How To Make a Wedding Flower Crown

One wedding trend that looks set to run and run is the boho look. With Kate Moss setting the tone with her festival themed wedding, and teepee weddings huge for summer 2012, I'm betting 2013 will be the year of the boho bride. For a fun and easy way to create the boho look, dress your bridesmaids in flower crowns. Inspired by the Pre-Raphaelites, these versatile accessories can look as glamorous, or as country-chic as you like. An added plus is their super easy to DIY - partly thanks to this brilliant tutorial by Brittany Watson Jepsen via Etsy Weddings. Brittany is easily one of my favourite DIY bloggers - she lives in Denmark, and writes a fabulous blog called The House That Lars Built, with tonnes of DIY wedding ideas and inspiration.

{Photo Credit} Photography by Brittany Watson Jepsen and Amanda Thomsen.

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Big Bouquet OR Single Bloom - A New Wedding Trend

As a wedding blogger, it's my job to track the latest wedding fashions and fads, and in the last few months I've spotted something of a mini-trend in bridal bouquets. It seems that in these financially-stretched times, brides are opting for minimalist single blooms, rather than traditional bunches of flowers. I find this works best with large blooms like dahlias, open peonies and chrysanthemums. Or you could DIY your own giant paper flower via this tutorial by The House That Lars Built {an amazing DIY wedding blog}. Which do you prefer? Big bridal bouquet, or single bloom?

{Picture Credit} Jose Villa

{Photo Credits} via Sparkle & Swish - 1. Elizabeth Messina via Grey Likes Weddings, 2. Picotte Weddings via Style Me Pretty

{Photo Credit} Paper flower by The House That Lars Built, picture by Ali Degraff Photography

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Perfect Rustic-Chic Buttonholes For Your Groom

Feathers are a huge wedding trend this season, and they're a great way to gussy up your ushers' buttonholes. Couples preferring traditional boutonnières tend to choose simple rose blooms, but there's a fashion now for more boutique buttonholes, with different designs to reflect the groom's personality. I'm a big fan of these gorgeous designs by Pomp and Plummage. Handmade in Canada from hand-dyed feathers and ribbons, with pops of pink-berried millinery branches and wrapped with wool, these buttonholes would work perfectly for winter or early spring weddings. Why not add a touch of vintage woodland to your big day!

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Real Botanical Themed Wedding: Josi & Jamess

I've seen a lot of pretty weddings but this one has taken the biscuit! It's another one of those fabulous big days that have so many incredible details, I had to split it in two. So in a bit of a switcheroo, here are the wedding reception details first! Wedding themes can become slightly formulaic, so I'm thrilled to introduce a completely new wedding idea - the botanical themed wedding. Styled by the insanely talented Heike from Fleur Le Cordeur, just take a look at the incredible vegetable and flower displays at Josi and Jamess' wedding. I'm loving the vegetables displayed under bell-jars, the red onions spilling out of vases, mini-lettuce sin sweet glass-jars and leggy leek flowers. Only flowers that bloom on vegetable plants, fruit trees and herbs were used - wow! I'm also loving the soft striped table cloths, the pure white of the marquee and the twisted branch chandeliers. If you're wondering about the beautiful botanical-style table numbers and table plan, they're by The Secret Diary who have tonnes of incredible wedding stationery ideas on their website. Huge thanks to the massively talented team at We Love Pictures. Their photographs are always blow-your-mind beautiful. With suppliers like the crew at this wedding, who wouldn't want to get married in South Africa?!

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Wedding Flowers - Brights vs Whites

When it came to choosing my wedding flowers, I found it impossible to pick between simple white, or a riot of brights. My overall wedding colour theme was white and grey, so there was plenty of scope for making a real statement with my wedding flowers. The splash of colour would have looked fabulous against my white dress, and the white tablecloths at my wedding reception, but in the end I bottled it, and chose simple white blooms. What are you planning for your wedding flowers and wedding tablescapes? Check out these pictures for some inspirational designer flowers for your wedding, and don't miss my Pinterest page for more fabulous wedding details.

{Photo Credit} Aaron Delesie

{Photo Credit} Green Wedding Shoes

{Photo Credit} Rachel Thurston via Green Wedding Shoes

{Photo Credit} Sarah Yates at Birds of a Feather via Once Wed

And now for the white wedding flower inspiration....

{Photo Credit} My wedding by Caught the Light

{Photo Credit} This Modern Romance

{Photo Credit} We Love Pictures

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Wedding Flower Crowns

If you're looking for an original way to bring flowers into your wedding, then look no further than this 2012 micro-trend for spring/summer brides. The flower crown is making a comeback from the seventies, and it's the perfect accessory for a boho-bride. I'm loving the simple twist of green laurel leaves, but the bolder bride should dive right in with a fully bloomed crown. They're super-easy to DIY, {check out a tutorial here}, and you could make them for all your bridesmaids as well! For more flower crown inspiration, check out my Pinterest page.

{Photo Credit} BHLDN

{Photo Credit} My Hands Made It

{Photo Credit} Austin Gros Wedding Photography

{Photo Credit} Caught the Light

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The Secret Bouquet Trend of 2011

Is it just me, or are bouquets getting bigger? As a wedding blogger I see hundreds of weddings every week, and gradually a trend hovers to the front of my mind. This month, I'm in no doubt that brides are plumping for ever bigger and better {because bigger just is better} bouquets. One of the most hilarious conversations I had in preparation for my own wedding, was when I was trying to explain {in French} to our florist, that I wanted my bouquet to be 'this big' - cue dramatic circular motions with my hands. In the end we resorted to figures, and established that I wanted the 'boule' to be 30cm across, and packed with peonies....cue concerned expression from the florist, as he contemplated the crazy English bride. I got what I wanted {see below}, but my bouquet is still mini compared to some of the monsters from over the pond. What are you going to choose? Big like the ladies below, or small like Kate Middleton's, which barely covered her hands?

{Picture credit} My Wedding Bouquet by Chloe from Caught the Light

{Picture credit} Our Labour of Love

{Picture credit} Jose Villa

{Picture credit} Kristen Spencer

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Your Wedding Flowers for Less

Wedding flowers can blow your budget. They certainly blew mine, and that's despite me knowing all the secret tips. Unfortunately most of my wedding tips didn't translate into French for my wedding, but if you're getting married in the UK, then this advice on wedding flowers is going to save you a fortune. If you're looking for super-high end designer flowers, then this is not the feature for you - but right now, most of us are trying to save a few pennies on our wedding budget, and I'm all about cheap and chic. To get you in the mood, here are a few pictures of my own wedding flowers, taken by the lovely Chloé from Caught the Light. We couldn't DIY all our wedding flowers, because we needed to hire the vases from the florist, and it worked out as more economical to keep him on-side. But we saved a fortune by buying clouds and clouds of baby's breath from a local market. Our wedding planner Kerry Bracken collected it on the night before the wedding and it stayed lovely and fresh. Our Provencal florist, Stéphane, was wonderful - I'd recommend him to any bride planning to get married in France.

Before the Big Day Tips - Your Wedding Flowers for Less

1. Keep it seasonal. For a list of what flowers are in season for your wedding, click here.

2. Consider using plants rather than cut flowers for your table displays. Some garden centres will rent you plants, but even if you need to buy them, you can give them away as lovely presents after your wedding. You could even grow your own plants, whereas growing enough flowers is a mammoth task.

3. Keep it simple. Single blooms in lots of vases take a lot less time to arrange, and that means the florist will charge you less for their time. This isn't going to give you a luxury look, but elegant simplicity is very in right now!

4. Choose a cheap variety of flower, and buy tonnes of it for a dramatic effect. For example, I used baby's breath - a flower I hate when mixed with roses, but adore on its own. Carnations have the same effect. They're dreadful dotted in bouquets, but when you mass loads of them together, the effect completely changes, from awful to awesome.

5. Buy direct from a flower market and ask a friendly florist to moonlight on your behalf. This probably only works if you have a friend or a friend-of-a-friend who's a florist, but it's worth asking around. They could do your wedding flowers instead of giving you a wedding present.

6. DIY. Now I say this with huge caution. If you're doing simple single blooms as suggested in Hint 3, then you're not going to find this too traumatic. If, however, you're thinking luxurious mixed and hand-tied bunches, then you're not going to be able to produce the effect you want. Plus it takes hours, and it has to be done really near the wedding. You do not want to be arranging flowers the morning of you wedding. Really, trust me, you don't.

7. Don't DIY your buttonholes. They're harder to produce than you think, and they're going to be in every photography. Ditto for your wedding bouquet. Even if your budget is tiny, splash out.

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Wedding Flowers - I Love Baby's Breath

Wedding flowers can be a huge part of your wedding budget, but no one wants to get married without their prettiness. I'm struggling with a slightly {okay, hugely} over-budget wedding, and I've taken the hard decision to cut back on my original plans of floral abundance. One way to keep costs down is to choose just one cheap bloom, buy bundles from a flower market, and then arrange them yourself. Be reassured - DIY flower arranging is much easier when you're only working with one type of bloom. I've chosen baby's breath, for its feminine, vintage style - what do you think? P.S. I'm splashing out on a white peony bouquet, or maybe light pink...I can't decide! {Pictures via Pinterest}

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Wedding Flower Favourites - Sweat Peas

In fitting with my English Tea Party themed wedding, I'm choosing colourful English flowers. Hopefully peonies will be in season for the table decorations, but for my bouquet, I've picked sweat peas. Quintessentially English and beautifully scented, they've got a vintage prettiness that will hopefully work with my cake-stand and bunting. A quick google search led me to Sweet Peas Direct, who'll deliver me a gorgeous box of 100 stems ready for my London Wedding. {Photo Credit: Abby Trys Again}

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Gorgeous Spring Wedding Wreath

Welcome in spring with this gorgeous blossom wreath! Made of silk flowers, you could use it at your wedding, and then keep it for years to use on the front door of your home. I've always been a fan of pink and white cherry blossom {pictured}, but Twenty-Third and Vine also make wreaths out of peonies and camellias - check out their beautiful website.

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A Fun Alternative to Bridesmaids' Posies

Fashion forward brides are moving away from choosing the simple bridesmaid posy, and picking creative alternatives instead. From ribbon rings to pomanders, parasols and pinwheels, you can really let your imagination run wild. I still haven't chosen what my {five!} adult bridesmaids should carry, but here are a few of my ideas so far....I've been searching the web for wedding inspiration.

{Above from left} Segerius Bruce Photography via Before the Big Day, DIY Your Own Flower Parasol via Martha Stewart Weddings

{Above, clockwise from top left} 1. via Chez Wed, 2. via Steel City Bride 3, Bridal Buds 4, Lauren Grabelle Photography, 5. via Utah Bride Blog
{Below} All pinwheels available to buy from Rule 42

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Gorgeous Fabric Wedding Bouquets

Gorgeous and green, you can't get better than this cotton candy fabric bouquet. Created in super trendy Istanbul by Mamma Mia e Me, each of the blooms are handmade. Unique and romantic, there's even a couple of ladybirds perched on one of the petals. The best thing? Unlike cut flowers, this is a bouquet that won't wilt by your first dance. You won't want to throw it to your bridesmaids!

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Terrarium Wedding Favours

Ever heard of a terrarium?  Me either, until I started searching for mossy inspiration for my Midsommer's Night Dream feature. After a couple of clicks, I found myself exploring delicate worlds of miniature ferns, bromeliads and the occasional toadstool.  Perfect for the anti-gardener, many of terrariums come sealed, and require little or no care.  Use them as a table centre-piece, or favour your guests with miniatures, and add an air of magical mystique to your big day.

Terrarium Credits - Miniature: Warm Country Meadows, Round: DoodleBirdie, Gnome: Green Briar, Mossy Bird: Made by Mavis, Bottom Left: Warm Country Meadows, Trilogy: Green Briar, Toadstool: Warm Country Meadows, Bottom Right: Green Briar

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Exquisite Fabric Wedding Bouquet

Eco-friendly brides are finding ever-more inventive ways of avoiding cut flowers for their wedding bouquets. One option is to carry a bunch of fabric flowers, handmade to suit your wedding style and colour palette. I've discovered this gorgeous studio in London, where Gabrielle Louise creates one-of-a-kind, vintage inspired bouquets. Each one is unique, decorated with vintage trimmings, buttons, brooches, pearls and rhinestones. They're heirlooms of the future and totally gorgeous!

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Smelling like Roses

Roses represent love, so it's no surprise that they feature in most bridal bouquets and buttonholes. Unfortunately modern blooms have lost their scent, as it's sacrificed by modern growers in favour of larger buds and longer stems. But if you want deeply scented, old-fashioned blooms at your wedding, all is not lost! David Austin supplies roses with a traditional flower form and classic myrrh fragrance, all by post.

Budget conscious brides and grooms could always add another scented flower to add fragrance to otherwise scentless bouquets.  Narcissus, fresias and lillies are all cheaper than roses, but smell fabulous!  And for an all encompassing aroma, scatter lavender and rosemary underfoot.  As your guests walk around, they'll crush the leaves and release a gorgeous Provencial perfume.

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Top Tip Week ♥4

Florist fees can be pretty pricey, but you don't want to end up with an undecorated reception venue, so what to do? Well thanks to Before the Big Day's Top Tips on how to save money, you will go to the ball {or something like that - I'm having a Cinderella moment!}.

Top Tip ♥4
Eco friendly brides are turning against cut flowers in favour of living plants that can double up as presents for favoured guests. Splash out on a bridal bouquet by all means, but potted plants make for gorgeous table displays, and they save on florist fees. Worried that you don't have green fingers? Buy fairly mature herbs like lavender or rosemary and slip them into simple white Ikea planters for a professional, elegant look. The added benefit? They'll make your venue smell gorgeous.

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DIY Week #5 - Green Fingers

You don't have to have green fingers to make fabulous floral arrangements and favours for your big day. Just check out these tutorials from Project Wedding and Erin Vale Designs. In both cases, all you need is a little bit of know how and a dollop of creativity, plus a ready supply of spray paint and moss. Check out the grow-your-own favour boxes, ideal for a DIY garden wedding, and why not add Love in the Mist seeds to the print-your-own sachets. The plants will flower every year, and remind your guests of your fabulous wedding each time they bloom.Gorgeous!

Product Credits {from the top} Daisy Pots & Grow-Your-Own Seedling Boxes: Project Wonderful, Print-Your-Own Seed Sachets: Erin Vale Design, Moss Pots: Project Wedding