Getting married in Seattle and here in the Pacific Northwest in general, includes a wealth of botanical delights to choose from.
Seriously.
The Pacific Northwest is one of the most beautiful places in the United States. (Okay, that’s a bias of mine, perhaps, but one I am probably not willing to give up.) With all the rain, the mild, maritime temperatures, and the fertile soil, the flora in this area is truly the icing on the cake.
If you are having your wedding in the Pacific Northwest, from a botanical perspective, consider yourself very lucky. Seattle wedding flowers will make your wedding come alive.
Seattle Wedding Flowers: What Sets Them Apart
The varieties of seasonal flowers and foliage that grow in Washington between the months of May to October is almost…magical. I have flowered weddings in Wisconsin, Minnesota, California, Colorado, and Hawai’i, and the only other place where local wedding flowers grow in such abundance is California.
The longer I reside here in Washington, the more I am convinced that I am living in an enchanted forest. Even when the sky is overcast and rainy, nature here seems to glow from within. Washington-grown flowers are some of the most beautiful and unique blooms that I have ever seen and have ever worked with. These heirloom chrysanthemums came from Wildrye Farm in Bellingham. Have you ever seen blooms so lovely?
Designing with flowers is a delightful art form, but designing with flowers that are captivatingly stunning, is transcendent.
Benefits of Using Local Flowers for Seattle Weddings
There are countless benefits to choosing to use local flowers for your Seattle wedding. Here are just a few:
- Sustainability: Choosing locally grown flowers for your Seattle wedding means you are prioritizing sustainability and allowing your wedding florist to work with some of the most beautiful, unique blooms available.
- Emissions: The commercial floral industry is a beast. From being a florist in the wedding industry consistently for the past 14 years, to some research I have done in my free time, I can tell you that the economy of imported flowers is on jumbo jet level. And it has the emissions and environmental impact to go with it.
- Fewer Pesticides: Many imported flowers come from South America where environmental regulations are not as robust as they are here in the United States. To get the most yield from their crops, flower growers use pesticides, herbicides, and fungicides. Flowers are grown, packaged, and then transported on jumbo jets that fly to Miami, where they are inspected by US Customs. To protect our fragile ecosystem, sometimes imported flowers have to be re-sprayed with pesticides if any bugs are hitching a ride.
- Supporting Local Flower Farmers: Many of the Washington flower farmers that I buy from care about protecting the local environment. From using organic fertilizers, to crop rotation, and incorporating salmon-safe farming practices, Washington farmers employ regenerative farming practices. The land benefits from this, creatures benefit, and the florists who handle the flowers also benefit from handling flowers without a lot of synthetic pesticides. Plus, the flowers don’t have to travel thousands of miles. That is a benefit to Mother Nature herself.
As a Seattle wedding florist, when I work with couples that prioritize locally grown flowers, the impact their wedding has on the environment is much lower than had we used standard commercial flowers. Using locally grown flowers means being able to incorporate unusual, delicate stems into floral arrangements that become magnificent works of floral art.
Ready for stunning, sustainably grown wedding flowers? Please contact me, Holly Yee, today to create beautiful, eco-friendly floral designs and bring your vision to life.
Choosing the Right Wedding Flowers
When working with couples to choose the right flowers for their weddings, the three things I focus on are seasonal availability, aesthetic compatibility, and hardiness.
- Seasonal Availability: In my floral proposals, I always include a page of potential flower varieties. These are specific flower varieties that have a good likelihood of being available at certain times of year. Narrowing in on specific blooms allows me to bring to life conceptual design of my clients’ wedding flowers, which is how I translate what I envision for your event.
- Aesthetic Compatibility: Once we have our list of available flowers, I work with my couples to further refine what we will use for their wedding by choosing blooms that match the style of their wedding. This can include varieties of flowers that my couples are drawn to, the feel that each flower embodies, and the colors certain flowers grow in. I especially love designing personal flowers that beautifully compliment my couples’ attire.
- Hardiness: The last thing I take into consideration is the hardiness of specific blooms. Depending on the average weather during a specific time of year and what the water source for a particular piece will be, sometimes I choose blooms over other blooms or exclude certain blooms completely, such as flowers that are more heat resistant or not as water sensitive. Delivering the freshest, most beautiful flowers for your wedding is one of my top priorities. And making sure those flowers look great for the entire duration of your wedding is also top of mind.
Get in touch today to learn more about this process and discover the perfect wedding flowers available to make your special day unforgettable.
2025 Seattle Wedding Trends
What I love about Seattle is that it is very environmentally focused. According to Visit Seattle, Seattle recycles more than double the national average and much of our electricity comes from hydropower. I attribute this to being surrounded by majestic mountains, the very tall trees, being able to feel the breeze from the Puget Sound and Lake Washington, and living amongst so many forest creatures – frogs, bears, coyotes, and owls to name a few. Seattle’s commitment to sustainability is really gaining momentum in the world of weddings.
Emerald Hour is a Seattle-based professional wedding organization that celebrates and encourages sustainable wedding practices. More and more wedding professionals are realizing the importance of creating less waste, consuming less resources, and decreasing their carbon footprint. Couples are also starting to lead with sustainability as one of their wedding planning values.
Many couples are prioritizing locally grown flowers, weddings with smaller guest counts, and quality over quantity regarding decor, favors, and textiles. It makes my heart sing to see couples make environmentally conscious wedding decisions.
Also, after many years of neutrals being the leader in wedding color palettes, I am seeing more and more couples opt for warm, summery, and fun color palettes – pinks, peaches, and golden yellows!
Seattle Wedding Flower Examples
These are some of my favorite designs from the weddings I have flowered here in Washington. Look at all that color, texture, and movement!
Working With a Local Florist in Seattle
In college I worked at a local flower shop. I was attending the University of Wisconsin-Madison and worked part-time in one of the oldest and most well-known flower shops in the city at that time. Sometimes customers called the flower shop directly, but many times we would get in orders from national floral wire services.
Without the prevalence of the internet at that time, it made sense that people would use that kind of service to send flowers. Now, with the World Wide Web and so much information at our fingertips, I don’t understand how those companies are still in business. Maybe because, as a consumer myself, I would rather do business with small mom-and-pop shops than big companies.
Working with a local vendor for your wedding can be like collaborating with a good friend. Wedding vendors are your allies during your wedding planning process and everyone that I have met in the industry wants to do the best job possible. As a local wedding florist in Seattle, the human interaction aspect of my job is one of the the things I enjoy most.
Contact Holly Yee Floral Architecture to Talk Flowers
I love working closely with my couples to design the most beautiful flowers for their weddings. Collaboration is at the forefront of my process. On the WEDDINGS page on my website you can read about the experience of working with me as your Seattle wedding florist. I value communication, collaboration, and, of course, absolutely beautiful flowers.
I am still booking weddings for the 2025 wedding season, as well as events for 2026. If you are planning a wedding and want to have a great floral experience, I would love to hear from you. Let’s set up a time to chat!
