Buying funeral flowers that actually have meaning
It’s often a grey area to talk about, given the sensitive nature, but it is something we want to share with you so that when the unfortunate time comes that you have to mourn a loved one, you are equipped with the knowledge of what to look out for when organising Funeral Flowers, or as we like to refer to them as Tribute Flowers.
For us, Tribute Flowers are as important as wedding flowers. We source the most amazing, premium, fresh flowers - making sure the importance that the last celebration of a person’s life is reflected in the flowers arranged. Each Tribute Flower arrangement created are hand selected to compliment the individual. Through a briefing with the family, we are able to start working on what would best symbolise the person as well as identify any props for house flowers. We place as much value on our tribute flowers as any other order or client.
Are there any flowers in particular that Kate recommends considering? “Not really, because we just try and treat it like any other event in that we try to make it about what the person who passed would like. We think about what flowers the deceased loved and in what colours, as well as what is in season. It’s not a ‘cookie cutter’, it’s all personalised to reflect the individual who has passed and celebrate their wonderful life.’ says Kate.
“We have had caskets with fig branches because one man loved figs, we have had flowers a gardener used to love, to a really bright floral arrangement for a gentleman’s casket who loved Dahlias. Nothing is off-limits and everything created is approached with dignity and sensitivity.” explains Kate.
A lot of the time the flowers go back to the family home after the service, or get distributed to family. So you really want something long lasting as this can be a strong last living connection for the family. The fragrance of the chosen flowers, while emotional, can be a really lovely memory and connection to have for up to a week after the funeral.
The sad truth is that the majority of florists out there will use flowers that should be closer to going into the bin. Others don’t see the value of using high quality, fresh flowers which is a sad thought when you think about it. Funeral parlours often take a commission of up to 30% for the flowers prepared for a funeral. So we would recommend where possible, to deal with us directly. Choosing flowers is probably the nicest part of the process and you really want to know 100% of your money is going towards the one you love.
It’s worth noting that if the service is at a reputable funeral parlour, and the family don’t take the funeral flowers home, the flowers are often binned after. So please consider making prior arrangements to do so. They are significant to everyone at the funeral and can have a positive effect on the family. It will be worth having that discussion with your funeral arranger beforehand as one last thing you need to think of on the day of the funeral.