Amanda & Austin's Saltwater Farm Vineyard Wedding Flowers | Peterson's Patch Florals

Sep 25

3 min read

Updated: Oct 14

Saltwater Farm Vineyard sits right on the Connecticut coast in Stonington, with vines, open sky, and salt air. It's a place that asks for flowers that feel natural and a little wild, and designs that can hold their own when the wind comes off the water. When Amanda and Austin chose it for their July wedding, I couldn't wait to bring thier wedding flowers from my farm in Sterling to the vineyard.

Bride and groom at Saltwater Farm Vineyard a July wedding in Stonington, CT — *Bride and groom holding hands in the vineyard rows at Saltwater Farm Vineyard, bride carrying a white and blue bouquet*

The Ceremony Arch

The arch was the heart of the ceremony and wedding flowers at this wedding at Saltwater Farm Vineyard. I built it with trailing smilax, ferns, and hanging green amaranthus, then layered in white dahlias, roses, white snapdragons, green wasabi roses, and white and blue delphinium. Flowy white fabric draped through it to soften everything.

One thing you learn quickly at Saltwater is that it's windy, right on the coast. We weighted the arch so it couldn't tip forward, so the structure stayed put and the fabric could move the way it's meant to.

White satin ribbon flowed from each ceremony chair, a simple touch that moved beautifully in the air all the way down the aisle.

they were married under the wedding floral arch at Saltwater Farm Vineyard in Stonington, CT in July — *Couple celebrating under a floral arch of smilax, white flowers, blue delphinium and draped fabric at a Saltwater Farm Vineyard ceremony*

Heirloom Ferns With a Story

This is my favorite detail of the day. Amanda's mother has heirloom Boston ferns, and we brought them to the vineyard. I dressed them up with linear florals in water picks and set them on wine barrels at the entrance to the ceremony aisle.

After the ceremony, we carried the ferns into the reception space, so the family's plants were part of the whole day and not just the first half hour.

white, blue and green bridal bouquet for Amanda at her Saltwater Farm Vineyard, Stonington, CT wedding — *Bride walking down the aisle with her father past heirloom Boston ferns on wine barrels at Saltwater Farm Vineyard*

The Bridal Bouquet

Amanda's bouquet was white, blue, and green, built around calla lilies, lisianthus, and dahlias grown on my farm, with white roses, ranunculus, peonies, soft astilbe, and greenery. It was the one place where every color and texture of the day came together.

A July wedding in whites, blues and greens nestled into the vines at Saltwater Farm Vineyard in Stonington, CT — *Bride and groom in the vineyard with a close-up of a white, blue and green bridal bouquet with calla lilies and a pale blue ribbon*

Single-Flower Bouquets for the Bridesmaids

Each bridesmaid wore a different shade of green, so each carried a bouquet made from a single flower: white dahlias, white peonies, white calla lilies, white roses, and snapdragons that I hand-painted a soft light blue with floral paint to echo the blue in Amanda's bouquet. On its own, each bouquet let one flower's shape shine. Lined up together, they read as one design, with Amanda's mixed bouquet as the clear focal point.

I also made posy-style bouquets for both mothers, the mother of the bride and the mother of the groom. A posy is easier to hold than a corsage is to pin, and it gives each mom her own flowers to carry.

Bridal party flowers lined up in the bridal suite at Saltwater Farm Vineyard in Stonington, CT — *Bridal and bridesmaid bouquets lined up in glass vases before a Saltwater Farm Vineyard wedding*

July wedding at Saltwater Farm Vineyard in Stonington, CT, the bride and her bridal party in shades of green with single variety bridesmaid bouquets — *Bride with bridesmaids in different shades of green, each holding a single-flower white bouquet*

Boutonnieres

Austin, his groomsmen, and family wore textural green boutonnieres that tied the men into the same palette as the bridesmaids.

The groom and his men at his wedding in July at Saltwater Farm Vineyard in Stonington, CT — *Groom and groomsmen in navy suits wearing textural green and white boutonnieres*

Cocktail Hour and the Bars

For cocktail hour, bud vases held calla lilies and ferns. The outside bar got its own arrangement, and the inside bar got a statement piece that guests saw the moment they walked in.

The Reception

At the head table, I made Ikebana-style designs from miniature baby ferns surrounded by moss, paired with blue candles in glass hurricanes. The long farm-style table got large moss centerpieces with airy white flowers and moss spilling out the bottom. The round guest tables got smaller versions of the same design. Scaling the arrangements to each table kept the room cohesive without crowding anyone's view across the table.

Bud vases accented the larger centerpieces running down the farm style table.

Mossy, green, white, and blue floral wedding centerpieces with bid vases and candles at Saltwater Farm Vineyard — *Moss-based wedding centerpiece with white and pale blue flowers beside blue taper candles in glass hurricanes*

Planning Your Saltwater Farm Vineyard Wedding Flowers

If you're getting married at Saltwater, plan for wind. It shapes how an arch is built and anchored and which pieces work best outdoors. I'm proud to be on Saltwater's preferred vendor list, and I love designing there.