One of my favorite table top designs is Laurel's creation. Covered with a beautiful orange tablecloth, the shape of the square table is repeated in eight "table setting stacks" of white square plates, red napkins, and the small black plate, topped with tied chopsticks. Square black porcelain containers in the middle of the table are filled with an abundance of small orange and red orchids. The only round shapes are the glass cylinders holding white floating candles. It just looks so classy and elegant. (For a picture, please see the article Table Top Wow)

Inspired by her Italian grandmother, a couture dressmaker and gardener, Laurel Ann Winzler became fascinated with color and nature. As a Stanford graduate, she became an accomplished paralegal but soon realized that her greatest rewards came through her creativity. Encouraged by her colleagues and friends, Laurel left her position at a law firm. She got her practical training from working with a floral company and began to design bouquets and arrangements for friends' weddings. With the San Francisco Symphony as her first client, she made a natural transition into her own floral design business and quickly realized she had found her dream career.

Since 1988, Laurel has been a great asset in the San Francisco wedding scene. She has worked in almost every venue. Her hobby is acting and she is a regular extra in the S.F. Opera. "Here I learned to create illusions and the ability to quickly assess a space and how to best enhance it," she told me. The individual flair of her designs results in the perennial invitation to the famous San Francisco flower exhibition, Bouquets to Art. She loves weddings as much as decorating houses for other celebrations and the Holidays. She makes sure all details are well coordinated, from table linens and chair cushions to the china and glassware. She feels part of a team, that works together for the clients' enjoyment.

As a firm believer in helping our environment, she buys her flowers from local farmers and growers as often as possible and stresses seasonal decoration. She uses glass containers and composts everything. After a wedding, planned mostly on the Internet, the father of the bride came to her and thanked her for her beautiful work: "I was thrilled with the flowers, we did not give you detailed instructions - yet the outcome was spectacular."