When it comes to wedding bouquets, you can never go wrong with roses. But if you’re looking for something a little different—or you want to save money but still have a bouquet that’s unique—why not choose flowers with a particular meaning? You might be surprised at the meaning behind even the more traditional wedding flowers like orchids and lilies, so we’ve included those as well. Even baby’s breath carries a special message!

1. Yellow Acacia (aka Golden Wattle)

• Signifies true friendship
• Can represent secret love

2. Sweet Alyssum

• Elicits calm, spiritual energy
• Protects from heated disagreements
• Provides emotional balance
• Symbolizes beauty
• Lifts gloomy spirits

3. Angelica

• Encourages creativity
• Relieves stress
• Encourages restfulness

4. Azalea

• Depicts feminity
• Perfect gift for a partner or loved one

5. Baby’s Breath

• Represents undying love across the board—family, friends, platonic relationships and (of course) romantic bonds
• Signifies pureness and freedom from corruptive outside influences
• In Christianity, it represents the power of the Holy Spirit
• Denotes innocence
• Denotes newborn babies of either gender
• Symbolizes reconnection with family members or lost loves
• Is said to encourage self-discipline and the capacity to remain focused on love

6. Carnation

• The Latin name— Dianthus—means “flower of the gods”
• Are sometimes used to flavor beer or wine
• Represent fascination, in particular between young lovers

7. Cherry Blossom

• Signify spirituality
• Portrays feminity
• In Japan, represents the nature of life

8. Clematis

• Signifies mental beauty
• Symbolizes ingenuity

9. White Clover

• Promotes a feeling of vitality
• Represents good luck (as in 4-leaf clover)

10. Yellow Daffodil

• Denotes new beginnings
• Is considered to be a lucky sign of future success.

11. Daisy

Symbolizes:

• Purity
• Loyalty
• Love
• Innocence

12. White Dittany

• Implies feelings of love and passion
• Supposedly is an aphrodisiac

13. Forget-Me-Nots

• Implies true love
• Are sometimes given with the hope that the sender will never be forgotten
• Some say it stands for authentic love overflowing with memories

14. Gardenia

• Unquestionably romantic
• Represents secret love
• Perfect gift for someone you genuinely care about

15. Gillyflower

• Happy life
• Lasting Beauty

16. Iris

• Hope
• Wisdom
• Valor
• Faith
• The root supposedly has the power to attract new love

17. Jasmine

• Modesty
• Love
• Sensuality
• Elegance
• Nobility
• Grace
• Passionate romance

18. White Lilac

• Purity
• Youthful innocence

19. Lily

• In the Bible, they represent “God will provide” (Matthew 6:8 “Consider the lilies…”)
• Expresses the thought that someone is beautiful
• Is the May birthday flower
• Flower of the 30th anniversary
• Lilies of the Valley are the 2nd anniversary flower
• Calla lilies—which are not true lilies—represent magnificent beauty
• Lilies represent (depending on color):

• Chastity (white)
• Virtue (white)
• Devotion (alstroemeria)
• Friendship (alstroemeria)
• Sympathy (white stargazer)
• Wealth (pink stargazer)
• Prosperity (pink stargazer)

20. Orchid

Fun fact: there are more than 25,000 different varieties of orchids!

• The species Vanilla planifolia produces the vanilla beans used for flavoring in cooking
• Is perfect for all couples
• Symbolizes:

• Love
• Beauty
• Seduction
• Refinement

21. Blue Salvia

• Associated with healing
• Often given as a gift to someone recuperating from an ailment
• Represents:

• Wisdom
• Long life
• Good health

22. Sunflower

• Represent loyalty
• Is the national flower of Russia (but is native to the U.S.)

23. Tulips

• Red tulips declare perfect love
• The black heart-shaped stigma represents a lover’s heart that is darkened by passion
• Is the 11th wedding anniversary flower

24. Blue Violet

• Represent dependability & trustworthiness
• Symbolize:

• Faith
• Affection
• Intuition
• Love
• Romance

For an excellent guide to DIY wedding flowers—including how to make a bouquet with some of these beautiful blooms—check this out:

http://www.davincibridal.com/blog/8-tips-for-successful-diy-wedding-flowers/