Choosing Meaningful Flowers

Most florists know and understand that our clients almost never know much about flowers – their season, color varieties, how they hold up in and out of water, mechanics…the list goes on and on! So it’s no surprise that many of the inquiries we get from couples are asking for guidance from us straight off the bat. It can seem overwhelming as a florist when we receive those inquiries – where do we even begin to dig for more information from them?

For starters, I like to begin by thinking about what problem I can solve for them. There is the obvious problem of them needing florals for their wedding day, and we can always provide beautiful florals for them.

But what about the deeper solution of providing florals that are meaningful to their love story, not just a pretty accent to their beautifully planned day? One of the easiest ways to gather this information is to send your couples a questionnaire to fill out as you are working through their floral design. Couples love to talk about their love story (who wouldn’t?!), so making it a fun addition to their planning process often ends up becoming a fond memory for them to look back on while providing you with details to help make their floral design as personalized and unique as possible!

Now that you’re armed with their love story, a bit about them as a couple, their lifestyle, and their family, what in the world are you supposed to do with this information to transform it into a unique floral experience?

CULTURAL MEANING

Your couple likely has given you a bit of information on their cultural background, as this is usually a significant player in their ceremony structure. Do some research on their cultures and see what floral varieties complement and represent the culture. The groom to the left had an Irish background, and we chose to add thistle to his boutonniere as a representation of his Irish heritage.

HONORING FAMILY

Perhaps your bride has fond memories of spending the summers in her grandmother’s flower garden where she always brought home freshly trimmed dahlias for her mother. Or maybe her mom always had a vase full of sweet peas on the kitchen counter. Learning about these special moments in their life will help you determine how to incorporate them into their wedding day – even if it’s a minimal amount or only included in a bride’s bouquet. In the bouquet below, the bride wanted to incorporate something pink – her late mother’s favorite color (but the bride’s LEAST favorite color!). We were able to add a hint of pink to honor her mother without taking away from the boho vibe of the bouquet.

TELLING THEIR LOVE STORY

The love story is most often filled to the brim with floral ideas, and it is so fun to learn about couples! It’s hard not to smile at a couples’ unique love story when they tell it. You could learn that the groom asked the bride on a first date with daisies, or that the bride remembers walking past a honeysuckle vine the day he told her he loved her, or that their first getaway together included a lavender lemon dessert, or that the groom proposed on the beach with a photographer slyly photographing behind the climbing rose bush. And that’s just the beginning! There are so many other opportunities to dig up meaningful floral varieties in a couple’s love story!

The sky’s the limit when incorporating meaningful details into a couple’s wedding, and florals should be included in that list! What are some ways you’ve involved meaning in your floral arrangements and bouquets in the past?