FLOWERS FOR THE FAIR

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXXIII, Issue 22391, 11 April 1936, Page 6 (Supplement)

FLOWERS FOR THE FAIR

THE MODERN BRIDE'S CHOICE NEWEST NOTIONS FOR EOUQUET BY M.F.G. When our great-grandmothers were choosing their bridal bouquets, they really had only one alternative to white roses and lilies, and that was, of course, white lilies and roses; but the modern idea is not so much to follow that classic example as to get right away from it and strike as original a note as possible. This arises, no doubt, partly from the fact that Victorian brides dressed, for tlie most part, in the height of prevailing fashions at the time, whereas the modern bride frequently chooses a purposely distinctive gown, quite unrelated to current modes, and chooses her flowers to harmonise with it.

Thus the bride in the Empire gown selects a demure and charming posy mounted on white lace paper; and the medieval bride enrries two or three perfect lilies, a symbol rather than a bouquet. She whose- dress is cut on the most modern lines may choose the rarest orchids or the finest gardenias, while the bride who wears an exotically futuristic model will probably show a" preference for the exquisite products of the artificial flower industry. Black and silver tulips;, miraculously wrought in crisp metal foil, provided the perfect accompaniment l:o a recent bride's gown of," sculptured " silver lame, and similar suggestions are quaint and curious f!o\v»rrj of chromium and wood-pulp, or brilliantly-lacquered or gilded leaves. An especially effective feature of a recent wedding was a bridal bouquet of dazzling white camellias, with shining, jet-black, lacquered leaves. An innovatior which would have horrified an earlier and more superstitious Generation is the use of green in the bridal bouquet. Green orchids are greatly sought i fter for this purpose in London, and green carnations are another favourite. It is a charming notion —both economical and sentimental—to have your bouquet so constructed that a cluster of tho predominating flower, especially if it i;i orchids or lilies-of-the-valley, can be s in ply removed from the bouquet after fhe ceremony and worn on the travelling ensemble. Striving to abandon entirely the conventional bouquet, even in its most modernistic form, several brides of late have worn mu:Js made completely of flowers. Breath-takingly lovely was a bridal muff of t lghtlv-packed forget-me-nots at a recent wedding, but almost any flower could be used. An especially attractive notion, if the style of your gown allows, is to carry a muff of tulle, with a spray cf matching orchids, or really lovely carnations, pinned to it. To be quite original, a New York bride the other day carried a parasol of flowers woven into an intricate pattern—the ceremony took place in a garden, so the notion was really appropriate. Another popular idea in America is to carry a lei, or garland of flowers, over the arm, or even round the neck, while matching garlands, carried jointly by the bridesma ids, strike another novel ,note. . - f