Flowers and their meanings.

Photo source: www.sxc.hu

Flower! I want Flower!

So the love of your life has finally proposed to you. You’ve set the date and now wedding preparations are in top-gear. You’ve picked the venue, the gown, your bridal party and now you want to set about choosing a key component of your wedding, and that is the flowers. But what would make you pick roses over carnations, or tulips over daisies?Most brides-to-be base their decision on which flowers to use for their wedding on factors such as the flower’s aesthetic features, whether or not they are in season and affordability.

Flower power

One factor that is hardly considered, however, is the meaning of the flowers! Every single type of flower has a meaning attached to it. From messages of love and affection to messages telling the recipients of the flower (in this case your wedding guests) that it would make you very happy if they were to be run over by a bus! For this reason, it is paramount to consider the meaning attached to a flower before settling on it for your wedding.

A wedding is the union of two people who are bound together in love. It is very appropriate, therefore, that the flowers used in the ceremony and reception exhibit messages of love and affection. This facilitates the ambience of love and enhances the theme of love that centers all weddings.

Is a rose just a rose?

So which flowers should you go for if you do not want to offend your guests?

One flower that has stood the test of time in depicting love is the rose. It is elegant, refreshing and is perfect for the more traditional wedding. However, make sure that you get the correct shade of roses because different shades have different meanings. Red symbolizes love, white symbolizes innocence and purity and pink - perfect happiness. Dark crimson, on the other hand is used in funerals as a symbol of mourning so you definitely don’t want that displayed at your wedding unless you’re sending the message that marrying your fiancé is the saddest thing you have ever done!

Secret-secret

One way to customize your wedding is to have flowers that send a message directly to your spouse-to-be, a personal message that you are giving only to them as you commit yourself to him or her for the rest of your life. How about arbutus which means thee only do I love or camellias which in pink mean-longing for you or in red-you’re a flame in my heart. Red carnations tell your lover that your heart aches for him or her where as daffodils say “The sun is always shining when I’m with you”. An arrangement of primroses sends out the message that you can’t live without your lover and white lilies tell your soul mate that it is heavenly to be with them. Stocks say “You’ll always be beautiful to me”, while blue violets tell your significant other that you’ll always be true. You could also personalize these messages of love for greater effect through a note attached to each arrangement from you to them explaining the meaning of the flower and how this meaning is an expression of your love.

TLC

The right choice of flowers is vital to the overall success of a wedding. Freshly blossoming flowers are an added bonus to any event therefore take adequate care of the flowers prior to the wedding so that they remain fresh and in full bloom.

Have yourself a flowery wedding will you!!