I walked by the magazine aisle this week and I noticed that there was yet another edition of Martha Stewart Weddings and it reminded me all over again of the love/hate sentiment I have with Martha Stewart.

You might wonder why the strong feeling considering I have been buying her magazines since the beginning (when I thought the ideas were truly elegant and timeless) and when they were published only twice a year as opposed to the quarterly and special edition issues that are available now.

Martha Stewart has become synonymous with personal, pretty and visually memorable weddings.  She (or rather her stylists) can make an all white wedding look ethereal and a fall wedding feel earthy and soulful.

But from the perspective of a florist, her ideas have become the source of more “Sorry, that flower is not readily available commercially or that table design just the way it looks is $1000 dollars” than any other place that I know.

Whether it’s lily of the valley in a rare shade of pink, or table setting designed from top to bottom with chivari chairs, silk organza linens, napkins and antique porcelain vessels holding the loveliest and most delicate of garden grown blooms, it’s generally a lot of having to break bad news and then go about the work of coming up with great substitutes.

Her magazine is a great source of inspiration and her approach to weddings  has changed forever how everyone looks at weddings. Not just as something to be enjoyed in the moment, but to be able to look back in time and feel that it was the most beautiful and personal of all days. 

Not bad for the work of one person and something  I with my weddings always strive to accomplish.

In this day and age, wearing and carrying flowers is not common and is reserved for special occasions like high school formals and weddings.  As such, when it comes time to decide what is most appropriate or best, it is not always straightforward.

Because of this I find that one of the things I go over most often is explaining the difference between a corsage and a boutonniere.

So by definition a corsage is a floral bouquet (multi blooms) that is worn by a female.  It is most common pinned or on the wrist. There are also novel or unconventional places to wear a corsage such as on the waist, shoe or on the shoulder.

The placement of the corsage and the type of design can be as simple as having it be in keeping with the overall colours of the wedding or can be specially chosen and designed for the wearer of the corsage.

Modern Yet Classic Chartreuse Green Orchid Corsage With Kiwi Chiffon Ribbon To Complement

This year seems to be the year of the large wedding parties!

It is not uncommon to see 6 or 7 attendants and naturally with more bridesmaids comes more bridesmaids’ bouquets. It is one of possibly a few gifts that will be presented to the friends who will witness and support the bride on her day.

Unlike days past, when the bridemaid’s bouquet simply looked like an exact replica of the bridal bouquet but smaller,  the modern bridesmaid’s bouquet can have many inspirations:

1. The bridal bouquet - Instead of looking just like it, it can be slightly varied in colour (lighter or darker) to the bride’s flowers.

2. The bridesmaid’s dress - the choice of flowers and colours can be reflective of the style and shade of the dress.

3. The wedding theme - The monogram theme still continues to be popular and one way customize the bridesmaid’s bouquet is to attach a letter pendant to each one so that she would feel like that bouquet was just for her!

Elegant Bridesmaids' Bouquets Personalized With Glittery Initial Accents

A new year always brings with it thoughts of starting again or beginning fresh.

When it comes to wedding flowers, the discussion almost always begins with the bridal bouquet.

While this is not always the case, it can be the design to inspire all the other choices of colours and flowers since it is the most important and most personal design to be carried and photographed on the wedding day.

The style and shape of choice for the moment is still the hand-tied look.

Created and tied with the stems of the flower, it is the most natural of all bouquets because the technique considers the shape of the flower which isn’t always round. A rose hand-tie will come out more round and a calla hand-tie will come out more long.

Whether you are wanting a bouquet that appears rustic and hand-picked or a clean formal look, a hand-tied bouquet is lovely choice.

An added bonus is that unlike other types of shapes, the stems of the flowers can take water directly for a vase which means a longer and fresher life for your wedding flowers.

Hand-tied bouquet of callas and roses