Rachel Trimarco
Jamali Garden: How did you get your start in floral and event design? Bride & Blossom: Prior to Bride & Blossom, I wore various hats in financial sales, public relations, and TV news production. While planning my own wedding in 2008, I got inspired to pursue floral design professionally. I went ahead and assembled a team and worked directly with distributors to bring my vision to life. When I got back from my honeymoon, my venue coordinator called me saying several brides were interested in using “my florist”! It was the perfect opportunity to start my own business, and soon enough Bride & Blossom was born!
Arrangement of dusty miller, geranium leaves, green lisianthus, and white Tibet roses.
JG: How would you describe your floral and decor style? B&B: Our style emphasizes elegantly curated colors and textures, with acute attention to detail and placement. We've decorated over 700 weddings and witnessed an incredible shift in the industry in both design technique and the integration of digital inspiration through Pinterest and social media. We're constantly challenging ourselves with exceptional arrangements and complex installations.
The bride with a cascading orchid bouquet.
JG: We love this beautiful bride and her gorgeous bouquet. B&B: This was from the gorgeous wedding of Nicole and Frank at The Woodmere Club on the South Shore of Long Island. Nicole chose Phalaenopsis orchids for her bouquet. The cascading bouquet's lavender and pink tones paired beautifully with her luminous gown.
Orchid centerpieces in mirror vases.
JG: Tell us about the two kinds of centerpieces you designed for this wedding. B&B: Orchids were a recurring theme at the ceremony and reception, tying everything together with a bold, modern finish. This centerpiece featured floating candles rising above fresh pink orchids in square mirror vases surrounded by more candlelight from square votives.
The tall, orchid and manzanita centerpiece.
B&B: The high centerpieces paired even more orchids with sandblasted manzanita branches. The natural cascade of orchids and sprawling manzanita branches married this modern look with a natural, spontaneous shape.
The escort card table.
JG: Where was this arrangement used? B&B: This was the escort card table. Orchids galore! We had orchids in tall glass vases and single blooms in smaller cylinders.
Hydrangea ball centerpieces.
JG: We're mad about purple so we particularly love this table. B&B: This was from the wedding of my close friend and colleague Lindsay at the Castle Hotel and Spa in Tarrytown. The high centerpieces are made up of rounded purple hydrangeas, while the base arrangements include eggplant calla lilies, ocean song roses, clematis vines, and purple hydrangeas in mirror strip vases. JG: When designing your events do you prefer long tables and what's their advantage with over rounds? B&B: Long tables have become increasingly popular and we love how much space there is to work with from a design standpoint. They allow for a lot of variance in shape and texture, and allow us to layer different design elements, which is an exciting advantage.
A long table with white florals and tall tapers in crystal candelabras.
JG: Do you have any advice for brides & grooms, or tips for planning great weddings and events? B&B: The most important thing is to not to let the frenzy of planning get in the way of enjoying your spectacular day together in the company of family and loved ones. It's easy to get caught up obsessing over every detail that you forget to have fun and be in the moment. From a design perspective, its important to come in having done some research to get a sense of the types of flowers and styles of arrangements you like. Being able to communicate your vision will make the collaborative design process with your florist go much more smoothly. It’s also important to consider the many variables that contribute to floral design pricing. Brides often ask about pricing without have a sense of what they want. The sky's the limit, so be sure to decide on a budget prior to beginning the design process. JG: What are some of your favorite Jamali Garden items? B&B: We definitely love all of the mercury glass options. A beautiful vase can make all the difference in enhancing overall decor, and Jamali Garden has such a wide array of shapes and colors to choose from. We also love the crystal candelabras and candleholders which we use very frequently for clean, contemporary looks. Light reflects so beautifully against crystal and can really add that pop of magic. We’ve also been using more and more lanterns, which are a flexible way to punctuate many different styles and aesthetics.