How to Choose Wedding Flowers

Considering their significance to the event, learning how to choose wedding flowers is a critically important task for your wedding day. As well as decorating the venue, they will also set the tone and atmosphere, and even go towards emphasising your theme, which can help create memories that will last forever. Whenever you see the flowers you’ve picked, you will always be taken right back to your special day, especially if you decide to preserve them forever. However, we know that choosing the right blooms for your wedding isn’t easy, with aesthetics, seasonality and budget to all take into account. With that in mind, here’s a handy guide to make everything a little easier for you when you’re selecting flowers for your wedding day.

How much you wish to spend on flowers will need to be arranged before you visit a florist to prevent you overspending. Aim to reserve 5-10% of your overall wedding budget for your flowers, and be honest with your florist about what you can afford, as this will allow them to create a wedding flower arrangement that is within your means And while your blooms can be costly, you can still arrange a beautiful display of wedding flowers on a budget.

You should also ask florists for a price list, to see what you can realistically afford, which will impact the style and sizes of your wedding flowers. For example, although larger flowers like hydrangeas and peonies cost more, that doesn’t mean you should avoid them altogether. In fact, since they take up more room, adding bigger blooms to your flower arrangements can actually help you cut costs.

It may be useful to give your florist a list which breaks down your desired flowers into “must haves” and “nice to haves”, so that they know where to focus their efforts. Those in the former category are likely to be for the bridal party and venue decor, while corsages, boutonnieres and floral accessories for those outside of the immediate wedding party are less necessary. To make your flower budget go even further, you could also reuse flowers from your ceremony for the reception, which will mean that you’ll only need half the amount.

The season in which you choose to get married will also influence your decision, as different types of flowers will look their best at different times of the year, and be more or less affordable accordingly.

For instance, the peony is in season between mid May and early July in the UK, making it a perfect choice for a summer wedding — which may explain its status as a bridal favourite. Meanwhile, amaryllis and carnations make more sense for winter weddings. If you are desperate for flowers which are out of season, they will most likely need to be shipped from other countries, so they’ll cost more and be at risk of wilting early, or even before they arrive. Consequently, you should be sure to talk to your florist, as they will be more aware of flowers and their seasons.

If you’re choosing to give your wedding a set theme, this will also impact which flowers you choose. For instance, a romantic fairytale wedding will suit white roses and dahlias, while a mix of lush ferns and eucalyptus leaves go well at a rustic wedding, as well as autumnal coloured blooms. You could consider linking your theme to the seasons, which will ultimately affect the flowers and colours you choose. A country garden theme will suit bright or pastel spring and summer flowers, while rich colours and pine foliage fits a winter wonderland wedding. Again, this is another element which you should discuss with your florist, as they can help you design floral arrangements to match your theme.

The colour palette of your ceremony and reception will influence your choice of flowers, ensuring that the hues will flow through everything on your big day, and floral arrangements are no exception. Once you’ve picked your colour scheme, you can coordinate all the elements of the day, including the bridal dresses and flowers. However. for seasonal weddings, you may prefer to match your blooms with the season — oranges, deep reds and purples will suit an autumn wedding, while vibrant colours fit a summer occasion. 
When deciding on the colours, play with tones within your scheme rather than trying to match everything exactly, otherwise your wedding will look like it’s decorated in one block colour. You should also consider complementary shades — if your scheme features red, adding green filler to your bouquets will be ideal, while purple flowers will complement a yellow palette. Consider other areas of your reception where flowers may be appropriate as well, such as the venue decorations and table centerpieces, as these will also need to fit your colour scheme.

Flower markets are a great source of inspiration. You can spend hours walking around places like London’s New Covent Garden Flower Market, browsing all the different types of blooms on offer. You don’t even need to travel to find inspiration, as there is an endless source of wedding inspiration online. For instance, visual platforms like Pinterest and Instagram can help you create a beautiful mood board to show your florist, and specialist wedding sites will offer information about which flowers to choose. You can find photo galleries of previous weddings we’ve designed flowers for, and discover all there is to know about wedding flowers on the Blooming Haus blog.

For more wedding inspiration, visit our Pinterest page.