In-Studio Wedding Bells
Flower shops are known for bringing that perfect pop of petal to wedding ceremonies, bridal showers and other moments that celebrate finding your life partner. It isn’t often that it happens the other way around, that those moments are brought to the flower shop. But then again, Niche & Nook Flowers prides itself on its unconventional dedication to making big moments even more special. For founder and director Monica Melsness, that’s the entire point: to create a space where people can celebrate, learn, gather and leave with evergreen memories, small infinities like the one Hazel and Gus from “The Fault In Our Stars” cherished.
Recent guest Katie Redmond reflects on her time in the studio with a kind of warmth that’s become indelible to the Niche & Nook experience.
“Monica is great—she helped us host a private event that was so lovely where we learned how to make bouquets for a bridal shower. Beautiful store and beautiful high-quality flowers.”
Katie’s workshop wasn’t just a class; it was a celebration disguised as one. Niche & Nook’s signature communal table was littered with champagne, charcuterie and blooms as the air fluttered with lively conversation and laughter, floral dresses swishing as flora swayed. It was a rite of passage. It was girlhood.
Monica was in charge of curating the mood, the most important yet esoteric part of event planning. She was the one that decided pastel, bulbous blooms were in order, who remembered to spruce the naked cake with edible flowers. She set the social tone, providing friendly instruction so guests could learn how to arrange yet have a good time above all else. Vibe-setting’s an enigma she’s seemed to master, a skill first developed back in Houston, where she perpetually hosted lively house parties for the love of the game. Coupled with her unlimited amount of wedding and floral design experience, she knew how to make Katie’s bridal shower a blast.
Another guest describes her experience with a kind of astonishment that still humbles Monica every time she reads the message:
“I honestly don't even know how to start this review, because finding Monica felt like pure destiny… We wanted something more intimate than City Hall, and even though we were down to the wire, I’m beyond grateful we made the decision to rent Niche & Nook.”
She remembers the anticipation leading up to the day, the frantic last-minute details, the hope that the ceremony would feel special despite the tight turnaround. What she didn’t expect was Monica stepping in as if she had been planning the wedding for months.
“She offered to set up the venue so it looked elegant and sophisticated, and even arranged flowers throughout the space… She even helped decorate our wedding cake, adding the same flowers so everything tied together beautifully.”
For Monica, the setup was a labor of love. She started early that morning, softening corners of the room with floral arrangements in the couple’s chosen palette and styling the seating so the center of the space felt calm and focused.
“Throughout the ceremony, she supported us, shared in our joy and connected with our family in such a genuine way. It felt like she was another close friend celebrating our love with us.”
That sincerity isn’t something Monica just turns on for special occasions; it’s embedded in how she approaches every event. She believes celebrations, however big or small, deserve the same care.
“If someone trusts me with their event,” Monica shared, “it’s my job to make it special, no matter what. You have to make personal moments personal to you to make them the best they can be”
After the ceremony, she gathered every bouquet she had created and gifted them to the women in the family. It became an unexpected final chapter to the day, a gesture that left the entire clan emotional.
Stories like these are exactly why Niche & Nook is extending its offerings beyond the flowers and into a full event-rental and planning experience. While the studio was originally built as a floral workspace, it naturally evolved into something more: a venue where community can gather and people can celebrate authentically without needing a ballroom or a big production.
Monica thrives in that intimate setting.
“Event planning brings me so much joy,” she says. “And I love transferring that joy to others. That’s the power of a good party.”
Amelie Melsness, Niche & Nook’s Head of Communications and Culture, shares that vision. She believes celebrations are woven deeply into San Francisco’s DNA.
“Partying is an integral part of San Franciscan culture,” she explains. “We ultimately want the parties we host and help throw to be a reflection of what makes this city so special: inclusive community and electric connection.”
That’s what Niche & Nook hopes to foster: a space where simplicity becomes beauty, where community becomes celebration and where the right environment turns ordinary days into unforgettable ones.
Flowers are only part of that equation. People are at its heart, and Niche & Nook only does so well because it captures that heartbeat.