October Wrap Up | Las Vegas to Napa and Back | Fall Floral Design

October is probably my favorite month of the year. It is that perfect intersection between the last blast of Indian Summer warmth and that transition into cooler temperatures with those cozy, wrap-up-in-a-fuzzy-sweater evenings. I love the turning colors of the trees, and vines in Wine Country. I must say, I have been missing those things since we moved to the desert. (Do palm trees and cacti really turn fall colors? Not so much.) And, until this past week, the temperatures here have been right up thre in the 80’s and 90’s! Not exactly sweater weather. But, I got the perfect cure for all my homesickness earlier this month, when I traveled back to the Bay Area to do flowers for Noelle and Mike’s wedding at the Villagio. See, lucky girl that I am, I have joined forces with the unbelievably talented team at Image Three Events. (More about this later—exciting stuff!) Which means I still have studio space and office to work out of for my Northern California events. So this lucky and homesick girl got the best of all possible worlds: I got to hang out with the boys from Image Three, got to go to the fabulous S.F. Flower Market and see so many of my floral friends there, I got to hang out with my pal and co-designer Joellen, AND I got to stay with my friend Tiffany (of the fabulous Adeline and Grace Wedding Photography) and her husband Matt and their adorable son (my ‘nephew’) Hunter. It was like a salve to my homesick soul to see all those familiar faces and feel so ‘at home’. And what’s better than that? Getting to create flowers for a gorgeous wedding and wonderful couple. AHHH! So nice. 

The weather for the wedding day was perfect: sunny, warm, but not too hot…. a gorgeous California fall day. The bride, Noelle, had told me in our first meeting, “I’m not sure exactly what I want….but I want to basically hold Autumn in my hands.” Well, that was all I needed. I absolutely love fall floral design. The textures, the colors. Pods, berries, leaves. I am talking right up my ally. (For this reason, I too, was a fall bride). So, here’s a sneak peek from Noelle and Mike’s wedding, courtesy of Table4Weddings.

The wedding was a success. It felt great to be finished, knowing we’d made another bride happy on her Big Day. And then I got to celebrate with a fun dinner out with friends in Yountville. (When in Rome, right?) 

Of course, no matter how homesick I might be, there is nothing better than coming home, to my new home, to be with my family, and getting hugs and kisses from my kids. It’s cliche, but true: home is where the heart is. 

And, as much I miss being in California full-time, I am finding that there are things to love about my new home. I do love the sun. And, we get a lot of it here. The mountains that surround the Las Vegas area are stunning. And, the sunsets here can be breathtaking. We are making friends, a new community. My husband absolutely loves his new job, and there is something to be said for the husband having a 15-minute commute to work, vs. a two-hour commute. We actually get to see him at dinner time. He’s happier. We’re all more relaxed. We have more space in our new home to spread out. My son, Alex is enjoying his preschool. So, things are good. 

And, what makes living here even better? When friends come into town!! 

Mid-month, the boys from Image Three came to town! And, not only did I get to see them, I got to work with them, too! So, I enjoyed doing my very first official Las Vegas event: A floral installation at the Hard Rock Hotel for the McAfee event, which included a concert by Third Eye Blind. All I have are some iPhone photos of our work in progress; I am hoping to see professional photos soon. The florals were fun: 50” tall towers of flowers for the buffet tables. There were only 6 in all, but they were so structural and involved that it really took two days to produce.

And last, but certainly not least, on October 25th, my husband and I celebrated our 8th wedding anniversary. 8 years? Really? Where does the time go. Unfortunately, the whole family was struck down by the Mutha-of-all-Colds, so we haven’t had a chance to go out on the town and properly celebrate. But, when we do I’ll be sure to write and update and let you know where we went. (Every time we go out on the town it is a new adventure for me—the restaurants here are amazing, and I do so love FOOD!)

…a photo from my wedding day in 2003

Thanks for reading about my little adventures…Happy Fall, Y’all!