How to Make Wedding Bouquets
Learning how to make wedding bouquets means deciding on the style of holder you want to use. One of my favorites, the green SuperWet bouquet holder shown in several of my tutorials, has been discontinued by the manufacturer.
Straight handled holders work best - I like working with the Grande since (in my opinion) the more foam the better!
Slanted holders are more designed for cascading bouquets, so the bride can hold the flowers in a natural manner while allowing the cascade to flower forward and down without having to stick the holder straight out in front of you.
For this bridal bouquet, I used a white Grande Belle holder. I did use a slanted, since this bride wanted a ribbon wrapped handle instead of the stems.
Be sure to process your flowers correctly. Dry pack flowers arriving in a warm FedEx truck are under stress. It's important to rehydrate your flowers immediately. Using the professional products like Quick Dip (a fast re-hydrator) and Chrystal Clear flower food are important for DIY flowers since you don't have the advantage of a professional florist cooler that adds humidity to the environment and flower storage.
You have a big investment in your wedding flowers. Treat them like a professional florist would!
You can use a liquid flower food that mixes easily with water. Follow the directions on the label. Too much won't hurt the flowers (but it will waste product). Not enough is not really going to benefit your flowers.
Allow the Belle holder to "float soak". That means you let the foam head draw up water naturally. Don't force it below the water to "hurry" it along. This could cause dry patches that could spell death for one of your flower stems!
