Question 1

Why choose faux flowers over fresh flowers for your wedding or special occasion?

Accepted Answer

We create beautiful floral displays at Sarah Stuart Flowers using luxury faux flowers. While we also love working with fresh flowers, these are a great alternative as the blooms are incredibly long-lasting and won't wilt, whatever the weather. Why have your bridal bouquet for a couple of days when you can enjoy it for many years? In 2023, 80 per cent of our weddings used faux flowers in some form. Table centrepieces can be created with fresh greenery and incorporate faux flowers; we offer this on a rental basis, reducing wedding flower costs without compromising style or elegance for your event. The blooms require no maintenance or pruning. It also offers a perfect solution for anyone who struggles with allergies. Many faux stems are now made with recycled plastics or fabrics, therefore kinder to the environment. These florals are incredibly versatile and can be used in various settings and occasions. Plus, it's cost-effective in the long run. While the initial outlay may be more expensive, they'll last many years. Can you believe scented faux flowers will soon be a thing?

Question 2

We want to incorporate flowers throughout our venue's styling. Do you have any suggestions?

Accepted Answer

Flowers can really add beauty to an already fabulous venue. Think of focal areas where your guests are going to be looking at you and your partner, such as your ceremony, top table, cake cutting and instead of a photo booth, especially if you're on a strict budget. Forget pew ends and gift bouquets, decorating sweet tables and chair backs, think beautifully presented urn arrangements that can frame your ceremony area. These can really give the wow factor, and then be repurposed to frame the top table (if you're having one) or create a photo area for your guests. As these designs are made in either moss or floral foam in a container, you can then gift the flower arrangements to your nearest and dearest at the end of the day. Another design to amaze your guests is a freestanding moon gate or broken arch. Create a framed area for the vows with glorious flowers and foliage between fairylights, glass baubles, tea lights, lanterns and candles. It's not a legal requirement to stand in front of the registrar's table, only that they have a nearby table. If you're having a celebrant-led wedding, you can arrange the ceremony to your liking. This arch can then be moved during the day as a photo area for loved ones. For an additional fee, your florist can move the arrangement to another location for the reception to be enjoyed.

Question 3

My wife-to-be and I are going for a relaxed bohemian theme for our wedding, but we don't know where to start with our flowers – what would you suggest?

Accepted Answer

When choosing flowers for a boho vibe, it's always best to go with not just the season's availability but also for cost. Talk to your florist, who will advise what blooms will be in season and available for your big day. Don't be afraid to be creative with colour! The relaxed just-picked look can be lovely with soft pastels or fresh white and green shapes, or will be equally gorgeous with a bright and vibrant mish-mash of colour! Your florist will know what varieties and colours complement each other to create an effortless look.

Question 4

What flowers work best for a spring wedding, and what should we keep in mind?

Accepted Answer

Spring is the season for soft-stemmed bulb flowers – think tulips, hellebores, muscari, daffodils and ranunculus. There's also the brief chance to use romantic blossom branches! Bulb flowers have delicate stems, so avoid tightly binding bouquets to prevent anything from getting crushed. If you love the eucalyptus look, remember it's out of season from May to June. So, choose alternative grey or green foliage such as senecio (dusty miller) instead.

Question 5

What blooms would you suggest for our fairytale-style wedding in March?

Accepted Answer

March is a fabulous time to tie the knot! Spring has arrived, so there's new growth budding everywhere and a promise of sunny days to come. With a wealth of sweet-scented spring flowers, this has to be my favourite season! The daffodil or narcissus is the perfect bloom with more than 250 varieties to pick from. A white lily of the valley is another highly scented and delicate flower usually seen in many royal bouquets. Muscari in blue, white and soft pink shades with many petalled ranunculus all look stunning together. Combine with double, frilled or parrot tulips as well as bold anemones, freesia, cherry blossoms and lush green foliage to create gorgeous bridal bouquet and floral arrangements.

Question 6

What flowers would work best for a spring wedding, and what should we keep in mind?

Accepted Answer

Spring is the season for soft-stemmed bulb flowers – think tulips, hellebores, muscari, daffodils and ranunculi. There's also brief chance to use romantic blossom branches! Bulb flowers have delicate stems, so avoid tightly binding bouquets to prevent anything from getting crushed. If you love the eucalyptus look, remember it's out of season from May to June. So, choose alternative grey or green foliage such as senecio (dusty miller) instead.

Question 7

We're having a winter wedding and want to incorporate this theme into our flowers. Do you have any suggestions?

Accepted Answer

People always ask how to add warmth to their winter wedding. We can all see with our own eyes the rich colour palette that nature has to offer as we turn into the autumnal months. Then as winter approaches, vibrant reds and silver foliage play a vital role. Be cautious when adding darker colours to your winter colour scheme. You only need to add one primary accent colour to create warmth and depth to your special day – adding more than one might cause the colours to clash. If you take a traditional neutral wedding palette and add one feature flower in a dark red shade with a touch of silver foliage, you'll instantly have a warm winter look with classical wedding flowers. You don't need to throw all contemporary wedding ideas out of the window when planning a winter wedding. Take traditional shades and make minor adjustments to create a different effect for the winter time. Colours that trick the mind into thinking they're warm always work better for the colder months, including red, burgundy, deep orange and yellow. Avoid shades that create a colder environment such as pale blue, royal blue and too much white or silver.

Question 8

What advice can you share when it comes to finding the perfect blooms?

Accepted Answer

Some people find it easy to find perfect blooms for their wedding day while others sometimes struggle; this isn't because they're unsure of what they want, but nature has a huge amount of variety to offer when it comes to flowers. One of the key elements of finding the perfect florals is the time of year that you're getting married. We all know that each season has a huge variety in choice and colours that are available. Spring weddings tend to be brighter and more colourful; it includes a mix of spring meadow flowers. Summer weddings are more traditional with ivory and pale pastel colours with maybe a bright burst of a feature colour. Autumn and winter weddings always feature more rich darker tones. When selecting flowers, keep in mind that there should only be one or two statement blooms. These are the flowers that will be in the spotlight of your bouquet or table arrangements. Lots of people have a love for hydrangeas, roses, peonies, dahlias and other large headed flowers. These blooms together would create a bridal bouquet fit for a giant, so it only requires one or maybe two of these types of flowers and then add smaller filler florals to complement them. At Maples Flowers, we don't expect all of our customers to know every type of flower available, that's where we use our knowledge and expertise to point people in the right direction

Question 9

What are the lateste flower trends for weddings?

Accepted Answer

Bold shades and colour blocking have made a comeback this year. Pastels and blush shades will always be popular, but couples are getting braver and bolder in their colour choices – fun is the name of the game. Monochromatic bouquets always look beautiful; imagine a colour scheme focusing on reds with different tints and tones. Alternatively, a bouquet of polychromatic flowers with lots of varieties of blooms and textures with grasses and foliage will create the perfect pieces. Sustainability is very much high on our agenda. As a florist, I'm trying to educate my couples by suggesting biodegradable floral foam alternatives, such as using moss soaked in water and chicken wire as the base for floral arrangements. You can also repurpose arrangements from the ceremony to the reception to get total value for jaw-dropping designs. I suggest reusing and recycling the plastic dishes, trays, and glass vases as well as using the moss or wire for garden projects or even returning the items to be used at other weddings – every little bit we do helps!

FAQs and expert advice about flowers & bouquets