Upon becoming officially engaged and thus being able to start planning the Wedding last year, I knew one thing for sure when it came to the look we wanted - there had to be red. We do both like blue a lot...a blue and silver wedding no doubt would have been equally beautiful. But I really wanted to incorporate red roses into the wedding, because Ken brought me two dozen on our second date, and it has become a symbol of love between us. In fact, I dried and saved the petals from that bouquet and plan to put them inside clear ornaments this week to hang on our Christmas tree.:)


With the wedding quickly approaching (just over a month away!), I find myself thinking more and more about the details, like exactly where will the sign in book be and exactly what do we want on the buffet table. I'm also narrowing down exactly which other kinds of flowers I want to include in the bouquets and centerpieces. I do love the idea of some greenery, as our wedding venue will already be decorated for Christmas. We like evergreen and red berries, and I'm considering mixing in some white, at least into the bride's and bridesmaid's bouquets. For the centerpieces, I definitely like the idea of a lot of greenery mixed in with the roses, and I like red alstroemeria as a filler.

Alstroemeria, also known as the Peruvian Lily, has been one of my favorites for a long time. In fact I used it for a romantic holiday centerpiece shoot last year. (It was part of a bouquet that Ken gave me.) It's the perfect size and shade for a filler flower in a red arrangement. And if you're planning on doing DIY flowers, I couldn't recommend it enough. It's tends to be widely available in grocery stores, so there is no need to order online or pay more at a florist shop. And with the amount of greenery that comes on each stem, we really don't need to get extra greenery for the bouquets.

The Bouqs is a great site for inspiration, because they show what different combinations look like in small, large, and extra large arrangements. (The bride's bouquet typically matches the bridesmaid's but is larger, so it really helps to see that comparison.)

Pictured: The Bouqs Very Merry- red roses, alstroemeria, and hypericum