GypsyFarmGirl: Boots, Bouts, Bootineer, Boutonier, Boutonnières

Sunday, March 22, 2015

Boots, Bouts, Bootineer, Boutonier, Boutonnières

Boot, bouts, bootineer, boutineer, boutonniers, boutiniers, boutoniers, boutennieres, boutonnières...

It's a very hard word to spell! Trust me when I say, spell check has to help me out spelling boutonnières all the time. At the flower shop, when writing on paper, I always abbreviated the word to bout. If we ever did spell it out, the dictionary had to be consulted! That little mark over the e, is definitely auto correct helping out.

According to one dictionary, a boutonnière is a noun and "a spray of flowers worn in a buttonhole" or another online dictionary states " a flower or small bouquet worn, usually by a man, in the buttonhole of a lapel."

That gets me wondering why we don't just call them buttonholes? It's so much easier to spell!

I thought I would share several pictures and color combinations of boutonnières. The first picture is blue denim bouts with burlap leaves and stem.

So who should wear a boutonnière?

Groom

Best man, groomsmen, junior groomsmen

Preacher / officiant

Ring bearer

Ushers

Candle lighters

Father of bride and groom

Step-dads

Grandfathers

Depending on your personal preferences, not everyone has to have a boutonnière, but this list is a guideline to go by.

I often have customers reordering because they forgot someone or added a groomsman, etc.

I'll admit, I forgot the groomsman when we got married! I was getting ready to walk down the aisle and plucked a rose bud out of my bouquet and made an extra boutonnière in the bathroom! Doing your own flowers and being the one getting married was stressful. I might have had a panic moment or two that day!

Mini sunflower buttonholes, with the stem wrapped in twine.

This was a groom's boutonnière that was fancied up a bit with a few pieces of brown, dried babies breath.

Sometimes, the groom's boutonnière will be different colors or just a little more special to make him stand out, as was the case with the white rose for the groom and red roses for the remaining wedding party.

Sometimes, it's just the groom who gets a bout and that's okay too.

mini bout for ring bearer and large bouts for men in wedding party

I can make mini boutonnières for the ring bearers or junior groomsmen, that are more appropriately sized for younger children.

In this case, the groom was wearing a turquoise shirt, so he got a brown burlap boutonnière, with the groomsmen getting the light turquoise "jade" bouts.