Fleur Encore Keepsake Bauble

A great way to preserve your special event flowers and create something new is a keepsake bauble. The advantage is you can store both your dried flowers and a sentimental card, program, or invitation all together!

Mise En Place:

• Clear ornament of any shape

• Dried flowers

• Invitation, card, or program

• Scissors

• Pencil, pen, paintbrush or knitting needle

• Pipe cleaner (optional)

Step 1:

Stuff an empty ornament with dried flowers.

Step 2

If your ornament gets any dirt or dried petals stuck to the sides, use a pipe cleaner to wipe it clean

Steps 3 & 4

Cut your program/card/invite into tiny strips hi-lighting the good stuff.

Next curl the strips around a small object such as a knitting needle, paintbrush or pen

Enjoy!

If the card or program has a tassel, use it to hang the bauble. Enjoy!

Fleur Encore Potpourri Recipe

Ever wondered what to do with your flower when they begin to wilt? Make Potpourri of course!

Step 1: Dry you flowers. There are few ways to dry your flowers once they begin to fade. The first is the old fashion way, simply tie they together and hang them up side down in a warm dry place. Winter is actually an ideal time for this because the air has less humidity in it and we have our heaters going.

The second option is to cut off the flower heads and place them on a piece of parchment paper on a cookie sheet and into the oven at 200 degrees for about 30 minuets to 1 hour or until the petals seem dry. If you leave them in the oven too long they will burn, so be sure to set a timer!

Last if you are really in a hurry and just want the rose petals, pull them off the rose and place them on a single layer of paper towel. Next place them in the microwave with one paper towel on top. Set the microwave for 2 minuets and viola, dried rose petals!

Step 2: Add some scent. Most commercial flowers are lacking in fragrance, so you might want to add a few spritzes of essential oils to the dried blooms. If you do, just make sure that you let them dry completely before moving onto step 3.

Step 3: Sachet or Bowl. Choose a decorative sachet that is a transparent or loose weave fabric and place your completely dry flowers inside. The loose weave will allow the scent to escape and add fragrance to a drawer or closet.

Secret Tip: Moth Away. If you ever have problem with moths, you can add dried cloves and dried mint leave to your sachet, they are natural moth deterrents and will help keep them away from your wools and sweaters.

Last secret tip: Summer Jasmine. Jasmine blooms are one of the sweetest and most fragrant flowers in the world and are abundant during the summer month. If you pick a handful of these tiny blossoms, let them dry, and add they to your sachet, they will smell divine!

Last last secret tip: Variety. If you are making your potpourri to be decorative and go in a bowl, try adding some fun elements like pine cones, dried citrus slices, acorns, or any other naturally decorative element.

Happy First Anniversary Erin and Ryan. Elegant July Wedding at The Mandarin Oriental Hotel in Washington, D.C.

It’s no secret that The Mandarin Oriental Hotel is one of my favorite venues in Washington. I love the hotel and working with their pro staff (read: Michael Deltette). Last July, I had the pleasure of designing for a beautiful couple, Erin Loomis and Ryan Moore, who made my job easy. And receiving this email from Erin after the wedding was icing on the cake: “Thank you so much for all the amazing flowers for my wedding this weekend. They were even better than what I was picturing in my head.” Happy First Anniversary Erin and Ryan! All photos by Michael Connor of Connor Studios.

I get a lot of requests for floral arches which can be designed in a variety of shapes and sizes. It all depends on your venue and set-up. Erin and Ryan had a medium-sized arch of greenery accented with garden roses in blush and pink. The arch photographed beautifully and looked so romantic in the Mandarin’s garden.

The bouquets and boutonnieres featured all the best summer blooms in pinks and blush - from garden roses and hydrangea to ranunculus and dahlias.

You can’t beat these classic photos on the steps of The Jefferson Memorial by Connor Studios. The blush and blues really pop against the white stone monument.

For a more modern look, Connor Studios took advantage of the great waterfront views at The Wharf - just down the street from The Mandarin.

Erin and Ryan chose a tall centerpiece and a low candle design for their reception which created an elegant setting for the dinner. We also designed a signature escort arrangement and added fresh blooms to their beautiful wedding cake by Buttercream Bakeshop.

Washington, D.C. Historic Wedding Venues and Happy First Anniversary to Danielle and Michael. May Wedding at Woodlawn Estate

Washington, D.C. is full of historic venues that make for beautiful weddings, including this one just down the George Washington Memorial Parkway in Alexandria, Virginia. The history of Woodlawn Estate started with a wedding which makes it an even more perfect venue for your nuptials. In 1799, the one and only George Washington gave Woodlawn to his step-grand-daughter, Eleanor "Nelly" Parke Custis and his nephew, Lawrence Lewis. Today, Woodlawn offers an outdoor setting with tented areas surrounded by beautiful gardens and landscaping. Not to mention, the mansion makes a gorgeous backdrop for any event. Also located on the property is the Frank Lloyd Wright designed Pope-Leighey House which is available to rent as well. Both are listed as National Trust for Historic Preservation sites.

Woodlawn Estate is beautiful in springtime and this bride and groom did it justice. Danielle and Michael were wonderful to work with and look stunning in their pictures. Photographer Anna Reynal shot so many beautiful images, it’s hard to choose just one - so forgive me while I share them all (not really).

Beautiful Bride Danielle in her Essence of Australia wedding gown from Wren Bridal in Annapolis. Make-up by Georgetown Bride.

So much love and emotion in this shot.

Groom Michael in Hugo Boss.

Danielle’s bouquet was a wild and organic spring mix of roses, blue delphinium, hyacinth, white stock, orchids and a variety of greenery. Her bouquet was finished with blue and white streaming ribbons.

The bridesmaids carried smaller versions of the bride’s bouquet, also finished with streaming ribbons.

Two gold urns full of hydrangea, roses and greenery and placed on pedestals flanked the couple during their ceremony.

Happy First Anniversary Danielle and Michael. Wishing you many more happy years to come.

J.Crew Fashion Night with Erica Natal and Leigh Heiserman

Have you seen @ericalnatal on Instagram lately? She is hustling - and making some real headway - by generating creative and compelling content. Recently, she partnered with J.Crew in Georgetown for a spring shopping party and asked me to design some flowers for the event. Her buddy Leigh Heiserman from Lauryn Prattes Styling and Events stopped by to share in the fun which made for great photos.

All photos by Erica’s company, Solely In Focus. Daisy macaroons by Buttercream Bakeshop.

Erica and Leigh

My Wedding at Oxon Hill Manor

Truly, I have so much to say about my wedding at Oxon Hill Manor, but mostly I just wanted to share the pictures with you. So here are a few of my favorites from our wedding almost 7 years ago. Yes, I did the flowers myself (with generous support from my friends Antje Wood, Tricia Siudet and The Enchanted Florist, VA). All photos are by Lisa Boggs Photography, day of coordination by Kelly Cannon Events. The motorcycle is a Paul Smart Ducati and the cake is by Maggie Austin Cake.

Cherry Blossom Photos Washington DC a DIY Guide - Parking and Photography

While notorious for meticulous planning when it involves my clients, when it comes to fun projects just for me, “Spontaneous” is probably the nicest word that could be used to describe me.

When I heard peak Cherry time had been moved up a couple of days, I wanted in on the action, and I wanted in now. My first thought was to ping a couple of my professional photographer friends to see if they had any “Cherry Blossom Sessions” left, but most were completely booked or couldn’t work within my last minuet time frame. Most professional photographers only guarantee a handful of time slots because of the unpredictability of the Cherry Trees blossoming.

Following so many #igdc photographers I realized that I could probably get some great photos with just my iPhone and good lighting. So next I tapped a few people I identify as “creative hustlers” who would probably be down for an early morning if it meant some good content. I also put a flyer up on my Instagram Stories asking if anyone wanted to join me in the joy of waking up at 5:30.

Within a few hours, By Brittany Branson, Calligraphette & Co, and even a real photographer, Marie Windsor Photography were all on board! Now technically there are rules to taking photos at the monuments, and if you are working with a professional photographer they need to apply for a permit. Since we were going as friends, and working mostly with our iphones we thought we were probably ok. Just no props and no tripods, I have haerd that fines can be issued in the thousands of dollars range.

Never having been part of a Cherry Blossom session myself, I really didn’t know what to expect. Would there be parking, how early do we really need to get there?

I have heard that the best time to be there is before sunrise, so since sunrise was at 6:59 am we decided to meet at 6:30am. This was a good idea, and meeting at 6:15am might have been an even better idea, but really that is just way too early!

Coming from Alexandria, VA I took the parkway over Memorial Bridge, bore to the right and then turned left to follow the road along the water towards the Jefferson Memorial. My idea was to park in the lot closest in front to the memorial but it was closed. I continued to follow the road closet to the Jefferson and eventually saw a sign for Public Parking. I wasn’t sure exactly what I was doing, but decided to trust the signage and turned left. Just a little down that road there was a parking lot with lots of spaces at 6:28am. It is pay parking and I used my Park Moblie App, zone 5811 and was on my way. The walk from the lot to the steps of the Jefferson is about 10 minuets.

Brittany had been the first to arrive and remarked that waiting alone at 6:25 in the morning had been kind of creepy, but that in the time she had gone in to use the ladies room (so yes there are some restrooms) and come back out, 2 couples were already in the midst of their engagement sessions.

Having been admiring Connor Studios portraits, for a year, I wanted to try and get the same angle so we walked clockwise around the water from the memorial. By 6:55 another photographer and family, were in the spot I had spied on our walk in. Trust me, jockeying for position gets real, which is why you may want to come even earlier than 6:30. I guess it’s just human nature, but sometimes I forget to be all zen and polite.

By 7:05 the sun was making its way up, and the sky was showing signs of brilliant yellow and red. We took turns posing in pairs of two and as a group. We captured the cherries with the Washington Monument, and the Jefferson and then took a few through the blooms themselves.

We photographed until about 7:30am which by then the place was drawing with couples, families, photographers, instagram models, joggers and bikers!

Brittany and Nika had appointments to head off too and Casey Marie and I wandered a little further down the path. Eventually we were tired and felt we had enough photos, by 8:00 I was back in my car and heading home.

The Cherry Trees were not quite a peak, and something about being up and in the presence of such powerful elegance is intoxicating, so I may just have to do this again!

Cherry Blossom Photos Washington DC a DIY Guide - Parking and Photography

While notorious for meticulous planning when it involves my clients, when it comes to fun projects just for me, “Spontaneous” is probably the nicest word that could be used to describe me.

When I heard peak Cherry time had been moved up a couple of days, I wanted in on the action, and I wanted in now. My first thought was to ping a couple of my professional photographer friends to see if they had any “Cherry Blossom Sessions” left, but most were completely booked or couldn’t work within my last minuet time frame. Most professional photographers only guarantee a handful of time slots because of the unpredictability of the Cherry Trees blossoming.

Following so many #igdc photographers I realized that I could probably get some great photos with just my iPhone and good lighting. So next I tapped a few people I identify as “creative hustlers” who would probably be down for an early morning if it meant some good content. I also put a flyer up on my Instagram Stories asking if anyone wanted to join me in the joy of waking up at 5:30.

Within a few hours, By Brittany Branson, Calligraphette & Co, and even a real photographer, Marie Windsor Photography were all on board! Now technically there are rules to taking photos at the monuments, and if you are working with a professional photographer they need to apply for a permit. Since we were going as friends, and working mostly with our iphones we thought we were probably ok. Just no props and no tripods, I have haerd that fines can be issued in the thousands of dollars range.

Never having been part of a Cherry Blossom session myself, I really didn’t know what to expect. Would there be parking, how early do we really need to get there?

I have heard that the best time to be there is before sunrise, so since sunrise was at 6:59 am we decided to meet at 6:30am. This was a good idea, and meeting at 6:15am might have been an even better idea, but really that is just way too early!

Coming from Alexandria, VA I took the parkway over Memorial Bridge, bore to the right and then turned left to follow the road along the water towards the Jefferson Memorial. My idea was to park in the lot closest in front to the memorial but it was closed. I continued to follow the road closet to the Jefferson and eventually saw a sign for Public Parking. I wasn’t sure exactly what I was doing, but decided to trust the signage and turned left. Just a little down that road there was a parking lot with lots of spaces at 6:28am. It is pay parking and I used my Park Moblie App, zone 5811 and was on my way. The walk from the lot to the steps of the Jefferson is about 10 minuets.

Brittany had been the first to arrive and remarked that waiting alone at 6:25 in the morning had been kind of creepy, but that in the time she had gone in to use the ladies room (so yes there are some restrooms) and come back out, 2 couples were already in the midst of their engagement sessions.

Having been admiring Connor Studios portraits, for a year, I wanted to try and get the same angle so we walked clockwise around the water from the memorial. By 6:55 another photographer and family, were in the spot I had spied on our walk in. Trust me, jockeying for position gets real, which is why you may want to come even earlier than 6:30. I guess it’s just human nature, but sometimes I forget to be all zen and polite.

By 7:05 the sun was making its way up, and the sky was showing signs of brilliant yellow and red. We took turns posing in pairs of two and as a group. We captured the cherries with the Washington Monument, and the Jefferson and then took a few through the blooms themselves.

We photographed until about 7:30am which by then the place was drawing with couples, families, photographers, instagram models, joggers and bikers!

Brittany and Nika had appointments to head off too and Casey Marie and I wandered a little further down the path. Eventually we were tired and felt we had enough photos, by 8:00 I was back in my car and heading home.

The Cherry Trees were not quite a peak, and something about being up and in the presence of such powerful elegance is intoxicating, so I may just have to do this again!

About Me

Family. Flowers. Sweets... And if I'm being totally honest, reality TV.

Hi, I'm Atelier Ashley, at least that's what my friends have been calling me lately. But that's ok, I like it. I also like desserts, emails and a hundred other things I could tell you about.  Instead, I am going to try to focus on why I decided to open my own shop.

This is me on my wedding day outside of The Alexandrian Hotel

My son Finnley will be a one year old on June 21.  I insist that he is a Gemini (like his mama) even though it could be argued that he is technically a Cancer.

To say that life has changed would be cliche, to say that having a baby rocked my world in ways that I couldn't have imagined would be an understatement.  Recently, I learned that the brain literally changes after childbirth. Hmm, good to know.

Finnley and me at the Yayoi Kusuma exhibit at the Hirshorn Museum

For the last 10 years, I have been perfectly happy being a lead designer in other people's shops.  Life was easy. Go to work, make beautiful things, go home, paint and craft.  No real responsibility, no real reward.

I had planned to take a year off to just be Finnley's mommy.  But about three weeks in, I knew that without flowers and a creative outlet, I was not my best self.  So I started scrambling.

I tried this, then that.  Planned for this, then planned for that, but nothing was really coming together.  Floundering, it soon became clear to me that the time had come to take a chance and go all in on starting a studio of my own.

Glorious slow grown flowers

That was in January and it has been full steam ahead.  If I'm being 100% honest, I will tell you that it has not been entirely easy to find clients.  I spend a good part of my days reaching out to wedding planners, venues, photographers and other wedding professionals to let them know I have gone out on my own and would love an opportunity to collaborate with them.

I got this great packing tape from Sticker Mule

Surprisingly, or not surprisingly, it has been the love from other established florists (shout out to Lisa Sommer of Petals and Promises in particular) that has sent brides my way and helped me to start filling dates on my 2017 calendar.  I couldn't be more grateful.

The autonomy of being my own boss is motivating, but the ability to offer designs, creative ideas and budget friendly solutions is even more empowering.  

It feels good to say "yes" and know that I can deliver what I have promised.