Flowers are as essential to a wedding as the bride's beautiful dress, the perfectly decorated cake and the personally designed rings. When choosing flowers for your wedding you should take into consideration what season you are in as well as remember to be consistent throughout the different elements of your wedding that require flowers - making sure that the flowers compliment each other as well as the bride and groom's outfits. Although some couples choose to go bold and loud when it comes to wedding flowers, most still opt for the elegant and traditional white.
Before you make the big decision it's always good to ask yourself what type of bride you are. Are you looking for vibrant colors for your wedding flowers, or do you want a more subtle, conventional look with white roses or lilies? Among the top five most popular wedding flowers worldwide you'll find roses, tulips, lilies, hydrangeas and peonies. What's great about roses and lilies in particular is that they are available all year, so you don't have to worry about in what season your wedding is taking place.
Herewith some tips when it comes to the five most important elements of your wedding where you'll want to make the use of flowers - namely the wedding bouquet, the wedding flowers in your hair, the wedding ceremony flowers, the wedding reception flowers and the wedding cake flowers.
Wedding bouquet
Before thinking about flowers it might be a good idea to choose which type of wedding bouquet you want. The three most popular and well-known shapes are the traditionally shaped posy bouquet, the teardrop-shaped shower/cascade bouquet and the long, slender arm bouquet - which rests on your arm.
If your dress is white or cream you won't have a problem as any color flowers will match. But if you are going the different route and wearing a colored wedding dress, go for the same color flowers or go for a complimentary color - such as red with green, blue with orange and purple with yellow - or simply stick with white. Bridesmaids' flowers should also follow the same theme and compliment the bridesmaids' dresses. And the flower girl will be carrying a basket or bucket of petals, so remember to take into consideration which color petals you want as well. For the male members of the wedding party, use a single buttonhole flower that matches the main type of flower in your wedding bouquet.
Wedding flowers in your hair Most brides-to-be battle to choose a hairstyle for their big day. It's a huge decision which is often very tough to make, because let's face it: you want to look your very, very best! Some brides eventually decide to just keep it natural and leave their hair down - perhaps with a few loose, romantic curls. Others want to make it more formal and have a pretty updo. You could get artificial flowers to make things a whole lot easier, but at the end of the day there's nothing like the real thing. Depending on the style you go for, you can have lost of small flowers scattered throughout a formal updo, or you could opt for one large flower. Chat to your hair stylist about what will suit you and compliment your dress, and make a decision based on that. You can always try different styles before you settle on the one you like the most.
Wedding ceremony flowers If the church where you are having your wedding ceremony is quite big it's always nice to make a bold statement and use large pedestal arrangements placed where they will be noticed; at the entrance to the church and close to the altar. You can also place single flowers or small bouquets along the aisle on each row of seats. If you are having a small civil service, wedding ceremony flowers can brighten up an otherwise boring room to a great extent, so make use of your flower decorations to create a festive atmosphere. Stick with flowers you have chosen for your bouquet in order to keep it consistent and complimentary.
Wedding reception flowers A great tip for those trying to stick to a certain budget is to re-use the pedestal arrangements from the ceremony at the wedding reception. This means you will only have the wedding table flowers to take care of. You'll need an arrangement for the bridal table as well as centerpieces for all the other tables. The bridal table is traditionally decorated with a large 'long and low' arrangement in the center in front of the bride and groom. The other table centerpieces often set the mood for the wedding reception and should not prevent guests seeing each other and talking to each other, so go for something really short or really tall - where the flower action is high up.
Wedding cake flowers When it comes to wedding cake flowers you will firstly have to decide whether you want real or artificial flowers on your cake. The edible ones are always popular, so most couples go with this. You can then decide on which style you want. And if you don't want flowers on the cake itself, you can have flower decorations on the cake table or simply a few petals strewn around on the table.
It's always tricky to decide what type of wedding cake you want as there are so many options available. But if you're going the traditional route, a white cake with dainty, delicate marzipan flowers is always a winner. If you have a color scheme for all your other wedding flowers, try to stick to it. But if you feel like being different, then go for it! Whatever your choice, make sure the cake is decadent and deliciously irresistible.
These wedding flowers tips should help you on the way to making decisions for what to use on your big day. Have fun!