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We need to talk about flowers.
Specifically, the ones you think are saying ‘I like you’, but are actually saying ‘deepest sympathies’ or, worse, ‘I only wanted to spend £5 on you’.
Gone are the days when a bouquet used to be a foolproof gift. The sort of thing that was acceptable to grab en route to dinner when you had forgotten to buy wine. But flowers have now developed a language all of their own, and what was once considered elegant (I’m looking at you, white lilies) is now viewed as lame and dated.
So before you waft into someone’s house clutching a bunch of something unfortunate, here’s your definitive guide to the blooms that can backfire – and the ones having a chic renaissance.
Pink, red, purple and blue anemones in a vase (picture from the Flower Council of Holland)
Bloom blunders to avoid
Red roses
To be clear, these remain perfectly acceptable in certain contexts. Valentine’s Day, for example. Or if you’re declaring undying love in a theatrical fashion.
What they are not ideal for is a polite dinner invitation from friends you’ve known since university. Red roses carry such intense romantic symbolism that presenting them to a host can feel oddly dramatic, as though you’re about to deliver a speech about passion and destiny between the starter and the pudding.
Roses should be reserved for certain contexts
White lilies
Men, take note. You may think that white lilies look beautiful, expensive and smell nice. But I’m afraid they also say ‘memorial service’.
That is because for decades, they’ve dominated funeral arrangements (thanks to all that purity symbolism and heady scent). You want to avoid at all costs. Unless you are actually going to a funeral, of course.
There’s also the pollen issue. Anyone who has ever brushed past an open lily knows that the bright orange stamens have a remarkable ability to stain clothing, tablecloths and, well, anything. Arriving with a bouquet that may immediately threaten the host’s white table linen can feel slightly risky. You have been warned.
White lilies have bright orange stamens that can stain clothing (picture from Farmer Gracy)
The classic mixed bouquet
Perhaps the most unfashionable floral offering of all is the classic mixed bouquet wrapped in crackling plastic. You know the one: an enthusiastic jumble of chrysanthemums, carnations and something purple-ish, often accompanied by a small sachet of mysterious flower food that never works.
The problem isn’t the flowers themselves so much as the presentation. Modern floristry tends to favour looser, more natural arrangements – stems that look as though they’ve been gathered from a garden rather than assembled in a warehouse.
Handing over a tightly wrapped plastic bundle also means your host must immediately locate scissors, unwrap several layers of unrecyclable packaging and hunt for a vase while you hover apologetically in the hallway. Not a great start.
Perhaps the most unfashionable floral offering of all is the classic mixed bouquet
So what should you bring?
Now for the good news. The blooms that were once considered naff have suddenly become cool again. And the filler-flower has become the feature. So for those who want to look like someone who knows their ranunculus from their delphinium, this is for you.
Gypsophila
Otherwise known as Baby’s Breath, gypsophila is no longer considered a sad afterthought stuffed between supermarket roses. In fact, it is fast becoming the it-girl of the bouquet world.
Once relegated to 90s prom corsages, it’s now all over weddings, dinner tables and stylish Instagram feeds. Think entire bouquets made purely of tiny white clouds. Bridesmaids carrying nothing but frothy bunches of the stuff. Minimalist, romantic, faintly whimsical. Team with a fluted vase to elevate the look, and opt for coloured glass to hide messy stems.
Gypsophila, a favourite for bridesmaids, looks like tiny white clouds (bouquet from Dutch Grown)
Carnations
This is the comeback no one saw coming. For years carnations were the petrol station flower. Reliable and sturdy. But also faintly depressing. And often in a selection of brash colours. Not any more.
Florists have reclaimed the carnation as cool. Especially the rich burgundy, dusty pink or creamy peach variety that channel the texture and volume of peonies but without the high price tag.
Spray carnations – the smaller, multi-headed variety – are also becoming especially popular in loose, hand-tied arrangements. They last ages, too. Win-win.
Dusty pink is a popular carnation colour. Rich burgundy and creamy peach are also cool
Garden flowers
According to the taste-makers at Paris Design Week, garden flowers such as foxgloves are having a moment. Expect to see them emblazoned across wallpaper, bedlinen and rugs this spring. In terms of the flowers themselves, think less classic M&S, and more ‘I picked these up from a flower market’ vibe with looser petals and wilder arrangements. Bonus style points if the bouquet has been tied with twine.
It’s romance without the cheese factor.
Garden flowers are having a moment
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Available for next-day delivery. Comes with vase and chocolates
Mimosa
If there’s a bloom that’s quietly been sashaying back into fashion circles this year, it’s the humble mimosa: that ditsy little cluster of sunshine-yellow pom-poms that looks like spring distilled into floral form.
Florists are weaving it into mixed bunches for pops of colour, using it as a stand-alone statement in minimalist vases, and pairing it with softer blooms like pale ranunculus and blush roses to balance its sunny intensity. And, unlike some trendier stems that can feel precious or high-maintenance, mimosa is also effortless. Win-win.
Wild At Heart mimosa flowers
Sweet William
These are the sort of flowers that florists now adore. They come in wonderfully punchy colours and will sit happily in a vase for weeks on end – which, frankly, makes them something of a dream if you’re the sort who enjoys flowers but forgets to change the water quite as often as you should… They are also very versatile. Their dense, rounded flower heads (a little reminiscent of hydrangeas) means they can easily hold their own as a statement bloom, but they’re equally charming tucked into a mixed bouquet.
Minnow and Wolf’s Sweet Williams
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