Here at Lindsay Rae Design, brides in search of floral design advice often ask: should the bride and bridesmaids have matching bouquets?
Some of the most exquisite weddings I’ve done, from a Prospect Park Boathouse wedding to a Bowery Hotel wedding, have used flowers as a commonality between a bride and her bridesmaids. I’m always looking for bouquets to help the audience connect the dots subtly, instead of yelling, “THIS IS THE THEME.”
Let the viewers discover their own favorite parts of the bouquets, like they’re looking at a piece of abstract art. Is it upside down? Maybe! That is up to you, dear viewer. (Ok, maybe not that extreme, but hopefully you get the point: the beauty will be in the eye of the beholder.)
Imagine your bridal party standing in a row at the front of the room on your wedding day. The bouquets are going to bring them together, within your greater wedding vision. There should be some cohesiveness in the bouquets, but you should also let your creativity shine through too.
In this article, I want to provide you with some inspiration and hopefully help you decide if marching bouquets is right for your wedding party. (Of course, I’m always happy to talk bouquet inspiration over the phone too.)
Should the bridal bouquet inspire the bridal party bouquets?
Let’s start with the star of the day: the bride. It’s important for the bride to stand out, no doubt. She/You will be the center of attention from sun up to sun down, and the focal point of the audience.
You should start by designing your bouquet first. How do you want to stand out?
You could go for an interesting shape, and design a natural overflowing bouquet, like holding a garden in your hand.
You could choose color, and design a modest sized bouquet with fireworks like colors.
Whether you want blooms that are large in size, or blooms that are large in color, you should add those to the bride’s bouquet first. This way the bouquet matches the luxury of the bride’s attire.
Once you’ve designed a bouquet that you like, you want to identify two to three bouquet components that can inspire the bridesmaids’ bouquets. When working with brides, I like to go through a list of descriptors and see if one stands out.
Bridal Party Bouquets - Shape
For example, you might have opted for a large bridal bouquet, something with a natural shape and cascading greenery. We could focus in on some of that cascading greenery to build a bridal party bouquet that feels ‘wild’ without overpowering the bride’s bouquet.
Bridal Party Bouquets - Color
On the other hand, if the bridal bouquet contains the boldest blooms, then perhaps there’s a way to incorporate that color with a smaller bloom. Save the Chocolate Dahlias for the bridal bouquet and use Cotinus foliage in the bridesmaids bouquets to carry your theme through in a complementary way.
Should the bridal party bouquets complement the bride’s color palette?
Don’t abandon your color palette when thinking about bouquets! Bridal party bouquets can be customized to complement your desired colors without perfectly matching your bouquet, their dresses, or your decor.
For example, if you plan to have your bridal party in neutral dresses, then incorporate your color palette into the bridal party bouquets. We can do this in a way that buoys the design of the bride’s bouquet - like we did for Sadie’s wedding below.
If you have bridesmaids wearing a lot of colors—perhaps even completely different dresses—then let their dresses be the statement, and make their bouquets more neutral. I’m not saying don’t have any blooms in their bouquets at all, but use the bouquet to anchor the look, not complicate it.
So - should the bride and bridesmaids bouquets be the same? I believe that we can work to make your vision come to life.
The bride and bridesmaids bouquets should accentuate your wedding’s color palette and complement your dress as well as the bridesmaids dresses. We'll use color and shape to anchor the bridesmaid style, and give them something beautiful to hold during the ceremony.
Cohesiveness and creativity are my words for you. Give your floral designer plenty of ideas to work with and trust your own judgement on the final design. Your bouquets should look amazing, but not outshine you.
Ready to talk bouquets?
I’d love to hear your ideas.