Best Thing Ever: Instagram Favorites

By now, many of you are not only on Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest but Instagram.

I've been doing instagram for a while now and I never got into until a few months ago and now it's  suddenly  the flavor of the month, I can't stop myself.  I just need to look and glance to see what is out there.

What I love about Instagram is how artful some of the images can be.  

Yes, simple snapshots are suddenly too beautiful for words.

Amy Squires food shots always do me in.  They make me drool. 

My hubby's, Kevin Chin, Black Vespa photo with that old fashion filter makes me dream of Italy. It's such a simple photo but it's powerful in it's imagery.

Take for instance, Jose Villa's magnolia image.

I kept the images purposeful small because that's how we see them on our smartphones.  

In that small space, simple every day objects become inspiring works of art.  That's why Instagram is my Best Thing Ever! 

Come follow up on Instagram(@nancylichin) and let's show each other our visions and inspirations.

Ask Nancy: Mechanics for DIY Bride

Hi Nancy! 

 I am a DIY bride in Charlotte, NC. I found your blog online and noticed that you provide some brides with advice. I found a aisle centerpiece online that I fell in love with. I wanted to see if you would offer me any advice on how to best recreate this centerpiece. 

 I really would like to know what type of container the florist used to hold the piece.

 I'd love to get your opinion on other aspects of the piece as well, but any reply would be greatly appreciated! 

 Thanks, A DIY Bride in Desperate Need of Help!

_________________________________

Dear DIY Bride

Thanks for your question.
First and foremost, congratulations. I'm pleased to see that you are going to do your own wedding flowers. It's a huge undertaking and you need to be commended for your courage and tenacity.

Way to go. 

As you know, I'm not one to shy away from saying that DIY flowers is not my thing.  Even when I got married in 2000, I hired someone to do my flowers.  Back in 2000, I had very little experience with flowers and I hadn't gone to flower school yet so I knew that creating something was out of my league especially a grand arrangement.

It's just an area in which I would prefer to leave to expert.  Hear me out ---- I like to cook and a few of my friends might even say that I can whip up a 4 course menu.  But I wouldn't want to cater my own wedding, plating 180 plates of salad, soup, main entree and dessert doesn't sound remotely fun.  I just can't imagine myself cooking the night before my big day.  It's not for me.

Having said that,  for some, creating their own flowers is such a fun process. With that in mind, just make sure you are prepared in advance.

A few things to all who are doing their own flowers.

Things that you should address when doing your own flowers
1) Storing flowers - will you have a cool place to store?
If it's freezing outside, do you have a method to transport in cold weather as well? Once you get the flowers, do you have space to design?
2) Processing flowers - do you have a space for this? make sure to buy the right rools
3) Set up of flowers - do you have at team of friends and family who can set this up for you?  Have you checked with your venue on when you can begin setup?  And who will be responsible for cleaning all the flowers up at the end of the night?
4) Transporting flowers - do you have a rental SUV or Mini van that can transport this from where you will be designing the flowers to the venue?  Will you be responsible for cleaning up the flowers at the end of the night?    If you are ordering flowers, is it a direct drop or do you have to pick it up from a nursery or airport?

For DIY Bride, you will need a mechanic for which to do these arrangements.
I would advise you to use a

1) A Plastic Design Tray. This one is called a Saddle   You can find these on many wedding supply outlets.  Each one will carry different style of trays.

Here is a link to a few

This is called  a Double Casket Saddle.  It is good for 2 bricks of Floral Foam. Available at FSS'

www.fss.com - Floral Supply Syndicate

This is a silver 9 inch centerpiece tray.  You can also try this one. This is available at Floral Supply Online

www.floralsupplyonline.com - Floral Supply Online

This is a 10inch Oblong Green Design tray from DirectFloral.com 

www.directfloral.com - Direct Floral

A couple other things that I would use are 1) Water Proof Tape(on the top left)  2) Chicken Wire(on the top right)  and 3) Floral Foam(bottom middle)  You can find these on line.  FSS.com is a good resource for most of these items.

You will need the floral foam to place on the design trays or saddle.
Make sure you soak them in deep water.
You will need the wire to cover the oasis foam and the waterproof tape to secure.

To make the size arrangements that are shown in the photos above, you can use two trays placed horizontal next to each other to create that long length.

To create this full look, you should use fluffy and large head flowers.  Flowers like hydrangea, roses, Chinese mums, viburnum, stock, are good choices to create this ethereal and elegant look.  I would create them 1 day prior.  To create this arrangement, you will need more flowers than you think.  It looks pretty large to me so I would make sure to buy enough.  Start with your largest stems first.

Insider tip:  Make sure that you keep the floral foam wet and the tray filled with water.  This is very important.

  

Lessons: Surround Yourself With the Best

I get asked by many people this question, "What is the hardest part of your job?".  And one might think the answer is getting the right clients or setting up a grand, over the top wedding.  But in reality one of the hardest and most difficult task of having a business is being a manager of a team.

Trust me, I am very far from a good manager but I've been so blessed to have a very understanding, patient, and wonderful staff possibly the best team that anyone could ask for.  A group(Anies, Gaby, "Uncle" Ben, Laura R, Lily, Nancy T, Nicole, Kate B, Joyce, Anne M. )  of amazing designers, interns, production crew have shaped me into a better manager, not necessarily the best yet but that I'm still working on.   The road to this has not been easy and I will be the first to admit this to anyone, I've made more than my fair share of mistakes, blunders, and out right miscues.  Yup, I've done them all.

Regretted things I've said, actions that hurt, and advice that was just darn stupid.   These things, I'm not proud of.

More than all of these things combined, I've allowed stress and my emotions to get the best of me.  Leading to quick, rash, and fast decisions when instead I should be calm and approach things through my team's eyes.

What I have learned is that there is nothing as valuable as an asset as a team.  And thus being an effective leader (even one born out of stupidity and trials and errors) is far more awesome than being the best designer leader.

There is no magic formula for effectiveness.  All I can say is 1) be attune to each individual 2) you don't need to be friends, you need to be fair 3) pause whenever possible when you catch mistakes and speak with the individual quickly and with caution 4) practice patience 5) when a mistake happens, promptly salvage things with a genuine mea culpa 6) let them be involved with decisions that will effect the team 7) avoid being a tyrant 8) develop calm and grace(this one is super hard for me!) 9) minimize fault finding 10) foster and develop an individual's ability through encouragement.

I'm forever indebted to my current team, many who have been with me for a decade.  And this post is for them.

Alisa Mach

Anies Charles

Anne Millett

Amy Mu

Avanie Koot

Uncle" Ben Fu

Casey Schotsag

Gabriella Reid

Heather Young

Janelle Jacky

Lily Castro

Olga Llerena

Mai Tran

Nicole Roveto

and

Kate Bennett, our intern! 

Bottom line: surround yourself with the best and do everything possible to keep them through effective leadership.

Thank you to Kevin Chin for the behind the scenes images! 

Press: NLC Designs Featured on Grace Ormonde April Issue

This week The Great Gatsby will open up nationwide and I can't wait(I've got a movie date with my friends, Matt and Lisa, to see it!).  There's not much not to love about decadant, over the top, grandeur.   This Gatsbyesque inspiration will be featured in Grace Ormonde's April 2013 issue( by the way, you can go to Itunes to download the April issue for free). After so many years of simple, rustic, understated, it's refreshing to see a bit of posh, guilded glamour and luxury that marks the spirit of the Roaring '20's yet maintains the spirit of today's weddings.

 

Photography by Kevin Chin. Wedding Planning by Charmed Events. Lampshade, Table and Chairs by BluePrint Studios. Back drop by Blu Print Studios. China, glassware, and flatware by Classic Party Rentals. Runner by La Tavola Linens. Floral and Event Design by Nancy Liu Chin Designs. Stationary by Charmed Events. Venue courtesy of  San Francisco's Palace Hotel, a Luxury Collection Hotel.

Real Wedding: Bently Reserve Modern Luxe Wedding

It's always fun to share weddings that are personally meaningful because of the relationships that you build during the wedding process.  I'm totally thrilled to share this modern luxe wedding of a beautiful couple, Alexis and Emily.  The first moment, I met them, I felt an immediate connection to these young ladies.  They are both beautiful, inside and out, smart, brilliant, witty, and delightful.  The love and respect that they have for each other was self evident from our first meeting in my humble Dogpatch office.

When A + E came to me, they really expressed their desire for a wedding that was more tailored, understated yet still equally elegant.  Words like modern, sleek were emphasized.  Lighting and color were important because they didn't want a reception that was too colorful so it was even more important to get the hues perfect.  Flowers that they liked were all hues of whites and cream tones. What we ended up with is a modern styled, black/white hued wedding that feels old world but is much more modern sophistication.  We used flowers like calla lilies, gardenias, hydrangeas, orchids for the wedding because the blooms evoked both a sense of elegance and timelessness yet modernness.

Other details included a simple square box cake with white clay flowers with black center by the wonderful DK Designs.  Bridesmaids in black gowns flowed dramatic and complemented well with groomsmen in black tuxedo and black bowtie. Emily in an ivory Brioni Tuxedo while Alexis in a fitted lace wedding gown looked flawless.   The ceremony was in the center of the Bently Reserve main room.  A white carpet riser surrounded by tall cylinders with white grand flowers become the focal point of the ceremony.  Emily's former mentor officiated the wedding while guests surrounded the couple on both sides.

The room was transformed after the ceremony into the reception where a combination of round and long tables with white flowers flanked a dance floor in the middle of the room. Black and white pattern linen selected by their wedding planner, Christopher Lee with West Elm styled Hartmann chairs created a modern edge for the reception(which I adore!!!) The lighting in the evening changed from amber from the ceremony to hues of royal and deep amethyst.  They wanted the room to feel like a superclub, not your typical ballroom.

Take a look at the details for yourself. 

The wonderful details are captured by photographer Darcy Padilla.  The design is by the talented Christopher Lee of Leftwich Events.  Hartmann Studios provided the rentals which are so chic I wish I could "buy" them for my own house.  Taste Catering designed the modern cake and all the food.  And of course, there is the wonderful Bently Reserve which remains one of my favorite places to design weddings.  You can go from classic to romantic to modern to sleek.  It's a perfect venue to create a bit of magic.