Flower Gifting - A Fashion Must-have for Valentine’s Day -Text by Ha Mee Mee-
Flowers couldn’t get anymore pronounced than during the most romantic day of the year – the Valentine’s Day. And no, we’re not talking about floral-printed dresses, fresh floral make-up or ornament designs and patterns. What we’re talking about is the absolute flower-gifting culture on this special day.
Since the 17th century, this culture was already widely popular among all social classes around the globe. By the end of the century, florists across the globe sell millions of flowers in various kinds to people who wish to express love to their loved ones and valentines.
And by the 1800s, people started to get accustomed to the language of flowers. Hence throughout this time also known as the Victorian times, flowers had had specific meanings because people used more symbols and gestures to communicate than words.
Flower became symbolic representative of love in all forms, with the rose being the most preferred and popular Valentine’s Day flower. It remains to be one of the most well loved flowers even until today, with figure showing an estimated 196 million roses being produced for Valentine’s Day in 2011.
Today, the culture of flower gifting is trending towards arty combinations with their individualized significance behind. With many florists and flower experts actually providing good tips and help you select the most appropriate combination for your Valentine, there’s no reason why you should go against the grain.
Looking back, I was indeed lucky to have Mary Hew, a florist owner in her late thirties, to guide me through the many meanings of different flower combinations. During the interview, the radiant lady picked the stately and awe-inspiring ‘Signature Rose’ which I utterly adored, and explained to me the meaning behind this arty combination.
"Within roses, red is the primary colour for love, as it represents eternal love, passion, courage and respect. The ‘Signature Rose’ is a combination of a dozen of red roses with white baby’s breath flowers. It’s one of the most romantic combinations and a traditional symbol of love. It is brilliantly unique and truly stands out,” said Mary.
Other than roses, other flowers like lilies, lavenders, alstroemeria, irises, tulips, daffodils, hyacinths, carnations, tuberoses and freesias are also very popular flowers for gifting on Valentine’s Day.
"One of my favourite flower combinations using tulips is the ‘Perfect Love’. Mix an assortment of red, pink and white tulips together and they deliver an undeniably bright burst of colour that abides by the colour palette. If you’re looking for combined flowers, try adding three stems of white oriental lilies to 12 red tulips. It is a symbol of eternity, which speaks ‘Always and Forever’."
"The lavender generally symbolizes devotion, but it can have many combinations, thus many diversified meanings. Abiding by the colour palette, you can combine lavender with blue, yellow, pink, and orange. A feminine pink with lavender stands for ‘You’re the Only One I Love’. While blue with lavender gives a more cool and sophisticated feeling to the recipient.”
But with Valentine’s Day just around the corner, what if you are still looking to secure a date or asking the one you love to be your Valentine? It really is not that hard according to Mary, and she believes that whatever the occasion, there is always a combination that will express your feelings.
"Consider a bouquet of nine red carnations with tulips and freesias which says ‘Be Mine’. This composition takes carnations as the main focal point while the smaller flowers will accent the focal area. This arrangement works wonder and doesn’t appear too busy and confusing to eye, but rather allows those very powerful flowers to stand out and be more visually appealing.”
"Ask your dream girl with this bouquet and she’s sure to say yes,” laughed Mary.
"Be careful though what you are ‘clustering’ in a bouquet, the companions and supporting roles in each bouquet is equally critical in completing the finishing touches of the composition. For example, a red carnation symbolizes deep romantic love while a yellow one signifies refusal.”
"And while some flowers might seem to convey a specific message based on their colours, others may have gone through gradual changes over times. Let’s just say, tuberoses were considered funeral flowers in Victorian times, but over time they became more and more common especially on Valentine’s Day.”
So how do we stop ourselves from picking the wrong flower combinations on the most romantic day of the year? The solution, Mary said, is to keep them simple yet irresistible enough for your Valentine.
Singapore Wedding, Singpoare travel
Topic: Flower Gifting - A Fashion Must-have for Valentine’s Day (Read 314 times)