Best Flowers for Wedding Themes

Part 4 of Blooms Blog’s “What Types of Flowers Should I Use for My Wedding” Series: What Flowers Complement Different Wedding Themes?

Today we’re looking again at “what types of flowers should I use for my wedding?” – this time at “what types of flowers match my wedding theme?”  What’s a wedding theme? It’s the style, look and feel of your event, the feeling or vibe you’re trying to convey.  Some popular wedding themes today are lavish, classic, vintage, whimsical, and festival, to name a few. Or, maybe you’re going for a really specific, personal theme.  An homage to your favorite books, like Harry Potter or The Great Gatsby? A childhood favorite, like Sleeping Beauty or Alice in Wonderland? Your favorite sport?  The flowers you use, from bouquets to centerpieces to ceremony and reception arrangements, are a great way to express your style throughout your wedding.

When trying to convey your style through flowers, give thought to their characteristics:  is the texture soft and delicate, or edgy and bold?  Is the coloring romantic and pale, or vivid and lively?  Will they make arrangements lush and flowing, or lighter and more playful? Many flowers, like roses, spray roses, and chrysanthemums can fit in many different themes, especially when paired with more unique blooms.  Some aren’t a great fit – you probably don’t want daisies when you’re looking for “elegant romantic.”

We can’t cover every conceivable wedding theme here, but let’s talk about a few of today’s popular wedding styles to give you an idea how flowers can help to express the look you want for your wedding day.

Vintage and Lavish Wedding Themes

Vintage wedding themes are antique-inspired, with heirloom and traditional accents. The similar lavish wedding look is romantic, dripping with loveliness!  Both love cascading, lush flowers, rich in color and texture.  Think about garden roses, lisianthus, hydrangeas, stock, astilbe, baby’s breath and lots of different textured greens.  The colors can be to your liking but usually work in shades of white, ivory, peach, cream, pink and purple. Softer greens such as seeded eucalyptus, silver dollar eucalyptus, dusty miller and green amaranthus mix perfectly with both vintage and lavish styles. Vintage wedding flowers have a casual feel to them and include elements of pearls, broaches, burlap, lace, hand dyed silk ribbon, light washed wooden containers, mason jars, mismatched sizes and even colors in vintage vases. Vintage flower arrangements also tend to be asymmetrical.  Lavish wedding flowers also have a looser, less structured style, and are accented with golden and brash vases, velvet and linens.

Vintage Wedding Flowers

Photo By: Jose Villa  |  Floral Design By: Madame Artisan Fleuriste  |  Via: Style Me Pretty

Whimsical and Festival Wedding Themes

Both whimsical and festival styles are about celebration, with upbeat, punchy colors that pop such as bright pink, blue, orange, purple, yellow and green.  A whimsical wedding‘s playful mood comes out with bold flower shapes, multi-colored ribbons and unique containers, fun favors and fairy lights.  Festival weddings, inspired by vibrant textiles and crafts of Asia, Africa and South America, is free-spirited, casual and quirky, with interesting flower shapes and beading and feather accents. Think about gerbera daisies, asters, billy balls, ranunculus, liatris, dianthus, poppies and novelty items such succulents, veronica and scabiosa flowers. Both of these wedding styles really celebrate individuality and creativity…the sky is the limit with a fun, whimsical or festival wedding!

Whimsical Wedding Flowers

Photo By: June Bug Company  |  Floral Design By: : Sweet Sunday Events  |  Via: Green Wedding Shoes

Classic and Lustre Wedding Themes

The classic and lustre wedding styles are both chic and elegant. Classic wedding themes have an air of timeless grace, and lustre turns that up a notch to become sumptuous and opulent. Both make great use of roses, hydrangeas, carnations, orchids and calla lilies – all a perfect go-to for simple yet beautiful bridal flowers in white, ivory, pale blush pinks, champagnes and creams. Classic arrangements can be anything from simple, round hydrangea bouquets to submerged orchids in tall cylinder glass vases, with elements of pearls, lace, silk ribbon, rhinestone accents and simple glass vases.  Lustre wedding styles love metallic accents, like sprayed greens, brass and gold containers, mirrors and some bling!

Classic Wedding Flowers

Photo By: Claire Morgan  |  Floral Design By: Joanna Walton  |  Via: Bridal Musings

Rustic Wedding Themes

The rustic style loves the outdoors – farmlands, woods and forest backdrops, barn and camp settings. It’s a look especially lovely in the summer and fall seasons, when wildflowers and fall grasses are all around, but can really be pulled off at any time. The flower colors can reflect the season, like yellow, burned orange, brown, ivory, marsala (that rich deep red), purple and true red for fall. We love a spring/summer rustic look  dusty pink, white, ivory, beige, greens and peach. To really capture a rustic theme, look for flowers with a very wispy, wildflower feel to them and arrange them in a loose, organic array. Accent with mason jars, twine, burlap, lace, wooden planters and crates give the flowers even more charm.  Think about chrysanthemums, asters, snapdragon, larkspur, delphinium, baby’s breath, dried lavender and sunflowers. Mostly any green looks wonderful with these flowers but Israeli ruscus, baby blue eucalyptus, lemon leaf and huck are all great options!

Rustic Wedding Flowers

Photo By: Modern Obscura  |  Floral Design By: Hello Gem  |  Via: Green Wedding Shoes

Your wedding style can say a lot about you and your partner as a couple.  Spend some time thinking about what you’d like to share with your guests and what really says “Us!” to get your inspiration!

Up next… What kinds of bouquets and arrangements do you want to make?

Derian Banzhaf

Derian has worked in many facets of the floral industry, with over 10 years experience in everything from flower arranging to wedding and party planning, She loves to experiment in elements of flower design, color, and texture and is always looking for the latest trends in wedding bouquets.