{Debbie’s Request}
Daughter loves the attached bouquet. She likes the calla lilies and wants to incorporate the peacock feathers. Looking at how to and flowers/greenery needed for bridesmaid bouquet and something more bride-like for her. Her bridesmaids dresses are “oasis” color from david’s bridal which is a med blue with hint of teal. Love to incorporate the peacock feather in the boutonnieres and corsages too. Any suggestions?

{Bouquet Details}
This elegant peacock wedding bouquet inspiration photo is from Jared Rey via Heart Love Weddings.  To design the bouquet you will need:  White Orchids, Hydrangea & Calla Lilies, and Peacock Feathers.  I also included a few additional floral stems from your photo below :  Green Orchid Bridal Bouquet and Button Pom Pom Mums.  The Green Orchid Bouquet would be a perfect base for your bridesmaids bouquets and then add 3-5  calla lilies, pom pom mums and peacock feathers.  To finish each bouquet wrap with our White or Turquoise Satin Ribbon.  For your boutonniere(shown below), use a single white calla lily, a peacock feather, a few sprigs of Greenery, and wrap with Stem Wrap and Ribbon.  Happy Planning, Mindy

Bouquet: Wedding Bee  |  Boutonniere: Monday Morning Flowers

Liz shares,“Most of my brides come at the whole wedding flowers thing in one of two ways:  They know exactly what they want, or they have no clue.”  She suggests when starting your wedding flower planning to, “start before you even meet with a florist and pull all the basic numbers. Writing it down beforehand is going to make you feel a little bit more in control, and it’ll bring up  questions that you haven’t thought of.”

After you’ve broken down the basics like how many centerpieces, bouquets, corsages and boutonnieres for the bridal party and family you’ll need, figure out the percentage of your budget you’ll be able to spend on wedding flowers.  From there you can begin to make decisions on wedding flower colors and types.

Keep in mind you don’t have to rely on the knowledge of a florist to help you plan your wedding flowers.  Many websites like afloral.com allow you to search by wedding flower color or wedding flower type, giving you options to work with for your special day.  Reach out and use more of our resources for inspiration like searching for wedding design ideas by theme with great how to videos for step by step instructions.  If you are still a bit undecided on what direction to take your wedding flower types or colors email mindy[at]afloral.com and have her create a personal wedding inspiration board just for you!

Photo credits: Fuchsia and Blue Wedding theme from afloral.com, wedding cake from wedding-flower-and-reception-ideas.com

{Megan’s Request}
I am trying to create a bouquet for myself and my brides maids. My wedding colors are peacock blue/truffle brown with white/cream accents. Id like my flowers to be orchids and peonies in whites, creams and soft colors (pink, yellow and green). Thank you!

{Megan’s Bouquet}
This lovely bouquet inspiration of pastel colors is  from Ellen Ho of Hong Photography via the Wedding Chicks.  This bouquet features:  Cream Phalaenopsis Orchids, Ivory Peonies, Creamy Peach Bud Roses, Yellow Bud Roses, Rose/Pink Hydrangeas, Feather Sprays and Dusty Miller Greenery.  Wrap your bouquet with delicate Sheer Ivory Chiffon Ribbon.  Happy Planning, Mindy

{Gail’s Request}
I need centerpiece inspiration for a July wedding. The hall is large with 30 tables, so we need to make an impact but inexpensively. The tablecloths are deep purple and napkins white. Maybe using a tall clear cylinder vase with sticks with floral accents? Or perhaps lots of the same flower? I’m thinking white, 1 or 2 shades of purple, and green for colors. The bridal bouquet has white roses accented with deep purple lisianthus. The bridesmaid bouquets has ocean song roses accented with white lisianthus. Suggestions?

{Gail’s Centerpiece Details}
The  first purple and white centerpiece inspiration photo is from John and Joseph Photography via Flora Nova Design.  It features: Purple and White Orchids randomly placed on Curly Willow Branches.  Carefully remove the Orchid Blooms from the stem and hot glue them throughout the branches.  Some orchids cost more per stem, but you get at least five to six blooms per stem.   Use Pearlized Glass, Decorative Rocks, or Acrylic Ice Vase Filler to steady branches and weight to bottoms of the vase.  The vases can become top heavy from the weight of the branches.  You can put 3-5 branches per vase, depending on the size.  The second centerpiece design is from our own Purple Wedding Design Ideas and it features and array of purple floral stems.  I included a Lavender Delphinium, Lavender Open Roses(similar to your Ocean Song Rose),  and Eggplant Lisianthus to coordinate with your existing bouquet flowers.  This arrangement will be more costly, but equally beautiful.  Happy Planning, Mindy

Helpful Tips:
Alternate arrangements with candles or small centerpieces to cut cost.  Purchase cylinder vases from your local dollar store.  Use fewer branches in each arrangement.  Shop our Closeout Section for current markdowns.(Make sure you purchase all that you need as these items are drastically reduced and will not be reordered).  Use our DIY Floral Videos to assist you in designing your wedding flowers.

{Stephanie’s Request}
Help!! My wedding is in August. My colors are Fuchsia and Orange. My bridesmaids are wearing Fuchsia. The men are wearing tan suit. What color flowers do you suggest?

{Stephanie’s Bouquet Details}
This inspiration photo from Gerber Scarpelli Weddings via Scarlet Petal combines the two vibrant shades, Fuchsia Pink and Orange perfectly.  To begin designing this bouquet, I chose a premade Fuchsia & Pink Peony Bridal Bouquet that serves as a beautiful base.  Continue designing by adding the following floral stems:  Rosey Pink Ranunculus, Fuchsia Pink Orchids & Open Roses, and Orange Mini Gerbera Daisies(in place of Zinnia shown in bouquet) & Open Roses.  To finish your bouquet, wrap with Bright Orange Satin Ribbon and add a sparkling Bouquet Buckle.  Happy Planning, Mindy

“Flowers and decor will take up approximately 10 percent of your wedding budget, and between personal flowers (bouquets, boutonnieres, corsages), ceremony decor and reception centerpieces things can quickly add up,” states Anne Chertoff.

Chertoff interviews floral designer and blogger Janie Medley for ways brides can save on wedding flowers, and one of her tips is to use larger bloom wedding flowers.  “My first choice would be peonies. Peonies are stunning on their own and you can even carry one single bloom if you prefer.”

Larger bloom flowers like peonies will help you reduce the amount of wedding flowers you’ll need for your bouquet.  Other choices like dahlias, hydrangeas, chrysanthemums and sunflowers can create beautiful arrangements with just a few stems.  Choosing silk wedding flowers will take your savings a step further.  Brides can order their choice of wedding flowers anytime throughout the year, even months in advance to their wedding.  Brides can be chic with beautiful, large wedding flower blooms on their special day while also being savvy and smart with big wedding budget savings.

Photos: Sunflower bouquet, weddingbee.com; white dahlia bouquet, ruffledblog.com; hydrangea tied bouquet, weddingchick.com; peach peony bouquet, afloral.com

Click here to view the embedded video.

Use blush wedding flowers and vintage accessories to build this entire DIY wedding design idea. This is perfect for the feminine budget bride who wants a pretty in pink wedding with a vintage touch.

Shop Blush and Pink Wedding Flowers

Get More Wedding Design Ideas

{Christy’s Request}
I have guava colored dresses for my bridesmaids. My dress is ivory with lots of bling on top. I would like to do roses, calla lilies, and orchids maybe. I really like yellow, but maybe a soft yellow to accent and I do not like all the greenery. I like the bouquets with red, cream/white, orange and yellow and some color flower that is guava color. The example of the bouquet that I have picture of has too much yellow. I would like my ribbon to be ivory or champagne color with bling on it. I would like bling in my flowers. My wedding is going to be after 5 and I want everything looking very elegant and classy.

{Christy’s Bouquet Details}
This inspiration photo, in a myriad of bright colors, is from The Full Bouquet.  To begin designing the bridesmaid bouquet, use our premade Coral and Red Rose Bouquet and add the following vibrant flower stems: Orange Calla Lilies, Spider Dahlias & Roses, and Deep Red Garden Roses.  To go with your requested color scheme, you can add either Yellow Sweetpea or Orchids and a Guava/Peach with Yellow highlights Ranunculus that ties all of the colors together. For your bouquet, start with a premade Cream/White Rose Bouquet and add the above flower stems. To finish each bouquet, wrap with an elegant Ivory Or Golden Chiffon Ribbon.  To bring on the bling, you can accent with a  Rhinestone Bouquet Buckle, Plumeria Jewel Pick, or Sparkling Curly Ting.

{Tiffany’s Request}
The wedding dress is pink.  The venue is a beach wedding.  I love the light pink gerberas and the white roses, but I wanted a silk bouquet.

{Tiffany’s Bouquet Details}
The inspiration photo is an actual beach wedding bouquet from Diana Deaver Weddings via The Knot.   This pretty bouquet includes:  Light Pink Gerbera Daisies & Princess Rose Buds, and Cream/White Open Roses, Hydrangea, Rose Buds and Sweetpea.  The ornate Pearl Satin Bouquet Wrap adds delicate detail to your bouquet.  Happy Planning, Mindy

{Lori’s Request}
We are having a indoor farm woodland type wedding at the end of March next year. The bridesmaids are wearing various shades of green for their dresses and we like the earthy green tones for the table and flowers. We want a rustic touch and are very eco friendly types.

{Lori’s Bouquet Details}
This Green and Cream inspiration photo from Alisandra Photography via Style Me Pretty, will be a lovely compliment to your wedding.  The cascading garden bouquet features Cream/White Roses, Hydrangea & Parrot Tulips, Green Hydrangea, Tulips & Helleborus Spray, Yellow & Green Berry Sprays, and Button Fern & Dieffenbachia Leaves.  The photo below features our Green Wedding Design Ideas, which will give you all the helpful designing details to complete your wedding flowers.  Happy Planning, Mindy

{Jaime’s Request}
I am having a tough time deciding on bouquet ideas and cake ideas. My colors for my wedding are lapis (main color), and peacock/teal, and tangerine for accent colors. We are getting married in the fall (11/24/12), and our reception is going to be by the water. I am stuck as to how I can incorporate all these colors together for the flowers and cake. I chose these colors for the fall which I feel can be elegant!  Flowers I really like are lilies, roses and hydrangeas. I am open to suggestions as what will work best. I am leaning towards a larger possibly cascading bouquet for myself and smaller ones for the bridesmaids.  Thank you for your help!

{Jaime’s Bouquet Details}
This inspiration photo is from Timmester Photography & Florist Holly Chapple Flowers via Bayside Bride. The bouquet is an example designed in pastel shades, but I chose more bold colors to fit your theme. Your inspiration has Dark Peach/Tangerine Peonies & Bud Roses, Dark Purple Hydrangea, Turquoise/Teal Baby Cosmos, Orange Open Roses & Berry Sprays, Cream/White Sweetpeas, Purple Heather, and Seeded Eucalyptus Leaf Spray Greenery. For more help planning your floral details, please visit our Wedding Design Ideas and DIY Videos.  Happy Planning, Mindy

Afloral.com Purple-Boutonniere

Countless hours and unmeasurable amounts of effort are put into designing and arranging your wedding day decor.

Hours of your time are put into items that will be displayed for one day’s event.  With a little forethought and a bit of the right planning you can continue to enjoy your wedding flowers and wedding decor long after your special day.

Planning the right wedding decor items that can be reused, recycled or re-purposed is budget friendly, green and just plain smart. Many brides are going green, that is not just referring to their wedding colors or wedding flowers.  Brides are looking for items that can be re-purposed and reused on and after their wedding day.  Afloral.com showed us some gorgeous ideas to re-purpose vintage finds to create a romantic, vintage rose wedding theme.  Read more about how to score great vintage finds and transform them into a beautiful wedding theme in our vintage wedding design ideas post.

Silk wedding flowers are another great wedding decor item that are affordable and able to be reused after you special day.  Silk wedding flower arrangements are gorgeous, yet budget friendly options that also leave you with a special keepsake.  Silk flowers are an option you can enjoy for years to come.

afloral.com green wedding ideas

Brides can incorporate their wedding flower centerpieces into attractive home decor.  Take a look at Afloral.com’s green wedding ideas and wedding centerpiece idea, it’s recycled wooden crate is a huge hit for home decor right now combined with a fresh look of greenery, branches and trendy kissing ball accents. Wedding flower centerpieces can also be broken down into smaller arrangements to be used around your new home as accents.

Or think outside of the vase and find a way to re-purpose your wedding flowers.  You can use select flowers to decorate a home accent wreath or basket.  Take part of your silk wedding flowers and place them for display in a shadow box for a unique use.

afloral.com pink, blush vintage wedding ideas

Your wedding flowers are not only a  special keepsake for you but also consider making them into a keepsake for you mother, mother in law or other family and friends.  Seen in Afloral.com’s pink and blush (vintage) wedding ideas, a rose bloom inside a vintage tea cup would make a beautiful keepsake.  Your mother and mother in law will enjoy this thoughtful gift. It will hold special memories for years to come.

Silk wedding flowers are an affordable option that will also hold onto all your hard work you put into their planning.  Pick a wedding flower option that you can enjoy days, weeks, years after your special day.  There’s an old wedding practice to put a piece of your cake in the freezer to take out to celebrate your anniversary.  That cake might make it past your 1st year anniversary, but silk wedding flowers will outlast any cake for many years to come.

Don’t forget to search our blog by wedding flower colors for great ideas in planning your special day!  Use the browse by color menu at the top of our blog.