"I decided to tackle a project I have always wanted to try for my own wedding. Yup... This pretty bouquet was for me when I married the love of my life! I made one for my Maid of Honor and even the Boutonnieres for the Groom and Groomsman! I had a lot of fun shopping for the flowers, Hubby even had his input which makes them even more special. Here, I will share just how I made them..."
Materials:
Shears (scissors will do the job if you don't have shears)
String
Floral tape
Ribbon, about 60" long
You can choose silk or fresh. The possibilities are endless!
The flowers that I recommend using are:
Avalanche rose
Statice
Limonium
Peony
Hydrangeas
Green trick dianthus
Phlox
Eucalyptus
White lisianthus
Bloomed Roses
Calla Lillies
Directions:
I will show you how to make your own bridal bouquet, which is perfect for the big day, whether it is a spring, summer, autumn or winter occasion, and whether it is your own wedding or that of a friend, relative or loved one. With bridal bouquets becoming more expensive or source, I'll show you how to make your own in a way which will look spectacular as the lucky lady walks down the aisle!
This bouquet may look intimidating, but it is actually really simple and easy to make! You will probably already have almost all of the equipment needed, but you may need to get hold of ribbon in the color of your theme and floral tape. You can find floral tape in most gardening stores, dollar stores or online, and it's really cheap and easy to get hold of!
Traditionally, most flowers in a bridal bouquet stick to the colors of white, with some splashes of pink or other pastel colors. But today a lot of bridal couples are choosing to think out of the box and becoming much more modern. As a result, you can see in my bridal bouquet I have gone with the more modern style with the main color being a purple plum theme.
However, you should choose colors and flowers to match what you want! If you have a colored theme to your wedding, a bouquet is a great item to match to the theme to ensure that it is coherent throughout your big day!
Step 1: Get Rid of the Leaves
The first step in making any bouquet or flower arrangement is to remove all of the leaves from the stem area. Gently remove each leaf delicately, you don't want to damage the stem. If you are using silk floral, push leaved to the top of the under area of the flower bulb. This is so they peek out of the flowers and add green to the bouquet.
Step 2: Pick Your First Flower
The first step is to choose a focal flower. This means choose a flower that you want to be the center of attention within your bouquet. I used the the dark eglplant purple rose to be the center of my bouquet. You should then hold the flower with your fingers near to the blossom end.
Step 3: Add Another Flower
Add the next flower at an angle facing towards the left of your center flower. It should remain so that the bloom is at the same height as that of your focal flower.
This sets you up for the coming steps and ensures that your bouquet will be well filled and rounded.
Step 4: Continue Adding Flowers
Every time you add a flower, rotate the bouquet rightward a quarter turn to position the bouquet ready for the next flower to be added diagonally, angled leftward as before.
Step 5: Add Filler Flowers
Once you've go 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 which give a natural look to the bouquet.
One tip is to ensure that you put all of the filler flowers in at the same angle in order to ensure that your bouquet stays symmetrical and isn't all over the place! Trust me, I have made that mistake and had to start all over again. But, that's part of crafting... It's an art!
Step 6: Tie the Flowers Together
Your hand is probably aching from holding the flowers for all this time right? You can finally let go now, just one more step! Tie a tight knot at the highest point of the stem that you possibly can.
This will keep all of your flowers held together tightly and looking beautiful and symmetrical. Then make sure to cut off any excess string so that it can't be seen as you or the lucky bride walks down the aisle.
Step 7: Cut the Stems
This step is important not just to ensure that your flowers look great, but also so that it is practical! If you or the bride will be holding the bouquet for a while, you want to make sure there is room to hold it comfortably.
I recommend that you measure two hands lengths from the string, and add an additional inch of wiggle room to make sure that it is comfortable to hold the bouquet if the bride will be holding it for a long time. 9 times out of 10 this is the case!
Step 8: Wrap the Stems Together
This is where the floral tape comes in, as you wrap the stem from the top downwards. This will ensure that the flowers are firmly held in place until and on the big day.
Be careful not to wrap all the way to the bottom, but instead to wrap just over the size of one hand. This way the bouquet will keep its natural look but has plenty of floral tape to do the job of holding everything together firmly.
If you are using silk florals, you can use the floral tape all the way to the bottom, covering and wrapping the bottom stems multiple times and then working your way back up to the center of the stems with the tape to endure all the metal centers are covered.
Step 9: Add Ribbon
Adding the ribbon is one of the more "complicated" stages so pay attention to this step to ensure that it looks gorgeous!
In a lot of cases, ribbons will be shiny on one side and matte on the other side so I'll instruct you on how to do this with this kind of ribbon. If your ribbon is the same on both sides, don't worry, just ignore the references to shiny or matte!
First, place the shiny side of the ribbon facing the stems the long way direction of the stems so that the matte side is visible to you. Lay the end you will not be using to wrap the stems over the top of your flowers. Taking the other end, make a 45 degree angle triangle shape to show the shiny side and tart wrapping the around the stems, wrapping to about 1 /1/2" from the bottom and then back up to the base of the flower bulbs. Tie ribbon in a knot and then take the remainder of the ribbon you laid over the flowers to make a bow.
If you prefer to glue it together for a tight look, start by placing the ribbon matte side down and wrap the stems until they are semi covered or fully covered if using silk florals. Don't want the wires sticking out or poke the bride and make pulls in her dress. I have done this to my normal clothing.
Step 10: Congratulations and Enjoy Your Creation!
The final step is to enjoy the wedding! Whether the bouquet is for your wedding or a friend, relative or loved one's, make sure that they have a great day and enjoy showing off their bouquet to everyone. Make sure they are careful with the delicate flowers, until it comes to the throwing of the bouquet! Congratulations to the bride and groom!
Notes:
Keep your bouquet in water until you are ready to walk down the isle. Best to also keep them refrigerated until the event if possible. Bouquet will last about two days for the best quality if kept in water and refrigerated.
