With hard work, luck and God’s blessing, I’ve built a career on transforming raw spaces into sumptuous, theatrical environments, translating my clients’ visions into awe-inspiring reality.

I’ve written best-selling books: Design for Entertaining, Fantasy Weddings, Inspirations and Celebrations. I also make frequent TV appearances and speak at conferences around the world. I’ve been featured on The Oprah Winfrey Show, Entertainment Tonight, Access Hollywood, Extra, CBS’s The Early Show, and The Today Show, and my work has appeared in publications such as Vogue, Vanity Fair, Elle Décor, and The New York Times.

The holidays are upon us, and, as always, I’m feeling especially inspired. I love this festive and cheerful season, because it’s a time to celebrate everything good in life with our closest friends and family. What could be better?

With so many rich colors and special traditions, designing for the holidays is a real treat. It’s a feast for the eyes! Unfortunately, I often see holiday designs that feel tired. So, every year I challenge myself to incorporate something new and unexpected into my December designs. Some years, I get inspired by a piece of Christmas candy. Other years, I might be inspired by a yellow New York City taxi cab rushing through the snow. You never know!

What can I say? I love any excuse for a celebration, but the holidays are particularly fun. And Thanksgiving is one of my favorites. I have so much to be thankful for!

I especially like the challenge of Thanksgiving, because flora and fauna aren’t usually want come to mind when you think about Turkey Day. But that’s no excuse to skip an elaborate Thanksgiving floral centerpiece. Every year I host Thanksgiving dinner. Naturally, for me, the flowers at the party are one of the most important features. I spend most of November designing and creating a new Thanksgiving decoration theme. It gets harder every year, though, because I always want to do something bigger and better. Take a look at some of the designs I’ve created in years past…

When I was young, I never considered working in the wedding and event industry. My first passion was floral; I loved designing all kinds of flowers. It was only after I started to have some success designing flowers that I started to think about entering the event design and planning field.

It has never surprised me that most people know me first for my flowers, and I wouldn’t want it any other way. Floral design is my true love! I put my heart and soul into every element of an event, but I always have the most fun with the flower sculptures and centerpieces. You never know what might end up in one of my sculptures: Trees, monkeys, peacocks, dragons, stained glass, even pineapples and skulls!