Where Each Royal Bride Leaves Her Bouquet After the Big Day
When it comes to weddings, the royal family doesn't hold back. Want proof? Prince William and Duchess Catherine spent over $1.1 million on their floral budget alone - which is way more than most weddings cost altogether. But that doesn't mean the couple got to spend this money however they wanted. When it came to Kate's bouquet, she embraced several royal traditions, some of which were established more than 170 years ago.
1. Every bouquet contains a sprig of myrtle.
Back in 1840, Queen Victoria included a sprig of myrtle in her bouquet when she married Prince Albert - and every royal bride that has gotten married since then has followed her lead. Rumor has it that Victoria cut the sprig from a bush Albert's grandmother gave her during a visit to Gotha, Germany.
2. And it's always cut from the same bush.
People claim Victoria grew a plant from the sprig she carried in her bouquet and that this 170-year-old bush is what royal brides since have cut their own clippings from. Since myrtle stands for good luck in love in marriage, we can understand why it's important
3. They contain mostly white flowers.
Even though traditionally the color of royal bouquets are the same, the flowers within them are not. In 1947, Queen Elizabeth filled hers with three varieties of white orchids. Princess Diana opted for a waterfall bouquet featuring gardenias, stephanotis, orchids, lily of the valley, roses, freesia, veronica and spider lilies in 1981. And in 2011, Kate chose lily of the valley, hyacinths and Sweet William, as a tribute to her groom.
4. Ivy also makes a regular appearance.
To complement the white flowers, most royal brides incorporate green as their secondary color. For Diana and Kate, this meant ivy, which represents fidelity, friendship and affection.
5. They're placed at the same spot afterwards.
The Queen Mother left her bouquet at the Tomb of the Unknown Warrior following her wedding to King George VI to honor her brother who was killed during World War I. This started a tradition and now all royal brides leave their bouquets at this monument in Westminster Abbey the day after their wedding.
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