Bredon Manor Mid-Winter Dried Floral Editorial

As we find ourselves in the depths of winter, today’s inspiration piece from floral designer Bride and Bloom arrives at the perfect moment, offering a fresh perspective on the dormant and often considered bleakest of all the seasons. But as this collection of images illustrates, it is anything but.

The stripped-back, understated backdrop of white-washed walls and natural textures at Bredon Manor perfectly complements the modern, unstructured floral theme, which features fistfuls of dried flowers and seed heads in earthy tones and intriguing textures. It’s refreshingly different and insanely creative, proving that the understated elegance of dried florals can be just as impactful as traditional fresh blooms.

Hannah says…

As a floral designer at Bride and Bloom, choosing to work only with British flowers means that my wedding season typically starts in April and runs through to the end of October, which makes use of all those stunning, locally grown flowers that bring natural beauty to any wedding.

Of course, weddings happen outside of these months, and I was keen to show how it could be done without using imported flowers or just a plethora of greenery and berries. Working this way is creatively challenging for me, but it is where I find my happy place to create seasonally inspired wedding and event flowers.

I think Kat and I had agreed on Bredon Manor as a venue early in our chats, as it was the perfect backdrop for a contemporary photo shoot: whitewashed walls, natural light and high beams. Using dried materials was always part of my plan, and a minimal interior to contrast against the beautiful tones was important to me. Still, I knew we needed a stylist to help bring our ideas together… enter Laura at Studio 81 Events, who sourced the perfect linens, crockery and candles to bring our vision to life.

I’ve worked many times with Captured by Katrina Photography and Laura; they understand how I work and have been integral in my journey to becoming a well-established floral designer in the Cotswolds and Worcestershire area. We all worked seamlessly on the day of the shoot, and I hope that comes across, demonstrating that a beautiful floral aesthetic CAN be achieved in the winter months using what may typically be overlooked.

The key focal point was the dried cloud – made using various dried materials, including bracken, honesty, larkspur, dried foliage, beech branches and blossom, which I loved using! Blackthorn blossom fills the hedgerows in February and is one of the first floral glimmers after winter’s long, cold months. It certainly added some “pretty” to the shoot. I love how the simple grouping of arching stems reaches towards the dried cloud – unifying the hanging installation, table styling, and candles.

Concrete runners and ceramic vases allowed for single stems of grasses, seed pods and dried Ammi to bring warmth and texture to the overall look. Laura paired the florals with cool stoneware crockery and linen. I love this idea of clean, modern details to act as the framework and backdrop to the abstract shapes and colours that seasonal British flowers and foliage bring.