Petal Confetti!

I am not normally a lover of 'Rom Com' films but Four Weddings and a Funeral is one of my all time favourites. In part because it captures the essence of the period, partly because the character of Scarlett is modelled on a friend of mine and partly because I secretly wanted to be the Ally McDowell character. Cool, sassy and by the end has totally hit the jackpot (assuming Hugh Grant is your cup of tea).  

In August I was a guest at my niece’s wedding just outside Bath, in a location to rival any seen in the film. Added to which, my sister gave me a last minute challenge - could I help make dried flower confetti as, in common with many village churches, the paper version is strictly a no no.  Well, for my lovely niece, Jo, such a task was truly a pleasure.  

Making flower confetti is not hard - success is more or less guaranteed if the petals are thoroughly dried in the dark. The smell coming from the airing cupboard over a period of weeks was quite heady as the petals dried on racks.

Roses are brilliant on account of the density of the petals but keeping the colour can be tricky especially with all the wet weather we had from mid July to mid August. Delphiniums are another classic largely because, once dried, the petals are so very light.  Hollyhocks surprised as they keep their lovely colours but, be warned, they do take a while to dry.

Annuals are programmed to flower in abundance making them a good choice to add in.  Nigella, sweet peas, clary sage all bulked up the mixture.

I have read that you can use fresh petals - sweet pea, calendula and geranium in particular. Thinking again though, all that last minute work to gather and prepare the petals just when you need the time to get yourself ready and for preference NO RAIN means that the risk was not worth taking!

The wedding was the most wonderful occasion; so much planning to ensure a picture perfect day. Jo and husband make a fabulous couple. By the way, all the confetti was used to great effect…