National Park

Elisabeth and John

2010-08-01T09:17:00.001-07:00

Elisabeth and John were such a sweet and loving couple. I began communicating over email with Elisabeth about her June 5th wedding at one of my all time favorite venues. They chose The Evergreen Lodge. I was able to meet with both of them and Elisabeths parents after they made a trip for their engagement session and we nailed out all the details. With knowing her colors are a deep burgundy, ivory and some natural green plus representing the surrounding natural beauty of the venue, it was so fun to throw in all these different elements for a beautiful rich combination. I was lucky to have my talented photographer sister to assist me that day as well. Bridget, thank you for all of these beautiful photos!

Concept Shoot

2010-07-29T15:18:00.000-07:00

Being a vendor that specializes in destination location but also loving to work in my local city, I've been fortunate to work with some amazing talent in the industry. We all decided to come together to put together a conceptual shoot to showcase all of our talents so our upscale clientele can resource our services right in town. When discussing what we will would be designing, our concept was based off of what can be timeless and some what traditional with any season. Utilizing the basics of black, white and red we threw in some contrast by adding the bold chartreuse and then accents of mirrors to give it that extra polish. This is a classic vintage modern style with a beautiful setting in an almond orchard. I can say this is the first of many to come. Our fall shoot is in the works!

floral design and photography: Natalie Galasso

planning and design: Shannon Metcalf

hair: Rebecca Nannini-Turner

makeup: Taneka at Chloe's

paper: Whimsy

linen and table settings: Liz Essay, Classic Party Rentals - Modesto