This Friday we bring you a beautiful spring engagement in a delightful park. We must say, park engagement shoots are always especially gorgeous, and this one is no exception. Cailin and Rob’s Poughkeepsie and Hyde Park, NY engagement photos are a vision of love, light and the first blush of spring, caught through the expert lens of Caitlin Mahar-Daniels Photography. These two had quite the symbolic day (think of all those metaphors involving spring and beautiful beginnings) and above all else, the inspiring sight these two are with their modern day love story.

Cailin’s modern love story in her words…

"Rob and I first met five years ago when we were both in a wedding party. The first time I saw him I immediately thought he was gorgeous, and he thought the same thing about me. Then, we lost touch for four years, but fate finally brought us back together. We dated for six months, and we both knew this was it. He proposed near our favorite tree, and we could not be happier."

We just love that they met at one of our favourite kinds of events, a wedding! We can’t help but fall in love with this couple that is so clearly in love themselves. And the fact that their outfits complement their chosen location makes us wonder if they could look any more perfect. We doubt it. The joy, the fun and the utter delight their engagement photos conveys tell us their up for a lifetime of bliss. Presumably their wedding will be just as much fun, and just as sweetly romantic.

We are not the only ones who are delighted about this shoot, even their photographer, Caitlin had a word or two to say on the matter. We certainly agree that they make being in love look like a walk in the park.

“I love playing with lighting, and we had the perfect opportunity to do just that. I feel like lighting of this shoot projects a magical quality that ties in perfectly with their love for each other.”

Your bouquet is the item that every single woman in the crowd at your wedding will be eyeing. They’re all going to be looking at that cluster of flowers like it is their salvation, they may push, shove or get a little bit aggressive in an attempt to acquire that single boutonnière. So make it worth fighting for. Choosing your florist (and floral arrangements) is not an unpleasant ordeal, (it can even be a lot of fun) it just requires you do your homework.

The flower budget

The first thing you do for all aspects of your wedding is establish a budget. Because you have been following my wedding checklist, you know by now exactly how much you can afford to spend on flowers. This is a good starting point.

The floral's look

The second thing you do is determine the look you’re going for. You’ve already established a theme (because once again you are following my checklist to the letter, right?) Based on that theme you will be able to determine just what kind of flower arrangements you want at your wedding. Whether it’s going to be one flower in several different colours, or several flowers in similar shades (or maybe your having a jungle themed celebration and you’re getting ferns and greenery all over the place). Perhaps you’re having a garden or outside wedding, in which case you either need less flowers, or you need to invest in landscaping the venue a little bit.

Number of floral arrangements

Third you will be estimating just how many flowers you need. Once you’ve got an estimate calculate it properly by counting how many bouquets you’ll need for your bridal party, how many flowers are going on lapels (groom, groomsmen, father of the bride, ring bearers), how many reception tables you’re going to have and how many other areas will be adorned by flowers. Flower arrangements placed over altars tend to be very big and add more to cost than bouquets, small clusters at the end of each pew add to your flower count. Leave nothing out, you do not want to be scrambling to scrap together one last bouquet on your wedding day.

Examples of wedding bouquets

Google, Pinterest, and Bing, and anywhere else you can find flower pictures. Haunt the internet until you find a picture (or several) of what you want. Don’t expect an exact replica of the image you see in your mind, but find something comparable. Not everyone is a master of communicating the esthetic they desire through mere words, and this picture will help make it that much clearer in your mind. While you’re at it, look out for the names of the flowers you liked best. There’s a pretty big difference between a carnation and a rose, just as there is a difference between a lily and a tulip. It’s also worth noting that some flowers have symbolic meanings (which may be another way you want to pick your flowers don’t worry, we’ll be telling you all about that too).

Florist consultation

Visit florist, first online, then in person. Ideally you should make an appointment for a consultation specifying that it is for your wedding flowers. You need to communicate to them all the information you just gathered. This will help florist determine whether they are a good fit for you, whether they can handle the order and what they would charge you. Once you've checked out a few you’ll have a good idea of which ones you actually want to work with, and which fit your wedding budget.

More inspiration right here!