The Willows Villanova Wedding Flowers

Oct 19

A Blue and Yellow Garden Wedding in Philadelphia

Venue: The Willows - Villanova

Photography: Grace and Ardor Photography

Alexis and Mike's June 13, 2026 wedding took place at The Willows in Villanova, Pennsylvania, planned by Shannon Wellington Weddings with florals by Twig Gardens. The floral design paired a soft Italian-Summer garden palette of pale blue, butter yellow, crisp white, and layered greens with lemons, grapes, and terracotta across the ceremony, cocktail hour, and tented reception.

Alexis and Mike's wedding started with a few favorite flowers and an early-summer palette, and we couldn’t wait to get our hands on this design. Shannon and her team brought us a vision full of soft blues, sunny yellows, and easy, natural greenery, and The Willows, with its 1910 mansion and rolling parkland, gave all of it the perfect place to land.

This post walks through how the floral plan came together: the planning partnership behind it, the historic Main Line venue, and the fresh, fruit-filled aesthetic that ties the whole day together.

What Does a Great Wedding Planner Bring to the Floral Design?

Shannon Wellington Weddings, a boutique planning and design studio based in Chadds Ford, Pennsylvania, planned Alexis and Mike's wedding, and we love partnering with a creative team that is so design-forward. Shannon has planned weddings across the Philadelphia area since 2011, and her studio won a Best of Philly award for creative decor in 2024.

From a florist's point of view, working with a planner like Shannon changes everything. We built our proposal with her, so the couple's vision was already clear. The colors, the mood, and how each space should feel gave us clarity that let us focus on design instead of running through multiple planning iterations.

A strong planner also makes the big logistical pieces possible. This floral plan relied on our team staying on site to move ceremony arrangements into the reception, a flip that only works smoothly when the timeline, the venue team, and every vendor are in sync. Shannon is known for her deep relationships with other wedding professionals, and it shows in how naturally a plan like this fits together.

For couples planning a wedding on the Main Line, a planner who knows the venues and the vendors is one of the best investments you can make. They protect your vision while you focus on enjoying the season.

What Makes The Willows in Villanova Special for a Wedding?

The Willows is a historic mansion set on a hill inside Willows Park Preserve, a roughly 47-acre park in Radnor Township on Philadelphia's Main Line. The three-story Spanish Revival home is a beautiful backdrop we transformed into a Mediterranean-inspired landscape.

The grounds are a florist's dream. The park holds hundreds of mature willows, oaks, maples, and sycamores, along with original plantings from the early 1900s. With so much natural beauty already in place, we leaned into loose, garden-style designs inspired by the Italianate design.

A Garden Palette of Pale Blue, Butter Yellow, and Green

The color story for Alexis and Mike's wedding started with deep forest green and soft olive, then layered in crisp white, pale sky blue, butter yellow, a pop of cornflower blue, and warm terracotta. Together, those tones read as fresh, relaxed, and very June. Fruit played a big role too, with lemons, limes, and green grapes woven through the designs for a sunny, Mediterranean garden feel.

Personal Flowers

Alexis's bridal bouquet was designed around two of her favorite blooms, peonies and lily of the valley. Mike's boutonniere was planned to echo her bouquet so the two felt like a pair. Her eight bridesmaids carried mono-floral, color-blocked bouquets, each focused on a single bloom or tone within the palette, which creates a beautiful effect when the whole group stands together.

The Ceremony

The ceremony design centered on one large, asymmetrical altar installation made of five floral pieces set on three pedestals at varied heights. The plan called for lush greenery with white, yellow, and blue accents, so the altar felt abundant without losing that natural, just-gathered look. Six large arrangements lined the aisle, and two aisle-starter designs welcomed guests with a mix of terracotta pots, baskets, and textured off-white pottery, with flowers tucked in and around them.

Cocktail Hour and Reception

Cocktail hour brought in the fruit. Two large bar arrangements featured lemon accents, and eight smaller pieces in floral frogs or painted bud vases, styled with grapes, dressed the high and low tops. The seating chart table received a generous two-sided arrangement stretching the full width of a 48-inch round table.

One of our favorite parts of the plan is that nothing from the ceremony goes to waste. Our team stays on site to repurpose the altar and aisle designs into the reception, giving those flowers a second life where guests can enjoy them up close.

Under the tent, five long tables, including the head table, each 8 feet long, were planned as full tablescapes of ceramic and glass vessels mixed with lemons, limes, grapes, and clear votives. Four additional guest tables received centerpieces in footed compotes with votives. Overhead, four main lines of greenery hung from the tent ceiling, with accents near the base of the poles to tie the space together. Even the cake was planned with flowers, finishing the day with one more garden-fresh detail.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is a mono-floral bridesmaid bouquet? It's a bouquet made from a single type of flower or one color. Each bridesmaid carries something different, and the group still reads as one palette.

How can fruit be used in wedding florals? Lemons, limes, and green grapes were mixed with ceramic and glass vessels on the reception tables and added as accents in the bar arrangements. They bring color and texture without needing more flowers.

What is an asymmetrical altar design? It's a set of arrangements at different heights instead of a matching pair. Here it was five floral pieces on three pedestals, which gives a natural, gathered look.

Can ceremony flowers be reused at the reception? Yes. With an on-site floral team and a coordinated timeline, altar and aisle arrangements can be moved into the reception space so they are enjoyed twice.

What flowers work well for an early summer wedding near Philadelphia? Peonies, lily of the valley, delphinium, hydrangea, and garden roses are all lovely choices for a June wedding in the Philadelphia area.

A Thank You to the Team

Designing florals for Alexis and Mike was a joy from the start. A clear vision from Shannon Wellington Weddings, a setting as lovely as The Willows, and a couple who knew exactly which blooms they loved made for a wedding that felt bright, personal, and full of life. We are so grateful to have been part of it.

If you are planning a garden-inspired wedding on the Main Line or anywhere in the Philadelphia area, we would love to hear about your vision.

Vendor Team