Today’s post is for all our brides and those helping them plan their weddings. If you’re lucky enough to have a wedding during peony season, it’s really easy to get a crafty friend to make this bridal bouquet for you. I originally planned to only post an arrangement for the bride, but I had so many flowers left over that I was able to make a smaller arrangement for a bridesmaid as well.
You will need:
- Scissors
- Around 9 peonies
- Around 9 small sprigs of flowers for contrast
- 3-5 Lupins
- Wide ribbon in a complimentary colour
- Safety Pin (optional)
Allow at least 30-60 minutes to make this arrangement.
If you are a “backyard florist” like me, and are doing all the flowers for a wedding, allow yourself at least 4 hours and collect all the flowers the night before. I made a bridal bouquet, 2 bridesmaids bouquets, a toss bouquet, boutonnieres for the groom and groomsmen, and wrist corsages for the mothers of the bride and groom for my cousins wedding and it took me at least that long. I’m sure seasoned pros can do it much faster!
Like the rest of the arrangements we’ve done this week, start by trimming/carefully ripping all the leaves off of your flowers. With this arrangement the goal is to have as few leaves as possible.
Related: Save money and make your own boutonnieres!
Unlike other arrangements, you want to work from the centre out. Things can get a little tricky, so if you have an extra pair of hands available, enlist their help at this point!
I started with the three biggest flowers I had available. I put my sprig-type flowers in-between each group of three peonies for visual relief.
Then once I was happy with the size, I added my lupins at the bottom. You can leave out the lupins, or put a little bit of greenery on the bottom to fill things out.
Once you are happy with the look, get those extra hands to help you tightly wrap your large ribbon around the stems. Safety pin the back, or tuck the ribbon in. Finally, trim the stems so they are all an even length at the bottom. (There is a reason there are no pictures of this part of the process. You really need those extra hands!!!)
And voila! A gorgeous bridal bouquet entirely from your backyard, with only the cost of the ribbon.
Related: How to decorate your wedding cake with flowers.
Here’s what it would look like if you skipped the lupins.
No wedding in your near future? Why not just make it for yourself and put it in a vase?
And finally, here’s the bridesmaid bouquet I whipped up with the extra flowers.
Would you like these flowers for your wedding? (Real or imaginary.) I have one more peony post for you tomorrow, then it’s back to renovations. I’ve finally made some progress in the (very wallpapered) living room.
Cheryl
Rita