And just like that, another year is in the books! Another year of jaw-dropping events (85 to be exact). If we had to pick one word to summarize this year, it would definitely be GROWTH. At the beginning of the year our team doubled in size from 5 to 10 full time employees, and by the end of the year our space would more than double from 4,000 square feet to 10,000 square feet (more about that later). Today, we’re taking a quick stroll down memory lane in a month-by-month “highlight reel” of Life In Bloom’s 2022 season.
JANUARY
Much of what we produced in the busy wedding season was planned and designed in the cold months of January & February. One of the things that make Life In Bloom one of the best event florists in Chicago is the beautiful design boards and event renderings that we put together for our couples. Below are a few of the renderings that we created for some of the events that you’ll see photos of later in the season:
FEBRUARY
Usually February is a pretty dead month for events in Chicago. But we brought The University Club to life for Annie & Michael’s wedding on February 12th, 2022. We hand crafted 14 custom “trees” that completely transformed Cathedral Hall. Our team got an early start and despite being a 12+ hour install day, it was one of our favorite installs of the year!
MARCH
Life In Bloom welcomes Lily Roche & Luke Joiner to the team! Lily Roche interned with Life In Bloom in both the summers of 2020 and 2021 while she was completing her bachelor’s degree in Studio Arts with a concentration in Printmaking at Indiana Wesleyan. Her obvious artistic talent, remarkable attention to detail, and creative eye made her the perfect fit as our new floral design manager.
In addition to Lily, we added Luke Joiner to our team as a full time floral designer. Luke’s love for botanicals, gardens and creating unforgettable moments in people’s lives made him a wonderful addition to our team. Luke is an Alabama native and his background in professional ballet dancing brings so much energy to the floral studio!
APRIL
In early April we produced the following event at one of our favorite wedding venues in Chicago, The Old Post Office. Our bride, Nina, had the most sophisticated taste and while very particular, she was absolutely delightful to work with every step of the way. From the custom bars to the intricately designed band backdrop and from the suspended floral clouds to the custom tabletop covers, custom was the name of the game. From start to finish, this wedding showcased why Life In Bloom is consistently regarded as one of the best luxury wedding florists in the country!
MAY
“Post-Apocalyptic, but Beautiful”. That was the vision of our Bride, Kristen, who wanted to cover nearly every square inch of Morgan Manufacturing in vegetation as though it was an overgrown abandoned warehouse. So on May 14th, 2022, our team woke up at the crack of dawn to load up the trucks and head over to Morgan MFG and get to work!!! This was a wonderful example of what can be done when our clients give us a general vision and just let us do our magic.
JUNE
Our June was full of events (14 specifically). That said, one of our most memorable moments from June was the 2022 Lyon Family Foundation Peony Party. Highlights of this mid-day soiree included a performance by world class synchronized swimming team, Aquabatix, beats by DJ Matt Roan, a live purse auction, and decor by yours truly.
We were so thrilled to have been part of such an amazing event benefiting the lives of children and young adults afflicted with cancer. The second annual peony party brought Life In Bloom so much joy throughout the production and installation process.
JULY
If you follow any of our social accounts, you are probably aware by now that we are moving!!! Rachel and Tim toured 1850 W Grand Ave. for the first time back in November of 2021. Initially drawn to the phenomenal location, it was the overall size, wide open production space and double loading dock the sealed the deal. In March they officially closed on the building and began working with an Architect to design the perfect space for us. After permitting delays (thanks City of Chicago) we finally broke ground in July and began renovations to transform this old building into the perfect new headquarters for Life In Bloom.
AUGUST
3 events. 3 locations. 40 designers, 30,000 flowers…1 day. August 20, 2022 was far and away the busiest day in Life In Bloom’s 10-year history. In some ways it was all a blur… a blur that started at 4:00am at Saddle & Cycle Club with our team covering nearly every square inch of the ballroom in smilax. Meanwhile across town, we had another team creating a number of sculptural installations at both The Dalcy & Morgan Manufacturing in the West Loop (two of our favorite wedding venues).
I’ll always remember finally sitting down on my couch after a 16-hour install and looking through all of the photos and video from the day from all three events and being so proud of our entire team at this incredible accomplishment!
Venue: Morgan MFG | Planner: LK Events | Photographer: Loren Weddings
Venue: The Dalcy | Planner: Lola Event Productions | Photographer: Kent Drake
SEPTEMBER
Love is Love. And my goodness did we LOVE this wedding! From ceremony to reception, this wedding at Chicago Botanic Gardens was overflowing with panicled hydrangea in every nook and cranny! Caroline & Lyla were blessed with the most perfect warm fall day and we were blessed to play a small part in making their wedding day one to remember!
OCTOBER
What could be better than watching your very first employee marry the love of her life? Erin McLoraine (now Korab) has been with Life In Bloom for over six years. And over those past six years we have been slowly planning her dream wedding, day by day, wedding by wedding. And finally on October 1, 2022, Erin married her best friend, Cameron. Their wedding took place in New Buffalo, Michigan, just a few hours East of Chicago! And Life In Bloom had the honor of bringing Erin’s vision to life. Erin writes:
“There is something about Michigan that is just magical. The trees, the water, the lake houses – it has been a repeat vacation spot for my family for years. In the past few years, my now-husband and I have found New Buffalo to be the perfect summer day trip or weekend getaway. When we were deciding where our wedding should be, it just seemed like the perfect fit. Away from the Chicago market, where I have worked in just about every venue, but close enough that I could use my favorite vendors!
We found Apple Blossom Resort and knew it was the right fit. A backyard, fall wedding – where our family could all stay on the property. I have seen so many weddings and this just felt unique. Our family stayed on the property for four days and we were able to have our guests come for a welcome party as well as the reception.
I wanted to lean into fall colors with touches of chartreuse green. A couple fun floral and toile patterns were placed on small details. A few of my favorite decor items had to be our oversized escort card urn, pool monogram, custom bar and the tent lighting. My bridal bouquet was made by Rachel (owner of Life in Bloom) who taught me everything I know about flowers.
The weekend was everything I dreamed of and more…I would not change a single thing!”
NOVEMBER
Life In Bloom is growing! Two new employees both started in November. We could not be more excited to introduce Brian Kempen and Rowan Wilson to the Life In Bloom family. Brian is a new employee but an old friend. He came to work with us at Life In Bloom as a freelancer almost seven years ago before taking a full time design position at Fleur. There, he further enhanced his skills with floral design and learned the ins and outs of the overall event design process. While at Fleur, he had many events published in Brides Magazine, Carats & Cake, Green Wedding Shoes, Style Me Pretty, and many others. We are so excited to have Brian as our newest event designer!
Rowan Wilson recently graduated from Michigan State University with a degree in Advertising Management and Public Relations. Although the floral industry came out of nowhere for her, she honed her skills at A Day In May Events working alongside one of the country’s finest event planners. Rowan considers herself equally creative and organized and loves the instant gratification of getting to see events come to life all in a day. We feel so lucky to have Rowan on our team as our newest Event Design Assistant!
DECEMBER
We had a small handful of weddings in December to cap off our busy wedding season, including a Christmas themed wedding at The Chicago Club complete with a Butch McGuires themed cocktail hour. We took “deck the halls” VERY seriously.
One of the other major highlights of December was the big move into our new building at 1850 W Grand Avenue. The move took two days in total but even more mental energy with weeks of organizational prep. With an all-hands-on-deck attitude, everything went so smooth and we can’t wait to have everyone into our new office in the new year!
Stay tuned for an office reveal coming soon…
Well, there you have it… 2022 was busy and it was beautiful! We couldn’t have done it without all of your love and support. Thanks to all of our incredible clients, amazing vendor partners, and our entire team who made this all possible! We look forward to an even better 2023!
Cheers!
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