Monday, February 8, 2010

Ahhh. Those GAMES!!!!













Yep, it's that time again!!! The Winter Olympics Games are upon us. The Stoneblossom Staff has strong ties to this veritable institution and we would be remiss in letting it pass by without a few words on the subject! I've dragged out my Park City cap and the impossible-to-get Olympic Berets that were the hot items in Salt Lake City.
Salt Lake was our Fourth Olympic Games - and the first Winter one we had been a part of. Dennis loves to tell the story of our primitive workspace - in a rented storage area adjacent to the flower market - with NO HEAT! We had propane heaters to huddle around that were so loud - and they could knock you out from the fumes!
And of course 09-11 had happened just a few short months before - making for a security nightmare - even X-raying out floral designs on their way into each hotel! Who could plan for such a posey nightmare??? This was a major pain in the arse to say the least!

You may ask - did you make those always silly presentation bouquets given to the Medal winners day after day. NO actually. Nothing of the sort! Corporate Sponsors use the Games as a hospitality vehicle for their VIP's and Executives - flying them all in for a few days of fun and frolic - enjoying the amazing athletic spectacles by day - and our glam themed floral designs back at their hotels for dinner by night!!!

If you can imagine servicing 18 different Corporate Sponsors - each with their own set of fabulous designs - all at the same time each and every day - and then trying to deliver them all in a locked-down city between 2:00 and 4:00 am - every night -  for two weeks straight: THAT is the the true GLAMA of the Olympics Games!

In all fairness, we did have the amazing privilege of catching quite a few events over the years - our eyes held open with toothpicks - but a great thrill none the less! Who could forget our front row seats at Curling! A memorable time was definitely had by all at Men's diving (we could have skipped the nose-bleed seats for girl's gymnastics - the athletes like tiny Mexican jumping beans better seen from our beds back at the hotel!).

One of my fondest memories was my first Games in Barcelona - 1992. Ah - to be young again and loose in Sitges - the Jet-setty seaside town south of the city - where we had the most fortunate luck of having our workspace just across the street from the most divine nude beach. The heat, the tapas, the clubs open till dawn... I barely remember making a single floral piece with that blend of heady fare... But I digress...

It's fun to reminisce for sure and wonder how the heck we pulled it all off - not only in Spain or Salt Lake - but Sydney and Atlanta too! Catch Dennis and Margot when they're on a roll and they've got some yarns to tell for sure. Looking forward this year to catching every glorious moment in front of the fire with my pups on the big FLAT SCREEN!

xxxx John

Thursday, February 4, 2010

2010 Wedding Wire Best in the Biz!!!! A great Honor!

2010 Bride's Choice Awards - Wedding Photographers, Wedding Cakes, Wedding Venues & More
Weddings, Wedding Planning, Wedding Websites, Wedding Checklists

Newport, RI - February 4th, 2010 - WeddingWire, the nation’s leading
wedding technology company, just announced
Stoneblossom Floral and Event Design has been selected to receive
the WeddingWire 2010 Bride’s Choice Awards™ for Florists

The annual Bride’s Choice Awards recognizes and celebrates
excellence in quality and service within the wedding industry,
 as determined by recent reviews and extensive surveys from over
 500,000 newlyweds.

Stoneblossom is among the top five percent of all vendors in the
 WeddingWire community, which includes over 100,000 wedding
 professionals across the US and Canada. Awards were given to
 winners across 19 different service categories, from wedding
 venues to wedding photographers.

“We are excited to recognize and honor the success of the top
wedding professionals within the WeddingWire Community”
said Timothy Chi, WeddingWire’s Chief Executive Officer.
“The annual Bride’s Choice Awards program has given us the
 unique opportunity to highlight the best wedding professionals
 in each region as reviewed by brides and grooms who have
 utilized their services in the past year.”

We are happy to announce that Stoneblossom is among the
 very best Florists within the WeddingWire Network, which
 includes WeddingWire and Martha Stewart Weddings. We
 would like to thank our past newlyweds for nominating us for
the 2010 Bride’s Choice Awards.


About WeddingWire, Inc.
WeddingWire is the only online wedding planning resource
 designed to empower both engaged couples and wedding
 vendors. WeddingWire enables engaged couples to search,
 compare and book over 100,000 reviewed wedding vendors
 nationwide, from wedding photographers to wedding cakes.
 WeddingWire also offers an online community and a suite
 of cutting-edge planning tools, including wedding websites
 and wedding checklists, all at no charge. For wedding
 vendors, WeddingWire provides free online management
 tools creating the only market opportunity that gives
 businesses control over their clients, reviews, leads and
 performance. In addition, WeddingWire has partnered
 with Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia, Inc. (NYSE: MSO)
 to provide its network of local vendors and online
 wedding-planning tools in the Weddings section of
 www.MarthaStewartWeddings.com. For additional
 information, please visit www.WeddingWire.com.

Monday, January 25, 2010

Another of our glam Featured Weddings in Southern NE Weddings new issue!






















A terrific couple and a gorgeous, elegant affaire at Mrs Astor's Beechwood!






















Click on the image to read the copy and get a closer look at their perfect outdoor ceremony and
candlelit ballroom. Nothing like peonies in June!

Flowers by Stoneblossom Floral and Event Design

Check out the new Southern NE Weddings. Our bouquet's on the cover!

Thursday, January 21, 2010

We are in Love with our New Ad and the Stunning Adrienne!!!



Here's our Double-Page Spread in grace ormonde Wedding Style 2010 - hot off the presses and we love it!!!




Brazilian Model Adrienne flew in from Miami for our photo shoot in late summer at Fort Adams in Newport. The rough, ruddy backdrops that the historic Stone Fort and vacant Officer's Quarters provided were the perfect foil for her sweet, sexy natural beauty....

Here's a great shot of photographer Rob Fortunato at work. Rob - you're the BEST!!! His clear creative vision ceases to amaze us....



One more shot - so many great images!!!!



Hope you like the pix as much as we do! Click on any to enlarge.

Bouquets by Stoneblossom
Antique Furnishings: Aardvark Antiques, Newport RI
Hair and Makeup: Rhea Harrington for Salon Rhea
Photography by the amazing Rob Fortunato


Thursday, December 31, 2009

Our Most Colorful Featured Wedding in Southern New England Weddings!













































Hot pink, peacock blue, purple, orange - absolutely luscious!!!!
The peacock theme was so fun to work with and loved all the amazing fabrics the Bride wore!

Click on the image to get a closer look or check out the new issue of
Southern NE Weddings here.
Our bouquet's on the cover!!!

Florals, Decor, Linen and Draping by Stoneblossom

Monday, December 28, 2009

Perfection in Detail! Jill and Jeff at Glen Manor




Jill and Jeff inspired us from the very first - so full of clear incredible vision!!!

Their attention to detail was like nothing we've encountered - short of the aid of a wedding planner extraordinaire!
Click on any photo to get an intimate look!



The look was natural, organic, lush, casually elegant and FUN!
Our tendrilly Birch Canopy was the perfect fit - laden with white Fall blooms.
Love this Black and white shot by the ever-outstanding Kristin Spencer...



Lush wreaths welcomed guests on the front doors of the Glen Manor House - a jewel of a venue in Portsmouth RI - styled after a French chateaux.



Quell the fall chill with a soft pashmina - each with a personal sentiment.
Gorgeous letterpress detailing everywhere. The talented couple made them, and many of the other personal touches themselves! You go guys!



Our lounge designs were made in small ruddy stumps! Love the chocolate cosmos and fiddlehead fern...



Mantles with rambling displays of hydrangea, roses and leveled candlelight.



There was a creative surprise at every turn - always the key to making an event memorable.
Vintage snapshots on twine with the Sakonnet River beyond - a great touch.
They thought through each and every detail....



Escort Cards were set around our French Wyre Urn filled with kiwi vine and hanging candlelight.



Notice the really unique wooden escort cards. Very special indeed.



Step inside, pick a postcard off the vintage rack and "mail" it in the antique brass mailbox!
Their printed materials labeled every last detail with flair and style!



Ahhh time for a feast and the dining room is dressed to the nines.
Against a sumptuous mossy green backdrop of pintuck irridescent taffeta - our custom gilded stands were laden with the bounty of fall in New England.



Low designs were set atop a bed of moss with chocolate ribbon detail.
Wooden table numbers!!!



Time for sweets - each one carefully selected to match the chocolate, green and ivory palette of course!!!



Love is Sweet....



How about this pair for the cake top????




They thought of everything!



A photo booth complete with costume accessories made for some really fun shots - such a great memento of this special night.




The Manor House aglow - with the party in full swing just inside.





Actually Jill and Jeff - Thank YOU! We loved working together and helping to bring your dreams to magical reality! You're the best!

Flowers by Stoneblossom

Photography by Kristin Spencer



Paper/Wood Products - Passing Notes

Calligraphy by Laura Hooper

Photo Booth - RI Photobooths


Cake by Mark Soliday - Confectionery Designs

Tuesday, December 15, 2009

We Make the Cover and our Fab New Ad is Released!!!!



Ever since our summer photoshoot with pal - international photographer/videographer
Rob Fortunato - we've been chomping at the bit to show you the amazing images!
This is the first to be released as our ad in Southern New England Weddings.
Not too shabby - but we'd expect nothing less from Rob. He's producing a video for us which we can't wait to see and show you. He spent last weekend filming Barack Obama for 60 Minutes no less and we're so lucky  to have crossed paths with him and his wife Jill. We did their wedding last spring.


So lots more to see as we release more images and shots from the photo shoot at Fort Adams in Newport!
See his amazing website HERE




Stoneblossom bouquet was chosen to grace the front cover of the just released Southern New England Weddings issue! They had their annual bash to celebrate the release last night and a great time was had by all!
In addition to the cover, we have three featured weddings and loads of images throughout the issue.
Visit SNE Weddings HERE to check out all the goods and order up your copy!!!