Our main mission was to join my aunt, cousins and their kids in their daily lives, so we went to football and volleyball games, attended a youth event at their church, and savored home cooked meals, crowded around the dining room table together. It was so good to catch up and spend quality time with them. However, we did also have some special adventures and meals out around the area.
When I first learned about Midtown Bramble and Bloom, I remember wondering “What exactly is a micro flower farm? And how does she grow enough flowers to sell or do a wedding?”
As a former Memphis resident, I used to go to Midtown on a regular basis. It is a quaint urban community, with small lots and charming homes. I figured that the owner of the farm, Marisa Mender-Franklin
If I am ever asked, I always name Birds Across The Sky, by Florence Page Jaques, as my favorite book. While it is true that I am passionate about flowers (making a memoir about bird an odd choice for a favorite), I have read this book several times and just enjoy it so much.
But first, a little background story… I found this book at a church resale fundraiser
When my first child was born, we made the mistake of not hiring a professional photographer to capture us as a new little family. This is something I have continued to regret. A few years later, we moved to St. Louis, and shortly after met Jill Fager, and her family. Turns out, we have a lot in common.
I remember when I was setting up my first post-collage apartment, I started googling how to repaint secondhand furniture since I didn’t have any kind of budget for new furniture. I stumbled upon Marion Parson’s line of paint, called Miss Mustard Seed Milk Paint, a company she has since sold. I continued to see her products in stores and online, and I regularly read her blog posts. Eventually I became her email subscriber. In fact, I still read every one of the emails she sends out.
I have long admired Emily’s professionalism, kindness and hustle as she has grown her photography services into a full-time, in-demand business. Upon my request for an interview, Emily has taken the time to answer some probing questions about her work and life.
My sweet husband bought me this book for Valentine’s Day after we watched the movie Loving Vincent in theaters. If you are not familiar with the movie, but you enjoy art, I would highly recommend it. The book, Learning from Henri Nouwen and Vincent van Gogh: A Portrait of the Compassionate Life, by Carol A. Berry, is a thoughtful composite of Vincent van Gogh’s life, art and writings, as researched and taught by renowned theologist Henri Nouwen.
If you are following along in this mini post series about our garden, this is the third and final post about the foundational plants and projects we have tackled thus far. Our vision for our backyard was more varied than the front since we use it more frequently and for more things. We will entertain on our patios; want to grow edible, as well as ornamental plants; have a treehouse, trampoline and lawn space for kids to play in; need to address erosion caused by rainfall; and have areas with dense shade. We also want to maintain a sense of thoughtful cohesion throughout.
My husband is from northwest Indiana. His parents still live up there, as well as his sister’s family. His brother and family live in Miami. We live in St. Louis, MO. In order for us to all get together, some of us have to driveway a long, long way, or fly. This summer, we decided to try something new and meet in a place that was a 10-12 hour drive for everyone. That place was Cherokee, NC. None of us had been to that area before, and with 10 grandchildren, aged 10 and under, we hoped to find many (tiring) activities that wouldn’t cost a fortune.
As I wrote about in my post Foundational Garden Plans at Withy Holm, I have divided our 1 acre lot up into different gardens to accommodate the differences in space, sunlight and uses in various areas of our yard. This post will cover our front yard. The goal of the front yard is mainly privacy since we live on a very busy road. Several others along the road have used large evergreen to create hedgerow “fences” for privacy but I knew that I wanted a different look and more plant variety.
We bought our house, which I refer to as Withy Holm, in November of 2020. It basically checked all the boxes on our “essential needs” list, despite needing a lot of work, and was situated on a one-acre lot. My main goal, besides creating a mother-in-law suite on the first floor, was to add character to this rather bland 60’s brick colonial. Part of that vision included productive use of our yard for growing flowers. I was also interested in growing herbs and produce, but flowers are my main desire.
In the process of planning the foundational perennial plants for my gardens around our home, I knew I wanted to plant a grove of hydrangeas along the east side of our house. That area receives sun in the heat of the day, but also has a lot of shade. I envisioned a white fence, arbor and gate that lined up with the front of the house. There is a creek that runs along the east side of our house all the way to the very back of our property on the north side. The summer before we moved in, the county had made significant changes to the creek along there to help manage rain run-off and mitigate flooding. However, this means that this side of our yard basically drops 30 ft. down to the creek bed.
The saying goes “something borrowed, something blue”, so why not use blue flowers for your something blue? Typically of lighter hues, naturally blue flowers can range from silver to baby blue, and lend themselves easily to almost any style of wedding. Flowers can be found in shades such as royal blue, navy, cornflower, sky blue, sapphire, teal and tiffany blue.
Want green wedding florals for your wedding, not just greenery? There are several green flower variety options for you. Take a look for inspiration and guidance on arranging with flowers that are forest green, lime, sage, olive green, moss, fern, mint, emerald or Kelly green shades.
Yellow is probably my favorite flower color because it is just so cheerful. As such, it makes a lovely wedding flower choice; reflecting the joy of the day’s events. As with any other color, yellow flowers range in shades from the lightest, creamy yellow to a deep golden ochre. Shades such as butter, golden rod, pale yellow, sunny yellow, honey, flax, lemon, peach, mustard and dijon can also be included. Also some flowers have hints of yellow along side other hues within the same flowers. This provides an opportunity to incorporate multiple pleasing colors.
With such a wide range of shades available such as lilac, amethyst, violet, raspberry, plum or lavender, purple makes a fantastic wedding color choice. The added benefit of purple is that there are so many flowers that come in some shade of the color.
Red florals provide some serious punch, regardless of the shade chosen. Merlot has been a popular shade in recent years, true red gives off lots of energy, and rusty tones can be country rustic or desert chic. Keep reading for more inspiration about how to use red flowers in your wedding arrangements.
Ah Charleston, you beautiful, classic city. From the clear white beaches of the Isle of Palms to the towering, moss-laden oaks of Boone Hall - Charleston, South Carolina and the surrounding area is full of beauty - both natural and human made. Dining, shopping, beaches, history…. its easy to see why it is the top destination wedding location in the US. My mom and I spent a far-too-short weekend exploring the area this past February.
Feminine and classic, pink is a wonderful wedding color because of the variety of flower options and shades available to you year round. And using pink as your wedding color doesn’t have to be overly girly either. Below I’ve gathered some timeless, effortless pink flower options for weddings.
Orange is a bold wedding color choice, unexpectedly appropriate for almost any season or style. I’ve found some fresh inspiration for incorporating orange flowers into your wedding florals. Hues related to orange can be salmon, coral, terracotta, burnt orange, amber, honey, carrot and many other shades.
