Rose & Calla Lily Silk Flowers

Why Silk Flowers?

Choosing flowers as the focus of a wedding is always popular because flowers create a natural, charming and romantic aura for an already beautiful event. But choosing wedding decor that includes flora can have certain drawbacks, such as the cost of favourite flowers that may be out of season, the expense and difficulty of incorporating live plants, wilting and dropping leaves, etc. If any of these factors affect your wedding, you may want to consider incorporating silk or artificial plants into your event.

(Consider the couple who longs for a summer or spring wedding with the perfect climate and a bounty of gorgeous blossoms — but, for whatever reason, must plan a wedding during winter or autumn. That bride and groom can still create a gardenlike setting — even an indoor forest with a canopy of trees such as those that adorned Prince William and Kate Middleton’s wedding at Westminster Abbey — for their special event by taking advantage of the benefits that artificial offerings provide.)

Lots of Accessorizing Options

A stately entrance of artificial topiaries at your wedding.

Because they are unaffected by seasonal influences, silk flowering trees or artificial flower trees, wreaths, garlands, trellises, topiaries and table arrangements can be the perfect answer to accessorizing your wedding. And forget about the days of tacky-looking faux plants. Silk offerings today have undergone a renaissance; their quality is far superior to the materials used in the past. In fact, you can easily mistake today’s artificial options for the real thing.

Ambiance From Romantic to Royal

With so many choices of designs, styles and colors, silk florals can adorn your wedding venue just as beautifully as real flowers. Consider some of these options:

• Fuchsia or lilac bougainvilleas overflowing on reception tables.

• Cherry blossom or rose artificial topiaries lining the aisle for a romantic theme.

• Purple wisteria trees surrounding the bridal table with a royal aura.

• Lush, flowering hedges that greet guests and create a country ambiance.

• Sumptuous arrangements of orchids, lilies or other exotic flowers bedecking the altar.

• Lavish garlands of jasmine or magnolias draping the pews.

• Quaint grapevine and violet wreaths decorating the church and reception doors.

Lush silk arrangements will brighten up any event.

Faux Plants, Real Solutions

Despite their very real appearance, artificial plants offer the distinct advantage of not wilting or dropping leaves. Thus, you can be assured that your wedding’s setting won’t be spoiled. You can also customize flowering plants according to your choice and preferences, thus giving you the opportunity to plan any desired theme. Another bonus? After the wedding festivities have ended, you can use the silk trees or flowers to decorate your home or office interiors.

Let your imagination soar as you discuss all the floral options with your florist, no matter what time of the year it is. Today’s sophisticated artificial flowers offer the perfect option to create the wedding of your dreams.

PS: If you enjoyed this article, help spread the word by clicking the “Like”, “Tweet”, “+1” buttons or sharing it using the share icons below. Want to read more articles like this? Then Subscribe to our Updates, and get our articles directly to your inbox or RSS reader.

Related posts:

1. Make Gorgeous Flower Choices for Your Wedding
2. Wedding Flowers: Gerbera Daisy – The New Rose
3. The Ultimate Wedding Flower Guide

For these brides, here are some ideas for non-flower/ flowerless centerpieces and bouquets:

Goldfish & Gerbera Centerpiece

Table Centerpieces: A Fish Focus

For a fin-tastic centerpiece, use Goldfish or Siamese fighting fish (also known as bettas) or any fish that suits your color scheme. Fish are available in a wide selection of bright and exotic colors. But do understand that this choice is not as simple as putting fish in a bowl. For example, with some fish, such as the Siamese fighting fish, you can’t mix more than one in the same container. (Male bettas are beautiful but aggressive. They can mix with other fish but not with each other.)

You can purchase fish from your local pet store or breeder, and then give them to guests as gifts after the wedding. Or you may even be able to “rent” the fish from the retailer and then return them after the wedding.

Floral décor, is completely optional, you can mix your fishbowls with coordinating glassware of floating gerberas or other flowers.

Preparing and Caring for your Fish:

You will need:

1. A bucket, dechlorinating drops, fish food, oxygen tablets and a small fish net.
2. Mix dechlorinating drops with fresh water (follow instructions on the packaging) to remove chlorine from the water, which can kill the fish.
3. Fill each container half full of water from the bag containing each fish and half with the dechlorinated water.
4. Add oxygen tablets to each bowl.
5. Use the net to catch the fish and place them into the fishbowls. (Don’t use your hand to catch the fish or you can damage their fins.)
6. Feed the fish a small amount of food just before the wedding and then again after the wedding.

Betta | Blue Malawi | Red Siamese Fighting Fish

Crystals and Candles

Candelabra with Candles and Beads

If your guest tables will be lavishly furnished with embossed table cloths, runners and gifts, focus on crystals, candles and candelabras rather than elaborate flower arrangements for your table decor. Consider simple dessert dishes as an elegant finishing touch as we did at a recent wedding. You can use any flower of your choice: gerberas, orchids or lilies, for example. Add some ivy, which is a symbol of fidelity, friendship and affection. Or add in some baby’s breath, a sign of sincerity and innocence. By combining flowers with some texture, you create table centerpieces that are not simply beautiful but also meaningful.

TIP: When using lilies such as Casablancas, St. Josephs or Stargazers, remove the stamens from each bloom. Doing so will prolong the life of each flower, can prevent allergies and will eliminate staining of the flower or tablecloth.

Fruity Florals

Fruit Centerpieces | Gerberas & Lemons

The bright colors of fruit beautifully complement wedding color themes today. And they can work well with flowers, if you want an extra dash of color. For example, we placed shiny, juicy-green apples in a cylinder vase with three or four bright-colored gerberas tied with ribbon.

See this article for more Gerbera Centrepiece Ideas

Or use lemons or limes for a citrus-centered theme. (With a pinch of salt and tequila, your guests can use them to get the party started, too!)

Main Table Arrangements: Mirrored & Modern

Mirrored Modern Bridal Table Arrangement

Instead of turning to the long, flat, traditional “coffin-spray” types of floral arrangements for the bridal party’s table, jazz up the décor with a modern feel using mirrored boxes and silver boat dishes. For smaller main tables we combined white roses and baby’s breath with funky orange gerberas in the shiny, sophisticated boxes. For a larger bridal party, with a longer table, we had lacey runners beneath each arrangement rounded off with votives, candles and individual lily blooms.

Modern Bridal Table Arrangement

A Buttoned-Up Bridal Bouquet

Bridal Bouquet with Buttons

Bridal Bouquet with Buttons

A bridal bouquet with no flowers? At one wedding, our bride refused to have flowers in her bouquet. We tried to convince her to add just a few, but she didn’t bite. We did, however, persuade her to include some roses in the bridesmaid’s bouquet. The result turned out to be something quite special and unique that used a mix of fantastical buttons and crystals. This could be a project you can start long before your wedding day, collecting buttons, beads and other trinkets far in advance. Then, like our bride, you will easily be incorporating the “something old” tradition into your wedding; for this bride, that came in the form of using some buttons which came from her granny. No matter what unusual items you include, you’ll definitely create a bouquet you can keep forever.

Buttons & Roses Bridal Bouquet

In considering the suggestions here, always keep in mind that your wedding day is your day. No matter whether you want flowers or not or whether your ideas might be a little off the wall, all you need is a wedding florist with vision that will help make your dreams or ideas a reality.

Please share your thoughts and ideas with us in the comments below. And stay tuned for our next article…

Written by

Lizé Williams

PS: If you enjoyed this article, help spread the word by clicking the “Like”, “Tweet”, “+1” buttons or sharing it using the share icons below. Want to read more articles like this? Then Subscribe to our Updates, and get our articles directly to your inbox or RSS reader.

Related posts:

1. The Ultimate Wedding Flower Guide
2. Wedding Flowers: Gerbera Daisy – The New Rose
3. Artificial Flowers: The Year-Round Wedding Option

You’ve chosen the colors for your wedding. You’ve picked out your gown and the bridesmaids’ dresses. Now you’re ready to choose the flowers for your bouquets.

In general, you can go one of three ways with your floral choices:

•  Traditional all white- or all cream-colored blossoms

•  Complementary hues that harmonize with the overall colors of your wedding

•  Contrasting colors that add a stylish flair to your color scheme.

Against a white wedding dress, yellow, salmon, crimson and russet create a dramatic combination – Photo: Sharon Goodyear

Choosing a monochromatic white/cream or complementary color plan is fairly straight-forward—and less complex. You simply work with your florist to identify the proper hues of flowers and then narrow it down to the specific blossoms that reflect your style, whether traditional or contemporary. (That may be oversimplifying, but you get the point.)

For the bride who prefers contrasting colors, however, the choices become more complicated. In general, contrasting colors are those on opposite sides of the color wheel. Such hues stand out boldly against the dramatic backdrop of your wedding parties’ attire, particularly with current preferences for darker colors. They also add oomph to wedding photographs. (White- and cream-colored bouquets tend to lose detail in photos due to their paleness.)

Popular Wedding Color Schemes

Following are some options for contrasting colors based on several of the most popular current wedding-color schemes: orange, green, purple, red and blue.

Orange roses contrast well with crimson berries and green foliage – Photo courtesy of Petr Kratochvil

Orange

To ensure that this bold color doesn’t become garish, combine it with deep chocolate browns, purples or red. Accent with yellow or green foliage or blossoms. Such striking contrasts are particularly appropriate for autumn nuptials.

Green

Blend jade or forest green with white, pale pink or silver. If your main color is a more eclectic lime green, opt for contrasting colors of fuchsia, orange and cherry with lemon accents. Peacock greens work well with scarlet, pumpkin and yellow.

Magenta, purple, lavender, cream and lime green combine for a sophisticated bouquet – Photo courtesy of Rosen Georgiev

Purple

Gold is a popular hue to mix with this regal color. But if you prefer a more funky choice, mix it with magenta or tangerine.

Red

Green is the color opposite red on the color wheel. Unless you are getting married close to the holidays and want a Christmas-themed event, however, choose options such as blue, purple or lilac to contrast with your scarlet scheme.

Blue

When choosing deep shades of azure, you can opt for safe, traditional choices of gold or silver as your contrasting color. For brighter hues of blue, such as turquoise, choose equally bright colors—such as crimson, orange and yellow—to add boldness.

Check out this article for a list of flowers and their various available colours and meanings.

Florists pay close attention to current color trends and can provide insightful tips on how to make your bridal bouquets and decorative arrangements alluring additions to your wedding’s overall style. So rely on their professional advice. But make sure you clearly communicate your personal flair as the two of you consider all of your options.

Written by

Gina B. Kellogg

PS: If you enjoyed this article, help spread the word by clicking the “Like”, “Tweet”, “+1” buttons or sharing it using the share icons below. Want to read more articles like this? Then Subscribe to our Updates, and get our articles directly to your inbox or RSS reader.

Related posts:

1. The Ultimate Wedding Flower Guide
2. Wedding Flowers: Gerbera Daisy – The New Rose
3. Artificial Flowers: The Year-Round Wedding Option

Budgets are tight these days. As a result, most brides are being forced to get creative for their weddings to make every dollar they spend work as hard as possible. One way you can save some cash is to choose flowers for your bouquet—and all the other blooms for your bridal party— that are in season. Seasonal flowers are plentiful, which brings down the costs.

A hand-tied bouquet is easy for any bride to create herself.

Just as important for your budget is to work with your florist and let him or her know exactly what you can afford. Your florist can then guide you in choosing optimal bloom and designs that fulfill the look you desire within your price range.

Yet some brides are in such a budget bind that no matter how they work the numbers, they simply can’t afford the services of a florist. If that’s the case with you, don’t give up hope. You can still have a lovely bouquet to carry down the aisle. And you’ll have the added satisfaction that you created it yourself.

Make Your Own Bridal Bouquet

The easiest bouquet for a novice floral arranger to create is what florists call a hand-tied design. The easiest hand-tied bouquet—and one of the most stylish and prettiest—consists of one type and color of flower. Carnations and roses, among many other types of flowers, are a great choice for hand-tied designs for three reasons:

1.  They are plentiful year-round, which typically means they are very affordable.

2.  They are easy to work with because of their straight stems and minimal foliage.

3.  They allow you to create a sophisticated, monochromatic look.

To create your bouquet, first strip any foliage off all the stems. Next, grasp three stems in one hand. Hold the blooms just beneath their heads keeping the heads close together. Then, add individual stems around those in the middle, turning the bouquet as you place each stem to fill in holes and start to enlarge the overall bouquet. Place each “level” of flowers slightly lower than the original three so that you create a “mounded” effect. Continue adding stems until you have reached the size you prefer.

A monochromatic bouquet of pink carnations offers a vintage, retro feel to a bridal bouquet. (Photo courtesy of Zoe Rowlands, The Flower Company)

If some flower heads are too low, slightly loosen your grip on the bouquet so you can gently lift that head to the height you need.

Once your bouquet is complete, use floral tape (available from crafts/hobby stores, or simply use a long twist-tie or rubber band) to wrap around the stems to hold them in place. Place the tape as close as you can to the heads of the bouquet to keep them bunched closely together. Wrap more floral tape about 2 to 4 inches above where you intend to cut the stems.

Trim off all the stems to equal length using a pair of very sharp scissors or a knife. (Dull scissors will smash the stems, rather than slicing through them, which will inhibit water uptake.)

Next, take a length of ribbon to match or contrast with your flower color and being to wrap the ribbon around the stems to cover the rubber bands/twist ties. Once you have completely covered the stems, use decorative pushpins to hold the ribbon in place.

To maintain the bouquet’s freshness until your ceremony, fill a container with water to a level that allows you to place the bouquet into the container so the stems are submerged but your ribbon stays dry. Add flower food/preservative to ensure the longevity of your blossoms.

Once the ceremony is over, you can place your bouquet back into its container and use it to dress up a table at the reception.

You can find great how-to videos all over the web, simply go to www.YouTube.com and search. One that is particularly well-done is available from Lilly of the Valley Florist in La Quinta, California, U.S.A.

If you are adventurous and want to try something that is more complicated, check out this video for a new website being launched by BloomTube:

One other reference: For creative brides who want to push their bouquet-making skills to the next level, you can find inspiration for some gorgeous, well-crafted bouquets by well-known floral designer Rene Van Rem. His book, “Rene’s Bouquets: A Guide to Euro-Style Hand-Tied Bouquets” is available from a variety of online booksellers—including www.Amazon.com.

Written by

Gina B. Kellogg

PS: If you enjoyed this article, help spread the word by clicking the “Like”, “Tweet”, “+1” buttons or sharing it using the share icons below. Want to read more articles like this? Then Subscribe to our Updates, and get our articles directly to your inbox or RSS reader.

Related posts:

1. How to Duplicate a Royal Bridal Bouquet
2. Wedding Flowers: Gerbera Daisy – The New Rose
3. Make Gorgeous Flower Choices for Your Wedding

Kate's Bridal Bouquet | Image: TheBeautyBridal.com

Unlike Princess Diana’s flowing waterfall of flowers 30 years earlier—resplendent of the opulent ’80s—Kate chose only a handful of posies for her less-lavish bunch. No expensive, exotic orchids or other imported tropicals for the new princess. Instead, Kate’s choices were all common flowers native to her home country of England.

Their simplicity, however, only added to their minimalist beauty.

If you want to duplicate the look for your upcoming wedding, check with your florist as to whether Kate’s choices of flowers will be available at the time of year you are being wed. While many of them may be familiar garden flowers, not all florists will have an easily accessible source for them. Plus, even if your florist can obtain these options, the blossoms may be out of season, resulting in exorbitant prices. If any of these issues impact their availability for your bridal bouquet, rely on your florist to suggest other choices that are in season, more affordable and that can replicate the same look at a fraction of the price.

The Flowers in Kate’s Bouquet

Hyacinth (Hyacinthus Orientalis)

ŸHyacinth (Hyacinthus orientalis)
Hyacinths are popular due to their fragrant blossoms and wide range of colors (though Kate chose conventional white). You’ll recognize this beauty’s long clusters of flowers dripping from the stems.

Lily-of-the-valley (Convallaria majalis)
The small, white flowers of this plant are shaped like tiny bells. They are another fragrant posey.

Myrtle (Myrtus communis)
These ivory flowers grow from a scented shrub. Their glossy green leaves offered a striking but tasteful contrast to the pale flowers in Kate’s bouquet.

Sweet William (Dianthus barbatus)
Another fragrant option, this flower features five-petaled blossoms at the top of each stem. (Kate chose this flower as a nod to her new husband.)

Even if you love the look of Kate’s royal bouquet, you don’t necessarily have to copy it exactly to get the same fashionable feel. Choose other varieties of blossoms with small, delicate flowers in a monochromatic color scheme. Discuss the options for your bouquet with your florist. Rely on his or her knowledge and experience to create a bridal bouquet that is as distinctly you as Kate’s was for her.

Written by

Gina B. Kellogg

For more on the Royal Wedding Flowers and Kate Middleton’s Bouquet, read this article by TheBeautyBridal.com.

PS: If you enjoyed this article, help spread the word by clicking the “Like”, “Tweet”, “+1” buttons or sharing it using the share icons below. Want to read more articles like this? Then Subscribe to our Updates, and get our articles directly to your inbox or RSS reader.

Related posts:

1. How to Create a Hand-Tied Wedding Bouquet
2. Make Gorgeous Flower Choices for Your Wedding
3. Artificial Flowers: The Year-Round Wedding Option

We’ve had so many enquiries for weddings in the last few months; April and May must be the months to get married… but we’ve noticed a trend lately and have crowned the Gerbera, Gerbera Daisy or Barberton Daisy, The New Rose!

Orange Gerbera Daisy Centrepiece

Why you might ask? Here are a few reasons from our brides to be; “Simple is key…cheap…something modern…not too busy”, “budgetary constraints…saving for own home or honey moon”, “my colour scheme is bright orange, yellow and pink…I don’t want roses please”

This simple yet elegant flower is versatile, long lasting and modern. And the good news for a lot of brides on a tight budget is that they are a more affordable choice for wedding flowers than white roses or lilies.

You will find this family of the sunflower in all the colours of the rainbow and like the sunflower; Gerbera Daisies symbolize happiness, joy, beauty and wonder.

You can create the most beautiful Centerpieces using Gerberas. They are modern, colourful, affordable, long lasting and best of all you don’t need to use roses…
-

Combine bright orange and yellow with royal blue and rich purple for your medieval wedding, or add a touch of bright pink for an elegant wedding or garden wedding.

Or for your fairytale wedding use white gerberas which symbolize innocence, purity and love with a touch of baby pink or pale yellow.

Elegant White Gerbera Centrepiece

Colourful Gerbera Arrangements

A bunch of gerberas with a few roses and greenery, or even on their own tied with organza ribbon, maybe add a sparkle or a little bling with a gemstone pin in the centre, and you have a gorgeous bridal bouquet.

Orange Gerbera Brides Bouquet

White Gerbera Brides Bouquet

Since Gerberas come in different sizes; large, medium and small, they can easily be used as button holes, pomanders (ball of flowers) for flower girls, brides maids, pews and at the back of your chairs or on a napkin ring at the reception.

If you are on a really tight budget, DIY Weddings Magazine have a great article on how to create your own Gerbera Daisy Centerpiece, or read our wedding flower guide if you need help planning your wedding flowers.

There you have it girls, just because you want simple wedding flowers or you have a tight budget, doesn’t mean you have to have something less WOW than more expensive wedding flowers!

BTW: If you are looking for a wedding florist in Durban, South Africa, please feel free to get in touch with us.

Written by

Lizé Williams
inMotion Flowers

Related posts:

1. Unique Ideas for a Wedding with No Flowers
2. The Ultimate Wedding Flower Guide
3. Make Gorgeous Flower Choices for Your Wedding

Note: We’ve recently updated and expanded this guide. You’ll find the latest version here.

Brides Bouquet

The Wedding Party

Brides Bouquet and flowers for your hair.

Bridesmaid Bouquet and flowers for their hair.

Flower girl – A clip with flowers for her hair, pomanders (a ball of flowers to carry) or a basket with flowers.

Corsages – For the bride and grooms mothers and grandmothers (optional) – these are usually roses or mini carnations pinned to the shoulder or made up as a wrist corsage.

Button holes – For the Groom, Best men, Page boy, Bride and grooms Father and Grandfather (optional), Master of Ceremonies, Driver – usually a single rose or small flower of your choice pinned to the lapel or shoulder.

.

The Church or Chapel

Flowers on Pews in the Church

Outdoors Wedding Ceremony

1 or 2 large flower arrangements in front of the church or chapel, or at the entrance – these can be moved and used at the reception venue as well.

Flowers for the pews – Normally just one flower on every second pew or chair, or scattered rose petals down the aisle.

Flowers for the registry table.

.

The Wedding Reception

Table Centrepieces – Decide whether you would like vases, special dishes/containers, bird cages, candelabra or lanterns. If it’s an evening wedding you might need candles, or flowers and candles. The number of centrepieces will depend on how many guests you are inviting and how many tables there will be.

Main Table Arrangement – This is traditionally a long flat flower arrangement in the middle to the front of the table.

A flower at the back of every second chair.

Overlays, Runners and Chair Tie backs in any colour to match your colour scheme, are also items to consider, as most venues only supply white tablecloths, chair covers and napkins.

Table Centrepiece, Overlay & Chair Tie backs

Overlays – A square piece of material – this can be scrunched up in the middle of the table with the centrepiece on top or laid out flat over the white table cloth.

Runners – A long rectangular strip of material that runs across the table and down both sides.

Chair Tie Backs – Long strips of material tied around the back of the chairs.

Flowers for the Wedding Cake.

Fresh Rose Petals for decoration on the guest tables, down the aisle (if permitted) or as confetti.

.

Recommended Wedding Flowers
 

Readily Available
Roses, Lilies (St. Joseph, Casablanca, Stargazer), Gerbera Daisies or Barberton Daisy – always in season.

Seasonal Flowers
Check with your wedding florist first for availability to avoid disappointment – Tulips, Peonies, Calla or Arum lilies, Orchids, Hydrangea and Frangipani.

For a more detailed list of available flowers, their colours and meanings, see this article on choosing the right colour flowers for your wedding.

Frangipani

Pink and White Peonies

Casablanca Lily

.

We hope these ideas will help you plan the perfect flowers for your wedding, and that it will make communicating with your local wedding florist a little easier. If you are looking for flowers for a wedding in Durban, South Africa, please visit our website: Wedding Flowers in Durban.

If you would like a printable PDF version of this guide to take with you, let us know in the comments below and we will gladly send you a copy.

We also highly recommend the book “The Knot Book of Wedding Flowers” which you can get here.

Written by

Lizé Williams
inMotion Flowers

Update:
Thank you Dries Vandewoude from Terra Unica for suggesting that we add a “thank-you-parents” bouquet to our list. When the bride or groom give their speech at dinner or in the church, it’s quite common in various parts of the world to thank the parents with a bouquet of flowers for all they’ve done for them throughout their lives…

Related posts:

1. Make Gorgeous Flower Choices for Your Wedding
2. Unique Ideas for a Wedding with No Flowers
3. Wedding Flowers: Gerbera Daisy – The New Rose