style me pretty {l+d}

Laura and David's stunning wedding at Highland Springs Ranch was featured this morning on Style Me Pretty! I can't rave enough about this couple who traveled from New York City to have their wedding in Southern California. I will share all about the wedding and lots of lovely details soon! In the meantime, enjoy Desi Baytan's images on the SMP post- aren't they just perfection???

peony heaven

Peony season is here, and I'm in heaven. They are such gorgeous blooms, aren't they? I've got tons of them in my house right now... white, pink, and hot pink. They are seriously the prettiest things ever. If you live near a Trader Joe's, you're in luck-- the peony bunches at TJ's are high quality, long-lasting, and about a third of the cost of the peonies I get from my floral wholesalers. Go buy some now!!!

Image | Florals | Styling by Lauryl Lane.

checking in and some clematis

Hello! Hello! Big changes happening here in the studio and I'm busy-busy-busy. I have lots of pretty weddings and events and other fun photos to share, but just haven't had the time to sit down and write the posts. My baby sister (aka 15 going on 25) Maggie will be interning for me this summer and I can hardly WAIT to have her help. She asked how much the internship pays and I said "room and board." Apparently she doesn't quite understand the concept of an internship yet. She will by the time it's over!  ;-) She arrives in just two weeks and I've got MAJOR PLANS for the weeks she'll be with me. Hopefully you'll get to see the fruits of our labor, I might even teach her how to do some blog posting... you never know. You'll get to hear about our time together, regardless!

I've been thinking of some regular features that I'd like to add here to the blog, but in the meantime, please excuse me, posts will be sporadic at best... but enjoy these images of gorgeous clematis!

Images | Florals | Styling by Lauryl Lane.

memorial day weekend

I am still trying to get caught up on business + life after traveling for the past two weeks. For Memorial Day weekend, {lovah} and I drove up to the Bay Area to visit with my family. My oldest sister and her husband are moving back to Berkeley after many years out East, so we went house-hunting with them. It was such an enjoyable, relaxing weekend. Here's a little peek at our adventures, courtesy of my iPhone!

Brunch at Crepevine in Oakland | House-hunting in Berkeley & Oakland | Breakfast (twice!) at Fat Apple's, an institution for my family | Exploring the beautiful Berkeley campus, where my brother-in-law will be teaching | Book-buying at Pegasus in Berkeley (the book thing runs in the family, too!) | A Pear Sage Martini at The Claremont in Berkeley | Watching my Dad compete in the Marin Memorial Day 5k Race!

Images by Lauryl Lane.

latest obsession :: passion vine

Passion vine. Where has it been my whole life??? I've used it before, but not in a great while. I happened across it at the flower market when I was picking up my floral order for a recent wedding, and made a snap decision to incorporate it into that wedding's design. Now I'm obsessed. I literally cannot get enough.

If you've been following my design work for any length of time, you've probably figured out that I am drawn to the unpredictability of flowers. I'm a spontaneous person by nature, so part of the excitement I derive from using a perishable good as my artistic medium is just that-- it's ephemeral quality. The life-span of a cut flower or plant is fleeting, so, in effect, my job is creating temporary art installations! Of course I know how best to treat and condition each and every botanical element that I work with- any good designer is going to know everything they can about the technical aspects of their chosen medium. But the fun part of the design process is the fact that no two cut flowers are ever exactly the same. That each stem has a personality and mind of it's own. A different bend, a different quirk, whatever it is... flowers are individuals.

And passion vine? Well, passion vine is über quirky. It bends and curves and droops and straightens...it has rumply leaves and corkscrew tendrils that are simply fascinating. The movement of this vine is beautiful and inspiring. It is delicate and ethereal but also dark and passionate. When the buds open....ah....magic. They are bold, sexy, elegant, intricate... and utterly mesmerizing. But enough of my descriptions... see for yourself!

Passion vine, you complete me. Or at least, you complete my arrangements. I adore you.

Images | Florals | Styling by Lauryl Lane.

dreary

On rainy, dreary days such as this... I imagine myself in a horrific castle à la The Mysteries of Udolpho. Occasionally I let my imagination run away with itself, and I hear noises that make my blood curdle. Eventually, I realize the noises are my next-door neighbor's cats. Why do cats sound so creepy sometimes?

Image | Styling by Lauryl Lane.