Moon Canyon - Journal — Moon Canyon Design

kristen caissie

Top Vogue Weddings of 2019:: Fogo Island

Easing into 2020 has brought a lot of reflection on the work we did last year, and being a part of the design process with Britt Cole and Francie Dorman from 42 North for Catherine and Jed’s Fogo Island wedding was easily one of the most rewarding parts of our 2019 season. While traveling to Fogo presented many challenges - it is considered one of the ‘four corners of the earth’ - the couple’s design aesthetic spoke so directly to my heart, nothing was going to stop me from being a part of this collaboration.

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Limelight with Sally Pinera

Working with flowers outside of events is essential for me. I have been dreaming of cascading bouquets all year but they aren't quite so practical for real bride. So I knew this collaboration with Sally and her husband, Robert would be the perfect opportunity to create one. And as everyone knows, color and texture has always been the driving force behind my designs - so this shoot was saturated with bright spring greens, flowering branches and delicate blooms!

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All About Color

There is nothing better than collaborating with my studio mates, Duet Weddings. Every time we do, it feels like the perfect marriage of styles set on a table. It's the best when we add a little Ark to the mix, but it reached a real high during this shoot with photographer Ana Lui and her amazing hair and makeup team of Diva Borrelli and Vincenzo Della Volpe. Featured on Once Wed, this color story felt so authentic to all of us. Inspired by rust ranunculus, only available for a short window of time each spring, we wanted to create a pallet that felt fresh and slightly surprising, but still comfortable. This is a table we would all love to dine at.  

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Spring Floral Encyclopedia

In celebration of the seasonal transition we used a palette of white, yellow and coral for this month's encyclopedia post, plus a few florists’ tricks to add a bit of dimension to the arrangement. Flower frogs are used to hold stems in place and add a bit of weight to the base of your vessel. Adhering a few stems together with waterproof floral tape can give you some control over your arrangement too. 

The natural color of Jenni's leather-wrapped vase, vegetable tanned for a rich, organic feel, was the perfect accompaniment to these bright blooms. 

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Winter Floral Encyclopedia

We are back with a January installment of our floral encyclopedia with Jenni Kayne. This lush arrangement is comprised of early spring blooms arranged in a ceramic vase by Mt. Washington Pottery. The wabi-sabi aesthetic of the handmade vessel adds to the arrangement’s playful proportions. Earthy yellows, rich greens, and a touch of blue tell a color story that’s unexpected, yet warm and welcoming. Perfectly undone early spring blooms (my favorite to design with) emphasize the meeting place of winter and spring. 

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Fall Floral Encyclopedia

A new season means a new opportunity to collaborate with Jenni Kayne.  I am expecting a new baby and have a strong penchant for comfort right now, so it feels fitting that our fall display is done in warm shades of golden yellow. I’m in love with early autumnal meadow-style florals and this color story - pale nude, citrus, and chartreuse - is one I could live in forever!  I loved using Caleb Siemon’s vase too.  The top half of  is translucent so you can see more of the materials, while the opaque bottom half hides the rest. Perfect for autumn arrangements! 

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MC + HTH

When Heather Taylor calls to say she wants to shoot a few of her new linens in a "fall fashion" we find ourselves immediately hopping in the car and heading to the Flower Market.  This is the second time we have done a shoot with Heather and photographer, Jen Peffley, and both times have been such a great experiences. We love having a bunch of women in the studio, collaborating to create images that depict a fun and effortless vibe - which is exactly how each set up evolved.  When you have Heather's linens as a base, finding inspired ways to to combine them with seasonal florals is easy!

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Crate & Barrel

In our latest collaboration with Crate & Barrel we wanted to show readers what we love about an Early Fall Botanical Arrangement and how they could create the same look on their own with C&B's new textured vases.  

We were inspired by late summer meadows. The grasses and dried flowers that fill up the stretches of pasture in late August. These vases have such beautiful texture and shape while also feeling light and airy like the floral ingredients.  We used the vases to house our findings from what we gathered to make our wreath. All the ingredients fit so perfectly together here and will dry nicely in the vases, as well as in the wreath. We feel the wildness of the natural meadow is reflected here in the composition. Accented with hand dyed silk ribbon, our wreath and these vases work so well together. 

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Summer Floral Encyclopedia

Using a beautiful hand-carved vase by Mt. Washington Pottery as a starting point, we put together our floral arrangement for us the the Summer Encyclopedia on Rip & Tan. My inspiration was simply “the summer garden”; most of the flowers were cut from my own backyard, while a few were purchased from her local nursery. I love the long, trailing shapes on display here in summery shades of green and white and deep chocolate hues for some added depth and moodiness.

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Perri & Phil in Martha Stewart Weddings

Out in this month's Martha Stewart Weddings Magazine is the wedding of one of our most fun clients from 2016. When our studio mates, Duet Weddings, first brought Perri & Phil to our studio with their design plan of guest providing the color during their wedding day, we knew it was a match made in heaven! Not only were they getting married at Klentner Ranch, a location we had never worked at (which is always exciting!), we had the opportunity to take the theme of white on white on white to a whole new level.  Using color only in the ceremony and cocktail hour, we focused on one flower and one flower only for the reception…white clematis. And it could not have been more refreshing or beautiful! 

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McKenzie & Sean on Green Wedding Shoes

We love a winter wedding here at Moon Canyon, so the second Bash Please asked what we would think about a four event weekend in Denver we started packing our bags.  Early February marks the start of the blooming season for so many of our favorite flowers - white daffodils, quince and ranunculus. That combined with foraged dried grasses and brambly bits which we hung from the tent structure made for one of our favorite weddings to date.  You can see more on Green Weddings Shoes.  

Spring Floral Encyclopedia

I loved using this strong, sculptural leather Made Solid vase from Jenni Kayne for the Spring Encyclopedia on Rip & Tan. I really wanted to bring the bouquet back down to earth while allowing the materials to twist and turn freely, proving that the vessel you choose to display your stems can be just as impactful as the materials themselves! I also think this arrangement is a lesson in “less is more”; it’s comprised of just four florals and yet it has a very lush, statement-making presence. Classic spring flowers really are the best in that way.

Website Evolution

It's Live!

It's finally finished! Well...in that way that I will forever be adding and editing it...but its finished! Our site is live. It's been a long road and I seriously cannot thank Brandy Curry, Nicole McDonald and Jared Richard enough for stan…

It's finally finished! Well...in that way that I will forever be adding and editing it...but its finished! Our site is live. 

It's been a long road and I seriously cannot thank Brandy Curry, Nicole McDonald and Jared Richard enough for standing by me while I questioned everything. The site, websites in general, our wedding industry, flowers....

The hardest part of this whole thing is in reality I don't love websites. Maybe?

In the end we made one and I am proud of it. It's simple and showcases only a few of our weddings. None of our styled shoots since what I really want to showcase is our event work.

 I feel as wedding florists we need to start setting a precedent that we do work that represents the couple, their venue, and their story. I think in this age of pinterest and instagram so often people think they need to come into a design meeting, ideas flushed out and with a pin board of hundreds of images. The industry will become (or maybe it is?) to stifled if we allow for that to occur. 

Also, I like styled shoots...ish. But at this point what sets us apart from up and coming florists is our experience. It takes a special kind of florist to do events. It's hard work, stressful, and I adore it. 

We are creatives. We love flowers. I want to come up with ideas with our couples, inside their particular wedding. I don't want to work against images of weddings that already occurred and have made it up on the blogs or pinterest. I feel we have the space to approach design in a more authentic way. 

This was the main problem I faced when wanting to put images on our site. I went back and forth thinking...what will the bride's see, what will the couples love, etc etc. When in reality our couple find us and wants to work with us because of an ove…

This was the main problem I faced when wanting to put images on our site. I went back and forth thinking...what will the bride's see, what will the couples love, etc etc. When in reality our couple find us and wants to work with us because of an overall vibe we bring to the table. 

It's with that attitude of trust and excitement that we thrive. 

Emily & Grant

AUTUMNAL PASADENA WEDDING featured in MARTHA STEWART WEDDINGS

 

Emily and Grant's wedding is one of those rare occasions where I got to be a part of a dear friend's special day. Emily and I have worked together on over 30 weddings when she was working with Bash, Please, so getting to flower her wedding was a true dream. 

E + G's wedding took place in early fall at the groom's Pasadena family home. The Tudor home and garden was a beautiful backdrop for this classically designed wedding.

We used seasonal blooms such as peegee hydrangea, garden roses, and chocolate cosmos. 

Wreath Workshop

with DESIGNLOVEFEST

Bri and I have been hosting workshops together for years now and I love each one more and more. This fall wreath workshop was such an inspirational day for me. Its so rare I get to just sit and play with no client dictation or event design parameters. This was just me and the Moon Crew pulling from my dried stash and shopping the market to source beautoful product. 

HARPER'S BAZAAR'S top wedding florist of 2017

Moon Canyon named one of Harper's Bazaar's top wedding florist of 2017

What an honor to be named one of this years Top Wedding Florists by Harper's Bazaar. Im in this industry for two reasons mainly... 1. my obsession with flowers :) and 2. Getting to work with really amazing couples who inspire me with their wedding day dreams.  Its a joy to be recognized for all the hard work and I couldn't be more grateful to Harper's for placing me along side such raw talents in the flower game.