I'm so excited to introduce my dear friend Karen of Aleen Floral Design today. I reached out to her a short time ago, asking for advice on what flowers brides in Hampton Roads should choose for their fall wedding. She provided not only a highly informative blog post, but gorgeous flowers that I got to photograph and include. Read on to discover the perfect fall wedding flowers, and head over to Aleen Floral Design to see more gorgeousness!
Autumn conjures up images of colorful trees, delicious apples, cozy sweaters, and bonfires, but what does Autumn have to offer in the way of wedding decor? While the typical fall hues of orange, red, and golden yellow may come to mind, there are a variety of ways to incorporate an autumn bent into any color scheme. Using in season blooms of texture is key.
Take Dahlias for example, the queen of Autumn flowers. With their glorious shades of champaign, deep burgundy, hot pink, dark purple, vibrant orange, and pure white they play well in many color combinations. Their full-bodied head of layered petals add dimension and depth to bouquets, centerpieces, and can also make a lovely focal flower for you hair.
Scabiosa Pods, also known as stellata pods, give a nod to the autumn outdoor feel with their light brown and black color. Their intricate star like sphere make excellent boutonnieres as well as focal points in centerpieces and bouquets.
Kangaroo Paw’s velvety texture and miniature deer antler structure enhances floral designs towards an autumn feel. They come in deep burgundy, burnt orange, and golden yellow.
Speaking of golden yellow, if you are aiming for a traditional autumn color scheme you will want to incorporate Craspedia into your designs. Their street name, Billy Balls, raises a chuckle, which fits them well as they add a delightful ray of sunshine to boutonnieres and bouquets.
Protea comes in a variety of structures: blushing bride, queen, king, mink and pin-cushion. Pin-cushion Protea in particular is a favorite of mine to add to fall arrangements. The stiff spider like prongs feel like plastic, to the point that many people ask if they are fake. Every time I see one I am amazed once more by God’s creativity and imagination. Don’t discount this unique gem too soon. Admittedly it looks odd on its own, but when tucked in with roses, greenery, and some dahlias these odd specimens steal the show.
Red Antique Hydrangea are show stoppers for Fall decor. Their large fluffy heads of moss green appear as though slightly dipped in deep burgundy, making for an intriguing back drop in any floral design. We recently used them as the show case flower in an atypical autumn color scheme style shoot. The hydrangea paired beautifully with burgundy roses, deep pink amaranthus, burgundy pomegranates, brown pears, stellata pods, pink mink protea, draping nandina, and deer antlers.
Incorporating unique foliage can also enhance your Autumn wedding floral designs. Although Ferns are technically available year round, they add an unexpected flair. I have often used them for weddings with a travel theme as they give a nod to an old world feel. Most recently I incorporated them into large cylinder centerpieces along with curly willow, antique hydrangea, dark orange roses, and hypericum berries.
Nandina, Liquid Amber, Maple Branch, Oak Leaf, Red Seeded Eucalyptus, Chocolate Geranium, Brown Flax, Red Ti Leaf, Grass Explosion are the ultimate autumn foliage that add texture as well as color. Using interesting foliage not only makes guest pause to look more closely at the floral designs, it can also help in keeping your price point within reason.
If you are getting married between September and November, desire to have touches of autumn, but would prefer a non-traditional Fall color scheme, you may consider the following combinations of in season blooms:
- Deep purple dahlia, deep pink amaranthus, dark pink garden rose, brown scabiosa pods
- Cafe Au Lait dahlia, champaign rose, scabiosa pods, fern, pushing bride protea
- Burgundy dahlia, burnt orange protea, dark purple calla lily, chocolate geranium
And there you have it - some amazing suggestions to create the perfect fall wedding! Stay tuned for each season's flower recommendations.
