Secrets of
a Floral Designer
A peek inside the world of an expert in his field
Today I’m following a dear friend, one of my favorite
people, and unquestionably one of the most talented designers
doing wedding décor today: Preston Bailey.
Preston is known for the theatrical. “I love taking a
space and changing it into something else,” he says in
his soft Panamanian accent. “I am inspired by the movies
of the ’30s and ’40s: the drama, the energy—I
want guests to feel as if they have wandered onto an MGM lot.”
So how could I resist the chance to ghost Preston and his
team as they pulled together a wedding at the famous Ritz
in London? The work started long before the autumn affair,
since his popularity usually dictates that his events be booked
eight months to a year ahead.
Tip #1
If you are interested in a particular floral designer,
meet with—and book—him as early as possible to insure
his availability.
The initial meeting with this couple includes Preston, company
manager Regina Evans, and the couple’s party planner,
Judy Paulen of Judy Paulen Designs in London. Over the years,
Preston has learned to ask the right questions to suss out
his clients, many of whom start out with no idea what they
want. He learns as much from this couple’s dislikes as
their likes, asking them to describe weddings where the décor
left them cold as well as what style their home is décorated
in. Preston also watches for the smallest reaction to photos
in his portfolio to glean hints for design direction.
Tip #2
Don’t think it’s impolite to react honestly
to a florist’s book. This is part of the learning
curve—it’s about your personal taste and your dollars.
Being up front early on is essential to the process.
He then shows them an array of fabrics—organza, velvet,
damasks, beaded swatches—as well as the requisite variety
of flowers. Even his clients’ clothes give him clues. The
bride points out that she loves wisteria, a garden feel and
candlelight. All the while, Regina observes and takes copious,
detailed notes. In the end, this couple realizes that they want
the ballroom to appear less overwhelming—more than enough
for Preston to start imagining.
At the second meeting, Preston shows sample centerpieces, photographing
for later replication the ones that are approved. He also tweaks
the sketches for the chuppah and wall décorations. Then
all agree on a budget—one that will hopefully leave the
couple with carfare.
Tip #3
Request that the samples all be photographed—it
puts everyone on the same page.
Tip #4
“If the tables are beautiful, the rest of even
an ugly room disappears,” he says. “High
centerpieces are unquestionably the most dramatic. That, and
tall candles.” Preston advises, however, that something
interesting—nosegays, votives, picture frames, more flowers—also
be arranged at the bottom of the centerpiece. “Otherwise,
there is nothing of interest at eye level when guests are seated.”
Bringing in the equipment
Preston has to deal with a particular design problem: the Ritz
ballroom has a second-tier balcony that can make a less than
humongous wedding look dwarfed in the space. His solution is
ingenious. Months before the wedding, he and his team search
flea markets for oversized antique frames (some worth several
thousand dollars), and then build others to match.
Tip #5
The cost of buying props does not fall with a loud thud
on your bottom line. Many designers maintain warehouses
filled with inventory and will amortize the purchase cost by
renting items to their clients. If you have a specific vase
in mind, ask for it—they might consider making the investment.
Next, photographs of ornate ro-coco urns are enlarged and silk-screened
onto thin fabric to create ”paintings” for each of
the frames. Then Preston makes plans to ”fill” the
urns with masses of real flowers, creating a living trompe l’oeil
to line the balcony.
The team is set into motion
Each event handled by Preston Bailey Designs has a production
manager—in this case, Sanow Ledrod—to take care
of logistics and keep things moving, as well as a transportation/inventory
manager. (Even the mystical Mr. B cannot be in twelve places
at once.) Both work closely with Preston and Regina.
Tip #6
Ask early in the planning who will be your on-site contact
and request to meet them in advance.
Sanow begins both the arduous task of scheduling a cast of dozens
and the endless duty of receiving—flowers, custom-made
table linens, pieces stored in the warehouse, candles. Karen
Speir, who with Preston has developed an innovative line of
wedding favors, begins the painstaking job of gluing tiny posies
of delicate dried flowers on the small glass boxes that will
hold votive candles and be given to each guest as wedding favors.
Three days before the event, the flowers are delivered to Preston’s
studio, and a crew of 12 starts a full day’s work at 6
a.m. Using razor-sharp floral knives, they angle-cut the stem
of each flower to create more drinking surface and put all the
flowers in buckets of clean, tepid water. (Preston is not a
big fan of floral conditioner, which some designers use to prolong
a flower’s life.) When you consider that close to 20,000
blooms have to be prepared for this event, it’s easy to
see where the money goes.
Tip #7
Loose flowers in vases cost significantly less
than carefully arranged and planned centerpieces such as these.
If you need to cut corners, think simply.
The next morning, the crew changes the water and strips each
flower of greens that would otherwise get soggy and rot. They
put the most delicate flowers—such as the more than 600
burgundy, white and apricot orchids—in water-filled floral
tubes. The crew also prepares the 30 bare centerpiece bases—tall,
custom-welded gold metal stands, also out of the warehouse—using
green floral tape to secure the floral foam that will anchor
(and water) the flowers.
Creating a scene
That decked-put ballroom you see in those glossy magazines
doesn’t just get out of bed like that in the morning.
It takes as much primping and powdering as it took Norma Desmond
to get ready for her close-up. The day of the wedding is a
wild whirlwind involving dozens of people that gets set into
motion early in the morning, as 16 skilled freelance floral
designers join the regulars at the studio at 6 a.m. (again!).
Tip #8
If you are planning full-on décor, be sure that
you have your site booked for the entire day, and that
another event isn’t scheduled before it—this kind
of transformation takes a whole day to install.
The studio is filled with white-plastic buckets bursting with
blooms and hums with the sound of blasting Walkmen. The centerpieces,
a dozen auxiliary pieces and the ten frames are finished, with
every designer working according to a slightly different floral
”recipe” that dictates the number of each flower per
arrangement—250 stems total. A centerpiece takes a designer
about two hours to finish, as they carefully place hydrangea,
roses, stock, orchids and eucalyptus berries. (The result, a
unique take on the common design, is one of the reasons a good
designer’s work doesn’t have that predictable produced-in-a-factory
look.) Then the giant frames are fitted with their real flowers,
creating exquisite living tableaux.
The frames are hauled into every other balcony niche and lit.
The living tableaux alternate with frames lined in black velvet
and crammed to the edges and beyond with winding wisteria and
vibrant blooms, turning the cold, vaulted room into a cozy gallery.
The total effect is staggering.
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