Designing the Big Day: The Artisans Who Make Wedding Dreams Come True
Vanessa deBruijn

Something Old

An ancient Japanese metal-smithing technique is skillfully incorporated into a smooth, modern rose gold-and-silver wedding band

In a small studio in the heart of downtown Madison, a soft-spoken woman from Japan creates wedding bands that are anything but ordinary. Her studio is filled with unusual artifacts and unique pieces, and her simple cases display hand-made creations that are influenced by both her past and her present.

Originally trained in both graphic design and architecture, Hiroko Yamada now looks at jewelry design as a smaller-scale version of the designs she used to create for buildings in major cities around the world. After living, studying and working in Japan, Yamada set her sights on the U.S. – pursuing a master of fine arts degree at UW-Madison and exploring the university's excellent metal-working program.

While getting her degree, Yamada settled into a part-time job at locally owned Burnie’s Rock Shop, a unique jewelry store and haven for lovers of unusual stones and specimens. It was there that she began to learn about the art of jewelry making and there that she found the sponsors she needed to stay in the country and eventually get her citizenship.

"At school we learned the artistic, but then when you start working at a jeweler’s you have to sit down and learn how to set stones," she said. "I guess I had the basic skills, but I didn’t have a real knowledge of designing."

It didn't take long for Yamada to pick up the art of designing custom jewelry. Having watched her grandparents who dabbled in restorative work of ancient Japanese metalwork, Yamada was familiar with a style that she began to incorporate with modern design to create a unique look that was tied to her past. People started to come to Yamada with special requests for custom jewelry designs and, in particular, for wedding bands and engagement rings.

"They are sometimes picking up their own stones and telling me to design around the stones, and some people even give me poetry and say, 'Can you design something from this?' It’s really very interesting," she said.

Another common request for Yamada is to incorporate some kind of family heirloom or a sentimental object into a ring setting. She has worked with buttons and pieces of glass, mothers’ pearls and even paintings that represent something special to a customer. Although the requests are sometimes challenging, Yamada always promises to at least try.

Because she makes everything by hand, it isn’t unusual for Yamada to spend several days making one ring. After sitting down with the customer, she will create a mold out of wax and make several prototypes to show the progression of the ring.

"When they see the metal it’s really ugly, it’s not shiny and it’s black," she said. “But then I explain how it works, and in the end, when it’s nice and shiny, they get excited. So far every single ring I’ve made is different, none of them are the same."

The rings on display in the small glass cases in her shop are largely made out of lightweight but durable materials like titanium and rose gold. Many of her creations are two-toned and use intricate metal patterns like braiding – a process that Yamada insists must be done by hand. Again returning to her Japanese roots, Yamada has managed to incorporate an ancient metalworking technique called Mokume-gane (pronounced Moku-may-ganay) into her ring designs, providing a wood-grain texture that looks a bit like a swirled marble cake running along the middle section of the ring.

As Yamada walks around her shop and enthusiastically points out the unique pieces from artists all over the world, it is evident that she not only has a flair for creating one-of-a kind pieces to make wedding memories last forever, but that it is also her life and her livelihood.

Something New

A three-dimensional computer-designed diamond engagement ring hangs in the center of a flat screen monitor, the dimensions and size of its sparkly rock manipulated with the click of a mouse

In another store across town, the setting is different but the wish to make a couple’s wedding day the most beautiful day possible is a shared desire. A scan of the showroom reveals cases and cases of sparkly diamonds and shiny silver-and-gold jewelry. Two women peer into a case, pointing animatedly at the beautiful stones enshrined under a layer of frequently cleaned glass. Easy listening music filters out of the speakers in the ceiling, and a plate of chocolate chip cookies lies on the counter next to the register. A young woman named Christina Webster emerges from a work-station in the back of Chalmers Jewelers - she is responsible for helping design the diamond rings that make men’s and women’s hearts beat just a little bit faster (though perhaps for very different reasons).

"The majority of men that come in, they are a little bit anxious," she admits, "but it’s also excitement. The more excited they are, the more excited I am."

Webster is no stranger to jewelry. Her fascination began as a little girl who loved to prance around in her mother’s rings, and she developed her passion into concrete skills after receiving a scholarship to Northeast Wisconsin Technical College where she majored in jewelry repair and fabrication.

When embarking on a custom ring project, Webster begins a process similar to Yamada’s. However, Webster deviates from the traditional process in one fundamental way – it’s called the Matrix.

The Matrix helps jewelry artists design in 3-D on a computer, just like animators who use a computer to design a cartoon character. The Matrix brings the jeweler and customer’s vision into a virtual world where the design can be manipulated and added to until every angle, texture and proportion is aesthetically pleasing. In the midst of buzzing polishing machines and rows of miniscule tools for shaping and drilling by hand, the lime green and black grid on the Matrix’s screen acts as a digital canvas where Webster creates her masterpieces.

Despite all of the high-tech gadgets and gizmos at her disposal, Webster still gets her biggest thrill out of designing heirlooms that will be in the hearts and minds of her customers for years to come.

"I like knowing that I am making rings that are going on someone’s finger and that it is going to make them smile," she said.

Something Borrowed

A seasoned baker and cake-decorating artist learns from the "school of hard-knocks," discovering skills and secrets passed down from his German and Swiss mentors

In an all-white chef’s outfit, Carl Loeffel emerges from behind a glass counter where another worker is decorating an autumn cake with brown and amber frosting. The bakery is a Mom-and-Pop sort of place, complete with handmade signs detailing coffee flavors and an employee who chimes in from time to time to attest to the experience and quality work of the owner. Even after washing, a handshake reveals telltale remnants of orange coloring on hands that Loeffel says are rarely free of frosting.

The case behind the counter is filled with wedding cakes, each one in separate layers waiting to be reunited on the special day of some lucky couple. One is what Loeffel calls a more dated cake, adorned with heavy, detailed loops and bows – a sort of "baroque palace" of wedding cakes. The other cakes are smooth and shiny, much more simplistic in what is called “rolled fondant style.” One cake is decorated with thin brown swirls to match the artwork on a wedding invitation, and the other is skillfully covered with detailed renderings of dress embroidery made out of pearly white butter cream frosting.

"Everyone wants something different, that’s really where it’s at," said Loeffel, looking contemplatively at his case full of masterpieces.

Despite what many might think, Loeffel did not have to attend extensive or pricey classes to learn his art form. Instead, he learned from what he calls “one of the toughest schools in the country: the school of hard knocks." Loeffel learned style and form from his old-world German and Swiss mentors through observation and perseverance.

Now that he has owned his own bakery, "Carl’s Cakes," on the east side of Madison since 2004, he gets to run things on his own terms and with his own flair. Averaging around eight to fifteen weddings a week during their busy season, Loeffel spends every Saturday morning consulting with brides and their families, and of course, creating masterpieces. Committed to using his own delicious recipe of butter cream frosting, Loeffel has had to adapt his technique to fit the ever-changing styles in the cake-decorating business. From the elaborate styles of the '70s to the basket-woven, half-cheesecake cakes of the eighties to the new smooth and simple look, he can never rest.

"I always blame Martha. Everybody does. Every florist and cake-maker in the country blames Martha for the styles. She has been quite a pain in the ass to a lot of people," Loeffel said, with a sparkle in his eye.

Although he originally joined the bakery business more than 30 years ago in the name of getting a job (any job), it was his entry into the world of cake decorating that cemented his dedication to the bakery business.

"It is art, you can’t get around that idea of it," Loeffel said. "People don’t come up to you and say ‘Oh Carl that’s a gorgeous donut’ or ‘that Danish is just beautiful I just loved it’, they don’t do that – but they say that about wedding cakes,” said Loeffel. “It makes a difference in their lives."

Something Blue

A hydrangea the color of the afternoon sky is carefully placed into a bouquet of strategically chosen flowers in shades and textures that will complement the bride’s creamy satin dress

A large willow tree sways in the wind, and a cat wanders around the gardens adjacent to Terri Holzem’s farmhouse. Surrounded by suburbia, the 1.75-acre property feels like some kind of oasis caught in the past. Unlike most farmers, the harvest from Holzem’s "Abundance Acres Flowers" does not consist of wheat, fruit or even vegetables. Instead, it consists of brilliantly colored flowers that are picked and arranged for blushing brides on their wedding day.

With a background in art education and a passion for nature and the outdoors, Holzem is living out her dream job.

"Getting up early in the morning, just prior to dawn in the summers when I was a kid, I would always dream that I would do something artistic that had something to do with all of the beautiful colors in a sunrise," she said.

Along with a 25-year-long stint selling her beautiful flowers at the Madison Farmer’s Market, Holzem’s eye for color and composition paired with her love of flowers has led to a fulfilling career creating bouquets and centerpieces for weddings. Like every other wedding artist, Holzem consults with her customers to get a feel for how to create something that will suit the couple’s style and personalities.

"We will determine the shape of the bouquet, whether it’s going to be very simple or complicated, focusing on textures, whether they like things that have scent," she said. "Then also an important part of it is what sort of style they have, what kind of feeling they want the event to have, whether it’s very casual, or really romantic, or dramatic or fun."

A storehouse of knowledge about flower names, dispositions and colors, Holzem uses her artistic training to pick out flowers that will go together in the perfect way to suit the bride’s dress or the party decorations. Some people request wildflower bouquets, and an "I just strolled through a meadow" look, others prefer a more classic look with peonies and calla lilies or an all-white bouquet.

"Being a bit of an engineer is part of being a wedding florist that is fun. Sometimes you have to think about how you are going to get something to hang from somewhere, or sometimes people want flowers in an unusual spot," said Holzem.

For those on a tighter budget, Holzem uses her design skills to create pieces that are versatile and can be easily translated from the ceremony to the reception with just a few minor adjustments. Holzem also caters to some of her more ecologically minded clients by creating "living centerpieces" that are potted in biodegradable containers.

Holzem, like the others who use their skills and artistry to create the beautiful wedding days that everyone dreams of, says she feels rewarded just for being a part of such a special process and sharing the energy of her clients.

"That enjoyment of getting positive feedback, when people say 'oh it’s more beautiful than I even imagined' or if somebody cries, it makes me always want to do it again, and to make people happy – to do the best that I can," Holzem said.