Congratulations on your upcoming nuptials! As an online gift retailer, at Find Me a Gift we simply love choosing and giving presents, whatever the occasion! From weddings to birthdays, anniversaries to thank you gifts, we adore delivering happiness and spreading joy through that perfect well-thought out present idea. However, now we’re in the middle of 2017’s wedding season, we’ve decided to turn our attention away from bedding sets, crock pots, and other traditional wedding presents that are bound to be on the bride and grooms gift registry list, and started thinking of that essential element of wedding decoration- flowers.
If you’re getting married in the next year or so, you’ve probably started thinking about what flowers you ideally want. From buttonholes to corsages, bridal bouquets to table centrepieces, floral arrangements are a vital part of any wedding. And with so many colours, scents and styles to choose from, the range of choice can get quite overwhelming- just how can you choose the right flowers for your wedding?
That’s where we’re on hand to help. We’ve carefully selected some of the most-loved wedding flowers, and put together a cheat sheet including each bloom’s country of origin, seasonality, available colours and meaning, as well as explaining why it’s perfect for your wedding. We’ve even included a handy list of things to watch out for, which will make choosing your floral decorations a doddle.
Carnation
Country of Origin: Mediterranean Region
Seasonality: All year round
Colours Available: Red, Pink, Yellow, Orange, Green, White, Purple, Apricot, Burgundy
Meaning: Love, Affection, Gratitude
Best for Weddings Because… Carnations are often worked into corsages and button holes for weddings, due to their close symbolism of love and affection. Solid red carnations signify deep love and admiration of a partner, while white petals show pure love and good luck. These two colours in particular are a beautiful, symbolic addition to your wedding flowers.
However: Yellow carnations symbolise disappointment or rejection, so make sure you avoid adding these to your bridal bouquet! This perception comes from the Victorian era, where yellow carnations were often sent to potential suitors and admirers as a means of saying ‘no’.
Daisy
Country of Origin: Northern Europe
Seasonality: Summer – Early Autumn
Colours Available: White
Meaning: Innocence, Purity, True Love
Best for Weddings Because: Each daisy is actually two separate flowers combined, so it is often used to represent true love, as the two flowers blend together so well and make one. The white petals are also a marker of purity and innocence, making them perfect for younger brides and religious wedding ceremonies.
However: Many people are allergic to daisies and exposure to skin can result in redness and a rash. Individuals with a daisy allergy are often allergic to other weeds present in the English and North American countryside, to make sure none of your wedding party are allergic before adding it to your bouquets.
Freesia
Country of Origin: The Eastern Side of Southern Africa (Kenya to South Africa)
Seasonality: February – April
Colours Available: Pink, Red, Yellow, Orange, Apricot, White, Green, Purple, Burgundy (Most Colours Except Blue)
Meaning: Innocence, Trust, Thoughtfulness
Best for Weddings Because: Freesias are one of the most popular wedding flowers, with white freesias often included in bridal bouquets to symbolise purity and innocence. It’s also a marker of trust between the bride and groom, as this flower can also be interpreted to mean friendship and loyalty. As a bonus, freesia scent is thought to provide stress relief, so perhaps it’ll prevent any ‘Bridezilla’ moments!
However: Luckily, the colour of its petals does not define a freesia’s meaning, so feel free to add whichever colour you prefer to your wedding table centrepieces, bouquets, and boutonnieres. But bear in mind darker blooms do emit quite a strong fragrance, so make sure you pair them with odourless flowers to prevent it from becoming overwhelming.
Gardenia
Country of Origin: Subtropical Africa, Madagascar, Pacific Islands
Seasonality: June – November
Colours Available: White, Yellow
Meaning: Dreams, Purity, Protection
Best for Weddings Because: The gardenia’s symbolism is largely down to its bright white colour. Gardenias naturally repel insects, making them a great metaphor for deterring bad feelings and therefore a happy marriage. This elegant flower is traditionally seen as a message of purity and love, making it a popular choice at weddings worldwide.
However: Make sure your gardenias don’t have a yellow tinge near the base, as this can often mean secret love- not something you want to be expressing when walking down the aisle!
Hydrangea
Country of Origin: Southern and Eastern Asia (China, Japan, Korea, the Himalayas, and Indonesia)
Seasonality: March – October
Colours Available: Pink, Purple, Blue, Burgundy, Green, White
Meaning: Honesty, Gratitude, Prosperity
Best for Weddings Because: Traditionally, hydrangeas are associated with extreme beauty, making them a stunning choice for both the bride and bridesmaids. While in history, hydrangeas were commonly sent as a way of declining a romantic proposal, their recent popularity in the wedding industry has changed this meaning. They are now much more commonly associate with heartfelt emotions and honesty, as well as the notion of developing a deeper understanding between two people.
However: You can make pink hydrangeas turn blue by simply increasing the acidity of your soil. While this is a very cool feature in itself, make sure you don’t get caught out on your wedding day with blue hydrangeas against your pink bridesmaid dresses!
Jasmine
Country of Origin: Eurasia, Australasia, Oceania
Seasonality: All Year Round
Colours Available: White
Meaning: Love, Luck, Beauty
Best for Weddings Because: Internationally, the jasmine flower represents combinations of beauty, love, romance, and good luck, making it a perfect addition to a bridal bouquet. Its associations with relaxation can give this flower sensual connotations too! Traditionally, for weddings in Pakistan, the bride and groom wear garlands of alternating jasmine and red roses on their big day, and we think this combination is a winner with any wedding colour scheme.
However: Jasmine flowers generally have positive connotations, meaning that it’s hard to go wrong when including them in your floral wedding decorations. However, if you’re planning a wild evening do, be aware that the relaxing scent is commonly associated with sleep, so make sure your jasmine flowers aren’t making your guests yawn prematurely!
Lily
Country of Origin: North America and Northern Europe
Seasonality: April – November
Colours Available: White, Yellow, Orange, Red, Pink, Apricot, Green, Purple
Meaning: Motherhood, Purity, Renewal
Best for Weddings Because: Lily flowers never go dormant, even in winter. Their constant growth has therefore become a symbol of everlasting love, strength, and courage, making it the perfect flower for the bride and groom. In China, its name sounds like a common Chinese phrase wishing the couple a happy marriage, adding to its status as a lucky and apt wedding flower.
However: Similar to the jasmine flower, you can’t really go wrong when using lilies as part of your wedding floristry. Pink and red varieties especially symbolise romantic love, while paler blooms are associated with purity, fertility and royalty.
Magnolia
Country of Origin: Almost Everywhere: East and South-East Asia, North America, Central and South America, and the West Indies
Seasonality: March – September
Colours Available: White, Yellow, Pink, Purple
Meaning: Stability, Dignity, Femininity
Best for Weddings Because: Magnolias are thought to have been one of the first flowers on Earth, and their continued existence thousands of years later has come to represent stability and dignity, even in challenging times. We love this symbolism tying in to a successful marriage, and vows of “for better, for worse”. This bloom is largely seen in bridal bouquets at weddings, to highlight ideas of femininity, purity and womanly beauty.
However: Due to their importance in Paganism and Wiccan history, magnolias are also associated with witchcraft and magic. Different colours are thought to correspond with certain days of the work (for example, spells should be cast with white magnolias on Mondays, yellow on Sundays, and so forth)- so watch out what day you have your wedding on, you’ll need to it match the colour of your bloom!
Orchid
Country of Origin: Every Continent Except Antarctica
Seasonality: All Year Round
Colours Available: White, Pink, Red, Burgundy, Orange, Apricot, Yellow, Green (Most Colours Except Blue)
Meaning: Love, Fertility, Thoughtfulness
Best for Weddings Because: Due to the shape and tuberous roots, orchids have long been associated with fertility, passion, and romance, especially the red and pink varieties. The exotic appearance of this flower is also thought to bring beauty and grace to any event, as the flower can appear to float in the air due to its elegant stem. It’s a great, more unconventional choice that will certainly complement the bride’s own radiance.
However: The Ancient Greeks were firm believers that this flower closely resembled the, ahem, male nether regions, so much so the name ‘orchid’ comes from the Greek word for testicle! Just something to bear in mind as you’re walking down the aisle!
Peony
Country of Origin: West-Coast of America, Southern Europe – Asia (Spain – Russia and China)
Seasonality: March – May
Colours Available: White, Pink, Ivory, Peach, Burgundy, Red, Purple
Meaning: Honour, Wealth, Romance
Best for Weddings Because: Peonies are commonly known to represent romantic love, making them one of the most popular wedding flowers around the world. Shades of pink are considered the most romantic form of peony, making it a popular choice both in bouquets for the bride and buttonholes for the groom. Red peonies are also associated with family honour and respect, which is perfect for the union of two households during a marriage ceremony.
However: During the Middle Ages, finding a peony was considered unlucky, as it was widely believed that unkind fairies and mean spirits found hiding places among its many petals. In some cultures, peonies are also associated with bashfulness and shame.
Rose
Country of Origin: Widespread Across Central Asia, Especially China
Seasonality: All Year Round
Colours Available: Red, Pink, Yellow, White, Orange, Lavender, Green
Meaning: Love, Passion, Devotion
Best for Weddings Because: As you will probably be aware, roses have been a timeless symbol of romance for centuries. Red roses signify romantic love and passionate affection, while pink roses highlight devotion and admiration of one’s partner. White roses symbolise innocence and purity, and are mostly commonly seen in bridal bouquets. We recommend combining the symbolism of all three colours by having a mixture of rose blooms around your wedding venue.
However: Whilst all roses signify love, different colours can represent different strands of love. Yellow roses especially are a symbol of platonic love and friendships, so are probably ones to avoid on your big day. Similarly, orange roses are more closely associated with new love, so it might be better sticking to the more classic red, white, and pink shades on your big day.
Tulip
Country of Origin: Spain, Portugal, Greece, Turkey, Syria, Israel, Lebanon, Jordan, Iran, Ukraine, Russia, Mongolia
Seasonality: November – May
Colours Available: White, Yellow, Orange, Pink, Red, Purple
Meaning: Love, Royalty, Charity
Best for Wedding Because: Tulips are often used as a symbol of love, with different colours representing different forms of love and romantic feeling. Red tulips display undying romantic, passionate love, making it the perfect buttonhole for any smitten groom. Tulips are also associated with wealth and success in many cultures, so their presence at a wedding can be a sign of a prosperous, happy marriage.
However: Yellow tulips are often seen as a symbol of unrequited or spurned love, and sending someone a yellow tulip means you love them, but you understand that they don’t return your feelings. How sad!
Want to know which flowers aren’t well-suited to weddings? Or perhaps you’re trying to find flowers perfect for another important event on the horizon? View our full piece on flower meanings here: http://smile.findmeagift.co.uk/content/what-do-flowers-mean/
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