Wedding bouquet - the ultimate accessory
Your wedding bouquet is the most noticeable of all your wedding accessories. It will appear in countless photos on your wedding day and, because you generally hold it around the waist area, has impact on how your wedding dress looks.
Wedding bouquet style
How do you choose a style for your wedding bouquet? What you have your heart set on may not work with your wedding dress and body shape.
Some things to consider are:
- A rounded wedding bouquet (or posy) that is slightly smaller than your waist width will keep the look of your waist area even.
- Large rounded, teardrop or unstructured shapes increase your waist width. If too large, it will also overshadow a shorter bride.
- Arm sheaths, because they tend to be long and thin, are elegant regardless of waist width.
There are many styles for wedding bouquets:
Posy
Posies are round in shape and made up of tightly clustered
flowers with their natural stems tied with ribbon to form a
handle.
Teardrop
As the name suggests, a teardrop is a structured triangular
shape that is wide and the top and tapers to a point at the
bottom.
Cascade
A cascade or trailing bouquet is an unstructured shape that
is wider at the top, tapering to a narrower bottom.
Arm sheath
Arm sheath refers to a loose bunch of long-stemmed flowers
and foliage cradled on your arm.
Alternatives to wedding bouquets
You may prefer something different to a more traditional wedding bouquet. Here are some ideas:
Single long-stemmed flower
A single rose or lily tied with ribbon can be a stunning
(and much cheaper) alternative to a wedding bouquet.
Wrist corsage
This can be one large flower or several smaller flowers (and
foliage if you want it) wired to a wrist strap or ribbon and
worn like a bracelet.
Pomander
A ball made of entirely of flower heads, which has a length
of ribbon to tie and hang from the wrist.
Headpiece
Individual flowers are wired and then attached to a hair
comb or individually pinned into your hair.
Wedding bouquet color
When choosing the color of your bouquet, you want to coordinate with any colors you have chosen for your overall wedding theme as well as coordinating with the color of your wedding dress (and those worn by your bridesmaids).
You can choose to match the color of your dress, or your
bridesmaids' dresses, or you can choose a wedding bouquet in
shades that contrast with your dress in a complementary way.
Light-colored bouquets are beautiful and more traditional but darker shades have a slimming effect because they divert the eye. To avoid colors that clash, be sure to take along fabric samples when choosing flowers for your wedding bouquet.
Wedding bouquet flowers
The flowers that you choose for your wedding bouquet depend on the look that you want to achieve along with colour and seasonality.
Below is a list of common wedding flowers by their seasonal availability.
| Flower | Summer | Autumn | Winter | Spring |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Agapanthus | Yes | |||
| Alstroemeria | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Andromata | Yes | |||
| Anemone | Yes | |||
| Anthurium | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Arum lily | Yes | |||
| Asiatic lilies | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Azalea | Yes | |||
| Azalea | Yes | |||
| Belladonna lily | Yes | |||
| Bixia | Yes | |||
| Blossom | Yes | |||
| Boronia | Yes | |||
| Bouvardia | Yes | |||
| Brunii | Yes | |||
| Buddleia | Yes | |||
| Callalily | Yes | |||
| Camellia | Yes | Yes | ||
| Carnation | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Christmas bells | Yes | |||
| Chrysanthemum (glass house) | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Cornflower | Yes | Yes | Yes | |
| Daffodil | Yes | Yes | ||
| Dahlia | Yes | |||
| Daisy | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Daphne | Yes | |||
| Delphinium | Yes | Yes | Yes | |
| Earlicheer | Yes | |||
| Erica | Yes | |||
| Frangipani | Yes | |||
| Freesia | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Gardenia | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Ginger | Yes | |||
| Gypsophilia | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Hyacinth | Yes | Yes | ||
| Hydrangea | Yes | Yes | ||
| Jasmine | Yes | Yes | ||
| Jonquil | Yes | Yes | ||
| Kale | Yes | |||
| Larkspur | Yes | |||
| Lavender | Yes | Yes | ||
| Lilac | Yes | |||
| Lily (lilium) | Yes | |||
| Lily of the Valley | Yes | |||
| Lisianthus | Yes | Yes | ||
| Muscari | Yes | |||
| Oriental lilies | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Pansy | Yes | |||
| Peniculata | Yes | |||
| Peony | Yes | Yes | ||
| Phalaenopsis orchid | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Pineapple lilies | Yes | |||
| Poppies | Yes | Yes | Yes | |
| Privetberries | Yes | Yes | ||
| Protea | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Queen Anne's lace | Yes | |||
| Ranunculus | Yes | |||
| Rhododendron | Yes | Yes | ||
| Roses | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Rosehip | Yes | |||
| Singapore orchid | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Snapdragon | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Stephanotis | Yes | Yes | Yes | |
| Stock | Yes | Yes | Yes | |
| Sweet pea | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Tuberose | Yes | Yes | ||
| Tulip | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Viburnum | Yes | |||
| Violet | Yes | |||
| Water lilies | Yes | Yes |
Wedding bouquet tips
-
Check what flowers are in season for your wedding
date. Flowers that are out of season, if they have to
be imported, can be very expensive or not available at
all.
- Allergy sufferers, consider carefully before choosing heavily scented flowers. The last thing you want on your wedding day is for you or your groom to have puffy eyes and a runny nose from flower pollen.