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Carried Away

Weddings are highly personal milestone events, and what a bride carries with her to the altar plays a central role.

Fresh flowers have filled that role in the U.S. and other countries for hundreds of years, a tradition that originally intended to ward off evil and bring good fortune. Today, brides can consult a whole lexicon dedicated specifically to the significance of different types of flowers.

Some brides, however, opt for something other than a traditional floral bouquet. They may find no sentimental value in flowers, or fresh cut blooms may cause an allergic reaction. Perhaps they find cut flowers that wither after a few days a bit of a downer during this new beginning.

They might be non-traditionalists, or they could consider flowers to be cost-prohibitive. According to several online wedding sites, the average cost of wedding flowers is $1,500.

Whatever the reasons, brides are looking for bouquet alternatives. Just ask Pinterest. When one types in “bridal bouquet alternatives,” here’s what pops up: pine cones and pussy willows, sparkling glass beads, silk butterflies, peacock and pheasant feathers, wheat stalks, antique fans and more.

Brides.com suggests alternatives such as brooches and buttons; flowers made of balsa wood or a bouquet of succulents. RealSimple.com lists six simple ideas, including pinwheels, fabric rosettes and pages from a book fashioned into blooms.

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These women went the non-traditional route with their bouquets, adding creative, one-of-a-kind personal touches to their wedding ceremonies.

Brooches, Buttons and Pins

This article idea was hatched when Angela Gessler Curran of Bridgeport submitted her wedding photo to be published in the newspaper last year. The staff had never seen a bouquet like Curran’s: it was a sparkly, colorful sphere of tightly assembled brooches and pins.

“I got the idea from Pinterest,” said Curran, who married Daniel Curran on Sept. 20 at Wheeling Park. “I had 13 fantastic bridesmaids and asked them all to be on the lookout for brooches. My mom and mother-in-law had some and bought some as well.”

Curran said it cost about $50 to make the bouquet, and her daughter, sister and a friend helped put it together. They nicknamed it “the beast” because it was so heavy. It is now on display in a vase on her dresser.

Brandy Dorsch of Weirton said her bouquet of buttons, pins, brooches and pendants was born in a button jar her aunt passed down to her.

“It was always full of antique buttons, some brass, some wood, others more fancy with rhinestones and crystals. I used to dump them all out and play with them and admire how beautiful they were.”

She knew she wanted to carry something other than flowers when she exchanged vows with Daniel Dorsch on Oct. 6, 2012, in Carrolton. The button jar became her inspiration.

“I am a very creative person, and I love being as unique as possible. I like creating beautiful things out of ordinary objects, bobbles and trinkets. I felt that being able to create my bouquet would make it more special to me than a floral bouquet that eventually would wither.”

Family members, including her mother and grandmother, contributed pieces, but many of the items came from the jar. A few buttons reminded her of her and Daniel’s relationship. She also added a couple of mini pendants in which she placed photos of deceased grandparents. The whole project took about a year and a half. She isn’t sure of the cost.

“It sits on our mantle at home where I get to see it every day and remember what a perfect day our wedding day was.”

Origami

One of Dorsch’s bridesmaids, Sarah James of Charleston, said she and her then-fiance, Greg Woods, both also wanted to do something different for a bouquet at their Sept. 16, 2012 wedding at Wisp in McHenry, Md.

He found examples of colorful origami bouquets online.

The idea resonated because he had presented her with origami lilies when they were dating.

“I along with one of my bridesmaids folded every single flower for both my bouquet and the smaller throwing bouquet. We made lilies, roses, rosebuds and leaves.” The project cost less than $20 and took several days to make.

The result: an unique explosion of color that made an impact with her guests and adorns her mantle to this day.

Starfish

Gina and Donnie Starr of Wheeling originally planned a beach wedding, but they opted instead to be married at Grand Vue Park in Moundsville on July 28 so more family could attend.

“From the beginning I liked beachy ideas, and with our last name being Starr, a starfish theme was a no brainer,” Gina Starr said. She carried the theme through, from the cake to the centerpieces to her bouquet of white tulle netting studded with starfish, pearls and crystals. The bouquet idea came from Pinterest, and her “crafty” mom created it using about $30 of materials.

Bible

Diane Coughlan of Wheeling carried a Bible belonging to her godmother, Ellie Hall, at her wedding to Patrick Coughlan on Oct. 14, 2007 in Roney’s Point. She wanted to honor God as well as Hall, a woman of faith who had helped “set her straight” many times. Hall had carried the Bible at her own wedding.

“This was not my first marriage, and I understood for my marriage to my current husband to work, God would need to be the center of it as well,” Diane Coughlan said. “I quickly fell in love with the idea of carrying the Bible instead of flowers. It was different, and I am not much of a flower person anyway. I asked if I could borrow her Bible, and she was happy to lend it to me (something borrowed).”

She added: “Holding her Bible gave me an overwhelming feeling of love, tradition and honor. It was a reminder for me and my husband that a relationship is not just between two people. It is two people with God in between.”

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