Bashful, refined purity
Flowers : The Language of love
For centuries, flowers have been a way for men to show their love or at least amorous inclinations on Valentine’s day. But did you know that there is a lot more to flowers than just their beauty and fragrance? Each flower , green and sometimes even the color of the flower, was given a meaning in the Regency and Victorian eras of English society so that people could subtly tell each other how they felt. Yellow roses spoke of jealousy while white roses spoke of purity. Pink roses suggested the beginnings of love while red roses meant true love. Even the size of the roses meant something. Rose in bud form meant the beginning of a relationship or even ‘nice to make your acquaintance’ , while half blown (half open) roses meant that things were definitely beginning to heat up. Full blown roses signified that love was in full bloom and maybe even that an engagement was imminent.
But roses weren’t the only flowers that had meaning. Sometimes a mixed bouquet could say many things at all at once just by how the flowers and greenery were chosen. Some traditional meanings of typical wedding flowers are:
Alstromeria: Devotion
Carnation: Pure passionate love
Chysanthemum: Cheerfulness
Delphinium : Heaven
Ferns: Fascination
Freesia: Innocence
Gardenia: Joy
Ivy: Fidelity
Heather: Beauty ( also considered lucky in Ireland and Scotland)
Lilac: Youthful innocence
Lily: Sweetness, purity, splendor
Orchids: Refinement
Peony: Bashful
Ranunculus: Charm
Statice: Remembrance
Stephanotis: Happiness in Marriage
Sweet pea: Delicacy
As an example, a bouquet of roses, stephanotis, alstromeria and ivy would have the meaning of Devoted love, fidelity and a happy marriage. So when you sit down with one of our florists to design your bouquet, think about what it means as well as how you want it to look. It will give more dimension and meaning to your wedding and give you something to talk about for years to come.
