Wedding Flower Traditions
Just as they are for your Lake George or Saratoga Springs wedding, flowers have
been a part of marriage ceremonies since at least Roman times, when both the
bride and groom wore floral garlands.
- During Elizabethan times the bride's friends
would give her groom sprigs of rosemary that symbolized
faithfulness, to ensure future happiness for the bride.
Some brides carried sprigs of rosemary tied with silver
lace, which symbolized constancy and firmness. This led
to the custom of guests dipping a sprig of rosemary into
their wine before drinking.
- Victorian bridal posies traditionally included myrtle, a token
of love, and the popular shower bouquets of the late
nineteenth century usually contained orange blossom,
a symbol of chastity.
- Victorian brides would plant the cuttings
of rosemary from their bouquets into their new gardens,
to supply the bridal bouquets of their own daughters
in years to come.
- Centuries ago, bridesmaids planted myrtle bushes at the
couple's new home, to ensure the couple happiness. It was also believed
that the bridesmaids would soon marry if the bushes took root. Even royalty took part in this tradition; the myrtle
that was in Princess Anne's bridal bouquet in 1973
was planted from Queen Victoria's bouquet in 1840.
Flowers have held secret
meanings ever since Greek mythology. The Ancient Greeks
first developed 'The Language of Flowers'. It caught
the attention of the Victorians in 1820, when the Language
of Flowers was published, allowing lovers to communicate
by exchanging flowers. Some flowers carry several (sometimes
conflicting) meanings,
while others have no hidden messages at all (perhaps
because the flowers have only become popular recently).
Each flower also possessed a different meaning when
placed at different parts of the body such as in the
hair, cleavage or over the heart. It was popular during
the Victorian period for the bride to spell out a word
through her choice of bouquet
flowers, for example lilies, orange blossom, violets
and euphorbia.
Another tradition is that of the bachelor's button
flower. A single man would pick the flower early in the morning
while the dew was still on the ground, and then put
it in his pocket for twenty-four hours. He would be
happy in marriage if the flower were still 'true blue'
the following morning. The flower rarely kept its true-blue color
so many men remained single!
It is also traditional to tie love knots in the ribbons of
the bride's
bouquet, which not only represent the new union and best wishes,
but are also thought to bring good fortune. The tradition
for the bride to throw her bouquet is also an old one.
The bride throws the bouquet backwards and over her
shoulder towards the guests when she leaves for her
honeymoon. The lady who catches it is supposed to be
the next one to be married. Upon catching the bride's
bouquet, a bridesmaid can increase her chances of being
the next one to be married by making a wish as she
unties one of the ribbons in the bouquet.
Call Meme’s Florist at 1-866-243-6862 today for more
information on Lake George - Clifton Park - Saratoga
Springs weddings,
or simply submit our online
Wedding Consultation form!
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