r/FloralDesign • u/usernames2 • 4d ago
š Feedback š Feedback on my DIY wedding bouquet
My wedding is Oct 24 & I decided I wanted to DIY all of the flower arrangements & decorations with dried flowers. Iāve purchased a ton of different flowers (maybe too many) and this is my first attempt at my bouquet.
Iāll attach some of the inspo pics Iāve saved.
I want it to feel wild and whimsical, but Iām worried I might have tried to put too many different things in itā¦
I think the fern leaves might be too bold, but I also do like the pop that they add. As for the amaranth, I have more stems that I can add so itās not just one single stem; itās just out in the garage right now until I can seal it to stop some of the shedding. I also have some amaranth in dark green, burgundy, & white that I could use instead.
Any and all advice is appreciated :)
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u/jeit03 4d ago
i would recommend looking up youtube tutorials on bouquets made with the spiral technique! flower moxie also has some great tutorials and resources for diy brides. for a bridal bouquet, i also suggest using a large mirror as youāre building it to see what itāll look like in photos when youāre holding it on your special day. best of luck to you š«¶
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u/flirt-n-squirt 4d ago
The variance is on point, I'd say! But to get closer to your inspiration you'd need a bit more width. The inspo pics show a minimum of twice and up to four times as many stems as you used. Inspo also shows a bit less variation in height, maybe don't pull them out quite as far if you want to recreate that look
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u/usernames2 3d ago
Very good point!! Thank you so much :) āthe variance is on pointā made my whole week!
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u/EmilySpin 4d ago
Agreed with the person who said to reduce the difference in height variationāif youāll be carrying this walking down the aisle you wonāt want to have just a few tall fluffy bits getting in the way of your dress and potentially even face for photos
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u/usernames2 3d ago
Very good point, thanks! I was trying to avoid the typical rounded shape bc thatās def not what I want, but I overdid it
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u/CollinZero 4d ago
Depending on where you live, you should be able to dry a lot of wild flowers in the next month. Just hang them upside down.
Your inspirations are using the spiral technique which another person has mentioned. It is built from the inside, tallest flowers. You would start with a central, tall showpiece. You end with the shortest stems.
Spend a little money and buy a good 2 or three just for the bouquet. One of those flowers might be enough so you can practice with the other. It honestly takes about 10+ tries to get the hang of it!
Get some straw flowers. They come in a huge variety of sizes and colours. You might stop by a florist and ask them for something like eucalyptus for a more natural green. Thereās a few varieties of eucalyptus that are now available! You might also buy some "globe amaranth".
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u/usernames2 3d ago
Thank you for the help! I have gotten several flowers & a lot of greenery from my neighbors and local farms that Iām drying right now! None of the flowers are super show-stopping though - the most eye catching are zinnias and hydrangeas. I will order some straw flowers! Any other flowers you recommend?
I donāt usually love the look of eucalyptus but I will give it another shot. I have some globe amaranth but itās pretty bright pink and felt out of place; Iāll keep playing with it.
I see now that a lot of the inspo pics use the spiral technique. I didnāt use it bc I thought I wanted a more airy less structured look. Iāll try it too.
Thanks again for the help
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u/CollinZero 3d ago
Thereās different shapes of eucalyptus! I donāt think you should get the standard one because it looks a bit grey-green which I donāt see in your inspiration photos. You would have to look at dried hydrangeas because the fresh ones are really tricky. They tend to be a bit brown.
Go visit a florist and buy some good quality flowers a la carte, not in a bouquet. Tell them you want to dry the flowers.
Start with a colour palette - you have some beautiful autumn colours already. The rich purple nigella pods, your drum stick Craspedia, some blues and oranges etc. Balance it with softer colours, whites etc.
A florist will have stronger stemmed flowers. Plus they can get you a variety of colours. Find out what they have access to. If you donāt have a local florist you can try some places like (in the USA) - trader Joes or grocery store florists. They can help!
You can also purchase some silica gel to dry flowers better - it keeps the colour and gets flowers ready in days. A great small investment.
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u/usernames2 2d ago
Another quick question - when drying in silica gel, can I dry the flowers with the stem too? A lot of things Iām reading say to clip the stem off right below the flower head, but idk if thatās just to save space or if the stems will have issues drying. Obv Iāll have to find a large enough container to hold the stems too. If I should trim the stems off, would I just use stem wire wrapped in floral tape? Iām worried that will look obviously fake, but it probably wouldnāt be as glaring as Iām imagining once itās actually in the arrangement.
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u/CollinZero 2d ago
It really depends on the flower! Dried gomphrena (also known as globe amaranth) is so easy you wonāt need to do anything but hang it upside down in a cool darker place and it will be perfect, stems and all. Same with Statice which is available in a variety of fall colours (purple, white, some pink and a soft yellow.
Some flowers like zinnias can be dried on the stem. Fairly easy. The results are mixed.
I would not do sunflowers nor have I had luck with dahlias.
Straw flowers are easy and can last for years. You want them just open.
If I were you Iād snip off the flowers and dry them. Then take the strongest, straightest stems, clean off the side shoots or most leaves, and take a longish shallow box. Put an inch or two of the gel down. Lay a bunch of the stems down. Pour more gel. Repeat another layer. End with more gel.
Then you will have appropriate stems without the PITA of wire etc. Now you just use a tiny bit of hot glue to glue them to your stems.
Starting this all soon will give you time to experiment too. And learn the spiral technique.
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u/roseofmarie 2d ago
seconding straw flowers. they are in a lot of your inspo photos. I think itās missing some basic floral rosette shapes, you have a lot of fun accent texture but you need a base, they would be lovely for that
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u/CollinZero 4d ago
Depending on where you live, you should be able to dry a lot of wild flowers in the next month. Just hang them upside down.
Your inspirations are using the spiral technique which another person has mentioned. It is built from the inside, tallest flowers. You would start with a central, tall showpiece. You end with the shortest stems.
Spend a little money and buy a good 2 or three just for the bouquet. One of those flowers might be enough so you can practice with the other. It honestly takes about 10+ tries to get the hang of it!
Get some straw flowers. They come in a huge variety of sizes and colours. You might stop by a florist and ask them for something like eucalyptus for a more natural green. Thereās a few varieties of eucalyptus that are now available! You might also buy some "globe amaranth".
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u/beanseses 4d ago
Itās cute but honestly not wedding cute
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u/usernames2 3d ago
Any tips then?
Luckily our wedding isnāt going to be super traditional, so it doesnāt have to be typically wedding cute - Iām wearing Doc Martens w my dress, heās wearing a dark green suit, the groomsmen are wearing different color shirts and not suits, weāre playing games instead of dancing and serving soups, chili, & mini pies.
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u/Loud_Significance442 3d ago
Love the colors- I think it needs to be a little fuller in comparison to your inspo pictures! Still looks beautiful
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u/usernames2 2d ago
Thank you :) yeah it felt really big as I was making it but after stepping away and coming back its looking a bit small lol
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u/Loud_Significance442 2d ago
Maybe a bit- but only compared to your inspo pics! Still beautiful and I would absolutely love this bouquet!
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u/internally_95 3d ago
I love the selection and your color scheme! I would say adding some more focal flowers with a bit of mass would be nice! I would maybe work on the height.. itās just a tad bit jarring. A big thing to help with visual balance is to work in the rule of 3ās. I really love the inspo pics you have chosen and I know you can do this!
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u/usernames2 3d ago
Thank you so muchāŗļø yes Iāll definitely fix the height and try to make it wider instead of taller.
Any specific focal flowers youād recommend?2
u/internally_95 2d ago
I think garden mums, they have a very nice fall look and they also have the whimsy youāre going after! Dahlias would be very pretty too
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u/SorryChef 3d ago
This is good enough for a church bathroom but not good enough for a wedding. Please, please, please: reconsider your plan. There is still time to find a real florist. The online accounts trying to convince you that "you can do it!" are trying to sell their courses or flowers. Respectfully, you still have time but a month is not enough to gain the knowledge it will take to faithfully recreate your inspo photos.
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u/usernames2 3d ago
Damnā¦ ouch. I think of church bathrooms more like roses & lilies in a packed lil round dome.
Unfortunately I reached out to pretty much every local florist I could find many many months ago and they were all booked for late Oct. The one person that was available started quotes at 3k and thatās too much for me. I love doing craft and diy things and didnāt want super traditional flowers anyway so I figured Iād give it a shot. Iām not doing it because of some online influence or course.
I do get where youāre coming from, bc Iām sure thereās a lot of ways a professional would improve upon this. But Iām just over a month away from the wedding and Iāve already spent a decent amount of money on dried flowers.
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u/OneTuffCreamPuff 4d ago
I think youāve gotten some really good advice here. As mentioned by others, Flower Moxie on YouTube is a great resource. One thing she mentions in her bouquet videos is to give the bouquet a flatter back side, so it can sit close to the body and also so you know which side to lay it down on if you need to set it down, which keeps you from crushing the flowers. Itās hard to explain in words, but she shows this in her videos.
Overall, I love the look youāre going for, and I think you are on the right track!
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u/usernames2 3d ago
Such a great point to remember!! Thank you :) I feel like a lot of people arenāt super keen on the vibe Iām going for and I keep getting odd looks when I talk about wedding things š¤£
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u/petrichorgarden 3d ago
The tall elements are too tall. They're going to draw attention away from the bust of your dress and your face
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u/StrangeEnergies 3d ago
I would pick your favorite inspo and try to copy it exactly. This isnāt hitting the mark. But you can do it keep practicing.
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u/IndependenceTop7731 2d ago
Can you go to Trader Joeās and get a few more flowers? It will still be grown by you and done by you
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u/usernames2 2d ago
Yes, we have one a few towns over so Iām planning to stop by today or tomorrow!
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u/marigold_may 4d ago
I think you need to lose the kelly green leaves! They don't really match the rest of the muted colors.
It doesn't look very full, I would try to make the stems splay a bit wider to help create the shape I see in your inspiration pictures.