I fell in love with Katherine’s sense of style immediately! Her inspiration photos were stunning and she had a beautiful vision for how she wanted her wedding spaces to look and feel.

Katherine was also one of the first clients to book her wedding in the newly built spaces at the National Arts Centre and we were so excited to get in there!

The floor plan was one of our biggest challenges and it’s something we discussed and revised several times. The O’Born room has a unique shape and Katherine had her heart set on mixing long and round tables. We managed to find a layout that worked beautifully and the room did not disappoint! The stunning floor to ceiling windows washed the room in natural light and provided a beautiful backdrop for the wedding.

We loved how everything came together!

Until Next Week!!

Sophie
​
These lovely photos were captured for us by Grey Loft Studio

Today marks 12 years since Jay and I stood up in front of our families and friends and agreed to love and support each other for the rest of our lives. 

In that moment, my mother-in-law managed contain a giggle as she thought, "He's yours now. No take-backs!" 

We bicker and argue and make each other crazy sometimes. We don't always see eye-to-eye and we have to make compromises and sacrifices... that's life.

We married young and so we've sort of grown up together over these past twelve years. All of those vows we made... through sickness and health, richer or poorer, good times and bad... we've suffered and celebrated together through all of it and there's so much yet to come!

So while I sometimes want to toss him out of a moving vehicle... there's still no one I'd rather explore the world with, grow old with, or continually debate with over "who's the better driver"... I am. 

So it's ok, Mama Branchaud, I'll hang onto this guy. No take-backs. ​​

I'm going to break a cardinal rule of blogging and I'm going to go right ahead and point out the fact that I HAVE NOT BLOGGED IN SOOOOOOO LONG!!! In fact, I had removed the blog entirely from the navigation menu from our website because I knew that blogging was not going to be a big priority for me in 2018. 

But 2018 is over, Friends, and I have so many events I want to share with you. And I want to share them in a way that goes beyond the pretty pictures we post on Instagram. I want to share the stories of the clients we fell in love with and the amazing vendors we get to work with and the ridiculous behind-the-scenes stuff that doesn't show up in photos. 

Early in 2018 we reached out to Bethany from Grey Loft Studios to see if she could help us capture a few of our 2018 events. She agreed and we decided that Sarah and Scham's wedding was the perfect candidate for our first wedding shoot. Since it was being held at Le Belvedere we knew the lighting would be phenomenal and the space itself is gorgeous. 

​Sarah reached out to me in February about her May 2018 wedding. She had so many beautiful ideas about how she wanted her wedding to look. She knew she wanted the space to feel fresh and romantic and she wanted mixed metals for a bit of an industrial feel. 

For the next few months, Sarah and I went back and forth by phone, email, and even on FaceTime showing mock-ups, discussing ideas, and trying to work out all of the details. Since Sarah was planning everything long distance we were never able to sit down and sort everything out in person. She was also swamped with other projects (like writing exams for school among other things...).

(SIDE NOTE: I've learned that this is not at all uncommon. Most of our clients seem to be juggling major life events like graduating, moving, buying a house, starting a new job, or having a baby WHILE they're also planning their wedding. You guys are all nuts! And I LOVE it!)

Early in March, Sarah told me that she'd found her dress and she sent me this photo. HOLY CRAP! Right?! PS: This was months before the Royal Wedding so Meghan Markle totally stole this classic look from Sarah. Also, let's be honest, Sarah wore it SO MUCH better!

After seeing the dress I knew where we needed the decor to land. It needed to be classic, timeless, and unbelievably elegant. It had to have just the right amount of decor... but not too much. The tables couldn't be stuffed or overdone but they had to be stunning in their thoughtful simplicity. 

YES! Sarah's dress set the tone for the rest of the design from that point forward and we both fell in love.

Sarah confided in me that she'd never been one of those girls who dreamed of the day she'd get married. She had never pictured herself in a flowing white gown and she hated being the centre of attention. And yet, here she was planning this elegant day and she was obsessed!!! She fell in love with the process. In fact, Sarah was planning a second wedding event for her family back home - TWO WEDDINGS! - and she was loving all of it! 

(SIDE NOTE: Watch out, Sarah! That's how so many of us got sucked in to this industry, haha!!!)

We loved how everything came together and we were so grateful to Bethany for capturing the space so beautifully for us. 

Sarah, thank you for choosing to work with Sage and for entrusting me to help bring your beautiful vision to life. I wish you and Schams endless love and happiness. You will always be welcome here should you ever want to hang out and play with flowers & pretty things ;) 

xo

Sophie

In 2016 we had the pleasure of working with Shannon from Kennedy Event Planning to create an amazing Gatsby-themed holiday party. It was really just a little over a year ago but having to say that it was in 2016 makes it feel like it's been so much further away! 

The event was held at the Shaw Centre in the Trillium Ballroom so we had A LOT of space to fill! Shannon came up with a brilliant floor plan that mixed large and small tables and we decided to create  huge entrance structure which would both serve to fill the space and create a dramatic threshold for the guests. 

We packed the room with glitz and glam galore - as the Great Gatsby theme demands! 

Shannon had this crazy idea to hang gold and black foil from the ceilings. Sometimes Shannon can see things that even I can't see (which is really saying something!). I thought this move might cheapen the overall look and we had so many really stunning things going. But Shannon knew it would work and since I trust her judgement on these things I went ahead and ordered the foil and figured out the best way to go about installing it. 

As usual, Shannon was totally bang on! Look how amazing that foil looks!! It totally brought the room to life! I'm so glad I didn't try harder to talk her out of it, haha!

Thanks to the incredible Andrew Van Beek Photography for capturing this space so brilliantly.

​TIME FLIES!!! Oh my goodness... I can't believe how long it's been since this beautiful wedding we helped design for Cathy & Bobby. 

I absolutely adored the colour palette that Cathy chose. She loved the trend of blush and cream but she wanted to stir it up a bit and add a pop of lavender to the mix. The results were gorgeous!

Cathy's bouquet was packed with a careful selection of roses, carnations (yes carnations!!!), and super soft greens.

The centrepieces were tall arrangements of hydrangea and roses in that same beautiful palette. 

VENUE: The Gatineau Golf Club
PHOTOGRAPHERS: Joel & Justyna Bedford
FLOWERS & DECOR: Sage Designs 

​Working with Hannah & Phil was amazing. Honestly... they are two of the most sweet and kind humans I've ever had the pleasure to meet. Then again, most of our clients are pretty damn sweet! We've been really lucky. 

Hannah was referred to us by her mother, Peggy, who hired Sage to help design a Christmas party a few years back. Peggy works close to my home so I bump into her every now and then and we generally end up chatting for quite a while before we both realize we have to get back to whatever it was we were doing to begin with, haha!

The bouquets were composed of a mix of white blooms with pops and pale purples and lots of greenery to give that fun, freshly-picked look to the arrangements. 

Hannah and Phil chose the Infinity Convention Centre to host their wedding. Hannah really wanted to bring in a romantic garden feel to the space so we went with flowers and greenery for all of the centrepieces. We mixed high and low arrangements on the dynamic floor plan which was made up of both long and round tables. 

It was such a pleasure to work on this wedding! Wishing you guys all the very best on your new adventure!

xo

Sophie

Allie & Troy's wedding was set at the always stunning Museum of Nature. When Allexandra, Troy, and I met along with Joel-Marc Frappier from Gourmet Cuisine, the vision was clear... Ghost chairs. Candles everywhere. White fluffy flowers. Geometric shapes. White marble. GO! 

The day was captured by Janine Truelove from Intuition Photography. Have a look!

NAVY IS THE NEW BLACK!

Hi Everyone!

Welcome to Part 2 of our 3-part serious on 2017 Event Design Trends. If you missed Part 1 you can check it out here: Event Design Trends: Part 1. 

Seriously. Forget the traditional black suit... navy is the new go to. Forget the black accent colours... navy is more sleek and modern. Navy goes with everything... it's flattering on everyone and it's not nearly as stark as black is. Navy is a deep .dramatic shade that is still soft enough to be romantic.

I am IN LOVE with this trend! Who's with me?!

xo

Sophie

​

Kristina & Cole's summer wedding at the Westin, Ottawa. We loved Kristna's decision to add pops of red into her bridal bouquets even though the rest of the design was golds, whites, and blushes. The flowers looked AMAZING paired with Kristina's stunning red lips and gorgeous hair.

​Photos courtesy of Urban Bent Studio.  

TAGS: Ottawa Wedding Flowers, Ottawa Wedding Decorator, Wedding Design, Event Design, Ottawa Events, Ottawa Special Events, Montreal Weddings, Montreal Wedding Decor, Luxury Event Design, Wedding Style, Geometric Wedding Decor, Geo Shapes, Gold and Blush Wedding

Each Friday, as a nod to #FollowFriday, we'll be highlighting a designer who inspires us to create ever more stunning installations for our clients. In many cases, this will be a fellow event designer and in other instances we may feature another type of visual artist... a painter, an interior designer, an architect, a sculptor, etc. There are so many inspiring creative minds out there and we're excited to share some of them with our readers. 

This inaugural post features an incredible designer from New York: David Beahm from David Beahm Experiences.  In addition to having a brilliant talent for transforming spaces, David is also a creative business man, and a kind-hearted human-being with whom I had the pleasure to sit on my last visit to New York. He and his entire team are warm, energetic, lovely people. 

I was first introduced to David when he was a speaker at the Engage! summit I attended in Orlando in 2015. He started his session with a quiet guided meditation as a way to remind us all to take time for ourselves... to find some calm amidst the noise... and to give ourselves a chance to pause and recharge.  I fell in love with David from that moment on. Following his work and his travels on social media has made me love him all the more. 

What strikes me most about Team Beahm's work is their ability to take advantage of every piece of a space, floor to ceiling and wall to wall. I love that they can take a simple detail, like a votive candle, and with thoughtful placement and repetition, create a delicate and enchanting staircase.  

Below I've shared a few images of David's work as a teaser... but you'll want to follow all of his social pages to really get your fill. You can find more on Facebook, Instagram. and Pinterest.