Blue Bridal Bouquets

Brides who choose blue wedding bouquets have, not surprisingly, a great affinity for flowers. After all, no matter what shade of blue a bride chooses, this hue will jump out against the pale white or ivory of a wedding gown. Depending on the flowers and shades your florist uses, blue can communicate a variety of moods: Crisp and proper navy, shocking electric blue, or ethereal cloud blue. Many flowers don’t sport the exact blue we seek in nature, but today’s realistic floral tints mean no flower is out of reach for those who desire blue blooms.

This floral designer gave a bride with an artistic yen something creative and lovely by thinking outside of the box with greenery. Lily grass dotted with hand-beaded stephanotis flowers add movement and whimsy to a blue and lavender bouquet featuring phalaenopsis orchids, blue hydrangea, lavender hydrangea, iris, and lavender roses.

Grape hyacinths and ranunculus flowers are all that are needed for this simple spring bridal bouquet. These blooms are in season in winter and spring, and would pair well with other seasonal flowers like tulips or carnations. Brides who wish a larger arrangement can trade standard hyacinths for the muscari, and peonies for the ranunculus.

The Arabian Star flower or Star of Bethlehem, Ornithogalum arabicum, adds white punctuation points to this tinted blue hydrangea bouquet. Although there are hydrangea varieties that are naturally blue, they have a very saturated sky blue color that would not work in this pastel bouquet. Using floral tints allows the designer to inject a soft cloud blue into the bouquet that wouldn’t overwhelm the arrangement.

Using Dutch irises incorporates yellow accents that make this spring bridal arrangement vibrant and cheerful. Purple tulips and fragrant blue hyacinths round out this flowering bulb bouquet.

This teardrop bouquet of dyed blue Singapore and white orchids would be appropriate for a beach wedding or a formal wedding. These hybrid dendrobium orchids have thick, waxy petals that make them very durable choice for outdoor weddings in sunny or windy conditions. A camellia leaf collar and crystal bead spray accent this dramatic arrangement.

With the range of blue flowers available, brides can have an all-blue bouquet with flowers in multiple shapes and textures. Possibilities for blue flowers include:

• Anemones
• Cornflowers
• Delphinium
• Hyacinths
• Hydrangeas
• Iris
• Orchids
• Veronica
• Tinted flowers, like roses, baby’s breath, carnations, and others

A bride can add a few stems of a nodding, bell-shaped flower, like bluebells or Canterbury bells, to a bunch of white roses for a simple, DIY bridal bouquet. These types of informal bouquets are perfect for casual backyard weddings or vintage-themed weddings.

When choosing your color palette for your wedding flowers, make sure you and your florist are on the same page about the shade of blue you desire. One person’s interpretation of “robin’s egg” blue might appear more like a washed out baby blue to another. It’s helpful to bring any fabric swatches from bridesmaid’s apparel you want to match, as blue hues can have green, gray, or red undertones that clash with other shades. If the natural blue blooming flowers that match your wedding colors aren’t in season, it may be best to go with tinted blue flowers.

Blue hydrangea, blue dendrobium orchids, and white roses are an icy counterpoint to summer's heat for a garden wedding. The wrap a bride chooses will be a major design factor, and will set the tone for the wedding theme: a large satin bow or pearl-studded ribbon says something different than an heirloom doily, handkerchief, or rustic piece of burlap. 

Blue flowers can be affordable with always-in-season florist mums tinted to match the bride's blue palette. Pricier white roses are used sparingly as an accent, and an inexpensive filler flower like white limonium adds texture and interest. For even cheaper blooms, substitute easy-to-grow bachelor's buttons. 

The formal Biedermeier bouquet looks stunning rendered in blue. Update the traditional Biedermeier bouquet with an ombre theme by having the florist arrange concentric rings of flowers from dark blue in the center to the palest blue in the outermost floral ring.