Les Fleurs, Deux

I've been continuing to think about wedding flowers. I should be writing a paper, but sometimes I need to take a break and let things percolate, so I don't view this as procrastination... I view it as letting my thoughts settle into something cohesive. It's sort of like sleeping on it, only without the sleep part.

I decided a good way to go about encouraging my history-paper-related thoughts to settle would be to stir up some wedding thoughts instead, so I got on Flickr and started browsing. I collected a mosaic of pictures of most of my favorite flowers and foliage.

As I've mentioned before, my mom is doing my flowers. Sadly, she's also on the other side of the country. This is where this blog can be really handy, because I can collect those pictures and make a mosaic and blog my thinking on wedding flowers as it evolves, and she can probably get a better idea from that than if we were sitting in the same room and I was trying to explain it without pictures or the clarity of thought that comes from actually writing things down.

These are the pictures I found:

(Source: 1. dried wedding bouquet, 2. Peonies Floating in Thin Air!, 3. plumeria "celadine", 4. Tuberose (Polianthes tuberosa), 5. Green Maple Leaves, 6. rosa-lírio, 7. Women... It's for you! I'm in love with you this morning!, 8. Lady's Mantle (Alchemilla vulgaris), 9. the madonna lily, 10. Turkey Run - Lamb's Ear, 11. Hydrangea, 12. Wild Welsh Poppies, 13. B_W Dusty Miller)

This is resized to fit on the page, but if you click the link here you can see the mosaic full-size.

Top row (L-R): Peonies (one of my all-time favorite flowers), Plumeria, Tuberose, Maple Leaves
2nd Row (L-R): Stargazer Lilies (tied for top-favorite flower with peonies), Roses
3rd Row (L-R): Lady's Mantle, Madonna Lilies
4th Row (L-R): Lamb's Ear, Hydrangea, Poppies, Dusty Miller

In a nutshell, I like lush, large, fragrant blossoms, the smooth, cool green of tree leaves (it isn't just maple leaves; I have similar feelings about oaks and aspens), and the smooth, fuzzy, silver-green of lamb's ear and dusty miller.

While searching, I also found a picture on Flickr that immediately became my newest vision for bridesmaid bouquets:

(Credit: Flickr - Epressions Floral)

Hydrangea, stephanotis, dusty miller (according to the picture description... but I think that looks more like lamb's ear than dusty miller). Picture this with a green-tipped or white hydrangea instead of blue-tipped. It makes me feel all warm and fuzzy.

In my imagination, the guys have boutonnieres that probably involve lamb's ear or dusty miller, and maybe a small poppy or mini-cluster of hydrangea blossoms.

Les Fleurs

So, I will admit, I haven't been thinking very hard about flowers yet.

"What??" you exclaim. "Beth, you're getting married in 101 days! How can you not have planned your flowers yet? Do you even have a florist booked? Do you know how hard they are to find??"

Well, yes, I am getting married in 101 days (hee hee, let's see how many times I work that into one post). No, I don't have a florist booked, exactly. Yes, I do know how hard they are to find.

But...

I have something awesome.

See, this wedding is a labor of love, and not just for me. Dave and I agreed very early on in the planning that it would be more meaningful to us (and not just for financial reasons) if our families and friends pitched in wherever possible. Thus my request that one of my oldest friends do videography. Thus the fact that my dad is marrying us.

And thus, my mother is doing our wedding flowers.

Now, the Internet is full if imprecations against DIY wedding flowers, but this is a special case. She's done them before. She's great at it. It's just an excellent combination of things--my mom, someone who is good at doing flowers, and flower arrangements for nothing more than the cost of wholesale flowers and materials.

The thing about it is, though, I'm having trouble putting my thoughts together about what exactly I want, because that intense and worrying sensation of impending doom--er, deadline--isn't really there. Yet. I'm sure it will be when the wedding gets even closer.

Anyway, I know I want a lot of green in the flowers, especially since the bridesmaids and groomsmen are going to be sporting what is essentially an entire palette of tans and browns. I also know I want flowers in my bouquet that are flowers I like. And I don't want orchids. They are (1) too trendy, (2) too expensive, and (3) just not a flower I have any particular feelings for.

Now, peonies? Peonies make me swoon with delight. Roses? I could bury my face in them all day. Lilies? Well, I don't care much for calla lilies, but give me some stargazers and I will gaze at them (with my nose) for hours.

Also, I love the look of hydrangeas in a bouquet, especially green hydrangeas. Maybe for the bridesmaids.


I just think green flowers would stand out so beautifully against dark brown dresses, and of course it would incorporate green back into the wedding party's look. Plus, it's just my favorite. Mmm, green.