Wedding Flower Trends With Franzie’s Flower Design

We’re sure that most of us have an appreciation for all things floral; from the smell and look of your favourite blooms to their mood lifting ‘treat yourself’ appeal, it can certainly be said that flowers add a special touch to any home or workplace, not to mention their role in your wedding day! But how many of us can claim to be experts? Knowing what goes well together comes down to more than just colour.

Today, we’re featuring a special guest post by Franceska McCaughan, founder of Franzie’s Flower Design. Just one look at Franceska’s website tells us that this is a lady who has an eye for style and design, which is exactly what you should look for when selecting who is going to provide the flowers for your big day! Read on to learn about the different types of traditional flower designs, and to find out what’s trending…

Flowers. Flower Design. Florist. Floristry. Not everybody knows the exact meaning of these words. For example, what’s the difference between a florist and floral designer? Is floristry the same as floral installation? Many brides sometimes struggle finding that perfect someone, who lives in the magical land of flowers, to deliver and go above and beyond their wildest floral dreams and expectations. These people are called floral designers and they come with a lot of knowledge about, you guessed it, flowers, but most importantly, designing.

So how will you know if your flower designer is the right fit for you? Check them out and meet them! Of course you can always view their portfolio, but also remember not to judge a book by its cover. It’s equally important to make sure you two ‘click’ and that they understand your vision.

Many floral designers focus on three or four areas of expertise – traditional, contemporary, minimalist and/or romantic. With that being said, some designers are generalists and others are specialists, but both are equally qualified to handle your flowers for your big day. When you meet with your floral designer, let them know which of their designs you like and why, and share with them words, images and points of inspiration that communicate elements of your style.

Speaking of style, what’s the difference between a traditional design and what’s trending at the moment?

Traditional floral design is generally very structured with set definitions and rules that are observed and followed closely when designing. There are three classifications when it comes to traditional floral designs; these are Line, Line-mass and Mass flower arrangements.

Adopted from the Oriental line design, the line designs are linear in pattern and are simple and clean cut – think less is more.

Line-mass designs have the best qualities of the Oriental Line and Occidental Mass where additional flowers are used to enhance and strengthen the line. The strongest part of this design is through the center, where the balance and symmetry originate from. Key flowers are placed here to draw attention.

Lastly, the Mass Design uses the most flowers, has a closed silhouette and a symmetrical balance. Two types of style would be either loosely arranged or tightly organised, yet never crowded. But enough with all the lame terminology that no one really cares about…let’s look at some pretty photos instead! These bridal bouquets follow a more traditional Mass design, which is also known as ‘the ball’.

Now the exciting part; what is trending at the moment!? Something we like to call the “bohemian whimsy” or “Pinterest flowy”. We’ve all been exposed to it by now through Pinterest and Instagram. These flower arrangements are mostly comprised of what we in the industry call ‘filler flowers’. The whole arrangement is designed around the focal bloom, which is typically your best, largest and most showy flower. Next would be the queen flowers, followed by the disk flowers (or what I call the ‘queen’s squad’), finished off with the filler flowers and, who can forget, the ‘airy elements’. Since it’s March, let’s break it down with springtime flowers:

Focal Flowers: Peonies, Tulips and Ranunculus

Queen Flowers: Stock (my all time favorite), Snapdragons, Larkspur and Delphinium

Squad Flowers: Dianthus and Calendula, aka Marigold

Filler Flowers: Bells of Ireland, Bupleurum, Queen Anne’s Lace, Honeywort, Snowball Viburnum

Airy Elements: Bachelor Buttons aka cornflower, Orlaya, Chinese Forget-me-Nots and Agrostemma

The overall atheistic is really romantic and feminine, with multiple lines and lots of texture, sometimes with the use of succulents, fruit, unusual foliage and even soft silky ribbons. I’ve asked my good friend and fellow flower designer, Cristina, who is the Chief Creative Officer and owner of Posh Peony Event Design, to share her favorite bohemian whimsy look to date (photos below courtesy of her). Side note, any brides who happen to be in the Greater Los Angeles Area, be sure to reach out to her!

Ultimately the style of your flowers on your big day is important. If you have ever looked at an architectural magazine and put your thumb over the flowers in the picture, you will see that the space changes dramatically when you cannot see them. The same applies to your wedding flowers, as they ultimately create the ambiance that you and your guests will experience. So choosing which style you would like to see on your wedding day will ensure that the floral designer meets your expectations and will avoid you being disappointed. Regardless of whether the designer is a retail, studio or home-based designer, you need to find out if they take on more than one wedding at a time so that you know the level of focus and attention you can expect both leading up to and on your wedding day. Many studios do more than one wedding a day, and though there’s nothing wrong with that, just make sure that you know who will be involved on your day so that your expectations are aligned.

A little tip: the great thing about flowers is that it is ultimately almost impossible ‘to go wrong’. Choose your design, find your floral designer and then…breathe, relax and focus on getting married! I always tell my brides to have confidence with whom they’ve brought aboard their dream team and to trust in us to deliver the dream! 

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