Flowers Convey Meaning
December 6th, 2005 Posted in Wedding Planning and Ideas
An important part of planning any wedding is choosing flowers that are attractive and that meld nicely with the chosen decor, but what many happy couple may not be aware of is that floral selection can, in fact, be a multi-dimensional process. The type and color of the blooms chosen can infuse your nuptials with meaning and sentiment extending well beyond mere aesthetic pleasure.
Many are likely aware of the color-meaning system used to describe roses, whereby yellow roses represent friendship, red roses symbolize love, and white roses indicate purity or innocence. Roses however, are not the only species to be catagorized in this manner. Most floral varieties and many of their sub-varieties are associated with particular emotions and meanings, making it possible for wedding flowers to be a personalized reflection of the couple’s feelings.
Calla lilies, for example, are said to represent magnificent beauty, delicacy, and feminine grace. The daintily petaled alstoremeria is traditionally associated with notions of devotion, and forget-me-nots are symbols of constancy and true love. Even the little white blooms of the baby’s breath used to round out bouquets and boutonnieres indicate that the bearer is pure of heart.
The color of each of the respective varieties can also shift their intended meanings. While planning the wedding decor, flowers are often chosen to match the selected color scheme, but it may be prudent to match a color scheme to the couple’s thoughts and feelings. In essence, to plan the decor to match the flowers. A fairly simple way of thinking about color can be drawn from the principles of Feng Shui.
Do you want your ceremony or reception to have a romantic flair? Try pink floral arrangements or accents. The color red can be used to invite long life, luck, passion, prosperity, glory, and happiness. It also symbolizes truth and virtue. The green of the stems and leaves add a touch of longevity, fertility and hope to the proceedings.
The combinations of flower type and color are nearly endless, thus making the message presented by your flowers a very customizable, and very visual, part of any wedding ceremony. While you may have a particular species in mind, it may be worth-while and rewarding to do a little research and find out what flowers best suit your needs.