Once upon a time, drying out their bouquet is something many brides would’ve considered doing after the wedding, but these days, dried flowers, pampas grass, bunny tails and other grasses are one of the hottest trends when it comes to big-day blooms and decor
Go to any of It-girl’s Instagram page and we’re sure that amongst the OOTDs, the travel snaps (pandemic? What pandemic?) and the questionable green juices, you’ll find a photo of pampas grass and dried flowers, the smart set’s hottest interior design tip, and currently one of the chicest ways to style your wedding.
“When it comes to weddings, dried flowers and grasses are definitely having a moment. The addition of dried flowers in bouquets and arrangements adds that much sought-after boho vibe,” says florist Aoife Dooley, who runs Feather Grass Florals in Edinburgh. “Dried flowers lend themselves to so many different styles adding lots texture and warm tones to arrangements. And an added bonus is they are everlasting, so you can enjoy them long after your wedding day.”
The secret to their success? Versatility. Used with complementary hues, their warm, sandy tones give us Cali-cool vibes, but pair them with bold colours and you’ve got yourself a riot of colour and texture to suit even the most diehard maximalist.
Bouquets and centrepieces may be the easiest way to work them in, but we also adore when they are used to play up the proportions of your venue: they look just as great hanging from the ceiling in a whimsical cloud design as they do sprouting from floor-level pots used to section off the space.
“As they are long-lasting in nature and lightweight, dried grasses and flowers also allow greater flexibility in creating larger installations with them that might be more challenging with fresh flowers,” notes Katie Brigstock, creative director and founder of Style Your Spaces, a floral design studio based in Edinburgh. “The resurgence in the popularity of dried flowers for wedding florals has also been influenced by the conscious movement towards more sustainable floristry methods.”
Dried flowers and grasses may indeed offer eco-friendly credentials, but Jenny Bell Harman from Studio Seapink cautions that some suppliers chemically bleach, paint or spray their creations to get the brightly coloured and bleached look that is on-trend for flowers and foliage right how. However, she and many more are using natural processes to give the perfect result. She says: “There’s more and more florists looking to naturally colour and sun-bleach materials now, which is an interesting movement. For example, my dried flower cloud [above] is made with a range of materials I’ve collected (hoarded!) – a mixture of British grown, lovingly dried botanicals from local flower farmers, gathered foraged textures and some lovely flowery bits salvaged from previous projects, dried in my studio.”
Since they’re dried, arrangements and bouquets such as this can last for a few years and – as Jenny notes – if they’re treated with care, they can be brought into your home as a “lovely, long lasting and distinctive memento of your amazing day.”
Being left high and dry never felt (or looked) so good – scroll on for more ideas!
