A Color Theory Challenge: Designing Florals for the Pantone Color of the Year

I recently had the opportunity to collaborate with a ton of industry professionals on a fabulous styled shoot and wanted to peel back the layers of a styled shoot: to highlight both the positives of a creative exercise like this while also exploring the challenges, particularly color-wise, of designing around a specific theme.

Ikiya, the owner of Intimate Occasions by Ikiya, Michelle, owner of Wandermore Photography, and I linked up early this year with the idea to do a shoot that would feel like a creative exercise in our slow season. We quickly got to brainstorming- what would the theme be? Where would we focus our design efforts? Since it was January when we began planning, it seemed like a no-brainer to design a shoot around Pantone’s Color of the Year: Mocha Mousse.

If you’re not familiar with the concept of the color of the year, here’s a quick primer: each year, Pantone releases their “Color of the Year”- a color meant to be emblematic of the trends in fashion, interiors, and the larger cultural zeitgeist. Last year we got the bright and juicy “Peach Fuzz,” and this year was followed by the warm and rich “Mocha Mousse.”

As a florist, I was excited by the challenge- but I also knew right away how much of a struggle it would be to design a color palette of florals around a color that doesn’t occur in nature frequently! Sure, if you filter by “brown” on your wholesaler’s website, a lot will come up- but as one of my studio’s values, I don’t design using dyed flowers, as the chemicals can be harmful for the environment and those flowers generally can’t be composted back to the earth.

So here’s how I approached it: the mocha mousse color would serve as a touchstone for the project, anchoring all the textile goods (table linens, ceremony drapery, etc) and rentals (chairs, plates, utensils), and the florals would feature colors that complement mocha mousse, without necessarily being so literal as to include the color itself.

Check out my design deck here:

My initial color palette, accompanied by a sketch I did of a potential ceremony design and several inspiration images from other florists.

As you can see, I decided to focus on the colors that would naturally lead into a deep, rich brown: creamy ivories, soft peach tones, and deepening orange hues. It was important to me that the designs felt lush, romantic, and feminine, featuring lots of soft, round blooms and bouncy textures. My goal was to complement the somewhat masculine vibe of the mocha mousse color with softer hues and tones. 

Here’s how I pulled that together into a floral inspiration board:

A floral inspiration board is always just that: inspiration. I try to craft mine with seasonal availability in mind, but the main goal is to convey the types of textures and colors I’ll be using in the design. The only “must-have” element for me here was the dried bracken fern- I really wanted that rich brown color and interesting texture, so I ordered some to come shipped from California. Out of the rest of the florals, many of the blooms on this board weren’t available the week of the shoot! Part of event floristry is staying on your toes and making it work.

Without further ado, here are some shots of how it all came together:

Flat lay put together by Wandermore Photography- peep the date pods that were an impulse buy at the flower market and totally brought everything together!

Gorgeous Kristen and her bouquet, shot by Wandermore Photography. Check out the gestural bracken fern- so worth shipping it in from California!

Don’t sleep on a pocket boutonniere- when else do you get to wear a mini garden in your suit jacket?!

Deconstructed ceremony design, featuring a deep mousse fabric for styling.

Lush florals accented by pears, date pods, and nuts really seal the deal on the vibe we were going for.

Full Vendor List:
Venue - @carrollhallgarden
Planner - @intimateoccasionsbyikiya
Photographer - @wandermorephotography
Floral Design + Styling - @imogenfloral
Model Couple - @kristenmariecastro @nosliw.jpeg
MUA - @beautylyn_
Hairstylist - @zully.nycbeauty @texis_claudia
Officiant - @onceuponavow
Content Creator - @allthelovenyc
Tabletop Rentals - @squigglerentals
Chair Rentals - @a1partynyc
Stationary - @carrie_lapolla
Dresses - @rebeccaschoneveld_bridal
Suit - @generationtux
Baker - @buttermilkbakeshopny
Bar Cart - @mobilebarnyc

Number One Tip for Wedding Bouquets That You Probably Don’t Know

If you’re holding a bouquet on your wedding day, it may very well be the first time you’re holding a bouquet of flowers for an extended period of time! Maybe you’ve received flowers for Valentine’s Day or you’ve even put together some grocery store flowers, but there is one really big tip that you may not be aware of, and it’s this:

Keep. Your. Bouquet. In. Water!

That’s right. Anytime you’re not actively holding your bouquet for photos or during the ceremony, it should go right back into the vase of water it was delivered in.

Forever Photography

Why?

By the time these flowers are in your hands on your wedding day, they were cut in a field anywhere from 5 days to 2 weeks ago, possibly shipped across an ocean in a plane, received by your florist, processed (that means trimming excess leaves off, conditioning them for use), and designed prior to your wedding day. (Side note: this is why local flowers are the best! They were probably cut a lot closer to your wedding day and haven’t been traveling excess distances to get to you, making them a lot healthier!)

These poor flowers are TIRED! A good florist will have been keeping them cool, trimming the ends daily to ensure they keep drinking water, and making sure they’re in optimal condition on your wedding day. Often, this means timing out different farm deliveries to ensure all the different varieties of flowers are at peak bloom by the time they’re in your bouquet.

Forever Photography

One of the worst variables for flowers is heat, and human hands are hot. You know how when you hold something for a while, your hands sometimes get warm or sweaty? That body heat can cause your flowers to wilt faster!

If you’re having an outdoor wedding in the summer, this is even more true; body heat combined with environmental heat is a recipe for a wilted wedding bouquet! There’s nothing sadder than designing a gorgeous bouquet for an August bride and then seeing it later in the day, completely wilted from the 90 degree heat.

So what can you do? Well, hopefully your florist delivered your bouquet in a vase with water! If they didn’t, any glass of water will do. Designate a bridesmaid or a friend to grab your blooms anytime they’re laying on a table somewhere and put them back into water. This way, your flowers will look stunning all night AND as an extra bonus-if you’re having your bouquet preserved or dried, it will look even better in its forever form. 

Wandermore Photography (for Stems Brooklyn)

Take this tip with you on your wedding day and enjoy your flowers all night. Happy planning!