Sure, even though the bridal bouquet is used as a way to enhance the bride’s beauty while also making sure that she has something to hold while walking down the aisle – what does the bouquet really mean?
If you’re currently planning your big day, we understand that you’re going to want to make sure that it’s the best day of your life! That’s why, in this article, we’re going to be talking you through the meaning of the bouquet, so you can decide whether or not it’s the bridal accessory for you! Read on.
Why Do Brides Carry A Bouquet? Main Reasons
To mask unwanted odors
Even though this reason is quite outdated, we’re sure that you’ll agree with us when we say that the last thing you want to have to deal with on your wedding day is unwanted scents!
Way back in the days before roll-on deodorant and luxury perfume were readily available to us, blushing brides would opt to hide their body odor by holding a large bouquet of flowers in front of their bodies. Pretty clever, if you ask us.
Nowadays, even though you won’t need to use a bouquet of flowers to serve this purpose, you can still make use of the beautiful floral scent, as it will be sure to add a romantic touch to your special day.
Not only that, but it’ll also mean that you’ll have something to hold onto while walking down the aisle, particularly if you’re the nervous type and want to prevent your hands from shaking.
To ward of evil spirits
Another interesting reason why the bouquet is carried by the bride as she walks through the church and down the aisle is to ward off evil spirits.
This is often in addition with the maid of honor and the bridesmaids, who will also carry a slightly smaller bouquet in order to aid in the good fortune of the marriage and to help ward off any bad spirits or people wishing badly on the union.
During the dark ages, a time in which superstitions were quite strongly believed, the bride would usually add garlic and other herbs to their bouquet as it was believed that these sorts of fragrances sent evil spirits running for the hills.
Flash forward to the present day, and while we don’t recommend dousing your beautiful flower bouquet in garlic seasoning, we do think that this is an interesting bit of history about the bouquet, especially given the fact that the flowers represent good fortune.
They’re romantic
Let’s face it, if anything, flowers are absolutely beautiful and breathtaking to look at, especially when they’re sorted into eye-catching floral arrangements. With that being said, who wouldn’t want to incorporate some of their favorite flowers into the biggest (and most romantic) day of their lives?
Not only that, but besides limiting flowers to only your bouquet, you could also choose to add decorative flower arrangements on your wedding tables, in your hair, and you could even recruit the help of a flower girl (if you don’t already have one, that is) who will throw petals down the aisle as she walks down it.
They’re considered to be an aphrodisiac
There’s much dispute over whether or not this is true, although the Romans believed that flowers had aphrodisiac properties, which is why they opted to commonly include flowers such as Dill into their wedding ceremonies.
Instead of using a floral bouquet (which didn’t emerge until the middle ages), the ancient Romans would wear floral garlands on their wedding day, as they believed that this symbolized fertility, life, and good fortune. Flowers were also worn by the Romans to help get the newly married couple into the mood, too.
To help keep the bride protected from the guests
Believe it or not, this was seriously one of the main reasons why the bouquet became a staple accessory of the medieval bride.
During this time centuries upon centuries ago, wedding guests strongly believed that ripping off parts of the bride’s dress as she walked to the wedding bed chamber would bring them lifelong good luck and fortune.
So, to help get around this and leave their wedding dress intact, brides began to throw their bouquet of flowers into the crowd of wedding guests, who would then begin to take parts of the flower bouquet as a good luck charm.
This particular wedding tradition is something that is used in weddings to this day, with many brides opting to turn around and throw their bouquets into the crowd behind her.
However, instead of breaking the bouquet apart to share around for good luck, the aim of the modern-day bouquet tossing is for someone in the crowd to catch it, and it is believed that the person who does is set to be married next.
