|
Flower arrangements are commonplace in wedding ceremonies and receptions. Some venues already have their own flower arrangements, so in such a case, if you want something else, you should ask the venue about it. Some venues may even restrict or ban flower decorations. Also, consider carefully if you know if any of your guests have flower allergies.
When deciding on a flower arrangement, you can make one yourself, make one with the guidance of a wedding counselor, or buy one from a florist. Keep in mind that making one yourself can be just as expensive as buying one, especially if you order the flowers you need.
In any case, think about what flowers and colors you would like in your arrangement.
Floral Decoration Elements
Flowers
Roses, calla lillies, hydrangeas, orchids, and poppies are great options for centerpieces, especially if any of those are currently in season.
Colors
When deciding on the flowers' colors, you might want to take into account the current season, the colors of the wedding party's attire, and the colors of the atmosphere of the ceremony and reception venues.
Seasonal Colors
- Winter (December-March): White, off-white
- Spring (March-June): Peach, lavender, green, any pastel
- Summer (June-September): Yellow, pink, green (Summer colors tend to be more vivid than spring colors)
- Fall (September-June): Brown, red, orange, yellow
Arrangement shapes
Flower arrangements can come in various shapes. They can be round, heart-shaped, droplet-shaped, or even rectangular or triangular.
Other Decorations
You could consider using green plants such as ivy and ferns. You could also include other plant products such as dried berries, pinecones, and even sticks, especially during fall.
Also remember you can use ribbon, paper, fake flower petals and myriad other non-plant products to put together your complete arrangement.
Bridal Bouquet
The bridal bouquet is the most important and well-known flower arrangement of the wedding. To make floral arrangements consistent, you could make this bouquet the basis for all your other flower arrangements, especially for the attendants' flowers.
Flowers for Attendants
The flower girl gets a basket with flower petals in it.
The maid of honor's and bridesmaid's bouquets can be smaller versions of the bridal bouquet.
The groom and the male attendents should get single-flower boutonnieres. However, since boutonnieres contain pins with sharp points, you should not use those for young boys, especially those under 8 years old, due to risk of injury.
Reception Centerpieces
You can accent your centerpieces with candles, or top flowers on decorative water bowls.
Whatever your centerpiece may be, you could make it proportional in size to the table, but it shouldn't be too big. It shouldn't be too wide, since the people at the tables should be able to have room for their plates and utensils, and it shouldn't be too tall, since people across the table should be able to see each other.
Building a Flower Arrangement
Centerpieces
Find a container, such as a vase, a bowl, or a nice-looking pot that's [#Arrangement_shapes|shaped] like you want it. For an extra accent, you could get a mossy Campo de'Fiori pot. If you do, you'll need to water the moss on the pot in advance to let it grow.
You'll also need to put in some kind of support to keep the flowers upright. Usually you would use a support called a frog (but make sure the frog fits in the container), but if you are going to use fake flowers, which don't need water, you could put in floral foam and stick the flower stems into it.
If you're using a frog for fresh flowers, put some water in the container, give the flower stems a clean cut with a sharp edge so they can easily absorb the water and stay alive longer.
Get the flowers you want, then put them in, one at a time, largest and shortest first (cut the stems if you need to make them shorter). If real flowers won't stay upright, you could stick floral wire up their stems. Then fill in empty spaces with bundles of small flowers or green things such as grass or ferns. Make sure that those fillers aren't taller than the flowers you want.
Depending on the set-up of your arrangement, you could opt to use fake flower petals, crinkled paper, or marble drops to fill in the bottom of your vase or bowl. If you're using fake or artificial flowers, the metal stems can be held steady between the marble, or paper. Vellum or Cellophane works nicely inside a clear arrangement base, because you can choose a paper that accents your wedding colors.
Bouquet
Get the flowers you want, then bind them together with floral tape, or if you are using fake flowers, you can glue them together. Then tie the flowers together with a ribbon or put them in a tussy mussy. Use floral wire if you can't keep them upright.
Many bridal supply stores will carry pre-made baskets for Flower Girls. These baskets are usually simple baskets wrapped in ribbon or fabric and filled with flower petals.
See Also
External Links & Sources
|
|
