*Sounds like a book by Edward Gorey

5/3/17: For years, I have been aware that there are makers who will create a replica of your bridal bouquet as a keepsake, but this is something new. There’s a growing trend among modern brides to skip the traditional real flower bouquets and instead carry one made of paper. I like them quite a bit more than traditional bouquets, and, if properly preserved, they can be kept for a lifetime! Whether your taste is hyper-realistic, impressionistic, or minimal, the benefits of paper bouquets are countless: they’re cost effective, they’re hardier than real flowers, they weigh less, they’re less likely to stain your wedding dress (this happened to me), they cost very little to ship so you can comparison shop rather than having to pay an exorbitant price to your local florist, you’re not limited to real floral shapes or colors, and they can be made from recycled materials, so they can even be good for the planet!

There’s a million ways to customize them. You’re only limited by the bounds of your own imagination. Bouquets can be made from traditional colored paper, metallic papers, crepe paper, origami papers, from wrapping paper, glitter paper, newsprint, book pages, sheet music, maps, or from handmade papers with real flowers embedded in them!

And if you’re feeling creative (or just thrifty), you can even make your own!

Here are a few of my faves (on Etsy, naturally), but if you’re interested, I recommend you take a look around yourself. There are thousands more available, and I’m sure you can find exactly what you want. Enjoy!