Bouquets and Buttonholes - what to do....

Flowers are one of my pretty things so choosing a bouquet and buttonholes are important. When I was single and renting, I always made it a habit to buy myself some flowers for my room and it would make me smile to see them every time I walked past. I still do this now but my mischievous kitty cat Bella has taken a liking to pulling the heads off them and leaving the petals on the floor for me ... her way of saying I love u.. so have put this on hold till she decides that they are pretty and doesn't delight in ruining them..

I do love you - Credit to Jeff Haller

My favourite flowers are Roses, Tulips and Gerberas. I'm not a lily fan.. they always make my head hurt and start sneezing when I'm around them, so they are a big no no for wedding day flowers. Tulips are gorgeous and I've gained some insider knowledge on them - apparently they are quite unruly and grow towards the sun, so next time you've got some watch what direction they go in. They can actually grow a few cm's out of bouquets during the day, little monsters!! I've always loved the classic red rose... and yes I do love Valentines day... big excuse for a single red rose..and yes I am a sucker for love!!

Credit to Style Me Pretty

Because our colours are black and white with red and silver, I figured we could go red or white. White roses tend to go slightly brown on the edges if bumped and I figure there will be quite a bit bumping involved on the day with hugs, congratulations, drinking, moving and putting down and picking up of the bouquet. The red rose tends to be a bit more sturdy so I think i'm going to stick with the red, as it is traditional, classic, elegant and dam right stunning!!! Red rose fan here....

When looking at bouquets, I never actually realised how many different styles of bouquet there were. There are posies, tear drops, cascades, sheaths and the list goes on. Iridescent Weddings has some useful information on how to choose your wedding bouquet style.  You need to take in to consideration what colour scheme your wedding is, what style it is (beach, garden, traditional, romantic, etc), what time of year it is for flower availablity, your body shape, your dress shape, the list is endless.... BUT all you have to do is google and you will be instantly educated on how to make a decision. Another good link is this one from Dummies.com, anything to make it easier I say.

Credit to Floral Verde

I decided to go with the red rose posy - medium size, and put that into my internet search browser and was instantly bombarded with thousands of images, some that were nice and others not so nice. I bookmarked a lot of these images and then decided what I would need for the day. 

Black Dress and Red Flowers

My requirements consisted of:

• x 1 bridal bouquet
• x3 bridesmaids bouquets
• x1 groom's buttonhole
• x3 groomsmen buttonholes
• Throw posy for the bouquet toss. 
• Sunday delivery
• My style is formal, traditional and classic
• Colours - Red flowers, black or charcoal bridesmaid's dresses
• Brides dress - maybe full skirted, ivory or white
• Flower of choice - Rose

I then started my search for local florists in my area and sent off what seemed like hundreds of emails. I contacted the florists on my preferred suppliers list from the Dockside Group, other florists from expos that i'd visited and recommended Sydney florists from the Vogue Forums website. I was given quotes ranging from $400 to $900 and found that many charged extra for sunday delivery, so they got quickly wiped off my list - an extra $100 bucks for a sunday... hell no, there was no way I could justify that to the budget. And it was a great way to narrow down the competiton.  

Credit to Charlotte Geary Photography

I complied an excel spread sheet with the florists name and what they supplied (some already had packages which made things a bit more affordable but I didn't require some of the things in the package). And of course the price. I ruled out the ones over $600 as I'd set this amount for my bouquet and buttonholes budget.

Credit to Weddingflowers1.com

I checked out one particular website Weddingflowers1.com which was recommended on the Vogue Forums and was rather impressed when I emailed Rochelle (the florist) detailing what I wanted. She was prompt in replying and gave a great quote and emailed some beautiful photos of bouquets and buttonholes that she thought would be suitable for what I was looking for. 

I fell in love with the buttonhole and bouquet instantly. Even though the bouquet is in white, I can imagine it perfectly in red.

Credit to Weddingflowers1.com

We made an appointment to meet Rochelle and her partner and they were fantastic. They were attentive and interested in what we had to say and it was quite amusing because FH wanted to have white buttonholes for the boys and I thought that we were going to have red ones, something we hadn't actually discussed together. After Rochelle explained that it might look a little uneven with the girls and I having red bouquets and FH a red buttonhole, and the boys white buttonholes, he agreed that it would be good for the boys to have red buttonholes too. It's great having FH input into things, helps make decisions so much easier as he often sees things that I tend to miss...

Weddingflowers1.com

Rochelle also emailed me the photo on the left of what the bouquets would look like with one more bridesmaids bouquet to be added. The big red bouquet is the brides bouquet - just what I want and the two smaller white ones are the bridesmaid's bouquets (they will be red on the day) and the smaller red and white one is the throw posy - that will be completely red.

This is our package which is $543 in total and well under the budget:

Buttonhole Roses

• Bridal  Bouquet: Cluster posy bouquet of red roses with small amount of camellia or magnolia foliage to edge bouquet. Stems bound in a thick satin or organza, choice of colour.  $155.00

Bouquet Roses

• 3 Bridesmaids bouquets: Black or charcoal dresses. Cluster posies - red rose blooms as Bridal bouquet. Small amount of camellia or magnolia foliage to edge bouquet. Stems bound in thick satin or organza, your choice of colour.    $98.00 each.
• 4 Buttonholes: Groom - Red rose with 3 red miniature rose buds and foliage, x3 Groomsmen - Red rose, with 2 red miniature rose buds and foliage.   $11.00 each
• Throw Bouquet: Complimentary
• Delivery of flowers to the Bride's and Groom's location on morning of Wedding: Free of Charge due to over $300 minimum purchase.
• Assistance also provided to pin buttonholes on the boys so they look perfect

So we paid our deposit and locked Rochelle in for the flowers. I'm really happy we have done so and rather early as well. I think we booked them in August 2011 and with only one appointment, which was great. I will catch up with her closer to the time and nut out the nitty gritty details like stem binding colour etc and delivery place details as we are undecided where we are going to get ready in the Sydney CBD.. some nice hotel somewhere close to the botanic gardens.

I love this inspiration board. It's so pretty!!!!!

Credit to Beverly Harris Weddings & Events