What Do Wedding Bouquet Flowers Symbolize?

flowers meanings for weddings

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Last Updated on June 20, 2024 by Steal the Style

On the days leading up to your wedding, you have pictured the walk down the aisle countless of times. You have a clear image of your dress, your beloved’s face, and your feelings at the moment, but what about the red flower bouquet you’re holding?

If the image is a little bit fuzzy, this helps you decide which flowers to hold on your wedding day.

Roses

Not only a popular choice, roses are also historically significant and deeply meaningful. They are commonly considered a symbol of love and beauty, and are woven into many fairy tales and myths. Roses are a favorite among poets as a metaphor for passion, emotion and true love.

It is available in a wide variety of solid colors, and there are even bicolored varieties. There are striped roses and tipped roses, and scented and unscented roses. The rose has over 150 species and thousands of hybrids, many of which are available throughout the year and are unexpectedly affordable.

Lily of the Valley

Sometimes called the “ladder to heaven”, the lily of the valley has tiny florets shaped like bells that dangle from a thin stem. A lily of the valley can represent purity, chastity, luck, happiness, and humility. It has a distinct fresh, perfumed scent and are abundant during springtime. Kate Middleton’s wedding bouquet was made of lily of the valley, myrtle, hyacinth and sweet William. This flower is associated with Ostara, the goddess of spring in Norse mythology, and the one who was originally celebrated during Easter.

It is available year-round. However, spring is the best time to buy a lily of the valley, since it gets pretty prices for the rest of the year. Aside from its usual white, it also has a rare rosy-pink variety.

Calla lily

This type of lily has a trumpet-shaped blossom that comes in different colors, including white, purple, red, black, and yellow. In the language of flowers, the calla lily symbolizes magnificent beauty. The word “calla” comes from the Greek word for beauty, and is said to come from the ancient Greek goddess, Hera, the wife of Zeus. Its unique form has inspired art nouveau and art deco works, and was a favorite in 20th-century photography. However, calla lilies are among the higher-priced lily varieties.

If you choose any type of lily, make sure that there are no buds and pollen. Cleaning your wedding dress can be extra hard due to pollen stains.

Hydrangeas

The hydrangea meant pride, vanity, heartlessness and coldness in the Victorian language of flowers. However, it can be used to communicate gratitude for being understood and heartfelt emotions.

Hydrangeas come in full bushy heads of flowers that can have shades of blue, purple, pink, and burgundy in one bunch. A popular variety changes in color as it grows, depending on the soil’s acid levels. A stem of hydrangea is moderately-priced, compared to other wedding flowers.

Your bridal bouquet should convey your feelings or be symbolic of your union. But whichever you choose, what matters most is that you have a long and happy life with your partner.