How To Make a Succulent Bridal Bouquet

If succulents are the rage these days, so are succulent bridal bouquets. It makes perfect sense to use plants and flowers that will endure the activities of the day. And they're often many: photographs to take, big hugs, small hugs, holding the bouquet for long periods of time and whatever people do on their wedding day. The bridal bouquet has to be able to take the heat, so to speak. If you're at enough weddings, you know how some bridal bouquets can look at the end of the day. All beat up and very sad looking.

You don't ever have to worry when you carry a succulent bouquet. You can chug it under a trash can and it will still look good. Succulents can survive for long periods without water, after all, they're not called drought-resistant plants for nothing.

If you're already sold on the idea even if I don't write another word, I'm not surprised. If you're green conscious and love rustic beauty and using unusual plant combination, succulent bouquet is natural choice.

Flowers Used for the above bouquet:

• An assortment of succulents (Aeorniums, strings of pearls)
• White Peonies
• Blush Roses
• White Hydrangeas
• Italian Ruscus
• Star of Bethlehem
• Green Amaranthus

Floral Supplies:

You need tools, they're an indispensible part of the process:

• Scissors
• Floral tape
• Floral wire of varying gauges
• Wire cutter
• Ribbons
• Corsage pins

Directions:

• Take a 22 inch gauge wire (steady enough to hold the weight of the succulent) and insert it in the base of the succulent.
• Pull through until it is half way through.
• Press down both ends of the wire so they sit parallel to the stem.

• Use one end of the wire and twist in securely around the stem to secure the wire to the succulent. Press the remaining part of the wire down, so it sits along side the other wire.

It is important to hide the mechanics (which sometimes can be ugly) under a floral tape.

• Use floral tape, starting from as close as possible to the base of the succulents and wind it tightly around and around the stem to hide the wire. It is important to pull the tape slightly as you wind it around to make the self-adhesive tape stick better.

• Do this to the rest of the succulents. Smaller, lighter succulents require a higher wire gauge number such as 22 or 24. The higher the number, the thinner the wire.

• Gather about three to five assortment of succulents and flowers together. This will form the focal point or the main bunch.
• Add each stalk of succulent or flower at an angle to the main bunch and keep adding at an angle, rotating the bunch of flowers as you add. Keep an eye out for balance and the effect you wish to recreate. If you want some smaller flowers to stand out from the bunch, put them a little higher.

• Look at the arrangement and make any changes to obtain the effect you want to achieve. Once you're happy, secure the arrangement with floral tape to keep the bunch in place.
• Measure the height of the bouquet, usually two fists long and trim off excess stems.
• Use a ribbon of your choice to finish the bouquet.

Done and ready to go!

Making a succulent bridal bouquet maybe more time-consuming than making the regular bouquet but the result is well-worth every effort. On top of that, the newly-weds can plant the succulents in memory of their special love and watch their love grows (literally!!). A very good keepsake, don't you agree?

Tips to a Better, More Beautiful Bouquet

• The fresher, the better. Fresh flowers make longer-lasting bouquet, no-brainer conclusion. The flowers look fresh and the resulting bouquet is stunningly refreshing. To ensure freshness, make sure your flowers get plenty of water. Once you bring the flowers home, cut off one inch off the bottom of the stem and allow it to sit in water for at least a few hours before using them. For those flowers with woody stem, cut slits in the stem, so it can uptake water more easily.
• Succulents tend to have short stems. Using floral wire will add length and provide support. Bigger succulents need thicker floral wire and the daintier, smaller ones need thinner floral wire. The smaller the number on the floral wire, the thicker it is.
• Cover any unsightly mechanics with floral tape. Because floral tape is self-adhesive, stretching them slightly will ensue your floral tape is secure.
• Use your eyes to help you build the bouquet. As you build the bouquet, rotate it as you add flowers and always eyeball it. Sometimes, you may need to make adjustment as you go along, so there are no unsightly gaps or overcrowding.
• Ribbons can effectively add another dimension to the bouquet. They can also create an effect: elegant, sophisticated, playful, fun, rustic, classic or country.
• Use corsage pins to help you secure ribbons if needs be.

Follow this link to find out the names of succulents.