FiftyFlowers: Make Your Own Bridal Bouquet

Launched in 2003, FiftyFlowers.com offers more than 2,000 types of flowers from a

network of 200 growers in Florida, California, Ecuador, and Colombia. FiftyFlowers ensures

freshness by keeping flowers properly hydrated and shipping them straight from the growers.

Budget-minded brides have to get creative when planning their weddings. In many cases,

they adopt a do-it-yourself approach to the flowers, even if they are novices at floral

arranging. To create a simple yet elegant bridal bouquet, follow these steps.

1. Choose one type of flower in a single color. Remember that in-season flowers are typically

the most affordable and highest in quality.

2. Gather your supplies, including floral shears or clippers, floral tape, a few decorative

pushpins, and finishing ribbon.

3. Strip foliage and thorns from the stems.

4. Hold three stems and wrap them together with floral tape, starting a few inches below the blooms. Then, add more stems along the outer edge, rotating the

bouquet and taping as you go. To create a mounded effect, each addition should be placed slightly lower

than the first three.

5. When finished, wrap floral tape around the entire stem bundle, starting an inch or so below the heads and ending two to four inches above where you’ll cut

the stem ends to a uniform length.

6. Cover the floral tape by wrapping decorative ribbon around it and secure with a few decorative pushpins.