3 Easy Wedding Flower Arrangements

Planning a wedding is hard work! So much time and effort goes towards securing the church, reception hall, wedding dress, wedding flowers, caterers….the list could go on and on. Any bride who is going DIY can especially relate, as she is adding on creating flower arrangements, wedding cake, and reception decor.

To try and make life a little easier, at least as far as your diy wedding flowers are concerned, I pulled toget 5 of the easiest diy wedding flower arrangements that I could find. In a pinch, these arrangements will save you time and stress, yet still look gorgeous.

1. Table Centerpiece- A super easy table center piece that is beautiful and inexpensive is the Floating Flower and Candle Arrangement. To create this wedding table centerpiece, you will need a clear glass bowl or vase. Please note that you will not want the height of the bowl/vase to exceed 10 inches, so that your guests will be able to interact. Next, you will need large blooms of a colorful flower. Gerber Daisies work really well with this and come in tons of different colors. You will also need tea candles or floating candles in whatever color you like. A nice color scheme for fall weddings is red & orange gerber daisies coupled with cream colored candles.  To create this arrangement, simply fill the bowl/vase with water so that it is about 3/4 full, cut the stems of the flowers so that you just have the heads, and then place the heads in the bowl of water Next,  light the candles, then place carefully in the bowl. There you have it! You also can create mini floating flowers & candle arrangements to place along the side of the large one of on smaller tables. A small bowl with a giant pink gerber daisy head floating in it is so pretty and easy.

2. Bridal Bouquet- A super easy Bridal Bouquet is just straight, white large calla lilies. To create this bouquet, you will need 10-15 large White Calla Lilies and a large silk ribbon (color of your choice). Simply cut the stems of your calla lilies, gather them into a bouquet, and tie together with your ribbon. This is so elegant, and the easiest Bridal Bouquet by far. Create a total theme by having each bridesmaid carry a single calla lily. Wedding Party Flowers=DONE!

3. Wedding Cake Topper- The easiest floral wedding cake topper is to simply place blue hydrangeas on the top of the cake, so that the entire top is covered. Another really easy wedding cake idea is to make several mini squares (SOOO Trendy right now) and top each cake with a bright gerber daisy bloom. This is super easy and unique as well.

3 comments September 19, 2008

DIY Wedding Alter & Pew Flowers

If you are having a traditional Church Wedding, one of the important decorative issues to consider is how to decorate the alter. This is the place where you & your groom will declare your love & committment in front of all of your friends & family- in short- the alter needs to look good. It can be intimidating thinking of going DIY for such a visable aspect of your wedding, but I have found a few really great tips for doing your own church wedding alter & pew flowers that are easy enough for anyone!

1. Tape two rectangle bars of floral foam together, so that they are side by side. Make sure to keep the floral foam hydrated. Start putting a line of tall, larger stems of greenery in the back line, such as Ruscus. In the next line, stick in white or multi colored snap dragons. If the stems are too soft, cut them into a sharp slant, and make a small slice for each stem into the floral foam for insetion.  For the next line, use your focal flower- that is, the main flower that you want showcased. Long Stem Roses, Calla Lilies, or Sunflowers are examples of good choices. No matter what you choose, make sure that it is a flower with a large head. With these flowers, you’ll want to cut the stems a little shorter and be sure to place them front & center. Once this is done, it is time for your filler flowers. A good choice for fillers are carnations, since they are full flowers and are also cheap to buy in bulk. You’ll stick white or assorted color carnations in to fill the arrangement. Angle them outwards, going straight out from the front, back, and sides.  Lastly, fill any blank spots in with greenery, such as Leather Leaf Fern or Eucalyptus.

2. A really easy yet, elegant idea for pew flowers is the “Kissing Ball”. These are gorgeous and totally simple to make. Start with balls of floral foam- the size is totally up to you- just keep in mind that the bigger the piece of floral foam, the larger the resulting kissing ball will be. Next, simply choose a flower of your liking- Gerber Daisies look awesome for Fall Weddings and completely cover each ball in flowers by sticking the flowers in stem by stem. Make sure that your floral foam is well hydrated!!

3. Here is a great tip for DIY Brides who are looking to save even more- try using Tree Ferns only as alter flowers. Not only are they much less expensive than “flowers”, but they also make a really elegant, unqiue alter piece. The lush green really pops, and tree ferns create a really pretty, unexpected look.

4. Remember for you alter flowers that you will want to go BIG for arrangement size to make an impression. You would be surprised at how a moderate sized arrangement gets lost while in front of even a small church. Also remember that big doesn’t have to mean expensive. You can create gorgeous full arrangements with Carnations, Snapdragons, or Tree Ferns.

5. One last quick tip- Dark Flowers will make for really dark pictures! If you want to create an atmosphere that is happy and bright, be sure to use bright flowers. Fall Brides, think Oranges and Yellows- Winter Brides, think Reds and Whites!

1 comment September 9, 2008

Wedding Disasters Part 2

Ok all of you Fall & Winter Brides- Time to take a breather from your totally frantic, down to the wire planning!

Read on for some crazy, silly, and down right bizarre wedding stories as my Wedding Disaster Series continues!

Fall & Winter Weddings are just around the corner- You deserve at least 10 minutes to give yourself a stress- free laugh!

“At a recent wedding which I was attending, which was in full swing, the father of the bride was out on the dance floor slightly drunk and dancing like a madman when he discovered that his wallet had fallen out of his jacket which contained a large amount of money ($2000 )to pay for the catering and a cheque for his daughter and son in law.

 
A frantic search by everyone failed to find the wallet which distressed the father and family. At the end of the night everybody put in some money to pay for the reception and the wedding party left for their honeymoon a little depressed and sad that someone had stolen the wallet which could have been any of there friends.

The next day the cleaners found the wallet under some rubbish in the fake pot plant with all the money missing.

Two weeks later on the return of the couple from there honeymoon they went to their parents house to watch the wedding video with all their family. It was when they were watching the video part of the reception that the daughter picked up the fact that the wallet was lying on the edge of the dance floor and someone had picked it up and had moved to the side and was removing the money then hiding it under the plant.

It was then, when on closer inspection that the person who had stolen the money was no other than the GROOM.

THIS WAS A VERY SHORT WEDDING”

“When I was 25, my best friend’s wedding was a fiasco. Her brother-in-law tried to french kiss me in front of my husband who had a fit and threatened to use his military training to do major damage.

The bride and groom waltzed across the dance floor gracefully, until he dipped her deeply and promptly dropped her. Afterward, the groom got drunk and urinated in a potted plant on the edge of the dance floor and his pants fell around his ankles. Afterward, everyone had a blast telling the bride of his insufficiencies.

The mother of the bride spent hours before the ceremony wrapping rice in lace so all one had to do was untie the ribbon and throw the rice. Many people chose to throw little rice missiles at the couple, giving the bride a black eye. She fell against the groom when hit with the rice, pushed him down the steps of the hotel and he broke his leg. They spent their wedding night in the hospital and their dream trip, a honeymoon in Hawaii, was cancelled.” – Tianna

“I was at my hair dresser one Saturday, and he was telling me about a wedding he chose not to go to that day.  Of course I asked why he was not going.  His reply was that Bride and Groom did not want presents.  I could not imagine why he would not want to go since I was thinking, wow a B & G that just wanted the company of their family and friends.  I asked him if they let people know where donations could be made in their name.  He laughed and asked me what planet I was from.  Puzzled, I looked at him with raised eyebrows.

He told me that the invitation, had a disclaimer at the bottom of it.  I told him that I did not believe him and no one was that tacky.  Well, of course he left me with my hair standing on the top of my head and went into his office.  Out came a beautiful invitation, beautiful paper, beautiful handwriting.  The envelopes outer and inner addressed properly.

When I read the invite, proper wording in the body, at the bottom on the right hand side were the words, “The favor of your gift is declined, only monetary gifts accepted.”  I swear on my favorite cat’s grave, I saw this with my own eyes.  Well, I never found out what happened at the wedding.  I don’t think they ever spoke to my hairdresser again… but then again who cares. Who wants tacky, thoughtless, greedy people in their lives.” 

“My sister’s husband is a very attractive and has a very magnetic personality. His brother has not been blessed with the same characteristics. He started to say what a lucky guy the groom was having such a pretty wife. (a pretty standard thing for anyone to say to the groom at a wedding) He continued on slurring that he was never that lucky “Robert” always got all the pretty girls when they were growing up.
“Robert” was always the one who got invited to parties, had tons of chicks hanging around and always was the one who got laid. He kept whining that even the parents liked “Robert” better and that “Robert had more friends and more toys when they were little”.

The best man went on like that for a good ten minutes until he started crying and I took the microphone from his hand and another guest lead him outside to calm him down. The whole room was silent. It was very a very uncomfortable situation for everyone. I felt really sorry for the bride and groom and I could see my sister looking at the groom sideways thinking ” always got laid?” I’m sure she interrogated him later but I never asked”

“At my bridal shower , my mother insisted I invite my “eccentric ” aunt who never fails to embarrass me. This shower was given by my soon-to-be in-laws and I didn’t want a scene. Well, “Aunt Theresa” (thinking this was a compliment) kept repeatedly telling the hostess how much she resembled Julia Child until she was in tears. As a shower gift, Auntie presented me a pink plastic heart-shaped potato-masher and a worn-out rollingpin with “Spare the rod and spoil the child” written with blank ink all over it. AHHHHH!!!!!!”

Add a comment September 3, 2008