Wedding Flowers – An Essential Guide

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Wedding flowers add a magical quality to the wedding day. Most brides spend considerable time looking for unique, creative, and affordable ways to showcase blooms not only in their bouquets, but also at the ceremony and reception locations.

Some of the things that need to be considered when planning for wedding flowers are choosing your florist, the type of flowers that you want, your budget, the time of year and when the wedding will be held during the day, as well as who will need flowers in the bridal party.

Finding a florist usually means shopping around. Before you begin the search, make sure you have an idea of how much you can spend, as well as your flower style - that is what colors and types of flower you like. If you’re not sure what your floral style is, the following may be helpful to you in defining the type of flowers that you prefer.

Girly – You’ve always been drawn to shades of pastels, romantic long stemmed roses, and the fairy tale water lilies.

Minimalist – You like to surround yourself with bold colors and monochromatic designs. You're drawn to flowers with bold shapes and colors, such as tulips and orchids.

Natural – You incorporate designs and elements of nature throughout your home and wardrobe. You’re partial to blooms such as sunflowers, daisies, and bluebells.

Once you’re selected a florist, either by referral or on your own, make an appointment to meet with them and visit their shop. Ask to see photos of recent weddings they’ve worked on.

Get a written proposal that includes the number of floral arrangements and a description and cost for each. If you give a deposit to the florist, make sure you have a written contract that includes the flowers that are being used, as well as flowers that should not be used, delivery details (time and place with exact addresses), contact persons for setup, and the florist’s cancellation and refund policies. The written proposal should be signed by each of you.

Savvy Ways to Save on Your Wedding Flowers

Spend the most on the flowers that your guest will see for the longest time, including the bridal bouquets and reception centerpieces.

Fill out a modest arrangement with inexpensive candles, glass ornaments, elegant ribbons, sea shells and other themed wedding accessories.

Choose affordable, in-season blooms that are locally grown. Commonly these include daffodils, zinnias, daliahs, sunflowers, lavender, lilacs and hydrangeas.

Affordable wedding flowers that are readily available at any time of the year include roses, gerberas, freesia and stephanotis.

Use small potted plants or herbs instead of cut flowers. You can buy inexpensive containers or paint them to match your wedding colors.

Simple arrangements are the least expensive. Time consuming designs cost more because of the time involved in creating them and the number of stems required.

Do-It-Yourself Wedding Flower Tips

In reality, you’ll be too busy to deal with flowers on your wedding day, so enlist the help of some reliable volunteers if you’re planning to do your own wedding flowers.

An easy way to make a stunning statement is by decorating your reception with monochromatic arrangements of one type of flower. One color arrangements can be simple or densely packed.

Use one or more types of seasonal flowers in containers that can be anything from clear cylinders or vases to casual galvanized tin buckets on every table, window sill and mantle.

Other ways to create DIY reception impact are to decorate with groups of candles on every table instead of elaborate centerpieces, or use potted flowers in small, colorful pots instead of cut stems.


If you’re making you own wedding centerpieces, they should be kept under 12 inches high to avoid blocking views and guest conversations.

Wedding Flowers and The Bridal Party

Once you’ve chosen the flowers you want in your wedding colors, you’ll need to make a list of bridal party members to order bouquets, corsages, boutonnieres and flower girl baskets for.

While it’s not necessary to give flowers to every member of both families, you should plan to include the bridal attendants, flower girls, Mothers of the Bride and Groom, the Groom, his attendants, the Grandparents, any special female or male guests, and soloists and ceremony readers.

Wedding party members will appreciate if you ask ahead of time whether they have allergies to any partiular flowers or foliage.

Bouquet Etiquette and Boutonniere Style Guide

The bridal bouquet should be easy to carry gracefully, not too heavy or large. It should be in proportion to the size of the bride and complement her gown style. For example, a very detailed dress works well with simple, elegant blooms, or a smaller, uncomplicated bouquet with a sleek, fitted dress.

The bouquet should be carried just below the waist. Avoid blocking the bust or hip areas.

Bridesmaid’s bouquets are usually a smaller version of the Bride’s bouquet.

If you want the Maid of Honour to stand out more, choose a bouquet that is a different color from the other attendant’s bouquets.

Corsages are given to the mothers, grandmothers and honored female guests. Wrist corsages are also an elegant choice, and don’t create pin marks on delicate dress fabrics.

The groom, groomsmen and fathers of the bride and groom will need boutonnieres to wear in their left lapel. The groom’s boutonnier is usually a different color from his groomsmen.

Wedding Bouquets Defined

The most popular styles of wedding flower bouquets include the Cascade, Hand-Tied, Nosegay, and Pomander bouquets.

The Cascade bouquet consists of flowers and greenery wired together to form a 'cascade' loosely descending down from the holder.

Hand-Tied bouquets are a round shaped flower arrangement. The stems of the flowers are bound together with ribbon, and may be left exposed.

The Nosegay Bouquet is a smaller bouquet, densely packed into a round shape. This bouquet can be placed in a decorative holder at the reception table.

A Pomander Bouquet is actually a round, tightly packed sphere of flowers that swings on a ribbon loop. This arrangement is a great choice for flower girls.

Favourite Wedding Flowers

Gerbera Daisy – the most popular cut flower for weddings. Available in virtually every color except blue. Makes a fresh and casual statement in a simple vase or bridal bouquet.

Daffodils – radiant in a densely packed bouquet. Affordable too.

Peony – large and fragrant flowers. Use in bunches in a vase or bouquet for impact.

Ranunculus – delicate looking floral that's a popular choice for brides in their bridal bouquets.

Water lilies – these blooms close at night so use them in daytime settings only. Float blooms in glass bowls filled with water for an elegant display.


Pansy – early spring flower is used in small bouquets. Colorful garnish in salads, cocktails or on desserts.

Hyacinth – fragrant blooms, use in small centerpieces and planters. Winter to late spring.

Tulip – affordable and stunning in bouquets.

Hydrangeas – choose from pink, lavender, green shades. Contemporary style in large, dense bouquets and arrangements.

Lilies – add major impact in arrangements. Fills the room with fragrance.

Orchid – elegant in cascades and tall arrangements.

Cala Lily – use in a stylish and easy to carry bouquet or glamorous centerpieces, try grouping in small vases in a series.

Mini Chrysanthemums – an econominal way to add a punch of color to boutonnieres and bouquets.

Roses – perennial bridal favourite for bouquets, centerpieces, boutonnieres. If you're planning to use rose petals, you'll need approximately 4 cups of rose petals to blanket one square foot of wedding aisle. Use less for sparser coverage.

Lavender – symbolizes love and devotion

Rosemary – symbolizes remembrance

Mint – virtue

Sage – respect and wisdom

Wedding Flowers by Season

The easiest way to save money on your wedding flowers at any time of the year, is by choosing blooms that are readily available each season.

Spring Wedding flowers are the most abuntant with a selection that includes hyacinth, daffodils, lilacs, lilies, peonies, tulips, anemones, azaleas, camellias, mimosa, primroses, violets, sweet peas and poppies.

Summer Wedding flowers to choose from include zinnias, honeysuckle, cornflowers, delphiniums, clematis, dahlias, hydrangeas, daisies, sunflowers and bachelor's buttons.

Fall Wedding flowers include statice, grape ivy, celosia, hydrangeas, marigolds, dahlias, asters and chrysanthemums.

Winter Wedding flowers include amaryllis, Christmas rose (helleborus), heather, phlox, poinsettias, holly, paperwhites, jasmine and cyclamen.

Affordable Wedding Flowers that are readily available at any time of the year include roses, orchids, calla lilies, gerberas, freesia and stephanotis.

Wedding Flower Care

Flowers are usually delivered hours before the ceremony. The most important thing is to keep flowers cool and out of the sun. Before the ceremony, keep bouquets wrapped in the florist’s box.

Hand tied bouquets should rest in water until the last minute. Make sure your florist leaves the ends of the stems uncovered. Avoid storing flowers in a hot room or a car or limo’s trunk.

If you’re having an outdoor wedding in the summer, talk to your florist about choosing blooms that best withstand the heat to stay fresh looking for as long as possible.