Classic Wedding Floral Arrangements

Antique roses call to mind time-honored traditions and meticulous care, two things bound to play a role in your life together. Here, 'Sally Holmes' roses and peach English roses sit among oak-leaf hydrangea foliage and the cascading blooms of pieris. It'sOld World, not old-fashioned.

Set atop an alabaster compote and surrounded by antique-inspired bone china and linens, this companion centerpiece holds its own. It incorporates the same buds as the bouquet with two striking extras: pomegranates and foxtail grass flowers so unusual they look plucked from a Victorian botanical print.

Strung on fishing line and hung from dowels in staggered rows, crisp white Easter lilies seem to spill from the heavens like living wedding bells. Verdant grape ivy vines add a touch of wildness to a backdrop that transforms even the starkest venue into a dreamy retreat.

Easter lilies tucked one inside the other make a surprising tiered silhouette, as if you've invented an entirely new species of flower. Like decadent floral drapery, this cascading bouquet of white lilies, clematis, campanula, and stephanotis vines falls and flows with the same graceful lines as the train of your gown.

A bundle of jasmine, zinnias, sedum, and ranunculus looks fresh and wild, as though each blossom was hand-picked from your grandmother's garden. Consider adding an heirloom -- here, an ivory beetle pin.

Clockwise from top: 1. A collar of pleated ribbon sets off a pink scabiosa flower. 2. Magenta cockscomb is adorned with velvet leaves and a locket. 3. An antique medal hangs from a rose boutonniere. 4. Velveteen leaves emerge behind snowberries. 5. Guinea-hen-wing quills make an unusual statement. 6. A tiny key adds charm to a burgundy dahlia, jasmine, and a millinery leaf. 7. Ornamental grass and paintbrush bristles frame a candy-pink zinnia blossom. Ephemera, Tinsel Trading Co., tinseltrading.com.

The moodiest hue has taken a joyful turn. This sprawling tableau of antique Venetian glass with single-flower arrangements of cornflowers, muscari, nigella, delphiniums, and anemones brings the color center stage. Blue marbleized paper place cards add rich texture (our clip art is online). Antique Venetian glass vases, Gardner & Barr, gardnerandbarr.com.

An exuberant cluster of nigella, anemones, and muscari, with porcelain berries and dusty miller, is a celebration of blue, from the palest sky to the deepest twilight. A wide iridescent Caribbean-blue ribbon at the handle catches every note.