Nichole Baumgartner and Bryan LaHair
November 11, 2007
L’Auberge de Sedona
iDC Photography.com
Sedona Cake Couture
Sedona Sounds
We hit a home run on this one folks! LaHair’s the name and
baseball’s the game. Bryan, the talented first baseman for
the Seattle Mariners and Nichole with her infectious energy, were
totally at ease with everything we wanted to do. What a fabulous
autumn wedding that we were given the opportunity to create for
this perfect pair. Ken and I just love autumn weddings because it’s
about the abundance of all our favorite things, sharing and being
with those you love. The perfect pair. Abundance. Baseball. Autumn.
Friends. Everything just seemed to fall into place as you can see
by the astounding images from iDC Photography.
Of course, rich warm colors and textures were mandatory. Fruited
branches of dangling plump persimmons, copper orchids, chocolate
orchids, berries, assorted varieties of pears, fresh grasses, vines,
fresh speckled gourds, juicy red rose hips, cumquats and vibrant
roses were just a few of the elements we chose for our friend’s
wedding.
Did I say abundance and roses? The aisle was thick with an ocean
of red and fuchsia rose petals all neatly lined up and ready for
the gorgeous bride to step into. We kept the fuchsia separate from
the red so the stripped effect would deepen with intensity. This
technique was really effective, especially afterwards when the trodden
petals became mussed and took on the effect of rustling autumn leaves.
It was a spectacle. We are inspired to do even more creative things
in the future with rose petals in mass. Fresh pears, nandina foliage,
red cock’s comb and spilling millet marked the reserved rows.
A Japanese temple bell was added to our birch arbor. As the ceremony
ended, the deep drone of the bell added yet another layer to the
experience. The arbor was decorated with lovely fall elements and
chocolate fabrics.
Nichole’s bouquet was simply exquisite. Ken likes to push
the envelope and make his bouquets sumptuously rich with textures
without being too small. His choice of three varieties of orchids,
translucent ruby-red viburnum berries, flame calla lilies, budding
pear fruit-lets, lilies, acorns and rose hips made an opulent presentation.
The tones of the bouquet were perfect with Nichole’s creamy
complexion and make up. The bride’s maids carried similar
bouquets with roses and autumnal elements. Among the procession
of attendants were two lovely little flower girls that were just
thrilled to be participating. A team of four handsome ring bearers
marched in formation with
baseball bats over their right shoulders. The bats were garnished,
and then the rings were tied on, dangling from chocolate ribbon.
Bryan was beaming when he saw the boys and so pleased with this
special touch.
The guest tables were decorated with assorted sizes and heights
of glass beakers filled with pears, persimmons, cumquats and assorted
lilies. We found special wire hurricanes shaped like pears that
threw interesting shadows across the chocolate pin tuck linens.
Andrea’s cake was lovely. They are always lovely. We worked
together closely and the result was stunning. Her delicate copper
leaves and hand-made pears garnished the cake. Fresh green wheat,
firm pears, lilies and copper orchids hugged the sides of the cake
while a hundred votives surrounded the base at the table’s
edge with soft glowing warmth. More pears, persimmons, cumquats,
lilies, blown open roses and colorful autumn leaves completely covered
the remaining surface.
Lighting in warm autumn hues of walnut, apricot and mustard colors
finished the look. As beautiful as the wedding was, it paled in
comparison to the lovely couple. Thank you Bryan and Nichole for
your trust in our vision.
