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DIY Flowers: What My Parents and I Pulled Off

April 2nd, 2009 at 09:26:26 by Francesca | 32 Comments | Add Comment

Having to pay for a wedding in Italy and a vow renewal in the United States, we were always looking for ways to save money and do things ourselves. Because my father is a landscaper, we knew that we could get a hold of flowers for the church. We decided to hire a florist for the bouquets and reception centerpieces and handle the church flowers and the place card area for ourselves. It turned out beautifully. But one bit of advice: Don't take on too much for the day of the wedding. My father, for example, did not end up taking photos with me at the house because he was at the church setting up the flowers. It would have been better to dole out certain duties after we prepared the flowers. You live and learn. In any event, here are some pics to give you an idea of what we did with flowers:

 
Photos by Bella Pictures
My father used two large cornucopias that he stuffed with flowers and fruit on either side of the altar table, mini burgundy poinsettias, and two bouquets of black magic roses and cabbages in the shape of roses that we picked up from G & G, a wholesale store for florists.

  
Photos by Bella Pictures
My mom made banners for the first two pews -- an "F" for Francesca for the pew where the bridesmaids sat and an "A" for Antonio for where the groomsmen sat. She used extra artificial fall leaves and soft gray fabric to match the flowers and bridesmaids dresses. Now, we have the banners hanging in our hallway at home, a lovely reminder of our big day.

  
Photos by Bella Pictures
Inspired by an article I saw in Martha Stewart Weddings, I created boutonnieres for the groom, groomsmen, and other special male guests, including my godfather Tony Di Costanzo and my grandpa Rocco Di Costanzo. For the groom, I used an artificial fall leaf, acorns, and some beaded stalks, and burgundy feathers with a charcoal gray bow to tie it all together. The others had everything but the artificial leaf. They were a big hit, and I enjoyed the day I spent making them. The good news is that because I used artificial goods, I created these and had them ready months before the vow renewal ceremony. The groomsmen have saved them as a keepsake, too.


Photo by Bella Pictures
My father picked up a Japanese Maple tree (just when you would plant it, so it wasn't too big), and we used artificial fall leaves as place cards that hung from the tree. I'll admit, however, there was a bit of a snag with this idea. It looked beautiful and made for fantastic photos. But we didn't organize the names well and some people had a hard time finding their place card. Still, I don't care because the look was exactly what I was going for!

Di Meglio is the guide to Newlyweds for About.com, where you can get information on the three legal documents every newlywed needs and celebrity newlyweds.

very pretty..i especially like the place card tree .....i'm curious... what is a renewal of vows ceremony like?

It's pretty much the same as a wedding, but it can really be whatever you want as long as you have a kind officiant. We had the same sort of ceremony as you would for a wedding -- replete with a large bridal party. But our priest mentioned we had already been married in Italy and we walked down the aisle with our rings and there was no exchange of rings. Let me know if you have other questions.

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