Choosing the Perfect Flowers for your Wedding Day
If you’re getting married this year, flowers are likely to play a key role. They have done since Roman times, when garlands symbolised fertility and fresh life.
But the list of floral features at your wedding can seem blooming endless! Along with the bridal bouquet, there are the flowers in the church (altar and pews) or register office, table displays, buttonholes and hair decorations.
Think carefully about what flowers you want, your budget, which blooms are in season, and how and where you will source them.
Starting points could include flowers that you feel a personal connection with or which evoke particular memories. Keep some of your chosen blooms at home for a few days to be sure you like the scent.
Equally, you may have clear ideas of colour scheme for your wedding, in which case make selections that co-ordinate well. Use a sample of material from your dress to check the shades match.
White is the traditional bridal colour, and a good catch-all for weddings. While red symbolises blood and family bonds, orange represents lust, pale violet stands for spirituality and yellow is sunnily cheerful. Green, at the centre of the spectrum, can be a very balancing shade.
Another thing to take into account is the longevity of the blooms you plump for. More delicate blooms could be used on tables, in water.
It’s crucial that, instead of being a slave to fashion, you choose something whose look and scent you love.
Among brides’ current top floral choices are ivy and jasmine, lily of the valley, peonies, freesias and roses.
Tying the knot this summer? Choose from roses, sweet peas, hydrangea, delphinium and sunflowers, among others, since they’ll all be available, and it’s more cost-effective to go for blooms which are seasonal.
If you’re an autumn bride, the time of mists and mellow fruitfulness is also a good season for chrysanthemums, euphorbia, hypericum berries and gerbera, while winter weddings make the perfect backdrop for ivy, orchids, lilies and deep red roses.
A huge variety of different styles of bouquet is available. A posy is easily carried in one hand, and very versatile. A composite arrangement, made of hundreds of separate petals to create a single, huge bloom, is a more specialised affair, and usually costs more.
A graceful, sophisticated shower bouquet will flow elegantly from the bride’s hands, and is the height of tradition and style. Use any type of flower, as well as foliage and trailing ivy.
Round-shaped nosegays have been around since the Middle Ages and are densely packed floral displays. A handful of central flowers is circled by “filler” blooms, trimmed with fresh herbs and tied with organza ribbon.
A simple presentation bouquet can also look chic, and is designed to be cradled in the arms. Typically, it uses long-stemmed roses or lilies.
An alternative is a corsage - worn on the wrist as a gorgeous accessory. Your hands will then be free. Consider for bridesmaids as well. Finally, the pomander is a floral ball which hangs from a decorative ribbon, and is a great option for flower girls.
Sorting out your wedding flowers online saves you time and money. Choose a reliable, customer-focused provider, such asiFlowers, part of the well-established Guernsey Flowers by Post brand.
