A midsummer wedding calls for flowers with something of the unexpected about them, and what fun that was to make!

Carolyn had a clear vision of an enchanting, almost magical wedding which captivated me the moment she described it. Foliage was to play a key role,  she wanted to create the sense that the arrangements had been there for a while and the foliage was growing in and around them. I was totally inspired by that!

Building displays with plenty of depth and texture is one of my favourite things to do. I wanted to evoke those romantic, unkempt English summer gardens that look all the better for being left alone. We played with lots of different seasonal English leaves, berries and ferns to create unstructured, undone, almost wild displays.  Carolyn wanted us to make the candelabra look as though the foliage was hanging off. Nothing structured or formal here! For the low candle arrangements we had trails of asparagus fern  and clematis creeping around the tables.

The unexpected colour palette also had an element of surprise about it, bold, vibrant and clashing. We mixed muted, washed out lilacs and lemons with dramatic purple and lime greens and pops of colour from the stunning coral peonies. that opened perfectly on the day. Blowsy roses and peonies with hydrangea and clematis are my favourite summer flowers and they all opened perfectly on the day. Magic!