Say 'I love you' with roses; split with carnations
- posted: 13 Mar. 2008
- scrollspecial@byui.edu
“Every flower has a meaning, Charles,” the character Leopold explained when his friend tried to buy a bouquet of flowers in the movie Kate and Leopold.
For a wedding, the bride might not want to pick flowers that symbolize hatred or distrust. Brides might also want to be aware that some flower colors symbolize unwanted meanings as well.
The rose, one of the most popular flowers, can have different meanings based on its color. A white rose symbolizes eternal love, while a pink one represents perfect happiness, according to www.pioneerthinking.com/flowerlanguagel-z.html.
To declare love, a couple might choose red or yellow tulips, which symbolize “hopeless love,” for a bouquet.Colors of lilies can also have different meanings.
While orange lilies suggest hatred, calla lilies symbolize beauty and white lilies are symbolic of virginity and purity, according to www.pioneerthinking.com/flowerlanguagel-z.html.
Besides the meanings of the flowers, couples might also want to consider choosing flowers that are suitable for the season in which they are getting married.
If getting married in the spring, brides can choose from tulips, daffodils, cherry blossoms and sweet pea blossoms.
Summertime flowers include violets, daisies, snapdragons and dahlias, while sunflowers, hydrangea and chrysanthemum are more appropriate for fall, according to ezinearticles.com.
In the wintertime, amaryllis flowers and roses can be a good choice, according to ezinearticles.com. Other suggestions are to choose flowers native to the location of the wedding and to keep in mind that certain flowers might not be available in that area.
Crystal Lyman, a senior studying horticulture with an emphasis in floral design, suggested a few bouquet styles that are popular for 2008.
“The basic trend right now is a hand-tied, round bouquet. Some girls are using tall lilies, which makes it look really sleek. Some also enjoy satin icing, which is tying ribbons around the stems. Brighter colors are also popular, and pink or teal with brown is also becoming popular,” Lyman said.
Lyman said that it is a good idea to look at a color wheel to see which colors would look best together in a bouquet.
“Stick with complementary and monochromatic color schemes. For the most part, you can’t go wrong. It just depends on your perspective and the color wheel,” Lyman said.
Certain colors of carnations can signify “split-ups,” Lyman said, so there are few flowers to avoid for their meanings.
“Generally, people don’t have any idea what flowers mean. Most red flowers are about love and admiration, and most are just different ways to say, ‘I love you.’ It’s more about the colors and the flowers together,” Lyman said. 
