Planning a wedding often underestimates the time, effort, and thought invested in every detail. Flower arrangements, from the bride’s bouquet to centerpieces, greatly contribute to the overall aesthetic. The sheer number of flowers involved makes it clear that they present the biggest challenge in organizing a wedding. Have you ever paused to consider the multitude of flowers incorporated into a wedding?
The importance of bouquets and flowers on a wedding day cannot be emphasized enough. The bridal bouquet is vital in enhancing the style of the bride’s dress, adding a special element that sets the desired mood for the wedding. It is crucial for the flowers to have depth and enhance the colors of the wedding dress. Brides usually look for elegant bouquets and floral designs that reflect their uniqueness on this significant occasion. Before the wedding, brides need to accomplish several tasks to ensure smooth coordination among their selected floral arrangements.
When organizing a wedding, the bride should prioritize establishing her wedding style or theme. This will guarantee coherence between the floral arrangements in the church and elements like music and decorations at the wedding. If the bride opts for hiring a wedding consultant, they can provide support with the floral arrangements. Additionally, it is crucial for the bride to select a color scheme to prevent an excessive clash of colors in both the flowers at the wedding and reception.
When planning the reception, it is crucial to select an appropriate location and consider the climate for suitable flower choices. It is important to choose a dress and headpiece that complements the bouquet. To ensure high-quality service at a reasonable price, it is recommended to find a professional florist. Additionally, bridesmaids’ dresses should align with the color scheme to coordinate with the flowers and bouquets. Paying deposits and signing contracts can help avoid confusion about the bride’s preferences and expectations. Furthermore, coordinating with both mothers to choose dresses that match the color scheme is essential.
When planning a wedding, it’s important to select the men’s wedding attire to match the theme and color scheme. Additionally, finalizing all the details with the florist requires careful consideration. For instance, determining the bride’s preference for simple, exotic, extravagant, or natural flowers is crucial. Furthermore, deciding on the shape of bouquet that complements the bride’s dress and overall taste is essential. The available bouquet shapes include round, cascading, hand-tied, crescent, and even custom shapes created by the bride herself (2, Congrat.).
When selecting flowers for a wedding, it is important to consider the preferences of the couple. Do they prefer traditional white colors in their bouquet, or would they like a vibrant display of multiple colors? Additionally, the choice of accent colors, textures, and fragrances should be taken into account. Opting for hand-selected flowers ensures their freshness and high quality. Headpieces and hair can also be adorned with flowers to enhance the overall mood of the event. This is a common practice among the bride’s maids and flower girls, who can incorporate flowers into their hairstyles using combs or up-do’s. A delightful way to make flower girls appear adorable is by placing a floral wreath around their necks (2, Congrat.).
To calculate the quantity of flowers needed per person at a wedding, consult the subsequent checklist. Initially, all individuals in the wedding party will require flowers. This encompasses the bride’s bouquet, the bride’s “toss bouquet,” bouquets for bridesmaids and flower girls, along with corsages for the mother of the bride, mother of the groom, stepmother, grandmother, and godmother.
There are various flower arrangements available for men, including the grooms boutonniere, boutonnieres for groomsmen, a boutonniere for the ring bearer, and flowers on the ring bearer’s pillow. Other arrangements include boutonnieres for the father, stepfather, grandfather, and godfather. Additionally, all attendants will have their own flower arrangements such as usher’s boutonnieres, musician’s flowers, vocalist’s flowers, reader’s flowers, guest book flowers, gift table attendant’s flowers and personal attendants’ flowers (3,Congrat.).
While not all individuals are involved in every wedding, the following list provides a general idea of the number of flowers required for various participants. Moreover, numerous flowers are utilized at the ceremony venue, encompassing altar flowers, pew decorations, candelabra arrangements, candle adornments, foliage ornaments, unity candle embellishments, arch blooms, flower petals (used by flower girls for throwing), garland decorations, arrangements in the church foyer, and flowers and ribbons on the exterior of church doors. A substantial quantity of flowers is essential as they enrich the ambiance at your ceremony location with their vibrant colors and personal touch. Additionally, canopies serve as an accessory that can be incorporated into weddings to create a specific atmosphere or highlight certain aspects. There are approximately six main types of canopies commonly employed in weddings (5 Congrat.).
The arch plays a significant role in a wedding, serving both the church aisle and the reception. Placed behind the wedding party table, it becomes the main focal point throughout the ceremony and celebration. Although arches are a bit pricier compared to other wedding elements, they are worth the investment due to their exceptional value.
There are reception tables available for decoration with flowers. For a wedding party table of ten or fewer guests, it is typical to have a single long and low centerpiece adorned with colored flowers that match the bridesmaids’ dresses. On the other hand, for a wedding party table with eleven or more guests, it is recommended to have two long and low centerpieces(10, Aberdeens). However, the decision to decorate the reception tables with flowers is subjective. There are various items used for table decoration, but flowers are the more conventional choice and therefore commonly selected by a greater number of people (15, Aberdeens).
Consider the time of year for the wedding as it determines flower availability and costs. For instance, if the wedding takes place in winter, there may be a smaller selection of flowers compared to spring weddings. However, it is still possible to get out-of-season flowers, but they would likely be more expensive as they need to be grown in a “hot house,” which requires extra effort from the florist (289, Flower). Additionally, spring is a popular time for weddings due to favorable weather and Valentine’s Day, leading to increased demand and higher prices from florists (38, McNally).
When selecting the wedding date, it is crucial to take into account the desired flowers’ price and type. It is also essential to calculate the total cost of all the flowers considering various factors. Each bouquet costs about $40.00, so if there are multiple bridesmaids (including the flower girl), there might be 6 or more bouquets, resulting in a total cost of $240.00. The toss bouquet is slightly cheaper at approximately $35.00. All women need corsages that are priced at $15.00 each, totaling $75.00 for 5 main women. Boutonnieres are relatively inexpensive at $10.00 each, and with around 10 main men in the wedding party, this amounts to a cost of $100.00.
Overall, just for the main wedding party alone, this adds up to a total of $450.00 (3,Blossom’s). Additionally, there are altar arrangements valued at approximately $50.00 and reception table centerpieces costing around $30 each.
Already, the wedding expenses are amounting to $530.00, which is a significant amount solely for the floral arrangements. It becomes evident that one truly appreciates and comprehends the effort entailed in organizing the flowers for weddings. Ranging from bouquets to centerpieces, the financial burden and anxiety associated with flowers make them the most challenging aspect of wedding planning. However, despite these challenges, they ultimately contribute to creating something marvelous in the end.
Works Cited
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Aberdeen’s Wedding Flowers.” 25 March 2000.
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- “Flower.” Funk & Wagnalls New Encyclopedia. 1876 ed., Euthanasia – France, 287- 289
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McNally, Lisa. A Blissful Wedding. New York: Random House, 1996. Waterston, Stacey. “Blossom’s Wedding Flowers.” 2000.
