florist – Snapshots & My Thoughts by Ailee Petrovic

I think it would be impossible for me to envy Phuong Nguyen’s talents more than I already do. This post took me ages and ages to write, because every reference link she sent me, I gazed longingly at every detail of the photos. Phuong is the owner of Mibellarosa Designs, a design studio based in Houston, specializing in (exceptional beautiful!) event planning and floral designs. I first worked with Phuong on a Valentine’s shoot I did with Destiny, and the florals she created were unbelievable.

Shortly after that, I ordered an Omakase vase (translation: “I’ll leave it up to you” – Phuong’s selection!) for Caroline Knapp on her birthday (on her Instagram here), and I felt it was the perfect way to give someone (who has lots of gorgeous things already!) a thoughtful gift. I will definitely be ordering more for other friends’ birthdays. I can’t wait to work with Phuong again – hopefully soon!

You’ll quickly scroll through this post (before reading it in great detail, of course) and go googly-eyed over the florals she has created and her incredible styling She has the best taste (true story, I’ve had Police’s ‘Every Little Thing She Does is Magic’ stuck in my head the entire time I’ve worked on this post – not a coincidence!). So without further ado…

As part of my mission to eat Burrata cheese at all of these Houston restaurants, I decided to meet a good friend of mine, Paola, at Rainbow Lodge on Sunday for brunch (99 cent mimosas? yes, please). I had never been before, but had wanted to go for ages, so jumped at the opportunity to check it off the list. As I walked in, I felt like I had in fact been there before. I quickly remembered that I recognized the restaurant because I had seen it on photographer Taylor Lord’s blog. She shot a wedding there last year, and I loved every detail. In fact, little did I know at the time, but I would end up in the same Crepe de Chine BHLDN dress! I was grinning ear to ear when I pulled up the pictures again and saw that.

The food was incredible. The Heirloom Tomato Salad was heavenly – the Burrata cheese was perfect, as were the wonderfully affordable mimosas. The 100 year old cabin home turned into hunting-style restaurant is an amazing spot for Sunday brunch or date night. The views are amazing – windows all around. The vegetarian options are definitely limited, but that’s what I expected from an upscale game lodge eatery.