How to Wrap Flowers for Wedding Bouquets
To add a splash of elegance to your bridal bouquet, wrap a luxurious ribbon around the stems. This protects your hands and prevents the flower stems from staining your palms as you walk down the aisle. There are two techniques used in wrapping flowers for a bridal bouquet. The first is a simple wrap while the second is known as a braid or a French knot. The French knot can be used over the wrap for a fancy flourish.
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Things You'll Need
- Floral wire
- Scissors
- 2 yards wide satin ribbon
- Pearl-headed corsage pins
- 5 yards thin ribbon
Instructions
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Traditional Wrap
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1
Arrange all of your flowers so that all the bouquet's blooms are on display. This requires that the center of the bouquet be slightly higher than the outside edges. Do this gradually to create a spherical look.
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2
Wrap floral wire tightly around the flower stems so that none of the flowers can move. Trim the stems so that they are all even.
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3
Trim the edges of your ribbon at a diagonal to help keep the ribbon from fraying. Fold an end of the ribbon over so that the diagonal edge is completely hidden and use a corsage pin to attach the ribbon to the bouquet about half an inch down from the flowers' blooms. Ensure that the pin sticks down into the bouquet rather than horizontally, as a horizontal pin can stick you if you grip the bouquet hard.
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4
Wrap the ribbon around bouquet's handle, working your way down the stems. Stop when you are an inch from the bottom of the stems and fold the loose end of the ribbon under so that the diagonal end is completely hidden. Push in a corsage pin at that point, ensuring that the end points upward into the bouquet.
Classic French Knot
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5
Arrange your bouquet and wrap the stems with floral wire. Trim the ends so that they create a smooth surface.
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6
Lay your bouquet down so that the arrangement faces you. Alternatively, ask a friend to hold the bouquet to prevent the flowers from getting crushed while you work.
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7
Draw the ribbon around the back of the bouquet so that you have two even ends in your hands. This should lie about half an inch down from the bases of your flowers or against the top of your ribbon wrap, if you are using the two looks together.
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8
Wrap the ribbons around to the front of the bouquet and twist the two ends around one another completely so that the side which began in your right hand is still in your right hand after the twist. Secure the twist with a corsage pin and draw the two ends to the back, wrapping them back around to the front of the bouquet without the twist.
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9
Repeat the twist at the front and continue your way down the bouquet. At the bottom of the binding or at the edge of the bouquet, tie a bow to hold the wrap in place and secure it with a corsage pin.
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Tips & Warnings
For additional staying power, select ribbons with wire edges to ensure that your wrap stays put.
Do not wrap your bouquet more than a day before your wedding.
Keep the flowers refrigerated to ensure that they are fresh and, on the morning of your wedding, place the stems in a basin of warm water for half an hour to encourage the blooms to open to their fullest.
References
- Photo Credit Digital Vision./Digital Vision/Getty Images
