The use of wedding flowers goes way back to when Roman brides adorned themselves with garlands, symbolising new beginnings there’s something highly romantic and ever pleasing to the eye when it comes to natural floristry.

But if you’re no botanic expert where do you start when it comes to choosing your wedding flowers, well 3 professional wedding florists share their expertise and tips on how to pick the right ones for you and what mistakes you really need to avoid.

Wedding Flower Advice From The Experts

When it comes to your wedding floristry depending on the day you envisage, the style you wish to create and your chosen venue there’s lots of options to consider and think about;

  • The Bridal Bouquet is a vital styling element of your wedding attire, consider shape, size and colours.
  • Floral Crown’s or Hair Flowers are excellent considerations especially if you love boho-chic.
  • Bridesmaids Bouquets allow your best girls to get in on the fabulous floristry too! Mix it up or match exactly but make sure they compliment your bridal bouquet.
  • Groom & Groomsmen Boutonniere’s generally consist of one or two flowers with added foliage, they mark a symbol of honour and bring together your wedding parties attire.
  • Ceremony and pew florals will bring your whole wedding day to life, however and where ever you decide to walk down the aisle.
  • Floral Arches are a great feature to stand by as you stay ‘I do’, you could opt for a traditional wooden arch with classic roses or go for an ultra modern metal circular design.
  • Entrance Flowers are an excellent way to invite your guests into your wedding celebrations.
  • Table Centrepieces involving floristry can range from subtle foliage to dramatic central displays.

What to consider when choosing your wedding flowers

Now it’s over to the expert florists to give you their wisdom on making your wedding blooming marvelous…

“Whilst Pinterest is a great starting point for ideas, I think it’s really important to be true to yourself and to inject a bit of personality into your wedding, don’t play it safe when you are planning the biggest day of your life! I’m not really one for themes, but I do believe in personal touches and uniqueness.

For a modern approach to a colour scheme, I’d suggest a colour palette, rather than just one colour. For example, rather than going for pink, choose varying tones of baby pink, raspberry pink, peach and apricot and then add a shock of a clashing colour, such as vibrant orange, for contrast and interest.” – Rhiannon Downton of Willow and Wisps Botanical Design

“I would always suggest using seasonal flowers and foliage’s for your wedding day. Not only does it make sense for your budget but I personally feel it’s lovely when looking back through your wedding photos that you can see straight away the time of year and season you got married in.

We use as many British grown flowers as we can and are also growing our own now in our cutting patch which provides the most beautiful quirky stems to elevate our designs. It’s also much better environmentally as the flowers have less travel, so not only are they fresher but our carbon footprint is greatly reduced if not completely non existent. You also want to select flowers with your florist that best reflects the look and feel you want for your wedding.” – Elaine of Pesh Flowers

“Our best advice when choosing your wedding flowers to coincide with your wedding budget is to go all out on the things you really love and cut back on other aspects which are of less importance to you. For example, if you have your heart set on a beautiful, delicate, fully wired shower bouquet like Kate Middleton’s, your looking at a price tag of about £500, go for it and opt for wrist corsages or massed gypsophila bouquets for the bridesmaids.

Similarly, if you’re dreaming of your photos under a stunning arch of flowers outside the church – have it and take off the pew end posies you don’t really see when the church is full of people. Arch displays, especially if they are on foam garlands, can often be moved to decorate other focal areas for the rest of the day – this way the big investment is instantly better value for money.

And if people really love flowers, they know the impact stunning displays have and our advice would be to cut back on other aspects of the wedding. Tables bedecked with gorgeous flowers don’t really need much else apart from glass and cutlery.” – James at Tudor Rose.

Wedding flower mistakes to avoid

Before you get rapped up in the magical journey of pastel hue roses and the varying types of greenery, there are some floral faux pas you really should avoid;

“Common pitfalls and mistakes include not booking in with your florist early enough. You can easily miss out if they are already booked up, we are taking bookings for 2022 already and COVID has meant that next year we essentially have two years worth of weddings in one year so it’s going to be busy (I hope!).

I would always bring a florist in early with the planning as they can suggest design ideas and finishing touches to really transform your venue. I would also say that once you have selected your florist, you’re happy with their style and feel confident that they are reading your vision, let them use their experience and creativity. Do your research and check their Instagram to see previous work and then let them do their thing…. flowers are a passion for us florists after all!

Pinterest is a great tool when wedding planning but bare in mind that often there are images from huge budget weddings, and flowers are in season at different times of the year in different countries so use it as a guide rather than trying to recreate in all it’s detail.” – Elaine of Pesh Flowers

“My main advice would be around budget – try not to spread it too thinly. For example, if you are having a church ceremony and have £500 to spend, I would pick a statement arch design for the entrance that can be used as a photo backdrop and then perhaps just the one arrangement inside at the front of the church where all the attention is, rather than having lots of tiny pew ends that don’t really create the wow factor.

Whilst I’m a firm believer in having what you want for your day, I’d also listen to the advice of your florist and other suppliers; weddings are their thing and they’ve worked on a few, so trust their knowledge and experience.

My final piece of advice would be try to relax! Some couples have such an idealised view of their big day which ultimately can be unrealistic; a £10k wedding budget is never going to look like that £70k one you saw on Instagram! It will look beautiful, no matter what, so try not to micromanage or obsess over details out of your control.” – Rhiannon from Willow and Wisps Botanical Design

” I often tell people that their guests will rave about their wedding flowers for years to come, sounds a little far fetched and maybe a touch boastful but if flowers are important to you, this is achievable and it’s absolutely what we as a florist want. And it is (so I’m reliably informed – often by mother of the brides) exactly what happens.

Find suppliers you trust, work with them to set out a plan and then let them do their thing. And if flowers don’t do it for you, don’t waste your money. Star Wars figurines work very well as table centrepiece’s if Luke Skywalker is your man!” – James at Tudor Rose.

Begin your wedding flower journey…

Seriously though, your choice of wedding flowers can dramatically transform the overall style of your big day. Whether you opt for simple and classic or choose extravagant bright pops of colour, begin conversations with florists at the start of your planning journey and if you are considering a blank canvas wedding venue, we recommend researching your wedding flowers whilst finding your dream venue.

Intrigued to know how much wedding flowers cost? Discover the world of floristry buying in our Guide ‘How Much Do Wedding Flowers Cost?’

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