Inspiration: Fabulous flowers for a vintage autumn wedding

Today I had my first consultation with the lovely Rachel Dampier florist to chat about what I might like when it comes to flowers as well as venue styling for our big day next year. It wasn’t until I got there that I realised how little I really know about flowers and also how difficult it is to know what to choose.

(Update: I’m writing this almost two years after our wedding day! So fun to read these back. So I’ve dotted a few of our actual photos in amongst this to show you how we turned this inspiration into reality). 

I now have a much better idea of what I’m after when it comes to flowers, so I thought I’d share some of my favourite flower designs and centrepiece arrangements with you in the hopes that it’ll inspire some of my fellow brides-to-be, and give Rachel a better idea of what’s going on in my mind! It’s a pretty daunting thing this wedding-planning business, don’t you think?

Our wedding is in October so I’m going for a more autumnal look rather than summery arrangements, and we’re also having a barn setting with a bookish theme. The colours are going to be dusty purples and pinks with a vintage look to them, so all of this needs to be considered when it comes to the flowers and venue styling (there’s just so much to think about!).

So here’s a little look at some of my favourite looks from around the web.

Let’s start with some of Rachel’s own designs! I love soft, pretty gypsophila and I’m going for a relaxed look, so I’d prefer a bouquet that isn’t too symmetrical or neat. I want it to look effortless, but I’m sure it will take a hell of a lot of effort to make it that way!

Here’s that same beautiful bouquet in amongst some of the props that I’m hoping to use for our centrepieces. Rachel has hundreds of vintage books available to hire and they’re all gorgeous.

You can find Rachel on her website, Twitter and Facebook. 

So with that as a starting point, I’ve been searching the web for other flower designs and styling that I love, all incorporating the autumn vintage book theme and the purples and pinks of our bridesmaids.

The Bouquet

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Although I’ve yet to find a photos bouquet quite like it, I hope to incorporate some paper flowers made out of book pages for a subtle extra touch, too. I’m talking two or three flowers but here’s an example of a bouquet made completely from storybook pages.

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UPDATE: Here’s what the end result looked like! 🙂

The Bridesmaids

The bouquet above is one of Rachel’s. I love this – so pretty and also really affordable if you’re on a budget!

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Update: Here’s what our bridesmaids bouquets looked like

The centrepieces

Without a doubt, our centrepieces will be focused on books, but they’ll also have some flowers in small jam jars or tiny glass vases to make them even prettier.

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UPDATE: Here are ours

The buttonholes

I’m thinking about having paper buttonholes for the men, too, made with book pages rather than music paper. I think Ryan wants them to be made with comic book pages, so if he can prove to me they’ll look good it’s an option! (I keep forgetting that it’s his wedding too! Haha).

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Ok, so we went with Harry Potter pages… 😀

I’ll be continuing to search for more vintage autumn wedding flower and styling inspiration and will be adding it to this post as I find more gems in the depths of the internet, but for now I think I’ve made a good start!

Have you chosen your wedding flowers yet? Did you find it difficult? Let me know in the comments section below and send me your links and photos. I’d love to hear from you.

Until next time!

xxx Ashleigh xxx