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1. Flowers: A Glossary of Bouquets
Don't know your nose from your nosegay? Our bouquet glossary will make it as plain as the nose on one's face.
Traditionally, the entire wedding party -- and other special guests -- carry or wear flowers on the wedding day. The conventional arrangements for the bride, maids, and flower girls include the following bouquet styles:
Beidermeier: A nosegay made up of concentric circles of different flowers for a somewhat striped effect.
Cascade: A waterfall-like "spill" of blooms and greenery that's anchored in a hand-held base. Looks like a miniature floral train.
Classic Hand-tied Bouquet: A dense bunch of blooms either anchored in a bouquet holder, wired, or hand-tied.
Composite: A handmade creation in which different petals or buds are wired together on a single stem, creating the illusion of one giant flower.
Nosegay: A small, round cluster of flowers, all cut to a uniform length, which was all the rage in Victorian times and is enjoying a renaissance today. Usually made with one dominant flower or colour, nosegays are wrapped tightly with ribbon or lace for a delicate effect. Or, for an all-out Victorian look, insert the nosegay into a silver-carrying cone (also known as a tussy mussy).
Pomander: A bloom-covered ball suspended from a ribbon, perfect for child attendants.
2. Flowers: A Glossary of Terms
Meeting with your florist to discuss the big day blooms? Look out for that language barrier -- get to know these flower terms.
Heading to the florist to discuss your wedding flowers? Make sure you know your nosegay from your ikebana. Our glossary will help you finesse your floral lingo.
Bridal Bouquets
Biedermeier: A tightly arranged nosegay consisting of concentric circles of various differently coloured flowers. The blooms are wired into a holder, with one flower variety per ring.
Cascade: A waterfall-like spill of blooms, often composed of ivy and long-stemmed flowers, that is wired to cascade gracefully over the bride's hands.
Classic bouquet: A dense bunch of blooms that can be anchored in a bouquet holder, wired, or hand-tied.
Composite: A handmade creation in which different petals or buds are wired together on a single stem to create the illusion of a giant flower.
Crescent: Composed of one full flower and a flowering stem, often orchids, wired together to form a slender handle that can be held in one hand. Designed as either a full crescent -- a half circle with a central flower and blossoms emanating from two sides -- or a semi-crescent, which has only one trailing stem.
Nosegays: Small, round bouquets, approximately 16 to 18 inches in diameter, composed of densely packed round flowers, greenery, and occasionally herbs. Nosegays are wired or tied together.
Oasis: Special foam used in flower arrangements. Oasis fits in a bouquet holder and retains water like a sponge, hydrating flowers for extended time periods.
Knot note: pomanders are a great option if you want your hands to be free.
Pomander: A bloom-covered ball suspended from a ribbon. Ideal for child attendants.
Posies: Smaller than nosegays but similar in design, posies often include extras like ribbons or silk flowers. Perfect for little hands.
Presentation: Also known as the pageant bouquet, this is a bunch of long-stemmed flowers cradled in the bride's arms.
Taped and wired: Arranging technique for bouquets, boutonnieres, headpieces, and wreaths. The head of a flower is cut from the stem and attached to a wire, which is then wrapped with floral tape. Taped and wired flowers are more easily manoeuvred into shapes and styles.
Tossing: This copy of the bridal bouquet is used solely for the bouquet toss ritual.
Tussy mussy: From the Victorian era, a tussy mussy is a posy carried in a small, metallic, hand-held vase. Today, the term is often used in reference to the holder itself.
Other Flowers & Arrangements
Boutonniere: A single bloom or bud (or several small buds) attached to the left lapel of the jacket. Boutonnieres can be worn by grooms, attendants, ushers, and the bride and groom's fathers.
Candelabra: A floral centrepiece created at the base, neck, or top of a multi-armed candelabra. Such a centrepiece is usually touched with flowing greens or ribbons, depending on the wedding's style.
Corsage: A single bloom (or small cluster of blooms) arranged against a lace or tulle doily and/or accented with ribbon. Corsages come in pin-on, wrist, and hand-held styles and are typically worn by mothers and grandmothers. Orchids and gardenias are popular choices.
Dais: The centrepiece at the head table (where bride and groom are seated), which drapes to the front of the table for visual effect.
Fish bowl: Low centrepiece style that consists of flowers clustered in a glass bowl.
Garden: Centrepiece featuring abstract wildflowers. The composition is airy and less full than other designs. Lisianthus, hollyhock, rambling roses, digitalis, and smilax are well suited to this arrangement style.
Garland: Elaborately woven rope or strand arrangement, typically used to adorn pews and doorways. A garland can also be paraded down the aisle by two or three little ones.
Huppah: A wedding canopy decorated with flowers that is an integral part of the traditional Jewish ceremony.
Ikebana: Japanese-style flower arrangements that are aesthetically in unison with space, size, earth, and air.
Topiary: Flowers or foliage trimmed into geometric shapes, often resembling miniature trees or animals.
Trellis: A woven wooden frame used as a screen or support for climbing plants and flowers.
Wreath: A ring of flowers or other decorative materials that can function as centrepiece, headpiece, or door hanger.
3. Florists: 12 Questions to Ask
From poppies to pansies, your florist should know above and beyond the basics.
Lock in your floral designer early in the wedding-planning process. You'll want a designer who is gifted, knowledgeable, and agreeable. Most importantly, your florist should delight in providing you with the most beautiful flowers your budget can handle. Be sure to check with the local Better Business Bureau before hiring. Here are 12 questions to ask potential florists:
- What is the florist's design philosophy? Minimal? Traditional? Elegant? Edgy and modern? Florists love explaining their artistic sensibilities -- the styles they love, their favourite flowers, the palettes they adore. Do the florist's views fit with your own ideas?
- Does the florist's style -- and the overall look of the shop -- match yours? (This is common sense. Go with your gut.)
- Can you see photographs or live examples of past work? (Real bouquets and arrangements will give you a better sense of the florist's abilities than photos -- especially photos that aren't of the florist's actual work but show things the florist says he or she can do.)
- How big is the shop (number of staff), and who will work on your wedding? Make sure the floral designer you're interviewing will actually create the arrangements.
- Try to gauge the florist's expertise by asking questions. What flowers will be in season when your wedding takes place? If your budget is on the small side, ask how you can maximize your options. What are some less expensive alternatives to blooms beyond your price range?
- What are the hottest floral trends of the moment? Why do they work or not work? What's the most innovative concept the florist has recently brought to a design project?
- Which flowers are least likely to wilt in hot weather? What are some hot weather no-nos?
- Has the florist done weddings at your ceremony and/or reception sites before? If so, he or she may have pictures of arrangements done at your site and will be knowledgeable about what sizes, shapes, and colours work in the space.
- Will the florist deliver flowers for your wedding or spend time at the site, setting up and making sure everything is in order? You'll pay more for a full-service florist, but you get what you pay for.
- How many weddings will the florist do on the same day or weekend as yours? The florist's answer determines how much time will be spent on your gig.
- Does the florist offer rental items -- vases, potted plants, arches, trellises, candelabras, urns -- or must you contact a rental company?
- Does the florist preserve bouquets after weddings? If this is important to you, find out now if he or she will do so, or if you can be referred to someone who does. You may have to make an appointment before the wedding to ensure that your bouquet can be preserved directly afterward.
4. Flowers: Costs, Tips & Tricks
It's time to start talking bouquets and centrepieces. Here are some shortcuts and helpful hints to get you started.
Today, nearly anything goes: Strewn rose petals can replace formal centrepieces, and a single, perfect calla lily can function as bridal bouquet. You could also choose a lush profusion of varied blooms in brilliant colours. Whatever your vision, strive for something imaginative, playful, and clever. We'll help you get the flowers you want with our costs, tips, and tricks guide.
Find Your Style
Do you picture simply natural or elaborate flowers? Subtle or striking? Minimalist? Tightly arranged? Are you thinking monochromatic, traditional (whites or pastels), multicoloured, or modern (dark hues and bright citrus shades)? Do you dream of old school roses and lilies or new school berries, grasses, greens, and herbs?
Pick a Palette
Flowers in matching shades or cool contrasts are breathtaking, but make sure they suit your wedding. Bring a bridesmaid dress fabric swatch when you meet with your floral designer (to illustrate your wedding colours).
Consider Your Season
Marrying in summer or in a humid climate? Go for hardy flowers that won't wilt, such as sunflowers, zinnias, dahlias, lilies, and hydrangeas. Avoid gardenias, lily of the valley, tulips, and wildflowers. Love the idea of luxe imported orchids or dreamy white peonies in the middle of February? Your florist may be able to find the flowers but be prepared to pay at least 25% more.
Remember: Size Matters
Be sure your bouquets aren't too heavy or too hard to carry.
Think About the Fragrance
Some of the most fragrant flowers include freesia, lilies, lilacs, tuberoses, gardenias, and lilies of the valley. Be sure your bouquet isn't too fragrant.
Don't Overdo It
If you're tying the knot in a naturally flowering park or garden, you may not have to bring in many flowers or plants at all. And if you're marrying around Christmas or Easter, your church may already be beautifully decked out with poinsettias or Easter lilies.
Consider Complementary Flowers
Once the bridal bouquet's composition has been established, move on to other bouquets and boutonnieres, which should complement the bridal bouquet in style, flowers, and colour.
Get Coordinated
Coordinate delivery time of your bouquets, corsages, and boutonnieres with your photographer's arrival -- you'll want them to be worn or held in formal pictures. Your flowers should arrive well misted and wrapped in cellophane. Examine each bouquet and remove any damaged blossoms. Once flowers are distributed, keep them out of heat and direct sunlight.
Don't Forget: Create a Tossing Bouquet
You don't have to toss the actual bridal bouquet -- many brides have their florist create a smaller tossing bouquet for the traditional ritual.
Sign the Contract
By your second meeting, your florist should have written up your exact proposal, itemizing the number of arrangements, the kinds of flowers to be used, and any set-up or clean-up fees. If you're commissioning an elaborate display such as a floral huppah, topiaries, or themed arrangements, your florist should show you sketches or actual samples at this time. Now is also the time to finalize prices: If sample arrangements seem skimpy, consider allotting more of your budget to flowers or making other adjustments.
Think of Ways to Save
Local, in-season flowers will guarantee freshness and affordability, so choose a couple of seasonal staples and use them as a base for bouquets, boutonnieres, and decorative arrangements. Incorporate them into huppahs, arches, or pew adornments, too. Use less expensive flowers and greens -- such as baby's breath, daisies, and ivy -- to fill out bouquets and cut costs.
Remember: Sometimes Less is More
Save money by carrying one or two large, stunning blooms, such as orchids, tulips, or sunflowers, tied with a gorgeous ribbon.
Avoid Holidays
Is the big day on or near Valentine's Day or Mother's Day? Expect high rates -- rose prices in particular will be sky high. Your florist's time and availability might also be an issue. Discuss any potential problems in advance.
Start Your Budget
How much of your budget should you expect to pay for your flowers? First, remember that everything is relative -- to the city where you will wed, to the season in which you will wed, to the length of your guest list, and so forth. To give you an idea, we've collected the percentages for a 150-person guest list and a 10-member bridal party. You're likely to spend 55 percent on reception table centrepieces and other miscellaneous decor elements of the reception; 12 percent on ceremony decorations; seven percent on your bouquet; 14 percent on the bridesmaid bouquets; five percent on the boutonnieres and another five percent on the corsages (for the moms and grand moms); one percent on the flower girl's basket; and one percent on your tossing bouquet.
5. Decor: All About Candles
At weddings, candles can wax romantic, spiritual, or sophisticated. Let us light the way to imparting a special glow to yours.
Whether you're lining the aisle or handing them out to each guest, incorporating candles can be very romantic.
Fragrant, romantic, stylish, and spiritual, candles add beautiful brightness to any wedding. First developed by the Romans, wick candles aided night travellers and lit homes and places of worship. Today, candles serve many symbolic and decorative purposes. Strike a match and read on to see how these glittering beauties can light up your wedding.
Candle Symbolism
Unity Candles
What are they? Unity candles symbolize the essence of a wedding ceremony: two people becoming one while retaining their own identities. They're visible symbols of couples' commitments to each other.
How do they work? Bride and groom, each holding a candle, light a third candle together. You may blow out the individual flames, or all three candles may remain lit throughout the rest of the ceremony. You could initiate the process by having your mothers light the individual candles; your mom lights yours, and his mom does the same for him. Sometimes the entire congregation can participate, holding candles lit from the unified flame.
Note: When using a unity candle outdoors, protect the flame as you protect your love: Use hurricane lamps. You can purchase these lamps in various sizes at most craft or department stores. If the candle blows out, don't worry -- it's not a sign!
Memorial Candles
What are they? Candles that burn to honour the memory of the loss of a close friend or family member. At traditional Thai weddings, the candles' smoke is believed to carry your thoughts to those who have passed on.
How do they work? There are many ways in which you can make this effective. For example, you may have candle bearers come light the candles at a special moment in the service; you may wish to have candles burning the entire time and include a note in the programs explaining who the candles burn for; or you may ask each person to hold a candle and have a flame passed from guest to guest until everyone's flame is lit and sparkling in honour of your late loved one(s).
Candle Lighters
If you're having a dramatic night time ceremony with candles along the aisle (or any other area), enlist a special friend to do candle duty by lighting them just before the ceremony begins, or by distributing candles to guests to be lit as part of the ceremony. At a Jewish wedding, you can honour someone by asking her to light a candle during the reception. In a Christian ceremony, steady-handed pre-teens (ages 9-12) can light candles at the altar just before the bride's mother is seated. They should stick around after the ceremony to snuff the flames.
Candles As Decoration
Candlelit Ceremonies
Whether you're lining the aisle or handing them out to each guest, incorporating candles can be very romantic. First, make sure you know your local fire ordinances -- find out how many candles you can light and if you can light them at all! (The wedding site manager can help you locate this information.) Based on the regulations, decide where to put candles. Make sure there is enough light around the two of you so guests can see you recite your vows. Put large candles on stands, perhaps decorated with flowers, at the spot where you'll exchange vows. Put one at the end of each pew or row, if you like. But don't overdo it -- the purpose of candlelight is to dim the room.
Brilliant Bouquets
Have your bridesmaids carry ribbon-wrapped candles instead of bouquets. The effect will be very dramatic. Even with ribbons, candles will cost less than half of what flowers would cost. Make sure you provide candleholders: The last thing you want is hot wax dripping onto your maids' hands. Ouch!
Sizzling Centrepieces
The perfect romantic lighting option: Place candles on each table and throughout the room. There are so many stunning and affordable varieties that you can colour-coordinate candles with flowers, your dress, or even the main course. You can also use scented candles or opt for floating candles that beautifully reflect dim light. Majestic candelabras add drama to a room; traditional lanterns can transform any site into a cosy, old-fashioned inn.
Note: For easy, inexpensive centrepieces, fill glass bowls with water and place floating candles in them. Or select various candleholders or varying height and style and place a bundle on each table. When the candles are lit all across the room, they'll look very elegant and your space will reverberate with romance.
6. Flowers & Decor: Tables for Every Season
Searching for some tabletop inspiration? Take a cue from the seasons and get motivated by some of our favourite seasonal ideas.
When it comes to reception style, your tables are going to be the centre of attention, so make sure they're gorgeous! Top them with fabulous fabrics, interesting flatware, and cascading flowers, all inspired by the season of your celebration. Here are a few of our favourite seasonal ideas.
Winter Tables
From dozens of candles in ornate copper candleholders to the most elegant gold-accented china, a winter table should be warm and inviting.
- Use jewel-toned tablecloths with shimmery chiffon overlays to highlight the season's natural sparkle.
- Rent top-of-the-line gold-gilded chargers to add richness.
- Seat your guests on plush chairs -- many rental companies offer white, wood, or metallic-tone chiavri chairs that can be fitted with velvet cushions to match your wedding-day decor.
- Use tall, elegant, and regal candelabras for centrepieces. Use rich reds (roses, hydrangea, calla lilies, and even dripping amaranth) to create a beautiful arrangement. Pair clusters of the same flowers at the base of the candelabra and surround the arrangement with dozens of candles. For a non-traditional touch, string baubles around the candelabra.
Spring Tables
Spring is the season for all things fun and flirty. Make sure your table reflects this whimsical attitude by building an English garden-style setting, either with Victorian flair or a modern slant.
- For vintage Victorian, decorate your tables with delicate lace overlays or toile-patterned tablecloths, elegant teacups and saucers, and vintage-style table numbers -- you might opt for sepia-toned pictures of the newlyweds in ornate frames.
- For a modern twist, go for plaid or gingham table linens, colour-coordinated plates and glassware (you don't have to always go for white), and colour-tinted glassware.
- For centrepieces, forget the traditional rose arrangement and go for something with a "just picked from the garden" look. Fill wire or wooden baskets with loose and playful blooms in preppy colours: pinks, greens, lavenders, and yellows. Think pale pink ranunculouses paired with peach-colour peonies; dark pink calla lilies complementing bunches of green viburnum; and a plethora of sweet garden roses.
Summer Tables
Summer begs for warm colours, tropical flowers, and unpretentious table toppings.
- There is no need for fancy goblets when you can go for sweet cocktails in a simple pink-tinted martini glass. From unadorned flatware to lightweight linen tablecloths, your tables should be clean and simple.
- What we love: pale orange linens, clear-glass vases (or ones lined with philo leaves) for the centrepieces, and clear glass votive candleholders.
- Opt for breakaway centrepieces -- a collection of smaller containers grouped to look like one entity. You might match a vase filled with fuchsia orchids, one with melon-orange orchids, and another with lime green orchids for an overall tropical feel. Guests can each take a part of the centrepiece home as they leave.
Autumn Tables
Autumn reminds us of a harvest, so take a cue from the outdoors by using rich foliage, sunny colours, and pastoral decor.
- Think rustic elegance at its best: crisp leaves rimming bouquets and centrepieces; burlap table linens; bunches of berries making as much of a statement as flowers.
- Twigs and berries or even tiny pinecones could be incorporated into your centrepiece of dahlias, gardenias, roses, or other seasonal flowers. Playing off the colours of changing leaves -- reds, burnt oranges, and yellows -- is an obvious choice for your colour palette. We also suggest going for greens and coppers.
- Another favourite: rustic buckets filled to the brim with sunflowers, orange and yellow spray roses, and lady's mantle.
7. Flowers: Symbolic Meanings
So roses mean love, tulips mean passion. Want more? Consult our A-Z guide to the symbolic meaning of flowers.
Did you know that magnolia means love of nature and stephanotis signifies marital happiness? During the Victorian era, The Language of Flowers created an ultra-romantic language for lovers' correspondence in which flowers replaced words. If you want to suffuse your wedding flowers with symbolism, check out our guide to the most popular wedding flowers and decide which messages move you most. Happy gathering!
Anemone
Meaning: Expectation
Best For: Bouquets and arrangements
Scent: None
In Season: Fall (Japanese) to spring (Wood or De Caen)
Price Range: Moderate
Floral Fact: Anemones bloom in either single or double blossoms.
Baby's Breath
Meaning: Innocence
Best For: Filler in bouquets, corsages, and boutonnieres
Scent: None
In Season: Year-round
Price Range: Inexpensive
Calla Lily
Meaning: Magnificent beauty
Best For: Bouquets and arrangements
Scent: Lightly fragrant
In Season: Spring and summer
Price Range: Expensive
Floral Fact: This large tropical flower is very popular in weddings.
Carnation
Meaning: Pink represents boldness, red symbolizes love, and white indicates talent. Some other colours have negative connotations (see below).
Best For: Bouquets, boutonnieres, and arrangements
Scent: Very light fragrance or none at all, depending on variety
In Season: Year-round
Price Range: Inexpensive
Chrysanthemum (or mum)
Meaning: Wealth, abundance, truth
Best For: Bouquets and arrangements
Scent: None
In Season: Year-round
Price Range: Inexpensive
Floral Fact: Mums come in several varieties, which determine their size and colour. The name literally means "golden flower."
Daffodil
Meaning: Regard
Best For: Garden settings, in pots
Scent: None
In Season: Spring
Price Range: Inexpensive (in season)
Daisy
Meaning: Share your feelings
Best For: Bouquets
Scent: None
In Season: Year-round
Price Range: Inexpensive (in season)
Delphinium
Meaning: Swiftness, lightness
Best For: Arrangements
Scent: Lightly fragrant
In Season: Summer
Price Range: Moderate
Freesia
Meaning: Innocence
Best For: Bouquets
Scent: Very fragrant
In Season: Spring and summer
Price Range: Inexpensive (in season)
Gardenia
Meaning: Purity, joy
Best For: Bouquets and boutonnieres
Scent: Very fragrant
In Season: Year-round
Price Range: Expensive
Hydrangea
Meaning: Understanding
Best For: Bouquets and arrangements
Scent: None
In Season: Spring and fall
Price Range: Expensive
Iris
Meaning: A message of faith, wisdom
Best For: In arrangements or potted
Scent: Fragrant
In Season: Spring
Price Range: Moderate to expensive, depending on variety
Floral Fact: Irises come in several sizes; they are usually blue or white, but you may find exotic varieties (including purple ones).
Lilac
Meaning: Love's first emotions
Best For: Filler in arrangements or as part of bouquets, depending on variety
Scent: Very fragrant
In Season: Local lilacs are available in the spring; imported French lilacs are available year-round
Price Range: Moderate to expensive
Floral Fact: The local lilac is grown like a bush, and is used as filler because of its greenery. The French lilac is more flower-like and can be used as such in bouquets and arrangements.
Lily
Meaning: Majesty, truth, honour
Best For: Bouquets and arrangements
Scent: Fragrant
In Season: Summer, but often imported during other seasons
Price Range: Moderate to expensive
Lily of the Valley
Meaning: Happiness
Best For: Bouquets, in combination with other flowers
Scent: Fragrant
In Season: Spring and summer
Price Range: Expensive
Floral Fact: These small, fragile, bell-shaped flowers are considered traditional marriage flowers.
Magnolia
Meaning: Love of nature
Best For: Arrangements
Scent: Depends on variety
In Season: Spring and summer
Price Range: Expensive
Floral Fact: Magnolias are more common in Southern-style weddings, as most magnolia trees grow in the South.
Orchid
Meaning: Love, beauty
Best For: Bouquets, corsages, and boutonnieres
Scent: None
In Season: Year-round -- almost always imported
Price Range: Expensive
Floral Fact: This exotic flower comes in a variety of colours and sizes.
Peony
Meaning: Bashfulness, the American spirit of ambition and determination
Best For: Arrangements
Scent: Lightly fragrant
In Season: Late spring
Price Range: Expensive
Rose
Meaning: Love, joy, beauty
Best For: Bouquets, corsages, boutonnieres, and arrangements
Scent: Lightly fragrant to very fragrant, depending on variety
In Season: Year-round
Price Range: Moderate to expensive
Floral Fact: Roses are the most popular wedding flowers.
Stephanotis
Meaning: Marital happiness
Best For: Bouquets and arrangements
Scent: Very fragrant
In Season: Year-round
Price Range: Moderate
Floral Fact: These trumpet-shape blossoms are traditional bridal flowers, no doubt due to their meaning.
Stock
Meaning: Lasting beauty
Best For: Filler in arrangements
Scent: Very fragrant
In Season: Year-round
Price Range: Inexpensive
Floral Fact: Stock can be found in many colours to complement and fill out arrangements.
Sunflower
Meaning: Short-stemmed sunflowers mean adoration; long-stemmed sunflowers symbolize haughtiness
Best For: Carrying a single stem down the aisle; potted arrangements
Scent: None
In Season: Fall
Price Range: Inexpensive to moderate in season
Sweet Pea
Meaning: Pleasure
Best For: Garden setting, in vases
Scent: Fragrant
In Season: Late spring and early summer
Price Range: Moderate
Tulip
Meaning: Love, passion
Best For: Arrangements and bouquets
Scent: None
In Season: Late spring
Price Range: Expensive
Floral Fact: These sweet and stately flowers can be found in a myriad of colours, but they are very fragile.
Unfavourable Flowers
It's sad but true: You might want to avoid certain flowers (if you're superstitious, that is). On the other hand, you can always thumb your nose at history and ascribe your own meaning to these "questionable" blooms. Here are the so-called negative indicators:
- Christmas Rose: Scandal
- Fig: Idleness
- Foxglove: Insincerity
- Larkspur: Infidelity
- Lavender: Distrust
- Marigold: Grief
- Mulberry: I shall not survive you
- Raspberry: Remorse
- Red Carnation: Alas for my poor heart
- Red Poppy: Consolation
- Rhododendron: Danger
- Striped Carnation: Refusal
- White Poppy: Sleep
- Yellow Carnation: Disdain
- Yellow Chrysanthemum: Slighted Love
- Yellow Lily: Falsehood
- Yellow Rose: Jealousy
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