flower girl baskets

Flower Girl: Age-Old Wedding Tradition

Ah, weddings! I just love it when some friend of mine asks for my help with the decoration. What’s not to love about weddings anyway? I’m no wedding planner but when a friend asks, I can’t resist; They’re the happiest days in the lives of many, not just the bride and groom, days that we all like to look back upon and think about the lovely memories.

Of course, the décor though secondary to the appearance of the bride and groom is still an important part of these memories and I try to invest my whole energy in creating something worthy of being memorable. Yet when it comes to importance, it would be incomplete to arrange the décor to the tiniest of detail if I am to forget to give the flower girls the attention they deserve.

flower-girls-with-flower-baskets

Centuries Old Tradition

They’re really cute, all dolled up in dresses, carrying the flower girl baskets and when not for the bride all eyes are on them but that’s not why they are such an essential part of the ceremony: as tradition shows, it all started back in ancient Rome when girls were made main participants in weddings so as to help the bride with fertility, bring luck to her with offspring.

In other words, the role was and still is to bless the couple to form a family and welcome a new family member. Also, the fact they’re dressed in white, resembling the wedding gown, shows they have a role in representing the bride too, or rather the bride’s innocence that she leaves behind as she marries and turns into a mature woman.

Though a great deal has changed since the early days of this tradition regarding what the flower girls were carrying, from wheat and garlic, to the variety of flowers today, the importance of the girls remains the same, despite the recent addition of pets taking the role over.

cute portrait bride flower girl florida wedding photographer

In this recent wedding I was in charge of, I had little to do with the girl’s dress but the choices of the flowers along with the flower girl baskets were all mine. Though there are many options to choose from, it was easy to make the decision because the bride was crazy about lavender and eco-friendliness, after having adopted a more sustainable lifestyle with her husband-to-be, so I knew it had to be hessian jute baskets.

They were the perfect match for the rustic themed wedding, and the white lace surrounding the top certainly added a delicate touch that was an ideal combination for the wonderful scent of the lavender. This choice is also a great alternative when you still want to keep the tradition of flower girl baskets but without the petals, knowing some venues don’t like the thought of cleaning up petals afterwards.

While some might opt to leave out the baskets altogether, I decided I had to include them because after all they’re part of the tradition, the bride and groom enjoy tradition, and choosing this eye-catching design sure makes for plenty of repurposing ideas: they can use them at anniversaries, birthday parties, or even as décor elements at home, covering up unsightly plant pots or adding a touch of sophistication to cutlery or pencil holders without getting that obvious wedding vibe because they’re hessian jute – the possibilities are endless.

flower girl baskets

The Basket Alternatives

If by any chance you decide not to include the flower girl baskets in the ceremony, once you’ve done the math on how much do wedding flowers cost that you don’t want this additional flower expense or aren’t sure how to arrange flowers in a basket and the idea puts you off, you can easily break away from tradition given there are many alternatives to go for.

Some of the popular options that are sure to give the “flower girl” a princess feeling are wands with lots of ribbons on them or go for actual wands if you want something simpler. They’re also great when you’ve got little girls who are finding the task of tossing out petals along the bridal path too challenging.

Likewise, you can always make things sweeter bringing in the charms of candy, lots of candy, that guests are even likely to pick up. You can make it even more colourful making up a little bouquet of lollipops!

Don’t be surprised if the bouquet doesn’t make it to the end of the path, though… Now, bouquets aside, you can opt for something more modern like flags with cute messages, or light it up with lanterns. You have the chance to also “light it up” by using balloons, knowing how kids love them and you’d easily get an atmosphere full of giggles.

Flower-girls

Prepare the Girl

Depending on the age of the girl, the task can easily go from fun to overwhelming, especially in the case with toddlers who might not be up to the idea of seeing so many faces all looking straight at them. It’s best to give them a chance to rehearse with the flower baskets or whichever alternative you go for, showing them how and where to walk, what to do, and letting them see some familiar faces before the event to count on success.

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