August 31, 2017

Real Weddings

Carrie and Nate - 05/06/17

August 31, 2017

Real Weddings

I have known Carrie since high school and I was SO thrilled she chose me to be a part of her and Nate's special day! Their wedding was timeless and classic.

Their flowers were all roses. Carrie carried a bouquet of all dusty rose colored roses, while the bridesmaids carried bouquets of all white roses.

There was a lot of debate before the wedding on what color "dusty rose" is. There are so many varieties and I wanted to make sure it was going to match perfectly. I didn't want them to be too blush or too lavender. So, I sent her pictures of close to a dozen different roses for her to pick the perfect one. I think her pick was spot on - look how great they match the bridesmaids dresses!

The boutonnieres matched the girls' bouquets - dusty rose for Nate and white for the groomsmen.

Nate and Carrie are super adorable together! I wish them the most amount of happiness in their future together.

Live Love Flowers - Michele Signature (1).png

July 23, 2017

Michelle Mampre

Real Weddings

Elly and Nathan - 11/04/16

July 23, 2017

Michelle Mampre

Real Weddings

Elly is one of my brides that I didn't meet before her wedding due to them living out of town. I actually didn't meet her until the day after the wedding but we clicked from the very first phone call. Elly worked in the hotel industry so she's been around a ton of weddings and has a great eye for design!

Even though they got married in November, the weather was absolutely perfect! The wedding and reception were at Isle of Capri in Bettendorf but I'm glad they got a chance to go outside for pictures.

The bouquets were white peonies, white roses, blush spray roses, baby's breath and silver dollar eucalyptus. Peonies are really rare in November and they did not want to open for me, but they turned out so lovely and perfectly on trend.

The reception featured greenery, gold terrariums and tons of candlelight. It was a really romantic and trendy vibe.

On half of the tables, there were triangle terrariums with ruscus and baby's breath around the base. On the other half, there were hexagon terarriums with roses, spray roses and eucalyptus around the base.

The real showstopper was the ceremony backdrop that Elly and I spent months deciding what to do. It was truly stunning and one of my favorite pieces I've created.

The design featured a variety of sizes of cylinder vases with flowers and candles. From the top down, the flowers were dendrobium orchids, white hydrangea, white carnations, blush spray roses and the small gold vased arrangements double purposed as the centerpieces for the parents' tables.

Top images - Giraffe Photography , Bottom images - pinterest photos from bride — Top images - Giraffe Photography , Bottom images - pinterest photos from bride

After many discussions and email threads, Elly sent me the photos on the bottom and asked to do something similar. I'm obsessed with what we came up with. Our biggest issue is what we were going to sit all the vases on. We wanted the candles to really dance and sparkle so we didn't want to just use a table. We considered huge mirrors, but one this size would have run hundreds of dollars and that was out of the budget. We landed on using the glass top from my entertainment center! Never underestimate the use of random objects around the house.

Since the wedding, Elly has started a business of her own. Lattz Travel Group focuses on romantic vacations such as honeymoons and anniversary trips. Elly is a delight so if you need help planning a honeymoon, you should check her out!

I loved working with Elly and Nathan for their special day and have been lucky enough to keep in touch via FB. I hope they continue to live a blessed and happy life together!

April 13, 2017

Michelle Mampre

Florist Life, Real Weddings

Katie and Michael - 10/22/16

April 13, 2017

Michelle Mampre

Florist Life, Real Weddings

This wedding is extra special to me. You may be wondering why. The groom is one of my brothers and I FINALLY have a sister now! I'm also sharing this on my FOURTH business anniversary, so it is definitely going to be a ton of pictures :)

I can't remember the first time I met Katie many years ago. If I was going to give it a guess, it would probably have been on our family boat. She fit into our family from the very beginning so our first meeting doesn't stand out in my memory.

Katie's family has always been welcoming to me. They live about 2 blocks away from me so I see them when I'm out walking the dogs. I've texted Katie the morning of the Turkey Trot and ask to run with her family, they've invited me to family dinners - all around great people that I'm glad to be connected to forever.

I DO remember the day I found out they were engaged! I got a text early in the morning with a picture of the two of them showing off a gorgeous new ring. Michael's caption told me he "finally locked it down," After 5 years together, I'm sure they were getting nagged a lot about when they would finally tie the knot. A few weeks later, Katie texted me late on Thursday night asking if I wanted to run the Bix with her on Saturday morning because her partner backed out.

We were running along the course and we were talking about various wedding related things. I remember asking if she had thought about how many bridesmaids and who they would be. There was a long pause before she said, "well, you, hopefully." I was so thrilled, suddenly the last half of the race was a little easier.

I was lucky enough to be included in the planning process, even getting to visit their venue before they booked it. Because I was doing the flowers as well as being a bridesmaid, they wanted me to be able to ask any questions I may have about being able to use the space. The Iowa Events Center is a huge room that we added lounge furniture in part of the space.

On Thanksgiving, Michael and Katie asked all of us to be a part of their wedding. Brothers Nick (middle) and David (left) got fun "socks to help me tie the knot" and were asked to be Best Man and Groomsman. I got a little bottle of champagne and a Michelle koozie officially asking me to be a bridesmaid. We were all so excited to be asked to join their special day.

Katie carried a bouquet of white roses, free spirit orange roses, orange asiatic lilies, mango calla lilies, and orange ranunculus. I'm kind of obsessed with the free spirit roses so I hope more brides choose to use them!

The week of the wedding, my mom and I loaded up a fully packed SUV to head to Des Moines to work on the flowers. When I say fully packed, I mean my passenger seat was fully forward and there was a box in my lap.

The venue was gracious enough to give us a studio room right across from the reception hall to be able to work in. Having my mom there to help made everything run smoothly and quickly. We were both surprised that we didn't bicker or anything the whole weekend! Having an "assistant" who used to run her own floral shop was a HUGE blessing. Even though I was in the wedding and doing the flowers, I don't think I have ever felt so relaxed about a wedding weekend.

When David flew in, we put him to work too. He even made the toss bouquet! The boys loved their duties of filling vases with water beads. If you've ever run your hands through a bucket of water beads, you know it is a weird feeling (and definitely something boys would love messing with). David even mad the toss bouquet - it took him almost an hour because he is such a perfectionist, but he did a great job! If the whole doctor thing doesn't work out for him, he has a job waiting for him at LLF.

After the rehearsal dinner, we recruited the cousins to help us put all the centerpieces out. This is when the male cousins learned that holding a vase of lilies (that has bloomed after arranging) close to their bodies leads to pollen on their shirts. They weren't super happy to learn that info, but recruiting a big group of people saved us a ton of time setting up centerpieces on Saturday.

Friday night, after helping me set up centerpieces, we decided to go out for a couple drinks with all the cousins and my parents. It was a lot of fun to let loose with family for a little bit before the big day!

Saturday morning, we had to be at the salon bright and early. Mom and I were first to get our hair and makeup done. From there, we left to put the finishing touches on the reception and then meet the rest of the bridal party at the church.

When Michael and Katie asked the groomsmen, with fun socks, to be in the wedding, their intent was for the guys to wear them on their wedding day. Everyone understood that, except Adam. So Adam proudly rocked his Nike socks, while everyone else was wearing fun socks.

After the ceremony, the bridal party had a blast frolicking around downtown Des Moines for group pictures.

The bridesmaids had bouquets of free spirit roses, orange asiatic lilies and mango calla lilies. Who looks better with the bouquets? I think the boys rocked the bouquet shot!

Of course, we had to recreate the classic Bridesmaids pose. It was harder than you might think to put your knee up and bend over awkwardly like that. The photographer, Alex, from The Bearded Studio had the movie cover out on his phone and made sure we were exactly right. That is some serious dedication!

We were late for our Grand Entrance into the reception because we spent a ridiculous amount on time on these escalators. But it made for some pretty cool pictures!

Our Grand Entrances were worth the wait. I wish I had seen my mom's face while I walked in with a grown man on my back, because I'm pretty sure it was a heart attack face. I didn't drop him and I didn't throw out my back!

The whole weekend was a blast and I'm so happy to finally call Katie a member of our family! I feel extra blessed that I could be such a big part of their day on so many levels.

Michael trying to dip was one of the funniest things I've ever seen! I hope they spend the rest of their life laughing as much as we all did on their wedding day.

A little LLF update because it is my business anniversary! I gave up sweets for Lent so I'll be celebrating tonight with some wine and Texas Roadhouse takeout and wait to buy myself a cake until Sunday.

My goal for the year was to book 30 weddings and I am proud to say that I have 32 on the books for the year! 3 of them I am a bridesmaid (or MOH) and a florist! It's going to be a wild year! I do still have some available dates for July - December if you're still looking for a florist.

Many of your have met my assistant, Kelsey, over the years. LLF is both overjoyed and sad that she is going to be welcoming a new baby in June so that means she won't be around for the majority of wedding season. With that, I am training some newbies to help me out this year!!

Lexi helped me out at the Bridal Expo this year so some of you may have met her already. Jordan and Megan are former brides of mine that are also going to join the LLF team. All 3 new minions will not only be training to help with day of wedding set ups, but also will be learning how to make corsages and boutonnieres so they can help with some design work. They are the reason I am able to take on so many weddings this year!

Year 4 is going to be full of new challenges, some really cool designs and a ton of amazing weddings! I've had one wedding in January of this year, but wedding season really kicks off the last week of April! If you don't have me on Snapchat, add me to see behind the scenes footage of weddings (and usually some cute dog pictures). I'll of course continue to post bouquet pics on wedding weekends and blog posts after I get images, but Snapchat is a great way to see the whole messy process. Snapchat name is liveloveflower (no S on the end because that was too many characters).

I've been so blessed on this journey so far and I can't wait to see where the next year takes me!

March 22, 2017

Michelle Mampre

Florist Life, Tips and Tricks

10 Questions to Ask Before Hiring Your Florist

March 22, 2017

Michelle Mampre

Florist Life, Tips and Tricks

Recently, I saw an article on The Knot about the 10 questions you should ask your florist. I thought I would take a bit to make a blog post with those questions and the answers to them! You can find the original article here, but I'll go through the questions, why they want you to ask and then the answers!

1. Have you done many weddings?

Why you want to know: This is really code for: Do you know what you're doing? Experience is usually a good indicator of expertise, and that's important since it will mean they'll be able to guide you through the process easily—even if you throw in some curveballs, like asking how to create less expensive alternatives or which flowers are in season or grow in the region.

Answer - On my own, I have done 47 (with 28 more scheduled this year). Prior to owning my own business, I worked in a local flower shop for about 4 years.

Image from my 2nd wedding as a business owner - Image by Fetography Portraits

2. Can I see photographs or live examples of your work?

Why you want to know: Be wary if the answer is no. Pictures of past bouquets and centerpieces will give you a sense of whether you and the florist have the same taste. Seeing photos of their work will let you know exactly what they're capable of and how it compares with your inspiration bouquets. The trick here, though, is having them tell you if the photo was something they consider their style or if it was the couple's vision. Neither answer is bad—if you love the look, you know they're capable of making it again; if you hate it, ask to see something they think is reflective of their own style

Answer - Absolutely! My website is full of professional images of my work. I do have other photos as well that I haven't gotten around to blogging yet or in books at my house when we meet. I don't typically have fresh flowers around because I only do special event work. If you happen to be meeting around a time when I have something you are considering in stock, I would be happy to pull it out for you!

3. Have you done weddings at our ceremony or reception site before?

Why you want to know: If they have, they'll be knowledgeable about what sizes, shapes and colors work in the venue. It's also a great way to see how other couples transformed the space. If they haven't, ask if they'd be willing to do a site visit to scope it out and note any limitations. This isn't as essential as general experience and style, but it's super-helpful and could save you time and money.

Answer - I have worked at almost every ceremony and reception site in the QC. Chances are you have a color scheme before you meet with me as far as colors to work in your venue. If there is something extensive we are planning or I haven't been there in awhile, I do drop by for a site visit to check things out. If there aren't pictures of their pews on their websites and we are planning pew ends, I definitely drop by to make sure I know the proper way to make them beforehand.

4. How many weddings are you handling on the same day or weekend as mine? Will you simply be dropping off flowers, or will you be helping set up too?

Why you want to know: If your florist is handling multiple clients, you'll want to ensure they have enough staff and time to go around. Make sure to discuss your vision with the person who will actually be working on your wedding flowers. You'll pay more for a full-service florist who makes sure everything is in order the day of, but it's often worth the peace of mind.

Answer - I typically limit myself to 2 weddings per weekend. I do have one weekend this summer where I have more than that, but only because some of them are very small. I'm bringing in a designer from another home based shop in Peoria to help out. I handle all important details of your wedding. I am bringing on helpers this year for corsage and boutonniere work.

5. How do you like to work with clients?

Why you want to know: Maybe you can picture your bridal bouquet, right down to the number of stems—or maybe you have no idea and would like some serious hand-holding. Find your floral match. Some florists love input from their clients, while others work better with more freedom to handpick the freshest stems or stretch the palette a little. Hire someone whose creative process matches your needs. It will make this planning step better for everyone involved.

Answer - I like somewhere in the middle. If you have pictures of what you want things to look like, that's great! It makes my job easy! Unless it is of specific significance, I prefer not to have my stem counts dictated. You may think you want specifically 22 roses in your bridal bouquet, but that may be an awkward shape. I like a little freedom to suggest flowers that fit your style and budget if you aren't set on exactly what you want.

6. Are you willing to work within my budget?

Why you want to know: This seems obvious, but it's not just about making sure the florist will take the job. If your budget is low, talk openly and honestly about how much you can spend at your initial meeting. Sometimes hearing "no" is a good thing, because then you can figure out how to compromise early on. Maybe it's impossible for anyone to accomplish what you want within that price range (read: you want a lush flower wall on a shoestring budget). Most florists can work with you no matter how much you have to spend, but it's important to start the conversation early—and to be open to new ideas and alternatives.

Answer - I make an effort to work within any budget. However, if you're set on a bouquet that would cost $400 and the budget for all your bridal party flowers is $500, I can suggest changes to give a similar look but on a lower budget. It's ultimately dependent on the client to determine if they like those options or if they want to try to find someone else. On my contact form, I ask for your floral budget. This helps me be prepared for cost saving ideas in our meeting, if necessary. If you need insight on floral pricing before planning our meeting, you can check out this blog post I wrote about the cost of commonly requested Pinterest items.

7. Will you be responsible for working with my venue to find out about any restrictions they may have in terms of décor and installation?

Why you want to know: You don't want to be the middleman—florists have a better idea what's needed to carry out your vision, be it indoor topiaries or a 10-foot-tall floral chuppah. Ideally, your florist will communicate with your venue directly to be sure your plans don't interfere with their policies. You also want to make sure they're comfortable handling setup and breakdown without having to involve you, since you'll be pretty busy on your wedding day.

Answer - If there are installations you want done (like things hanging from a chandelier) I will definitely contact them separately to plan that out. However, if your venue has rules about things they told you about, please bring them up in our meeting. Some don't allow real candles, some requires candles to be pre-lit and blown out ahead of time, some churches don't allow fresh petals on the aisle. With hundreds of venues in the area and ever-changing rules, I can't keep up with them all. Likely when you signed your contract, they went over those items with you to share with whomever is in charge of your decor.

8. What other services do you offer?

Why you want to know: Most florists are actually more like event designers. You may be able to get extras, like fabric draping, lanterns, chairs, candelabras and lounge furniture, from them. Why is this a good thing? Dealing with one wedding pro rather than four or five can simplify the process and alleviate stress (sometimes you can save on delivery charges too). If they don't offer these services and you're interested in them, see if they regularly partner with a rental company. Oftentimes florists have a friend in the industry, and you can be assured the two work well together.

Answer - I have a plethora of lanterns and a few backdrops. I have a few favorite companies I like to work with for items I don't have. I have an ever growing inventory of centerpiece items but I'm not looking into expanding into furniture type items due to space restrictions. The companies I recommend are all great at what they do and easy to work with! For a complete list of who I recommend for different areas, click here.

9. Who will handle setup and delivery? What about breakdown? How long will you need for both, and what are the fees?

Why you want to know: These are the sneaky line items on a proposal that can add up. A florist usually assesses your budget for flowers and labor only, so ask about these "extras" you can't really avoid. Also, make sure arrangements for pickup have been made for any rented items, like vases and arches.

Answer - Unless it's something wild and crazy, I include delivery and setup in my prices. If it's not something that delivery would included (example - flower wall), we will discuss it in your meeting. I do offer a discount if you choose to pick everything up and do your own setup. For delivery outside 20 miles, I do charge a delivery fee.

Tear down is your responsibility, but I do offer it for an additional charge. Tear down fees would be dependent on how difficult it will be. When I send you your final questionnaire, I will ask if you want to include tear down for XX amount. Sometimes, it sounds like a good idea to do your own tear down when you're planning months ahead of time, but as it gets closer, you may rethink that. Some receptions sites allow you to leave your items there overnight for me to pick up on Sunday or Monday. If they don't, you're responsible for returning them to me by the Monday after your wedding.

10. What happens to the flowers after the wedding?

Why you want to know: When you hire a florist, you're typically quoted a price that includes not only the flowers but also the vases or other containers you'll be renting to display the stems. This means that while those pretty blooms are yours to keep, the urns or candelabras go home with the florist. If you're interested in repurposing the arrangements for a day-after brunch, you'll want to discuss the details with your florist. They can often work the additional cost of vases into your initial proposal.

Answer - Just like this states, the flowers are yours to keep, I need the containers back. Depending on what your centerpieces are, you could have family and friends pull the bouquets out of the vases and take them home, or you could bring random vases from home to keep everything. If you want to use things at the morning after brunch - go for it! Just return everything to me afterwards. If you want to keep one of each item as-is, I can definitely charge the extra for the containers for you to keep those items. You are also welcome to supply any containers you would like to use for centerpieces, as long as you get them to me ahead of time. There are also options for donating your remaining flowers to funeral homes, nursing homes and hospitals for tax deductions. Those are options you can look into if that's something you may be interested in.

I am always happy to answer any questions you may have, but I thought this would be a good way to get a lot of questions answered before we ever meet! My FAQ page also has answers to a lot of questions not covered in this post.

March 15, 2017

Michelle Mampre

Real Weddings

Jordan and Kendal - 09/24/16

March 15, 2017

Michelle Mampre

Real Weddings

Jordan and Kendal were referred to me by a friend and past client of mine. I've always had a rule about not working on my birthday, but I broke it for them. I am so glad I did! They turned out to be perfect clients and Jordan has grown into a friend. I've even recruited her to help with weddings. Their pictures are to die for, so I'm not even sorry for how many I'm going to post. There were too many good ones to narrow down for this post, I don't know how they decided which ones to print/order!

Jordan carried a bouquet of baby's breath, white roses, blush garden roses, white mini gerberas and silver dollar eucalyptus and a last minute addition of white snapdragons. I usually have a vision when it comes to making bouquets. With this one, I started out hating what I was doing but then I started falling in love with it

I just love special moments - like a father walking his daughter down the aisle, when a groom sees his bride coming down the aisle, and a mother helping her son get ready.

The bridesmaids carried bouquets of baby's breath, white roses, white gerberas, and silver dollar eucalyptus

Her toss bouquet was baby's breath and silver dollar eucalyptus with blush streamers.

Her flower girl had a baby's breath flower crown with blush streamers. I love this picture where she is in the middle of all the girls. You can definitely tell she was in heaven being the center of attention.

This bridal party seems like a lot of fun! The girls wore dresses with convertible tops so they could wear whatever was comfortable for them. With a color scheme of blush and navy, they were perfectly on trend for 2016.

I'm not sure if it was the photographer or these girls have natural bouquet holding talent, but with a group so large, it is refreshing that none of them were holding them awkwardly or at a weird height.

I always love a shot with a groom holding the bouquet. I love the juxtaposition of the classiness of Kendal with the bouquet and the girls chugging a beer.

I'm truly thankful I broke my "no work on my birthday rule" for this couple. I love following their married life on Facebook and Snapchat. Their dogs remind me SO much of my own. You'll find Jordan helping me with weddings in 2017 and I'm very excited to have her on my setup team! I'm so thankful they let me be a small part of their happily ever after :)

March 5, 2017

Michelle Mampre

Real Weddings

Jessica and Jeremy - 09/04/16

March 5, 2017

Michelle Mampre

Real Weddings

Jessica and Jeremy got married at Lavender Crest Winery on a perfect Labor Day Weekend. With colors of red, orange and brown, it was the perfect mix of summer and fall, just like the weather was that day.

In 2016, I didn't do many double wedding weekends, but the Suits wedding was the 2nd of a double wedding weekend. I couldn't have asked for a better couple on a weekend like that. Jessica was so laid back during the whole planning process, So, when it was 11pm the night before the wedding, and I got a call from her, I was panicked about what it could be. They were using water beads in all their centerpieces and one of the tubs of water beads tipped over in the front yard. She was calling me to see if I had any or if I had any idea of where you could get some that late. They ended up staying up late to pick up water beads out of the grass and off the driveway. Even though they were up super late, Jessica still looked fantastic! I loved her burgundy hair with her color scheme!

Jessica carried a bouquet of red roses, orange roses, and sunset colored roses with sunset calla lilies. The bridesmaids carried bouquets of sunset calla lilies. She came to visit me at Claire's and I helped her pick out all of her wedding jewelry. Thank you so much for supporting me in all avenues of life.

With corn fields and a winery for a backdrop, Jessica and Jeremy's wedding was picture perfect. I'm so thankful for the opportunity to work with them. I wish them the best of luck on their future together!

October 4, 2016

Michelle Mampre

Real Weddings

Hailey and Nate - 06/11/16

October 4, 2016

Michelle Mampre

Real Weddings

I have known Hailey since middle school and I was lucky enough to meet Nate at their appointment last fall. I could definitely feel the love between the two of them, even in just an hour long appointment.

Their wedding was very garden inspired and all the girls wore flower crowns that matched their dresses (pink, green, blue and purple) and Hailey's had all the colors as well as a few succulents. The flower girls also had all the colors as well as long streamers down the back. I'm kind of obsessed with the picture of the flower girl twirling.

Hailey and Nate got married outside on one of the hottest and most humid days of the year! Thankfully, there was a good cloud cover because I almost melted setting up their arch. They got married at the Botanical Center with the reception at Renwick Mansion. They were very traditional and chose to not see each other before the ceremony.

Each of the bridesmaids carried a bouquet of different flowers and then Hailey carried a collection of all of them. The girls carried light pink spray roses, dried green hydrangea, light blue delphinium, and light purple stock. All the bouquets also contained baby's breath and white waxflower. Hailey's bouquet had succulents.

I didn't attend their ceremony but it looks like it was pretty emotional. Can we agree that Nate's reaction to seeing Hailey walk down their aisle is major relationship goals?

I can't imagine how hot Nate was in that suit, but they looked great! And they are so cute together!

I went to middle school and high school with all of the bridesmaids as well. They are a great group of girls that have stuck together for life. The personal attendant in grey also joined in on a lot of pictures :)

That's one good looking bridal party! I loved the pastel color scheme!

I made all the bud vases and teacups for their centerpieces and they placed them on tables.

Since their wedding this summer, Hailey and Nate have announced they are expecting a baby boy! I can't wait to watch their little one grow up! I was hoping for a girl because I wanted to make little baby flower crowns, but I know this little boy is going to be adorable!

Congratulations again! I wish them all the best on their future :) Thank you for including me as a part of your special day!

August 23, 2016

Michelle Mampre

Tips and Tricks

Pinterest Project

August 23, 2016

Michelle Mampre

Tips and Tricks

I started the Pinterest Project as a way to explore the expectation for the cost of wedding flowers vs. realty. Use this as a tool to help set your floral budget! Guess the prices of the arrangement to see if your budget is on track with your desires!