Decorating with flower petals

A petal scattered aisle works at both an indoor and an outdoor ceremony, at a traditional church marriage and also at a funky modern celebration. That is to say, the idea works for all styles of wedding. It can be natural and beautiful or bold and bright. We can help you select the petals and the style to suit your day. We also have a few tips and tricks to help you maximise your budget!

Flower petals are traditional and meaningful

There is nothing more romantic than a pathway of petals leading up to the spot where you will say your wedding vows. Decorating with flower petals is an ancient custom and it is said to protect the bride and ward off evil spirits. Furthermore, a flower girl scattering petals down the aisle, traditionally symbolises a happy path in married life. Flowers represent fertility and rose petals mean eternal love. These are lovely motifs with which to start your marriage. But, above all, it looks fairy tale beautiful!

Colours carry meaning

The “language of flowers” is quite well-known. Consequently, wedding bouquets often contain meaningful flowers along with the brides favourite blooms. However, the colour of flower petals is significant too. For instance, red or pink flower petals represent love and sweetness. Similarly, orange and peach tones evoke warmth and vitality. If you choose violet and purple, you are representing serious, deep emotions. Green petals stand for youth and happiness. And finally, blue flower petals mean hope and confidence.

Flower petals - wedding aisles and petal pathways: The bride walks up petal strewn steps
Flower petals - wedding aisles and petal pathways: Large Natural Rose Petal aisle

Firstly – measure! Take the dimensions of your aisle or pathway. How long and how wide is it?

Then have a think about the effect you would like to achieve –

Do you dream of a thick carpet of rose petals?
Alternatively, would you prefer a light scattering of petals across the path? Or perhaps two lines down each side of the aisle?
Do you want to create patterns or swirls or your initials in petals?
Are you looking for a statement decoration in a multicoloured or ombre effect?

At this point you will also want to consider your budget, and also who is going to set up the decorations for you. In other words – now is the time to talk to your planner, venue or friends and family!

Choose your flower petals and colours –

We would recommend that you start with our Colour Chart. It’s the best place to see all your options together. Consequently, you can pick colours, petal shapes and combinations with ease. In addition, our Sample Service might also be helpful at this point. Certainly, it can be useful to see and feel the petals, and even take them along to your venue to get a sense of how they might look.

Do you have a colour for the day, or a theme you’d like to co-ordinate with? Does your ceremony venue itself have a strong character that you need to work with? On the other hand, it might be a blank canvas, and in which case you can really go for anything you like!

The setting might influence your colour choices: For example, light coloured petals like soft pinks and creams contrast well with dark wooden floors and grass. Furthermore, there might be a red carpet to consider. Similarly, your venue might have coloured wedding chairs, and you can decide whether to complement or contrast with them.

All our flower petals are dried, and so they won’t wilt or fade or become slippery underfoot. If you’d like to learn more about all the different types of flower petals we have available, then check out our blog all about Wedding Petals.

A small pile of Moonlight Twist Confetti Petals
A small pile of white flower petals for decorating wedding aisles and petal pathways. White Hydrangea Petals.
A pile of Pale Pink Delphinium Confetti
Flower petals - wedding aisles and petal pathways: Vintage Lilac Hydrangea Petals
A pile of Blushing Pink Small Natural Rose Petals

How much do I need?

Firstly, we’d like to say that working out quantities can be tricky and it will involve a bit of guess-work. So don’t worry! One person’s idea of a light or heavy covering is different to the next… If in doubt, we recommend over estimating, because there are plenty of other decorative uses for your leftover petals!

You have your measurements for your pathway or aisle, so, now lets have a look at our guide to quantities.

Need to know: We sell our petals by the handful and the best way to buy them for creating aisles and pathways is in a 10 Handful Bag.

Remember: The larger the individual petal, the less you get by number in a handful. There are over 200 delphinium petals in a handful, but only 8-10 hydrangea petals! This will affect the way the pathway looks, and consequently it is quite helpful to keep in mind when making your plans.

Scatterings of Petals

These photos will help you understand what your scattering will look like. Different types of petals cover in different ways.

Photos depict multiples of 10 Handful Bags of petals over 1 Square Metre = approximately 10 Square Feet.

A visual comparison of different amounts of rose petals over one square meter

Lines of Petals

This is what a line of petals looks like, to help you understand how different types of petals cover in different ways.

The photo depicts ONE 10 Handful Bag of petals over ONE metre (approximately 3 feet).

TOP TIP!

Special Offer Flower Petals –

We usually have limited edition blends of petals available a reduced prices on our Special Offers page. Therefore, you can save quite a bit of money on your petal pathway by choosing a pre-mixed special offer blend.

And so finally, here is some practical advice for actually making your petal aisle or pathway…

Hopefully, you have already delegated the job of physically creating the pathway to your planner, venue or one of your helpful friends. It’s not something you want to be worrying about on the morning of the wedding! Therefore, you can hand over the petals and your calculations, and they will put it together for you. As we have already mentioned, our petals are sold in 10 Handful Bag quantities. As a result, it’s easy to see how much you have and how it will need to be spread out.

We’d recommend a tape measure and/or yard stick and a length of thick string or rope, as useful tools. For example, it can be hard to judge distances. If you have a metre measured, you know you need to scatter the whole bag of petals over it! Flower petal pathways, shapes and initials are MUCH easier to create neatly and evenly with a length of rope as a guide. First, draw the line or shape you want with rope, and then sprinkle the petals along its length. Finally, you can carefully pick up the rope, and you’re done!

If you have any questions or queries give the Confetti Office a call on 01386 555045. We have helped create many, many, many petal pathways and decorated aisles over the years, and we will happily help with any guidance or suggestions you may need.

The creative opportunities are endless, and so we have plenty more inspiration on our Pinterest Board – Petal Aisles

Have fun with your flower petals!

Love, The Petal People x

Written 18/12/2018