Delivering the bridal party flowers is definitely our favourite part of any wedding day! It feels like we’re members of the bride tribe for a short while and there’s always so much love and emotion in the air. Our role as florists means we’ve seen a lot of wedding mornings and bridal prep, so here’s our tips on how to have a relaxing, enjoyable wedding morning and make sure everything runs smoothly.
Space: plan to get ready in a large, well lit room. It’s amazing how busy a room soon becomes with hairdressers, makeup artists, photographers, florists, not to mention all your bridesmaids and family members!
Parking: boring but you’ll need vehicle space for your suppliers, who will all be carrying some weighty items! You’ll also need nearby parking for your transport, if you will be moving to your ceremony in a vehicle. Bear in mind that vintage vehicles may have poor floor clearance so won’t be able to cope with bumpy ground.
Timings: We’ll normally want to deliver your flowers once your hair and makeup is finished but before you put on your wedding dress. Communicate your schedule with all relevant suppliers (and bridesmaids, see tip 4).
Show and Tell: When we arrive, we like to spend 10 minutes with you and your bridesmaids, showing you all how to hold your flowers. We recommend you do this in your pjs, as the flower stems will be damp at this point. It’s really handy if the bridesmaids already know they’ll be needed for this moment: sometimes, it’s hard to round them all up!
Keep it cool: remember the room will soon get warm once bodies, hair tongs and lamps are all in. Ventilation is key- No-one wants to feel sweaty putting their dress on!
Organize: Another reason why having enough space is important. An empty table in a cool room is ideal for your wedding bouquets. You want them to keep looking perfect, not be fried by a hairdryer or knocked over by your dad!
Capture: If your photographer is present for your wedding morning, ask them to capture the bouquet delivery (and buttonhole pinning if you have a second shooter). The arrival of your flowers can be surprisingly emotional and a wonderful moment to look back on.
Eat! You’ll have lots of adrenaline and nerves, but fuelling your body on your wedding day is so important; it’s a long old day! Fruit, nuts and small pastries all work well.
Delegate: We will also give a bridesmaid (or other helpful adult) instructions on flower care for the day. In summary:
the bouquet vases should be emptied of water 30 minutes before you leave the house, to allow the stems to drip dry in the empty vases.
We recommend an alarm is set for this, as the final preparations can be distracting.
If you have a longer drive to the ceremony, we may instead recommend that the flowers are kept in water until you leave, but carried with a flannel/tea towel on the stems, to dry them as you travel.
We will have left empty vases of water at the reception venue: we advise on their location and recommend that the bouquets are placed in water whenever they are not being held, to rehydrate the flowers. This is very important for warm, summer days.
We’ll also suggest to your bridesmaid that they remind you to take your bouquet if you go out for golden hour/evening portraits. It’s amazing how many brides forget!
Don’t forget the boys: We often find when we deliver buttonholes that the groom has no idea who is supposed to be wearing a buttonhole! You’re welcome to give us a list of names, or give a list to your groom, if you think he’s likely to fall into this category. It’s also handy if the boys have their jackets ready, so we can pin on the buttonholes for them. A wonky buttonhole is a florist's biggest pet peeve!
Tidy up: The glass vases that your bouquets are delivered in are loaned by us and we ask for them to be returned, so ask an organised bridesmaid to gather up the vases and put them somewhere safe before you leave the room. Vases get lost quite often and it’s such a shame! We will always reuse glass vases as this is the most sustainable packaging option for your bouquets.
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