Modern Wedding Bouquets for the Nontraditional Bride

If you're busy researching all of the different options you have for a wedding bouquet, you've likely considered the many different flower types, arrangement shapes, and floral aesthetics. With all of the diverse options out there, it's easy to walk away from an hour of scrolling feeling more conflicted—and inundated by all of that gorgeous bouquet inspiration—than when you first started. To streamline this process, consider the following approach: Before you decide on the bloom varieties to include within your bouquet, think about its overall vibe you'd like. Are you leaning towards looser, natural florals, or are you intrigued by the idea of a modern, architectural mix?

If you find yourself gravitating towards the latter, you've come to the correct place. While we'll never stop loving organic, romantic arrangements, there's just something about a modern wedding bouquet—they're structured, inspired, and incredibly memorable—that we can't get enough of. What's more, there are plenty of ways to make a bridal arrangement feel contemporary. Whether you work with your florist to create a never-been-seen asymmetrical shape (bookmark the following "S" iteration, ahead!), work in unexpected florals (like Birds of Paradise), or opt for an ultra-bright or super-moody color palette, your options for modernizing your spray truly are endless.

There is, however, one tried-and-true way to bring a modern bouquet to life: Go the monochrome route. Wild Bloom Floral did just that when ideating and executing this all-white clutch, which was comprised of flowering cherry blossom branches and roses. The method works just as well in neon colorways, too, as evidenced by the neon-yellow bouquet just ahead. However you choose to translate your modern wedding theme through your personal florals, one thing is certain: Your contemporary bouquet will be one of the most memorable details from your wedding day.

There are so many ways to modernize your wedding bouquet, from choosing a unique shape to incorporating unexpected blooms. This Sweet Woodruff arrangement blends both approaches: Note how the team punctuated plenty of traditional flowers (including daisies and spray and garden roses) with super-mod, all-white scabiosa. They even arranged the buds in a futuristic way. The result? An asymmetrical mix with the most unique feature—most of the daisies appeared to be dangling from the edges, adding a contemporary, dynamic element.

We don't think we've ever seen a bouquet shape quite like this "S" iteration before. Created by Jules and Pearls Events, this cosmo, Japanese anemone, garden rose, and carnation spray was structured by winding in-bloom branches. The bouquet's distinct shape referenced the bride's wedding dress; the curve subtly matched the garment's sweetheart neckline.

The easiest way to bring modern flair to your bouquet? Choose buds in ultra-dark colorways. Shiny verdant leaves contrasted the inky central lotus flower in this arrangement by Sara Lunn of Cultivate Goods. Chocolate cosmos and bare branches added minimal verticality.

Brides planning a modern fall wedding, use this unique arrangement by Moon Canyon as a reference for your own. The clutch's seasonal colorways—grape, burnt rust, and merlot—were translated through nontraditional buds, like wispy poppies and pigmented mums. Paired with the bride's stark-white wedding dress and slicked-back hairstyle, the clutch redefined the typical autumnal bouquet.

Look closely and you'll notice that the central portion of this arrangement is quite traditional—at least in terms of its composition (the clutch is rose-centric!). Honey & Poppies brought a contemporary twist to this mix by pulling down the roses' first petal layer (doing so completely reinvents the classic bud, transforming it into what looks like an entirely different flower) and framing them with unusual leaves, like rust-colored ferns and vermillion palm.

If there's one thing your guests won't expect from your bridal bouquet, it's ultra-bright color. That's exactly why this Tumbleweed Floral Truck arrangement feels so contemporary. Comprised of mostly fluorescent-yellow blooms, the bouquet was rounded out with a few creamy buds—but even these spoke to the arrangement's color palette (note the right-most peony's sunny center!).

When you think of a traditional bouquet, what comes to mind? It's likely this: a collection of cohesive blooms that work in tandem to create an organic, effortless arrangement. In other words, the very opposite of this stand-out spray by Trille Floral. Each robust bloom—how incredible are these massive cocoa-colored mums?—was designed to stand out from the pack. Bright-white roses and ranunculus created a high-contrast color palette, which only enhanced the bunch's unique flower varieties (check out that golden strawflower!) and shades.

Of the many modern bouquets on this list, this seven-shaped Faye + Renee arrangement might be the most uniquely-structured. Its contemporary shape was only reinforced by its ombré color scheme. The pros started out with neutral cream dahlias and cosmos on top—and then used yellow-centered peonies and peachy delphinium to draw the eye downward, along the arrangement's diagonal lower half.

This mix of mostly-tropical greens—courtesy of Bloomen—is proof that the most contemporary bouquets often come together with little to no flowers. A single calla lily was the only floral component of the verdant mix, which looked as if it had been foraged from a rain forest.

This monochrome bouquet by Amanda of Studio Imbue is proof that a wedding-white bouquet can absolutely be modern. The secret? Using futuristic floral varieties, like silver lunaria and scabiosa.

Winter brides, here's the ultimate cold-weather contemporary clutch. Dried golden leaves brought seasonal color (and arched structure!) to this otherwise snow-white arrangement by Bleedfoot Florals; the arrangement tied into the rest of the wedding's color palette, which was orchestrated by Callista & Company.

You don't have to plan a fully-modern wedding to carry a contemporary bouquet of blooms down the aisle. Take this stylish bride, for example. While her champagne-colored dress (she designed the off-the-shoulder garment herself!) and Mignonne Handmade crown felt distinctly regal and Old-World, her Hart clutch—comprised of flannel flowers, burnt-orange ranunculus, quicksand roses, chrysanthemums, and a mix of dried palms and mushrooms—told another (more of-the-moment) story.

The main contemporary players in this D'amour et de Déco spray? Anthurium blossoms and pampas grass. While the anthurium provided a dose of monochromatic drama to the arrangement, pampas grass acted as a modern base.

Though many cascading bouquets feel distinctly natural, this iteration by Rye Workshop speaks more to modern aesthetics. The reason? It was grounded by structural tropical florals (like king protea, blush bride protea, pink gomphrena, white lily, and orchids) and exotic greens. The arrangement's floor-sweeping clematis vine was another source of visual intrigue.

Who says a modern bouquet has to be comprised of a myriad of blooms? This White Magnolia Designs poppy spray is proof that a colorful, single-flower clutch can feel contemporary—oftentimes, even more contemporary than arrangements featuring a vast array of blossoms.

Filling your bouquet with unexpected accents (think dried lotus pods and grasses instead of lush greens or structural flowers, like protea, as opposed to petaled iterations) is a simple way to put a modern spin on a traditional big-day detail. Viva L'Event brought this petite masterpiece to life.

Now here's a flower absolutely no one will expect to see your in bridal bouquet: Birds of Paradise. Inessa Nichols Design incorporated the bright orange variety into this architectural arrangement, which also featured fluffy gerbers, Song of India, celosia, stephanotis, and dried sago.

Bookmark this Siren Floral Co. bouquet if you're searching for a bouquet that walks the line between romantic (note the muted golden roses) and seriously modern (the neon yellow ranunculus and baby's breath are so fresh!).

Ranunculus is the ultimate bloom for your modern bouquet—they're long, springy stems help give clutches vertical structure. The bright-orange varieties in this Bows + Arrows clutch contrasted against white base peonies for a fun, of-the-moment contrast.