Wedding Guide

The Language of Flowers

            Chris Graze, owner of Thistles, A Flower Shop, says that roses remain a perennial favorite but finds that more and more brides are opting for natural, gardeny flowers, as well as focusing on more color than they once did. Garden flowers include fresh blossoms such as hydrangea, peony, colored minicallas, and tulips. Bridesmaids, on the other hand, often now have few colors in their bouquets since their dresses are more colorful then the brides’.

            Some brides still ascribe to the charming Victorian practice of assigning meanings to blossoms. Here are the secret messages of love attached to some commonly used wedding flowers:

v Alstoremeria: devotion

v Baby’s breath: pure heart

v Calla lily: beauty

v Camellia: excellence, beauty

v Carnation, white: perfect loveliness

v Chrysanthemum, white: truth

v Daisy: innocence

v Delphinium: open heart and deep attachment

v Gardenia: refinement

v Lilly of the Valley: return of happiness

v Magnolia: magnificence

v Lily, white: sweetness and purity

v Orchid: love and beauty

v Ranunculus: radiant with charm

v Rose, red: I love you

v Rose, white: purity and love

v Rosebud, red: pure and lovely

v Stephanotis: happiness in marriage

v Tulip, red: love

v Violet: faithfulness

Sources: FTD, USA Bride, Wedding Consultant Business Guide