*Magpie* - Vintage Brooch Bouquet

My inner *Magpie* did such a happy dance when I saw this fabulous bouquet on the ever gorgeous vintage wedding inspiration blog Ruffled last week (my go to source for innovative, hand-made, vintage obsessed table dressings & flower display ideas... and plus, who doesn't like amazing photos of a good wedding??!)

I have a small collection of vintage brooches myself that I use to add a bit of sparkle to jackets & cardies, but I had never thought about collecting them on mass to create a gem of a wedding keepsake or even an everlasting floral display for the home

My Nan (that's British slang for Grandma, in case you're wondering!) has the most wonderful box full of exciting, sparkly brooches in her dressing table. I remember one of my most favourite past-times as a young girl, when I stayed over at her house, was to make a garden of glamorous flowers with her brooches when I climbed into her bed in the mornings to join her for the first cup of tea of the day. She had a teas-maid at the side of her bed which I thought was the most luxurious, exciting gadget imaginable!

This bouquet has really sparked both my fondest childhood memories as well as my imagination; I can envisage small collections of brooches in cut glass vases as table centre-pieces at any given event or even at the side of a bed. I can imagine a larger version placed with pride on a console table in a hallway or lounge - and imagine the significant memory attached if it had been your wedding bouquet. {sigh} You could colour code it to your wedding / party or your home deco; and if it included heritage pieces, what a romantic way to include the "something old" of the traditional wedding trousseau

Now, I'm not currently planning anything that even nearly warrants bouquets, but seeing as I seem to have the proverbial kiss-of-death when it comes to flowering plants I think a small arrangement of delectable, impossible-to-kill, sparkly beauties would be a welcome addition to my home - especially for summer. I'll be looking to mix a variety of brooches and earrings to play with the scale, and of course I'll be sure to post a tutorial of how I put it together so that you can try it yourself

But most exciting of all is that I now have the perfect excuse for hunting down some vintage treasures for this project! Be sure to head over to Ruffled to see the rest of the amazing photos by the talented Deidre Lynn of this vintage-tastic wedding in Illinois.... loving the mis-matched old doors as a backdrop too!

Lisa x

{photos by Deidre Lynn via Ruffled}