It’s Spring and wedding season is upon us. The green grass, the blooming flowers, and blossoming trees and a great symbol for the beginning of a new relationship, so flowers are a natural part of the ceremony. There are, however, some downsides to using live flowers as part of your wedding ceremony that include:
- Cost – Probably the single biggest factor of natural flowers it their cost. Yes, you can go simple with single stems, but the cost of bouquets, boutonniere, pew/aisle decorations, and alter arrangements can hit a budget pretty hard. Not to mention any additional arrangements that you add to the reception.
- Selection – Depending on when you are getting married, your choice of flowers/plants might be limited to those that are in bloom at that particular time of year. There might be options for special orders of plants that are blooming in other regions, but doing so only adds to the cost.
- Longevity – Once your ceremony is over, often so are the flowers. There are services that allow you to preserve very special arrangements like the bridal bouquet or the grooms boutonniere, but beyond that, the flowers often end up in the trash.
To offset these three challenges, some couples are opting to consider artificial flowers and plants as part of their wedding mix. The advancements in the creation process of artificial flowers and plants has led to the creation of products that are nearly indistinguishable from live plants. The benefits of artificial plants and flowers over their live counterparts include:
- Selection – Because artificial flowers and plants never go out-of-season, they are always available in a wide selection of options. Want calla lilies during the Winter? No problem!
- Longevity – Imagine having daily reminders of your wedding ceremony even after the wedding is over. Should you choose to use artificial plants and flowers in your wedding, you can re-use them in the decoration of your home and be reminded of your joyous day with arrangements throughout your home.
- Cost – I list cost last because high-quality artificial plants are not inexpensive. Since your wedding is a major event in your life, make sure you purchase artificial flowers that look like the real thing. This means high-quality silk flowers from a retailer who specializes in artificial flowers, not cheap plastic ones from your local hobby store. Remember, the cost can be offset by the fact that you aren’t going to through these flowers in the trash, but rather use them to decorate your home for years to come.
To give you some inspiration for possible options, take a look at this great wedding flower pinboard and think about how you might be able to replace some of these options with artificial flowers and plants.
Have you used artificial plants and flowers in your wedding? I’d LOVE to see some examples of how you creatively incorporated them into your ceremony.