oh christmas tree

want your tree proffesionaly decorated? know anyone that does? studio stems can and will do this for you! in a week or so we will have a few done for viewing if you would like to see samples, just call or email to set up an apt.

there are several levels of service in regards to this special seasonal service ...

1. we can help you decor your house and tree with items you already have, maximizing their potential. we charge an hourly rate for this ....

2. we can help you determine a theme or style and purchase decor for you with a budget given to us from you and we will charge an hourly rate for consult time, shopping (and yes you can come too,) design time, and arranging decor. (this is a good option if you are considering a new type or style of tree or have a great tree but would like all new decor!)

we also do office trees! spread the word!

fall into me

want more of fall into me? fall into me on my site

quiz your floral style

so here is a simple quiz that can tell you a lot about your floral wedding style. answer them honestly. email me at info@studiostems.com with what you are mostly ... ex. mostly A's etc... i will email you back a short description of your style and most likely floral choices. you can still do it if your interested even if your married.

1.what is your idea of a romantic evening?
A. a candelit dinner at a cozy restaurant
B. a few games of pool at the local sports bar
C. renting a movie and cuddling on the couch
D. sipping organic tea at your local earth shop
E. checking out a local gallery or art show

2.Okay now you have found your prince charming but if you had to choose ....
A. Orlando Bloom
B. Jack Black
C. Chris Martin
D. Al Gore
E. Billy Corgan

3. what is your favorite reading material?
A. romeo and juliet type
B. if you must read, let it be a comic strip
C. your trusty cookbook
D. anything by Al franken
E. black and white photography

4. which dessert would you choose
A. strawberry cheesecake
B. hot fudge sundae
C. warm homemade apple pie
D. vegan chocolate chip cookies
E. dark chocolate anything

5. When you go out for a night on the town you always wear
A. your little black dress
B. fishnet stockings
C. night on the town? what is that
D. cruelty free cowboy boots
E. a necklace with chunky geo shapes

6. your ideal vacation
A. paris
B. vegas
C. traveling across country in your own motorhome
D. camping in a tent
E. new york city

7. on a cold winters night you prefer sipping on
A. hot cider
B. irish coffee
C. hot chocolate
D. green tea
E. something with alcohol in it

8. your breath freshner of choice
A. after dinner mints
B. bubble gum
C. hard candy
D. raw mint leafs
E. breath freshning spray

9. a good mantra for your life would be
A. follow your heart
B. born to be wild
C. there is no place like home
D. recycle, reduse, reuse
E. art imitates life

aka betty

the long awaited pictures from the great and fabulous dustin of digital izatt photog of amandas wedding have arrived! they are now a featured gallery under "aka betty" why you ask, amanda - she is soooo gorgeous! such a betty! check her out! amanda seriously was in the top 3 for most favorite clients of the year! i had a blast doing their wedding and i am so glad i met them and became a forever part of their lives!

thanking your vendors

so today i got an email from a client whose wedding was last week, a darling country fall affair for rebecca smith. this email included a heartfelt thanks - i receive these on occasion and i just cant say enough about how much i appreciate this! it really is why i conitnue to do what i do and it makes it so worth it!

then later on today i was doing some research, as i often do, and reading INSIDE WEDDINGS nov 07 issue. (i cant tell you how many wedding mags i have bought over the years all while already being married and nearly every time i buy them the clerk asks me if i am getting married. usually i have at least one if not all kids in tow!) i found an article on page #228 that is entitled "adopt an attitude of gratitude" i loved the 'thanking vendors' section and thought i would post what this mag writer suggests. i am taking things at a minimum these days for the fall season for family reasons but during this time i really wanted to post some things that would be informative for clients and interesting to read. i have a stack of topics. so lets start with this since its fresh on the brain:

"THANKING YOUR VENDORS -Vendors are the backbone of a successful event. The wedding industry may be a billion dollar business, but its spread out over millions of small business owners who do what they do because they enjoy lending their talents and creating meaningful celebrations for others. it takes a unique sense creativity, patience, and profesionalism to thrive in this industry. Giving your vendors a written note of thanks for all they have done is a wonderful way to acknowledge the impact they have made on your day and your lives. .... This can often be the best way to show your gratitude for your vendors' hard work."

that being said .. i know this seems biased on my part, of course i would want to blog this. well once in a while a wedding vendor must be selfish i guess. hope this has been helpful and a big shout out to rebecca who made my day today and made what i do worth it! thanks!

Neena knows where Neena goes ...

My lovely, talented, trusty assitant knows where she will be serving her mission ..... drum roll please .......

capetown south africa!

how cool is that! i am soooo proud of her and way excited for her to embark on this amazing journey!

she leaves feb 28th. sigh of releif this means i wont be looking for a new assistant until the beginning of january. there are a few people i am considering as of now but if you are interested watch for a blog post detailing what i am looking for sometime in january and contact me at that time.

NEENA - YOU GO GIRL! I LOVE YOU!!!!

country fall

this last friday was rebecca smiths wedding and it was pure country fall! centerpieces were arranged in mason jars. we added twine details to everything! brown ribbon adorned all the bouquets. flowers were orange lilies, yellow and orange mini callas, red and orange mini gerbera daisies, red roses, lemon leaf, amaranthus, and alstromeria.

karla revisited ... back in ... sort of

Pics from the fabulous KATE BENSON have arrived. check out the new site colors .... i get bored way tooo easy! karla's wedding is also a featured category in the gallery/portfolio section. the pictures are amazing as they always are with kate! i loved this bouquet toss pic cause man oh man does karla have an arm, check out the height on the bouquet!

so i am kind of back in the office, easing into work a little. be cautious and careful about booking conults so i am still out a ways on that! it was hard to predict what i could handle and what i coudnt with saylor being laid up. not making any sense, my youngest child had surgery this week. i do have a small wedding this weekend, rebecca smith, its a fall country feel and gorgeous so be looking for pics soon!

i also want to take this oportunity to thank all my existing clients and potential who understand that family comes first!

boo! out of the office

check this spooky centerpiece out. something i just did for us. i love this time of year. made out of deep red mini callas and of course some signature black ones too, red dahlias, and mums. in a classic black urn with fake spider web stretched out over it! This is my version of a martha halloween classic!

i will be out of my office from mon october 8th until monday october 16th. i will have email access but may not respond until i am back in the office, and cell phone access i ask at this time to please be limited to clients who have weddings in the next few weeks that have already booked and are currently working with studio stems.

oops!

Ashley's bridal sitting bouquet. Thought i would share how sometimes things just dont work out, no matter how hard i work! Ashley called me only a few weeks ago to do her bridal sitting bouquet only (she is getting married in hawaii at christmas time.) we ordered flowers for a bouquet she found in one of my books she really liked. we did this about 3 weeks in advance which usually is good time for most flowers, but we knew this would be iffy since she wanted special brown orchids to go with sahara roses, a very vintage unique bouquet. about a week before the sitting the wholesale supplier called to tell me we would not be able to get the orchids and that they had exhausted all resources to get them. so we fell back on a back up bouquet that ashley already had picked out that we knew would be readily available even at short notice, red roses, eggplant misted red callas, green hyp berries, and green cymb orchids with a ivory and brown satin wrap. she added a single white orchid to her order for her hair.

day of sitting arrives and ashley calls to inform me that they have moved the sitting time up a few hours and hoped i could also adjust. i bend over backwards a lot of the time for clients and this seemed to be just a little back arch adjustment .... initially. later in the day when she was supposed to be at my house picking up her flowers she called to tell me she was running short on time and wouldnt make it to pick up the flowers and wanted to know if they paid for delivery if i could bring them to her at thanksgiving point. so now reaching a little farther, i have 3 kids just home from school and realize that i have to go now in order to get it to her by the time she gets there to start her shoot before the rain coming in hits her. so i load them all, the bouquet too and hit the road, making phone calls to asjust my schedule on the way. we drive the 20 min there and just as i pull in the parking lot, i have a light bulb moment that drops by heart and my stomach, my clients and their events mean a lot to me! i had forgotten the single orchid bloom for her hair. OOOPSS! well i am human but honestly i try hard not to bed when it comes to events. i know how intense weddings are for everyone and how one shot these things are. i felt so aweful. so i go find ashley and tell her and her mother how sorry i am and that i will waive the travel fee. i was happy to go back and get it but knowing that there and back would be 40 min, thought her sitting would be nearly over. but they wanted me to, so i spent the next hour of my packed day now rearranged in the car driving home and back to TP with one single orchid. what a day! hope Ashley and her mom are not too mad at me. bouquet turned out gorgeous not too tropical but between the bouqet and the hair orchid i think it was uthawaii!

little pink bling

Laura baker's wedding was this last weekend. Laura's story is special and dear to me. she married the love of her life, jacob, despite his severe disabilities. having a daughter that is disabled makes this job very special for me. i hope she loved her flowers! bouqet was white regular and mini callas with a little pink bling on the petals, airbrushed pale pink mini and regular callas, white hydrangea, curly willow, white cymbidium orchids, wrapped in brown satin ribbon with the classic white pearl line. bridesmaids - hydrangea base with pale pink mini callas and curly willow, boutineers were pink and white mini callas with hydrangea leafs, throw bouquet was several white cymbidium orchids tied together. best wishes laura and jacob! thanks for opening your lifes to me!