Planning a big event for 2023? Kristen Bradley the Chic Maven is ready with ideas on the latest floral trends and how to make tough arrangement decisions!
Top Colors of the Year
While floral arrangements are generally more diverse than ever, 2023 has also become the year of going back to very original, heartwarming colors. Kristen Bradley’s top colors of the year include pink (especially widespread pinks following a barbiecore look), magenta (particularly the massively popular Viva Magenta), and whites (no longer a backdrop, but a clean, forward statement).
Creative uses for these colors also continue. Wreaths and pressed flowers are only a couple of the popular ways to display the latest colors, and organic, garden-like arrangements remain popular as ever.
When in Doubt, Follow the Gems
Having trouble choosing floral colors but still want to make choices? Kristen Bradley recommends choosing colorful options with gem inspirations – lapis lazuli, ruby, sapphire, citrine, and amber all make excellent choices that can easily match a wide variety of events without becoming too bold.
However, it may be a good idea to stay away from too much emerald. While greenery had its era of popularity, 2023 has seen uses of greenery quickly decrease, with a focus instead on bright colors and more focused arrangements.
The Climate Awareness Option
There’s another rising trend for arrangements in many venues – choices that indicate eco-friendly, climate-aware trends. Often, this can mean using growing, soil-based plants for centerpieces and minimalizing the use of cut flowers where possible. Kristen Bradley also sees a similar trend when it comes to saving as much water as possible when managing displays: Using more dried flowers, which offer an elegant look while openly saving on water use.
Kristen Bradley on How Birth Flowers are Coming Into Their Own
Birthstones and birth animals have had their day, but now events are embracing something a little different: A return to traditional birth flowers that can help with arrangement decisions. Everyone has a birth flower, although they may vary based on cultural background. For example, May is associated with lily of the valley (another popular floral choice for 2023), January is connected with carnations, and March is the month of daffodils. In Western traditions, each month generally has two flowers, so people have plenty of choices. Birth flowers can make a beautiful statement for a birthday or similar event.
Cake Gardens
Cake gardens are trending arrangements that are an option wherever cakes or similar food presentations are used. They’re bigger and bolder than ever before, and designed to complement the colors of the cake (and make for an excellent photo op). More and more, Kristen Bradley is seeing flowers closer to the action like this.
Landscape References Remain a Timesaver
Not sure what floral scheme you want? In 2023, picking a landscape is a great start: Florist’s Review chooses landscape patterns for its latest forecasts, including Cape Cod, Santa Fe, and Tofino. If you aren’t sure what specific colors you want, Kristen Bradley suggests choosing a landscape that’s connected to the event or important to you, and use the colors of the sky, ground, buildings, and landmarks as a starting place for your floral inspiration.