Written for the Sonoma Weddings Issue by Abigail Peterson
Photographs by Emily Hagopian Styling by Abigail Peterson and Tamara Apple Shot on location at Annadel Estate Winery
California’s weather challenges have proved to be a creative gift for our region’s top wedding florists.
While the classic look of peonies and other water-demanding blooms never goes out of style, local designers have expanded their options with foraged greenery, succulents, grasses, seed pods, and other nontraditional elements. Santa Rosa designer Jaclyn K. Nesbitt says eco-conscious wedding flowers can be sophisticated and verdant. “I don’t find the drought to be limiting creatively at all,” says Nesbitt. “It opens a new store of inventiveness.” Designer Bonnie Z of Dragonfly Floral in Healdsburg takes the ultimate drought-tolerant approach by growing all the flowers she uses on her family’s six-acre organic farm. “Not many florist shops have tractors—or ducks running around wild,” she jokes. This year, Z was able to cut back drastically on her farm’s water usage, yet her creations still convey the special abundance that comes from eco-friendly, field-grown blooms.
Click through the gallery to see all the floral arrangements.