Wedding bouquets

[Clara]

Laura Ponte's (who married one of Infanta Pilar's sons)

White roses: Pure and sincere love
Blue viburnum: deep and spiritual love
Symphoricarpos




Princess Victoria de Borbón-Dos Sicilias:






Letizia's:

Spikes - fertility, joy and hope and offerings to Saint Isidro Labrador, patron of Madrid and the goddess Cybele
Isabelline roses - love and passion
Iris and lilies - for the Bourbons
Apple blossoms - In honour of the principality of Asturias and Our Lady of Atocha
Orange blossoms - Tribute to the Countess of Barcelona (JC's mother) and María de las Mercedes de Orleáns y Borbón, first wife of Alfonso XII






Kate's:
Lily-of-the-valley – Return of happiness
Sweet William – Gallantry
Hyacinth – Constancy of love
Ivy: Fidelity; marriage; wedded love; friendship; affection
Myrtle: the emblem of marriage; love. (stems from a myrtle planted at Osborne House, Isle of Wight, by Queen Victoria in 1845, and a sprig from a plant grown from the myrtle used in The Queen’s wedding bouquet of 1947)





ML's



Tatiana's:



Camilla's:



Clotilde's:



MM's:

[Cess]

My faourite is Maxima's:

[Little_star]

Thanks for the topic Clara!

Princess Zeina



Queen Rania (is the little bridesmaid Raiyah?)



Queen Noor



Princess Badiya

[TLLK]

Aaaahhhh the flowers are so beautiful. Thank you for the photos ladies. 

[Lille]

Princess Marie
Nathalie of Berleburg
Charlene
Diana
Margrethe
Mary
Victoria (my favourite)

[Snow Queen]

Thanks for the pictures everyone!!!

My favorites are:

1.) Letizia
2.) Marie
3.) Victoria
4.) Kate

Mary's bouquet looks like it's the victim of multiple personalities. The bulk of the bouquet is structured, tight, and modern then it has the vines trailing off of it which would fit better with a wild, natural, hippy or boho style bride. Nothing will ever be as ugly as MM's though. She was absolute bridal perfection until she decided to fishing for seaweed on her way to the church.

[Lille]

Alex 1st wedding
Alex 2nd wedding
MC
Anne marie
Benny
Alexia
Alexandra of Berleburg

[Lille]

Mathilde (God awful!!!)
Claire
Mabel
Laurentien
Anne

[lyndell75]

[Lille]

Fergie
Sophie
Tassy
Lady Helen
Cristina

[Lille]

Caroline
Lady Rose
Lady Sarah

[TLLK]

Thank you again for the photos. I'd forgotten how much I liked Lady Helen's dress.

[tigerben]

  great thread Clara.

[PeDe]

a bit of bridal history:



The Best Man
In ancient times, men sometimes captured women to make them their brides. A man would take along his strongest and most trusted friend to help him fight resistance from the woman's family. This friend, therefore, was considered the best man among his friends. In Anglo-Saxon England, the best man accompanied the groom up the aisle to help defend the bride.

Bride on Groom's Left
Because grooms in Anglo-Saxon England often had to defend their brides, the bride would stand to the left of her groom so that his sword arm was free.

Giving Away the Bride
The tradition of the father giving away his daughter has its roots in the days of arranged marriages. Daughters in those times were considered their father's property. It was the father's right to give his child to the groom, usually for a price. Today a father giving away his daughter is a symbol of his blessing of the marriage

Something Old, Something New, Something Borrowed, Something Blue, and a Sixpence in Your Shoe
"Something old" represents the bride's link to her family and the past. The bride may choose to wear a piece of family jewelry or her mother or grandmother's wedding gown. "Something new" represents hope for good fortune and success in the future. The bride often chooses the wedding gown to represent the new item. "Something borrowed" usually comes from a happily married woman and is thought to lend some of her good fortune and joy to the new bride. "Something blue" is a symbol of love, fidelity, and purity of the bride. A sixpence in her shoe is to wish the bride wealth in her future life.

The Bridal Veil
The bridal veil has long been a symbol of youth, modesty, and virginity and was used to ward off evil.
 
Bridesmaids
The bridal party is a tradition that has been established for many centuries. For a long time the purpose of the bridal party was to fool evil spirits. The bride's friends dressed similarly to her in order to confuse any virulent presences that might be lurking about. Today bridesmaids are there to support the bride in the stressful times during the wedding.

Wedding Bouquet
Flowers are incorporated into the wedding ceremony as a symbol of fertility. The first bouquets consisted of herbs and, later, orange blossoms.

Tossing the Bouquet
Tossing the bouquet is a tradition that stems from England. Women used to try to rip pieces of the bride's dress and flowers in order to obtain some of her good luck. To escape from the crowd the bride would toss her bouquet and run away. Today the bouquet is tossed to single women with the belief that whoever catches it will be the next to marry.

The Tiered Wedding Cake
The origin of the tiered wedding cake also lies in Anglo-Saxon times. Guests would bring small cakes to the wedding and stack them on top of each other. Later, a clever French baker created a cake in the shape of the small cakes and covered it in frosting. It is now known as the tiered cake.

The Wedding Ring
The wedding ring has been worn on the third finger of the left hand since Roman times. The Romans believed that the vein in that finger runs directly to the heart. The wedding ring is a never-ending circle, which symbolizes everlasting love.

[Lille]

Serena
Paola
Ingrid
Grace
Sybilla
Sonja
Silvia
Camilla
Margaret
Rosario