Love in a Pandemic
Right around March 13th (which coincidently was Friday the 13th), our entire 2020 wedding calendar imploded. I’m an old-fashioned day planner gal, and page after page was filled with red X marks denoting event cancellations. Eventually, I gave up (or maybe my pen ran out of red ink) and I tossed my planner in a drawer. I was convinced that it would be an entire year – at least – before we’d be making a bridal bouquet again. Boy was I wrong…enter the micro wedding trend.
Micro Wedding is a term coined by the events industry for a small, elopement style wedding. There’s no standard format – some consist of just a bride and groom and an officiant, and some involve intimate dinner parties reserved for just a few close family and friends. Venues have gone from fancy five-star hotels to backyards, and tables are no longer traditional rounds but rather socially distanced and arranged by household.
Since COVID hit, we’ve produced flowers for over 35 micro weddings, averaging two or three per week. The trend is that there are no trends. We’ve had couples get married on a weekday just as commonly as they’ve gotten married on a Saturday. We’ve had couples marry over Zoom, alone at the courthouse, and in lavish backyard ceremonies. The common theme: pandemic sucks, but love perseveres.
The most exciting part of micro weddings is that our supply chain issues have forced us – and our couples – to relax a little with planning out every last flower. Instead, we’ve had brides give us wide-open parameters for design, and I think we’ve made some pretty gorgeous bouquets in the process. Who knew throwing out the rule book could be so fun?
There are so many things we’re all ready to put behind us relating to the pandemic. Micro Weddings aren’t one of them. Here’s hoping this trend sticks around.
- About the shop
Helen Olivia is a boutique floral design studio located in the Del Ray neighborhood. Known for a lush and timeless style, the shop is a favorite among locals. Outside of beautiful flowers, Helen Olivia is a destination for house plants, decorative pottery, and an endless selection of stylish front door wreaths. The shop is also well known for its weekly floral design workshops — come visit us and try your hand at flower arranging! Helen Olivia is owned by Chuck and Rachel Gang who are veterans of the bustling Washington, D.C., events industry. Both are D.C. natives, and reside in the Ft Hunt neighborhood of Alexandria with their son Jack.
1519 Leslie Avenue
Alexandria, VA 22301
703.548.2848
