Flower Chic: Visiting a Dahlia Farm

Kelly
May 15

I’m so happy my farm to table editorial was published on Snippet & Ink yesterday (check it here) so I can finally share some of the gorgeousness I captured with the amazing photographer, Karen Wise.

Nestled just before the foothills of Carpinteria a variertable flower wonderland of dahlias of all types and varietes trive under the Santa Barbara sun. On this day, I was picking up flowers for a little engagement dinner for Samantha of Could I Have That.

Varieties grown here range from dinner plate to petite red lollipop dahlias like these guys.

For Samantha’s table I picked a variety of bright summer colors, bright reds, yellows, oranges, and fuchsias.

Thanks so much to John of Greenwell Floral for hosting my little editorial project. I will be sharing more of the farms we shot and, of course, the delicious dinner catered by the Duo in the coming weeks.

Photographer: Karen Wise
Film Processing: Richard Photo Lab

Shoesday + Snippet & Ink

Kelly
May 14

The chicest way to walk away… in nude Louboutins! And you can pick up a pair for yourself, right here.

Also, my Farm to Table editorial is up on Snippet & Ink. Shot over 3 days in Santa Barbara County I tried to capture the bounty of the land. With photos by Karen Wise, food by Duo, and locally grown dahlias from a dahlia farm, it was a pretty & delicious shoot to say the least. Anyway, go check it out here.


Real Wedding: Greek Garden Elegance

Kelly
May 13

Evie & Nate were seriously a dream couple to work with; super nice, easy going, with amazing taste to boot, and the booked my girl Kirsten for the photos. The inspiration for the wedding design, was Evie’s Greek heritage. When we first spoke, she said she wanted it to feel like her grandmother’s garden in Greece. So we talked about using fresh herbs like bay and lavender, of course olive branches, and then mixing in fluffy garden roses.

In Evie’s bouquet I used a mix of Patience garden roses, bay leaves, lavender, olive branch, and queen anne’s lace and wrapped it up, with a strip of torn linen.

In keeping with the herb theme, I made petite boutonnières of lavender and rosemary and wrapped them with copper velvet ribbon. The bridesmaids carried simple dried lavender poseys finished with a tidy bow.

The ceremony was held at St. Barbara’s Greek Orthodox Church and decor was kept simple with olive garlands attached to the church pews.

After the ceremony, guests made there way to the rooftop of the Canary. I designed a “potting bench” seating card table using Town & Country’s potting bench bar. At the center of the table, guests’ names and seating assignments were spelled out on wood plant markers and tucked into moss. To finish the vignette, I used a collection of vintage watering cans, potted lavender, and stacks of rustic garden containers.

On the tables I used a mix of stone, and iron, garden containers and filled them with annabelle hydranga, Patience and Caramel Antique garden roses, bay and olive leaves, sweet peas, and dahlias. A soft green linen was draped over the tables and La Tavola’s cut lace linen layered over. A mix of gold and silver mercury glass candle holders added a hint of metallic glow.

A big congratulaions to Evie & Nate and a big thank you to all the vendors who made this day happen! To see more of this wedding hop over to Once Wed and Santa Barbara Magazine.

Flowers & Decor: Kelly Oshiro
Bride’s Shoes: Louboutin
Reception Venue: The Canary Hotel
Wedding Planner/Coordinator: Amber Weir
Lighting: Bella Vista
Garden Prop Rental: Vintage Vignettes
Dessert Table: Enjoy Cupcakes
Calligraphy: A Charming Occasion
Linens: La Tavola

On the Rocks: Raspberry-Champs Punch

Melissa
May 10

TGIF! This luscious libation is a great go-to crowd pleaser. It’s super easy to make in large batches and oh-so-tasty. Enjoy!

Ingredients:

Champagne

Raspberry Liquor

Fresh Lemonade

Pineapple juice

*To make one cocktail, fill glass half way with champagne, add a tiny splash of raspberry liquor and pineapple juice, and fill with lemonade.

-XOXO Melissa

P.S. IF you were wondering, my wedding was INCREDIBLE and so so fun! I can’t wait to share details with you soon!

Photographer: Jess Wilcox
Mixologist: Melissa Traub

Shoesday + Featured on Oncewed

Kelly
May 07

I’m so excited to finally show off these gorgeous Louboutins one of my adorable brides wore last year. Hello nude Louboutins with the sweetest little bow!

And you can check out the rest of this wedding on Oncewed (and in the current issue of Santa Barbara Magazine) and I will be posting my own little write up on Monday. Happy Tuesday Shoesday m’dears!

You can pick up this pair and similar shoes right here:

Flowers & Decor: Kelly Oshiro

Editorial: A Spring Dinner with a DIY Flower Garland

Kelly
May 06

Today I’m featuring a tabletop that was recently published in Santa Barbara Magazine and Style Me Pretty Living. It was a collaboration with the always amazing Nancy Neil and super chef Ayda Robana of Om Sweet Mama.

We set a simple table; with a god’s eye patter runner from Heather Taylor Home and china and flatware from Botanik.

Simple salads, like the panzanella with Haricort Verts featured farm fresh ingredients (recipe for the salad is here).

Instead of traditional flower centerpiece, I opted to make a flower garlad to keep the vibe relaxed but still very pretty. To make the garland you will need:

2 bunches of bay (depends on length of table)

2 bunches clematis

1 bunch hot pink ranunuculus

1 bunch wax flower

Begin by simple laying the piece of bay leaves end to end. I created a zigzag effect here so you could see the pattern of the linen. Then I simply took the blooms of clematis, ranunuclus, and wax flower and tucked it into the bay. You can wire all these pieces together but its not necessary. And that’s pretty much it! You can see more of this table right here and here.

PS I apologize for my blogging absence. A lot if going in my personal life and I will blog about it once things are more settled. For now, posting will remain on the lighter side. Thanks for hopefully sticking around here and enjoying some pretty :) .

Photographer: Nancy Neil
China/glassware/flatware: Botanik
Candlestick holders: Make Smith
Wholesale Flowers: Florabundance

Shoesday

Kelly
April 16

The perfect art deco heels!  Also, posting will be super light this week, we’re prepping for On the Rock’s editor, Melissa’s wedding.

Photographer: Elizabeth Messina