Not Every Room Needs the Same Thing

This probably sounds obvious.

But you would be surprised how often we're asked to make the same thing work in completely different rooms.

A low arrangement that looks perfect on one table can disappear in another.

An installation that feels enormous in a restaurant can look like a decorative afterthought in a ballroom.

A color palette that feels soft and romantic in the afternoon can take on an entirely different personality after the sun goes down.

The room gets a vote.

We've talked about that before, but we've been thinking about it even more lately.

Because the space isn't the only thing that gets a vote.

The people get one too.

The reason everyone is gathering matters.

The time of day matters.

How guests will move through the room matters.

A wedding asks something different of a space than a Women's Economic Empowerment Brunch at the Maryland Governor's Mansion.

A corporate dinner has a different rhythm than a floral design class.

A room full of people sitting down for a long dinner needs something different than a space where everyone will be standing, moving, talking, and inevitably gathering around the bar.

Flowers don't exist in a vacuum.

We're always thinking about what happens around them.

Who is sitting there?

What are they doing?

What are they looking at?

Will they be trying to have a conversation over an arrangement?

Will they walk underneath it?

Will they photograph it?

Will they notice it at all?

Sometimes the answer to that last question is surprisingly important.

Not every design needs to announce itself.

Sometimes the flowers should be the first thing you notice.

Sometimes they should quietly make everything around them look better.

Both are useful.

Both can be beautiful.

The trick is knowing which one the room is asking for.