Dode Martin and Casey Sparks make up member florist MartinRoberts Design, www.martinroberts.com. Dode initially trained for and entered the business world, but soon discovered that the “suit-and-tie” arena was not really to his liking. He got his start in the floral industry helping out a friend in Dallas, then travelled to Chicago and eventually landed in San Francisco where he started his own design company. A trip to Hawaii to install a friend’s wedding inspired him to set up the foundation to work from both locations as needed. By Casey’s own admission, Dode taught him everything he knows and with the help of a great group of freelancers, this dynamic duo is able to operate floral studios in Kauai, HI and San Francisco, CA.
Casey described a recent wedding set on two tiers of land at the Hawaiian Romantic Cottage. Pink Vendela and Jade roses, Pink Ice Cymbidiums and freesia buds made up a simple and sophisticated bridal bouquet. A winding trail of black river-rocks dotted with cymbidium blossoms and strategically placed tall glass cylinders of cymbidium stems and flax leaf, led the way to the ceremony site staged on the lower lawn overlooking Kahili Bay. After the ceremony, guests ascended a winding staircase of lava rock to the dinner tent on the upper lawn. The banquet-style dinner tables were also decorated with black river-rocks and green and pink cymbidium orchid blossoms, as well as, cylinders of loose Singapore Jade Dendrobium orchid stems. Noting that candlelight was important to the bride, the tables were highlighted with cylinders of white floating disk candles. Pale green and pink Chinese lanterns were hung from the tent ceiling to pull the entire design aesthetic together.
As roughly 97% if the studio’s weddings are outdoors, MartinRoberts Design takes full advantage of the benefits of Islands’ locations; the Romanticism of the sandy beaches and gorgeous ocean views, the abundance of beautiful, exotic flowers, the lush garden-like quality of the surroundings and the nearly perpetual 80 degree weather. Luckily, even if rain develops, in the tropical climate, the weather can pass over and clear back up within minutes. Sometimes these little showers can create a dazzling rainbow as the perfect accent on a memorable day!
Martin Roberts was featured in Flower Magazine.
Our member florist Dorothy McDaniel’s Flower Market in Birmingham, AL., was recently featured in the March/April 2009 issue of Southern Living magazine, in the Entertaining/Flower Arranging section.
