Saying It With Flowers

Roses are enduring. So say wedding florists when it comes to the most popular choice for bouquets and reception centerpieces. Mixed color blooms are on the rise, however, especially for more casual events. This correlates to the breezier style of many of today’s brides and invites hydrangeas, gardenias, lilies, and Gerber daisies to take center stage.

For winter weddings, berries, ivy and peacock or ostrich feathers interspersed with satin, monogrammed ribbons make a distinctive statement. For added sparkle, the wedding belles of 2007 aren’t going to be shy about looping pearls, crystals and rhinestones into the display.

Nor are silk flowers being left out of the wedding equation, especially if brides want their attendants’ orchid bouquets to be a lasting memory of the day or, as a matter of practicality, if real blooms would wilt under the intense heat of, say, summer nuptials in Tucson. Even corsages for mothers of the bride are taking a backseat to petite bouquets of posies.

Garden weddings, of course, significantly cut down the expense of buying fresh flowers. Let Mother Nature be your free decorator! If you decide to fill in with store-bought arrangements, consider faux stone urns, porcelain vases or even driftwood branches as a unique way to play them up.

For indoor ceremonies, “less” is the new “more”. Instead of floral sprays at the end of every pew, a lot of brides are now opting for modest but classic arrangements in the staging area where vows will be exchanged. Getting married in December? The operate word is “poinsettia” – tremendously cheap but dazzlingly festive.

Feeling inventive? A visit to www.bigrose.com is not only replete with hot ideas but also has easy videos for crafting your own creations.

As for wedding cake toppers that add color in any season, fresh flowers and synthetics have a definite cost advantage over the sugar paste variety and are being combined with fabric ribbons, faux ivy and crystal beads.