Wedding Flower Preservation
How to Preserve Yours
Wedding Flower Preservation: Beautiful Ways to Enjoy your Wedding Flowers
From village churches to grand cathedrals and local registry offices, fresh flowers have long been woven into the story of weddings. Wedding flowers are far more than just decoration. They express meaning, emotion and personal style. In this blog, we discuss how to enjoy your beautiful wedding flowers for longer through preservation. But first, let’s explore why bouquets and florals are part of our wedding-day traditions.
Wedding Flowers: A Potted History
The tradition of carrying flowers at weddings dates back to ancient times. Flowers represented fertility, loyalty and new beginnings. During the Middle Ages, brides carried posies of strong-smelling herbs and flowers to ward off evil spirits and disguise the less-than-fragrant surroundings. Not especially romantic, but certainly very practical!
The Victorians transformed flowers into the romantic wedding tradition we know today. Fascinated by the “language of flowers”, they believed each flower carried secret meaning. Prince Albert gifted Queen Victoria an orange blossom brooch symbolising eternal love during their courtship. When Victoria wore a bridal crown of real orange blossom and carried a delicate posy of flowers, she inspired the modern bridal florals we love today. Years later, Queen Elizabeth laid her bridal flowers on the tomb of the unknown soldier, signifying the symbolism of a wedding bouquet.
Wedding Flower Traditions
In years gone by, brides tossed bouquets before ‘going away’, believing whoever caught one would be the next to marry. According to folklore, bouquet tossing distracted enthusiastic guests who believed that touching the bride or tearing off a piece of her dress was good luck. Thankfully, wedding guests are generally a little less excitable these days!
The flowers provided by the in-house florist were perfect
Modern Wedding Florals
Fast forward to today, and choosing a bouquet is often one of the most personal decisions you make when planning a wedding. The colour and style of flowers can reflect your personality more than almost any other detail, aside from your outfit. Sometimes wedding flowers hold deeper meaning, reminding you of a loved one or a precious memory.
With so much emotion in your flowers, seeing your bouquet can be overwhelming and even bring happy tears!
Wedding florals are a big investment, and sadly, their beauty soon fades. To enjoy them longer, many couples choose wedding flower preservation, turning them into keepsakes to treasure long after their wedding day.
Pressed Floral Artwork
One of the most popular options is transforming your bouquet into framed floral art. Specialist floral preservation artists press petals, flowers and foliage before arranging them into framed designs. The result is a one-of-a-kind piece of artwork. You can also try pressing flowers yourself using a traditional wooden flower press. You can also use delicate pressed flowers to create personalised cards or bookmarks for lovely ‘thank you’ gifts.
Resin Wedding Flower Preservation
Some companies preserve flowers inside clear resin, creating ornaments and keepsakes in shapes such as hearts, letters or decorative blocks. The flowers are suspended inside the resin, preserving their original colour and shape.
Cote How was so beautiful, the flowers were perfect...
Bespoke Floral Jewellery
Jewellers can incorporate tiny pressed flowers or petals into jewellery, including pendants, lockets, and earrings. These delicate pieces make lovely heirlooms and let you carry a small reminder of your wedding day with you.
Wedding Flower Ceramics
This beautiful artisan craft involves pressing flowers and greenery into clay to create textured botanical impressions. Once fired, the finished plaque is a bespoke piece of wall art inspired by your bouquet. Consider it if you want to invest a little more in preserving the beauty of the flower or stem’s shape and form.
They truly understand the meaning of the perfect pink bouquet!
DIY Wedding Flower Projects
If you enjoy creative projects or are looking for a budget-friendly option, you can dry your flowers at home. Hang bouquets upside down in a cool, dry, well-ventilated room for several weeks.
Silica gel, available online or in craft shops, is another popular method. It draws moisture from the flowers while helping petals keep more of their shape and colour.
DIY wedding flower preservation requires patience and perseverance, but it’s very satisfying if you enjoy crafting.
For more ambitious home projects, you can use flower stems and greenery in gel printing to create intricate details for layering or scrapbooking. The possibilities are endless!
Wedding Flower Preserving - Expert Advice
A few practical tips can make all the difference if you’re planning to preserve your wedding flowers:
- Keep your bouquet in water as much as possible during your wedding day and afterwards. Hydrated flowers retain their colour and shape better.
- Most preservation specialists ask to receive your bouquet within a few days — ideally within a week at the latest.
- Drying and preservation processes take time. Removing moisture from flowers can take weeks or months, so be patient.
- Recommendations from suppliers (florist, venue, photographer) are often invaluable, as are reviews from other couples.
Research suppliers well in advance, particularly if your bouquet needs to be sent away whilst still fresh.
To Have & To Hold...
Your wedding flowers may only last a few days in their fresh form, but the memories attached to them can last a lifetime. Preserving a small part of your wedding flowers is a lovely way to hold onto your wedding day after the confetti has settled.
Thank you to our wonderful photographers for sharing their beautiful images. Thanks also to our in-house florist, Lilyou’s of Ambleside, for creating gorgeous flowers for our couples. Flowers are included in many of our wedding styles. Find out more about the different packages here.
If you’d like to know more about getting married in the Lake District, contact Westmorland Registry Office for information.
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