Creating Hand-Tied Wedding Flowers: A Step-By-Step Guide

Making your own hand-tied wedding flowers can be a fun and rewarding experience, allowing you to save money and ensure your bouquet looks exactly as you want it to. The process is quite simple and only requires a few basic supplies. You'll need to select your flowers and foliage, taking into account your wedding theme, colours, and seasonality. Then, you can start assembling your bouquet by creating a base frame with foliage and adding in your chosen flowers in a spiral or criss-cross pattern. Finally, you'll secure the stems with string or floral tape, cut them to the desired length, and finish with a ribbon. With a bit of practice and creativity, you can create a beautiful hand-tied wedding bouquet that reflects your personal style.

Selecting flowers and foliage

Choose Flowers That Fit Your Theme and Colour Palette:

Select flowers that complement your wedding theme and colour scheme. Consider the style of your wedding—if it's a casual affair, wildflowers like sunflowers or daisies might be a perfect fit. For a more formal event, exotic flowers like orchids or hibiscus could add a touch of elegance. You can also refer to wedding magazines and websites like Pinterest for inspiration on the size and style of bouquet that aligns with your vision.

Opt for Seasonal Flowers:

Choosing seasonal flowers is not only cost-effective but also ensures you have access to the freshest blooms. For spring and summer weddings, consider cherry blossoms, orchids, peonies, chrysanthemums, dahlias, or gardenias. If you're planning an autumn or winter wedding, Gerbera daisies, roses, sunflowers, alstroemeria, lilies, pansies, or carnations could be a lovely choice.

Pick Flowers with Long Stems:

Flowers with sturdy, long stems are ideal for hand-tied bouquets. Roses, irises, carnations, alstroemeria, peonies, tulips, and freesia are excellent options. Other flowers to consider include calla lilies, Singapore orchids, ranunculus, sweet peas, gardenias, and lisianthus. If you're creating a mixed bouquet, aim for three to four varieties of flowers, along with some carefully chosen foliage.

Select Complementary Foliage:

Adding foliage to your bouquet gives it a natural, well-rounded look. You can choose one type of foliage or mix several varieties to add interest. Suitable options include camellia leaves, eucalyptus, box, ivy, nandina, and leather fern. You can also explore using Queen Anne's Lace, cress, wheat, scented geraniums, Bells of Ireland, flax, or even basil for something unique.

Prepare Your Flowers:

Once you've selected your flowers and foliage, it's time to prepare them. Cut the stems on a slant and place them in water for a long drink. Remove any thorns and strip off the lower foliage from the bottom half of the stems. This will ensure your bouquet has a neat appearance and help the flowers absorb water effectively.

Preparing flowers and foliage

Before you start arranging your flowers, it's important to prepare them properly. Firstly, remove any foliage that will sit below the water line in the vase. This is because foliage in the water can cause bacteria to grow, shortening the life of your flowers. Next, give your vase a good wash with soap and water to ensure it is squeaky clean.

When you're ready to start arranging, cut the flower stems on a slant and place them in water for an hour. This will help the flowers to take up water and rehydrate. You should also remove any thorns and strip off the lower foliage from the bottom half of the stems. Make sure all your flower stems are approximately the same length.

Now it's time to select your flowers and foliage. Choose flowers that tie into your wedding theme or colours. You may want to opt for wildflowers like sunflowers or daisies for a casual wedding, or exotic flowers like orchids or hibiscus for a formal event. It's a good idea to look at wedding and floral magazines, as well as websites like Pinterest, to get inspiration for the size and type of bouquet you want.

If you're creating a mixed bouquet, choose three to four varieties of flowers, plus your chosen foliage. For a sleek, contemporary look, you might prefer to use just one type of flower, such as red roses or coloured calla lilies. If you're using a variety of flowers, it's best to include a range of sizes, some statement blooms, filler flowers, linear tall flowers, and delicate blooms that add movement to the arrangement.

When it comes to foliage, there are many options to choose from. You can select one type or mix and match a few to add variety. Suitable choices include camellia leaves, eucalyptus gum, box, ivy, nandina, leather fern, Queen Anne's Lace, cress, wheat, scented geraniums, Bells of Ireland, flax, and basil.

Once you've gathered all your flowers and foliage, it's time to start creating your bouquet!

Creating the bouquet base

Firstly, you will need to select 3-5 stems of foliage. This will act as the base or 'frame' for your bouquet. Gather these stems in one hand. This is the foundation of your bouquet and will help you build out the shape.

Next, you will add 3-5 stems of your feature flowers. Peonies, larger dahlias, garden roses, and hydrangeas are good choices for statement blooms. Thread these stems through the centre of the bouquet, creating a structure that will get sturdier with each addition. Remember to keep your grip loose and gently shake the bouquet to spread the flowers out.

Continue to add in different floral elements, 3-5 stems at a time. Try to vary the texture of the flowers as you go to create interest and contrast. For example, the shape of lilacs contrasts nicely with the roundness of peonies.

Finally, finish with something light and whimsical, such as a clematis vine. When you are happy with the look of your bouquet, snip all the stems so they are short and even.

Adding flowers and foliage

Now it's time to start building your bouquet. Pick the largest and loveliest flower to sit in the middle of the bouquet, or choose three medium-sized flowers to form the centre. You can also start with a single rose with a good, solid, straight stem and add another flower to its left, crossing the stems as you do.

With your other hand, add between three and five clusters of foliage evenly around and just below the flower heads to fill the spaces between them. Criss-cross the stems on an angle and turn the bouquet in your hand as you add in the foliage.

Holding the bouquet in the same way, with the thumb facing towards you, place flowers and foliage evenly around the bouquet. Each layer or level of flowers should be placed slightly below the previous one to achieve a rounded effect.

Try to vary the texture of the flowers as you go. The shape of lilac, for example, is a nice contrast to the roundness of peonies. Finish with something light, airy and whimsical, like a clematis vine. Remember to keep your grip loose and occasionally shake the bouquet gently, trying to spread the flowers, keeping a loose and organic feel.

Stand in front of a mirror to keep an eye on the composition from each angle, making sure the bouquet looks balanced. Keep your stems trimmed short as you go. Things will move around in your hand at this stage, which is fine!

Finishing touches

Once you've created your bouquet, there are a few final steps to take to ensure it looks perfect and stays fresh.

First, cut the stems so they are all the same length—trim them to your desired length. You can hold the bouquet in your non-dominant hand and cut the stems just below your hand. To test if your bouquet is ready, try setting it down to see if it stands on its own. If it doesn't, hold it upside down and trim the inner stems a little more, leaving the outer ones longer to support it.

Next, you can wrap the stems with a ribbon to cover the binding wire or raffia. Tie the ribbon in a bow with long tails, or secure it with a pin. You can also add a pretty gift tag to make it extra special.

If you're transporting the bouquet, cut a piece of cellophane and double it up. Center the bouquet and gather the cellophane underneath, ensuring it's completely wrapped so that no water will leak. Secure the cellophane with wire or raffia, and then hold the bouquet under a faucet to let water trickle into the cellophane bag. This will keep your flowers fresh until they are ready to be displayed.

Finally, if you're using a vase, trim the stems so that the bouquet rests gently on the lip of the vase. For a more natural look, place the bouquet in a vase or container of water and keep it in a cool, dark place until it's ready to be used.

Frequently asked questions