We can thank Queen Victoria for making small bouquets a thing. Along with giving us the white wedding dress, it was she who popularized the idea that formal flowers should act more like an accessory rather than the main event. And if you’ve been following bridal flower trends over the past few years, you know that the opposite approach has been ruling the day. Big, loose, wild and free bouquets have been appearing in editorial weddings and real ones for a long time now. We understand, the look is gorgeous. But there are plenty of reasons to consider wielding a smaller clutch of flowers on your big day.
Okay so you love the statement flower vibe of the bigger bouquets but want that to come in a smaller scale. No problem. Choose one glorious flower (peony, rose, calla lily) and clutch just a few of them. Bring them tightly together to emphasize pattern and color, keeping the focus on one type of flower and one version of that flower, too. The violet seen here is on trend and has a modern feeling, but there’s nothing overpowering about this design, which simply and elegantly calls attention to itself without overshadowing you.
One of the biggest trends we’ve seen over the last few years in the biggest bouquets is that they make use of top shelf blooms. There are few filler flowers or foliage; everything counts and everything is quality. Same goes for more diminutive bouquets. Take a hand-wrapped clutch of luxurious petals down the aisle for maximum impact.
Call it a nosegay, a tussie mussie or just plain teensy, but make no mistake: delicate bouquets lend a graceful yet powerful element to your wedding look. And if you love the wild appeal of the larger bouquets, you can still have that in a small package. Fleck your arrangement with foliage and keep the styling and the shape loose. This will still give you the free-form feel without the unwieldy aspect of a much larger bouquet that takes this approach. Happy carrying!