Selecting seasonal wedding flowers
At Golborne we see our role as luxury wedding planners as advisors, guiders and that calm, wise word in a whirlwind of decision making. Weddings are a busy time for most people. All of a sudden a hundred decisions need to be made, often many charged with emotion. For most couples it is also the largest spend you’ll make, other than a house. Therefore, these decisions really are very important. We see our role, as wedding planner, as one of honour. We are brought into a family, get to know a couple and everything they love (and dislike!) and we design with them, their most special day. Aside from the fun, we work closely with our couples to design days that work for their budgets and achieve maximum impact. In addition, we know what works, what people will notice and how to create the ‘wow’ moment.
Our suppliers are our little black book, our extended team of designers, inventors and creators. We therefore look to them to provide us with additional expertise and together we create perfect moments. At weddings, flowers are so important. We love the difference they make, how they can change the feel of a venue and create a style simply by being there. We also enjoy that you can weave this look through your day, starting with your buttonholes, the arrival of the bouquets and the grandeur of the table displays.
WILDWOOD LONDON
We talk to Charlotte at Wildwood London, a fellow supplier at the wedding venue we manage, Amber Lakes, about some of her favourite floral moments over the last year. Charlotte started Wild Wood London in 2014 and loves to create luxurious designs with a slightly whimsical wild element. She often guides her clients on the availability of flowers and adores watching the seasons change and her favourite flowers reappearing during the year.
SPRING: A COUNTRY GARDEN IN BLOOM
We created this spring bridal bouquet for our bride Bevin. It consisted of rananculus, astrantia, avalanche roses, sweetpeas, lily of the valley, green bell thlaspi. We finished the bouquet with beautiful grosgrain ribbon from VV Rouleaux. The sweetpeas and lily of the valley created the most gorgeous aroma. Furthermore, the bouquet felt romantic and structured with a wild thread but a soft twist.
SUMMER: A TOUCH OF DETAIL
I absolutely adore peonies and they start to become available at the end of April. At the start of the season they are super expensive. The price falls slightly in June but they are still a premium wedding flower. They are available until July. Our Wild Wood bride Olivia requested muted tones for her bridal bouquet which consisted of peonies, champagne roses, pale blue delphiniums and astrantia. The bouquet was finished with twine to complement the rustic feel of Olivia’s chosen reception venue Petersham Nurseries. The peonies added a touch of drama and complimented the details in Olivia’s dress whilst the delphiniums added her ‘something blue’.
SUMMER: A SPLASH OF COLOUR
Colourful wedding flowers have been proving popular in recent years. Our Wild Wood Bride Aimee’s reception venue was held at the beautiful Chelsea Psychic Garden. Aimee wanted the flowers to enhance and complement the garden. Therefore the bridal bouquet and centrepieces included Delphiniums, peonies, roses, sweetpeas, viburnum, aconitum and whiteleaf foliage. The hit of colour worked wonderfully against the white of the marquee and her dress.
AUTUMN: RICH HUES IN SOMERSET
Café Au lait dahlias certainly have the wow factor and are huge in size compared to standard dahlias or even an average sized rose, as seen in this image. The dahlias are very delicate and have to be handled with great care. Dahlias are available from May through to October. Autumnal flowers and foliage colours are such a great colour combination. Also used in this design are spray roses, amaranthus, waxed apples, autumnal hydrangeas, beech and quercus. We loved working the warm, rich tones of autumn through these displays capturing that moment of the season much adored.
WINTER:
Roses are available throughout the year and there are so many wonderful varieties. For our Wild Wood bride Kate’s bridal bouquet we used Norma Jeane, Vendela and O’hara roses. The grey foliage is called kochia and we mixed this with eucalyptus which was slightly tinted in colour. I am not usually a fan of dyed flowers or foliage but I liked the subtle tones of the eucalyptus. For the centrepieces we used Colombian hydrangeas. Dutch hydrangeas are only available May- November. Colombian hydrangeas are available all year round in white, pale blue and pale pink. Alongside the hydrangeas are avalanche roses and corylus (they have a twig-like appearance) and a larger leafed eucalyptus foliage. These formal displays worked well within the grandeur of the building and the colours followed the cool tones of the season however due to the warm grey and pink, didn’t feel cold.
CHRISTMAS:
Magnolia is also a beautiful winter foliage. We used magnolia on this grand staircase at Christmas. The garlands consisted of magnolia, cones, eucalyptus and pine. Just by looking at the pictures, you can almost smell how amazing they were!
We'd love to speak to you about your wedding flowers so please do get in touch with our wedding planning team on 0207 228 6933.
