The most fun you can have near Amsterdam at 5 am.

I figured it was about time that I post a couple of photos from my trip to Amsterdam a few weeks ago. During the 2009 Philadelphia Flower show, I had the opportunity to meet Tony Cummins from Tuning Floral Export based at the Aalsmeer flower auction in Holland. He kindly picked me up at 5 in the morning in Amsterdam, and drove me out to tour the auction first hand.

Aalsmeer is the largest flower auction in the world, and where we obtain almost all of our premium product. I had the opportunity to visit the Aalsmeer auction while still a student, but I have always wanted to get a behind the scenes tour. My wish came true!

I was right on the floor of the auction, nearly getting hit by the long trains of flowers. The photos don't begin to show the vast size of the auction, and my camera was in failing health, so the pictures aren't the best. You get the idea. The coolest part was seeing the exact flowers in Holland that we used for a wedding just a few days later. We took different planes, but both met up again in Philadelphia. If only I could justify hand picking all of our flowers in Holland!

Holland is the center of the cut flower world, and Amsterdam is by far my favorite city to visit.














It's always nice to combine business and pleasure. I try to visit at least twice a year to keep abreast of the latest European trends. Armas, Judith, and myself will be heading back in mid-October for the Hortifair, an international flower and trade show. Anybody want to come along?

AIGA Philly's Fellow Award Cocktail Party 2009

AIGA Philadelphia honored Laurie Churchman tonight with a Fellow Award Cocktail Party at the Art Alliance in Philadelphia. AIGA’s mission is to advance designing as a professional craft, strategic tool and vital cultural force - very MODA...

Not only do we like working in this particular space, but our graphic designer Anna Levin is a member. So when she gave us a call for some floral decor for the event we thought it would be a great way to mix it up with people who had great design aesthetic. (Stay tuned for the professional Pics!)

Anna really liked our arrangements:


And we really liked the ad she designed for their program for us:

MANNA at MODA

MODA botanica partnered up with MANNA (Metropolitan Area Neighborhood Nutrition Alliance) and our friends at Pub and Kitchen on May 21st to kick off the summer.

There were lots of volunteers learning about MANNA's mission to prepare and deliver delicious, nourishing meals, along with counsel and hope, to people at acute nutritional risk from life-threatening illness, helping them improve their health and quality of life. If you are looking for a fun volunteer opportunity give Meg Rider at Manna a call!

Pub and Kitchen were generous with their tasty treats that over 50 guests enjoyed. They definately got people talking to each other & raving about their great food & exceptional staff. If you haven't checked them out yet - swing on by (they don't take reservations) 1946 Lombard!


Armas, Bailey, Meg (MANNA), Luca & Jennifer (Savory PR), and Judith thank everyone for participating & being and being an active part of our community!

Brides.com at F.U.E.L.

I got a call from Sofia Negron (of Sofia Negron Photography) last week that I needed to get out networking again. "There's lot's of great stuff out there and your missing it," she said. Plus, there is usually free food involved with networking - so I jumped at the chance to check out F.U.E.L. with a fresh eye. It had been awhile since I was at 249 Arch Street - like when it was the "Real World" house. It seemed like a great idea to sell the venue in original TV condition, but a wee bit skeevy too.

The location has been revamped and is a cool event space and has been repainted white for a clean fresh blank canvas to work from, beautiful chandeliers and an open floor plan. But what makes it even better for me is the great artwork on display. F.U.E.L. is an acronym: Fostering Undergraduate Exposure on Location, and as a Tyler School of Art Grad myself I could have used a space like this! They are committed to cutting-edge arts and culture - so I can't wait to have a MODA client book this space. We'd be a perfect combination.

Anyway, back to networking...Sofia and I had a great time:

No, we really did behave ourselves and we met some great people, like Gabriel Fredericks from Philip Gabriel Photography whom we stalked for a better photo than the one we took above:

....And Joseph here from Miel Patisserie who helped us decorate our own chocolates as a take-a-way:

The event was sponsored by Brides.com and was filled with lots of great event people making connections. Fleur de Lys Catering showcased great food, we chatted up Lindsay Martin and Alain Flambert from Feastivities Events and Carolyn Verdi was in the house too!

~ Judith

The Four Seasons

UPDATE 6.8.09:
Here are a few professional shots from Michael Persico!





Original Post:
This past weekend we spent some time with our friends at The Four Seasons. Caren Pocino gave us free reign as long as we incorporated yellow and hot pink. She also took the arrangements the extra mile and incorporated Pin-Spotting into her budget. These pictures are from my iPhone - but we will upload some professional ones soon so you can really see what a difference it makes! Clients spend so much time deciding on all the details, so highlight them! It really makes a difference!

And just because I talk about how much I love cake at EVERY bridal consultation...here is Caren's! ~Judith

Please Touch Museum Open House

UPDATE 6.8.09:

Michael Persico came by today & dropped off a CD of pics from a few latest events...here are of few professional shots from the Open House at The Please Touch Museum...but there were too many great ones! So I put up a slide show at the top of the blog, thank you Michael!

Original Post:
If you haven't been to the newly refurbished Memorial Hall now that it is the Please Touch Museum - make a play date and get over there! They have been open for about a year now and both the museum and the building are incredible.

Max and Me are the in-house catering company for the museum and always have something deliciously fresh to showcase. They invited us to showcase some of our designs for their open house on May 13, 2009. It was a chance for them to reach out to new and prospective clients by showcasing Hamilton Hall set for an event. This was a great opportunity for MODA to display some of our designs too! What better combination than Babies Breath, mushrooms and carnivorous plants! The Total Table hooked us up with our linen "Creme Zebra" which rounded out the whole theme.

And who doesn't love baaabies...!

~ Judith

Urban Outfitters: Dinner Party

We got a last minute call from our friends at Urban Outfitters for some last minute decor for a Board meeting, and we were please to assist. Inspired by the "Coral" Corylus we had used the previous week for Allie's wedding - we reused and repurposed it into these long and low arrangements.

~ Judith

Seaside Wedding: Allison Rose

I met Allison when she used to work at a destination management company. She would order flowers for her corporate events from me. She was always so great to work with, always loved the flowers and would say "when I get married I am calling you to do my flowers! You always know what I want!" Well, she actually did call! We met with her and her coordinator last year and were so happy to work with her.

Allison got married down the shore at St. Augustine's and had her reception at The Flanders Hotel. She loves hydrangea and wanted some ocean touches - we worked in some coral colors and textures with painted Corylus, Coral Charm Peonies and various shades of blue Hydrangea.



Bailey had ordered all the flowers for the event. This one was pretty exciting since he was in Holland and touring the Dutch Auction on the day they were packing Allie's flowers!

Armas and I took a stroll down the boards while we were waiting for the ceremony to be over - we caught the wedding party getting some photos before hand. Phil Kramer was the photographer so the shots are sure to be beautiful - we will post a few once they are online!

~ Judith