Wedding flowers

The perfect flower? It's just good scents

Choose a seasonal flower. Flowers that are in season are generally less expensive and longer lasting.

Choose a flower that co-ordinates with your chosen colour scheme.

If you like a particular flower, buy a few to have in your home for a week.

Make sure you still like them after a few days, and that you like their scent.

Scent is important, especially in your bouquet as it’s relatively close to your face!

It goes without saying, but select flowers you can afford.

If you fall in love with something particularly pricey, look for an alternative and keep the expensive flower to a minimum in your bouquet.

Try to steer clear of any flowers that are short lived, especially for your bouquet or buttonholes.

If you choose something delicate, use it as a table flower in a vase where it can remain in water.

Make sure your partner agrees with your choice – he may not have much of an opinion on flowers, but don’t pick something he hates.

Don’t be a flower fashion victim

When it comes to flowers, forget about fashion and choose something you like the look and smell of.

‘Blousy’ romantic flowers such as peonies, English garden roses and hydrangeas are currently very popular, as are bouquets consisting of one flower type or colour.

Simplicity and elegance seems to be the key to current flower trends, along with using wonderful ribbon to tie or bind the stems.

Top blooms

Current wedding favourites include:

Arum lilies – these large, glossy lilies traditionally come in white, but are now available in vibrant colours too.

Carry a bouquet or even a single lily.

Roses – everyone’s favourite and a regular feature in wedding flowers.

Shades of pinks and whites are popular colour choices at the moment.

Lily of the valley – the ultimate in romance with a fabulous scent.

This can be very expensive, so choose it only in season, and stick to a small posy!

Peonies – another extremely popular flower, bear in mind that you can only get peonies in May, June and November.

Freesias – bright colours and a wonderful scent make these a favourite for bouquets.

Ivy and jasmine – these trailing plants are often chosen for flowing ‘waterfall’ bouquets.