OK, here’s another funny insight for you. Did you know that Organic Elements started in University City? OK, that’s not that interesting until you learn that the location in University City was a one car garage in a house that Sharon shared with three housemates at a time which were kind enough to lend her the space. With a small air conditioning unit and a very claustrophobic design station, Sharon and her assistant produced the first year of the company’s designs in what is now referred to as “the hallway”.

Fortunately a whole lot has changed since then, the company’s employees now have far more space to produce the larger volume of work that moves out of its doors daily but it’s always fun to remember where it all began. An even more endearing side note to this story is that three of the house mates that were so kind to Sharon early in the company’s career have since been married, surrounded by flowers from the company that they helped get its start.

Kelly’s wedding in 2005

Also out in the new Exquisite Weddings magazine is our newest tabletop produced for the shoot. It was done with the fabulous ladies of Red Letter Days. It united hanging framed ballerina slippers with light bulb vases, framed table top flowers, apothecary jars, hot chocolate stations and vintage furniture. Key vendors in the creation of this table include Joes on the Nose, Brightly Designed, Concepts, Chez Laurice, Found and Dining Details. Enjoy and remember to check out the real shots in the new issue out on news stands now.

Apothecary jars filled with flowers, frames filled with love notes and floral paves and plenty of vintage accents.

All below hanging frames, ballerina slippers and light bulb vases.

Hot chocolate station (Joes on the Nose), biscuits and a trunk erupting with florals.

Cake by Dining Details.

Plenty of accents by Brightly Designed.

Framed love notes and floral paves.

Thanks to our amazingly talented friends at SheWanders, our new Exquisite Weddings ad is better than ever! Oh, and it doesn’t hurt that Sharon’s daughter is a cutie pie either. Now that you’ve seen our fantastic new ad, we thought we’d give you some insight about how it came to be. Here are some behind the scenes, as well as alternative images, shot that day.

A little camera surprise upon our arrival.

Our beautiful view.

First outfit.

Milk break!

Shooter Mike.

Detail shot, hair wreath

Detail shot, basket.

Goofing off.

A little basket theft.

And finally, the money shot.

We’re always so happy to give interviews, and so we keep getting interviewed! Exquisite Weddings, San Diego’s premier luxury wedding publication, just put out another article in which Sharon was interviewed. Here’s the link:

The new Exquisite Weddings hits the news stands in September, including a beautiful table top set up with Red Letter Days as well as another write up about our fearless leader. We’ll also be launching a new unique table top series at the release party in late September.

Cheers!

Team OE

Did you know?

We often refer to Olivia as head of Human Resources, but that wasn’t always the case.

Willoughby used to be head of Human Resources. If you had a problem, you’d go to him. Does it look like there’s any problem he can’t solve? Sadly we lost Willoughby in April of this year after nearly 14 wonderful years together.

So there was now a vacuum of leadership.

Enter Olivia.

Does it look like there’s anything this cutie can’t handle? Surely she could fill the position of Human Resources. And, as it happened, she did. Today Olivia, with all of her 11 months of life experience, has become head of Human Resources. Easy to relate to, always entertaining and very flexible (literally)- she has become just the energy this team needed to go out there and be a success.

Go team O!

Well, maybe that’s a bit dramatic but we can make a difference through our choices.

Recently we were presented with a new option regarding some of the flowers we purchase. To be honest, the flowers really spoke for themselves, but they didn’t tell the whole story. Though the quality was excellent, the colors were vibrant and there wasn’t a damaged petal to be found there were so many other reasons to choose this grower.

Now, through our choices, we can actually make a difference for the planet and for some of its people. This grower has also selected to partake in voluntary programs that make real, tangible changes to this world; And by buying from them we strengthen the support of these efforts.

This grower has not only chosen to be Veriflora certified, as many of our vendors have, but it is also Global Gap, ISO 9000, BASC and Rainforest Alliance certified. And in case that isn’t enough, it also helps its employees to get the education they have not yet received, both at elementary and high school levels.

By making these choices we better our lives and those of many others. By choosing Organic Elements you allow us to make more of a difference. And, as always, we thank you for your support.

It’s always nice to stretch your wings every now and again and see what’s going on beyond your immediate environment. That’s how Sharon’s family vacation abroad quickly turned into a European buying trip as well as an overall design study. She’s excited to return with some new products as well as floral and container concepts. She says that the lavender in Provence, France was particularly inspiring and we hope to use it in volumes upon her return. Here are some pictures of it as well as a French floral market. Enjoy your trip Sharon and know that your designers are eagerly awaiting the fruits of your trip.

Remember to keep updated on our adventures in Facebook since not every article makes it to the blog. Don’t miss out on the fun, take the opportunity to “Like” us just a little more!

When the Water = Life came to San Diego’s Natural History Museum, we got to test out some new design styles. As the exhibition reflects our need to conserve the water we use here in California, our florals were designed with virtually no water. This was the perfect marriage of art and our new contemporary design line, DRI: Design Reducing Irrigation.

You, the designer, will be able to choose among a dozen new designs in the DRI line. You can choose them all, you can choose none, but at least now a choice exists.

Please view selected images from DRI designs below and feel free to contact us with any questions you have regarding Organic Elements DRI. In these you’ll find a one quarter peach, succulent bowl and some other unique designs to Organic Elements. Enjoy and thank you to Sean of Resolusean for all of these great photos!!

… that our primary van has a name?

It’s true, almost all jobs are at least partially brought to you by Pegasus… “Peg” for short. She even has her own custom key chain with a very 80’s design of an “I”, a heart and then a picture of a Pegasus on it. The name comes from Sharon’s love of the original Clash of the Titans movie in which the star is truly this winged horse that transports the hero throughout the movie when nothing else could. If asked for an explanation, Sharon would simply say, “Well, she’s big and she’s white and she takes us where we need to go.”

Photo by Resoulsean