Creating Your Dream Wedding Bouquet: A Step-By-Step Guide

Creating your own wedding bouquet is a great way to save money and add a personal touch to your special day. It can be a fun activity to do with family and friends in the lead-up to your wedding, and it gives you creative freedom over the design of your bouquet. Whether you're aiming for a classic, tight bouquet or something more whimsical, with the right tools and preparation, you can make a beautiful arrangement that complements your wedding dress and colour palette.

Choosing your flowers

When selecting your flowers, it is a good idea to consider the style of your wedding dress and the overall aesthetic you want to achieve. Do you want a classic, tight bouquet or something more whimsical, like a cascading arrangement? If you're going for a modern and simple design, choose one to three varieties of flowers with interesting textures, and very little to no greenery. For a garden-style bouquet, opt for five to seven varieties of florals and greenery, with different textures and gestural qualities.

To save money, you can buy flowers that are in season. For example, daffodils, peonies, lilacs, and tulips bloom in the spring, while chrysanthemums and dahlias are best in autumn. You can also source flowers from local farms, grocery stores, or flower markets, or even use flowers from someone's garden.

Once you've chosen your flowers, it's time to start creating your bouquet! Remove the leaves from the stems, select a focal flower, and then add the rest of your blooms and greenery, building up the shape and framework. Don't be afraid to experiment and move flowers around until you're happy with the arrangement. Finally, secure the stems with floral tape or ribbon, and you'll have a beautiful, custom bouquet for your big day.

Preparing your flowers

The first step in preparing your flowers is to source them. If you have access to someone's garden, you can look at what's blooming there. If not, you can source your flowers from local farms, grocery stores, or online. When sourcing your flowers, consider the style of your wedding dress and your colour palette. You can opt for complementary colours for a subtle look or go for contrasting colours to add drama.

Once you've sourced your flowers, it's time to start preparing them. Lay out your materials on a large table or worktop and place the stems on tissue paper to protect the blooms. Then, remove all the leaves, shoots, and buds from the stems that will be below the point where you'll tie the stems together. This will make the bouquet more comfortable to carry.

Now, choose a focal flower that you want to be the centre of attention within your bouquet. Hold the flower near the blossom end and add the next flower at an angle, keeping the bloom at the same height as the focal flower. Continue adding flowers, rotating the bouquet a quarter turn to the right each time. Add filler flowers, which are usually small, green flowers, to give a natural look to the bouquet. Ensure that you insert all the filler flowers at the same angle to maintain symmetry.

Before you start constructing your bouquet, make sure the flower stems and greenery are prepped and ready. Remove all the leaves from your floral stems and the bottom halves of your greenery stems. Snip the bottom of each stem at a 45-degree angle and keep them in a bucket of water as you work. Consider the climate and the flowers' natural habitats, and research how to keep them vibrant until your wedding day, especially if temperatures are high or you're using tropical blooms during a dry spell.

Picking a focal flower

When choosing a focal flower, it is important to consider the colour and style of your wedding. For example, if you are wearing a traditional white or ivory bridal gown, a stronger-coloured flower will stand out. If you are creating a romantic, vintage-style bouquet, garden roses or peonies are a good choice. For a modern, minimalist bouquet, a small cluster of gerberas, calla lilies, anemones, or ranunculus flowers might be more suitable.

Popular focal flowers include peonies, roses, lilies, carnations, and dahlias. If you are on a budget, it is worth noting that peonies tend to be more expensive. If you are creating your bouquet in the spring, you might choose tulips or lilacs. For a fall wedding, consider using chrysanthemums or dahlias.

Adding flowers and foliage

Now that you have chosen your flowers and foliage, it's time to start building your bouquet.

Pick a focal flower

Start by choosing a flower that you want to be the centre of attention within your bouquet. This is your focal flower. You can then build your bouquet around it. Hold the flower with your fingers near the blossom end.

Add another flower

Add the next flower at an angle facing towards the left, but it should remain so that the bloom is at the same height as that of your focal flower. This will set you up for the coming steps and ensure that your bouquet is well-filled and rounded.

Continue adding flowers

Every time you add a flower, rotate the bouquet rightward a quarter turn to position it ready for the next flower to be added diagonally, angled leftward as before.

Add filler flowers

Once you have the bulk of your bouquet ready, you can insert some filler flowers between the flowers you already have. These are usually the smaller, green flowers that give a natural look to the bouquet. Ensure that you put all of the filler flowers in at the same angle to keep your bouquet symmetrical.

Tie the flowers together

You can let go of the bouquet now! Tie a tight knot at the highest point of the stem that you can reach. This will keep all of your flowers held together tightly and looking beautiful and symmetrical. Then cut off any excess string so that it can't be seen.

Cut the stems

This step is important to ensure your bouquet looks great and is comfortable to hold. Measure two hand lengths from the string, and add an additional 3cm of wiggle room.

Storing the flowers

Storing your flowers properly is essential to ensure they stay fresh and vibrant for your wedding day. Here are some detailed steps to guide you through the process of storing your DIY wedding bouquet:

Timing and Storage:

The ideal time to source your flowers is two days before the wedding. This gives you enough time to create the bouquet and allow the blooms to rest and open up. If your wedding is on a Saturday, consider sourcing your flowers on Thursday. You can then create the bouquet on Friday and add any final touches, like ribbons, on the wedding day itself.

When storing your flowers, keep them in a cool, dry place. If you need to store them in the refrigerator, ensure they are in a vase or bucket with water, and be cautious of ethylene gas released by fruits and vegetables, which can cause flowers to wilt. Alternatively, you can store the flowers in a garage or a cool room overnight.

Flower Care:

To keep your flowers hydrated and fresh, cut the stems at a diagonal angle and place them in a clean bucket or vase with cool water and flower food. Recut the stems and refresh the water periodically as they hydrate. Remove any excess greenery and guard petals from the flowers to achieve your desired look.

Final Preparations:

On the day before your wedding, assemble your bouquet and secure it with floral wire or tape. Wrap the stems with ribbon, leaving a fair amount of excess for a flowing, elegant effect. Tie a bow, and you're almost done!

Keep your bouquet in a vase with 1-2 inches of cool water to ensure it stays hydrated and fresh until your wedding day. With these steps, your DIY wedding bouquet will be ready to accompany you down the aisle!

Frequently asked questions