Once your flowers arrive, cut the stems and place them in water. Most flowers have extra leaves that should be removed. You can either remove the extra leaves right away or wait until you begin arranging. Refrigeration is not needed. Flowers will be partially closed but will continue to open up as they hydrate. Certain varieties may appear droopy or wilted upon arrival or may have some breakage – this is normal! You are receiving flowers in the same state a florist would. As a reminder, roses arrive "shelved" and have layers of additional roses underneath the cardboard, which are not visible from the top. Always store stems in water when not being used. Please note that dried & preserved flowers are NOT placed in water.

Additional materials you may need:

Buckets, vases, shears, scissors, twine or ribbon, centerpiece tape, floral tape, pins, and a flower stripper. Flower food, rubber bands, floral foam, and wire are optional but not necessary to make arrangements.

If you purchased our “DIY Wedding Kit,” shears, twine, floral tape, rubber bands, a flower stripper, flower food, and pins will be included. You still need to source buckets and vases to carry the stems.

Once all your flowers are hydrated, and you have all the materials to begin arranging, what's next?

Please visit collection breakdowns to see the breakdown of how many flowers you received and how many go into each arrangement. If you ordered a custom package, please refer to your email conversation with a Kukka representative.

This breakdown is a preliminary guide to how many flowers should go into each arrangement. Please note that most people start by following these guidelines but ultimately get creative and adjust based on feel.

Your flowers will arrive in a long rectangular box and will be delivered via Fedex (occasionally by UPS, GSO or Ontrac). If you are not home at the time of delivery, the box will be left at the front door with no signature required. It is highly recommended to be available to accept the delivery so you can get the stems in water immediately.

You are going to need between 4-12 buckets (5 GAL) to store your flowers depending on the size of your order. Each bucket fits about 50 stems.

You will want to get all flowers in water as soon as possible. Fill your buckets 1/4th of the way full with room temperature water. Give all flowers a fresh cut with your shears without removing the outer packaging. Trim at least 1/2 an inch off each stem at an angle. Place trimmed flowers in buckets as you go, making sure they are hydrating in an upright position and that no stems are bent or leaning too far out of the bucket. If they are leaning out, trim the stems shorter. It is recommended to remove outer packaging after 3-4 hours of hydration. Store buckets in a cool dry place for 12-24 hours before handling (suggested time - but not required).

After hydrating, the flowers should be strong and ready to handle. Start by removing any access leaves, thorns, and any outer discolored or bruised petals (for roses, removing 3-5 guard petals is normal). Trim to a workable length and then you are ready to start arranging! Guidelines for this are included in your order confirmation email or on our product pages for your collection.

Follow the below directions for detailed descriptions on how to put together each arrangement.

Step 1: Focal Flowers

Begin by forming the center of your bouquet using the largest flowers. Select four of the biggest blooms and cross their stems in an "X" shape. Avoid pointing the flowers straight up; instead, tilt them in opposite directions to create the "X." Hold the bouquet where the stems intersect.

Step 2: Primary Flowers

Add primary flowers one by one, placing them into the bouquet to build outward evenly from the center. Maintain a tight grip on the flowers, and ensure the stems face outward to preserve the bouquet's dome shape.

Step 3: Secondary Flowers & Greenery

Expand the bouquet's dome by adding secondary flowers and greenery. Fill gaps between stems and place secondary flowers around the dome's edge. Use parts of greenery stems rather than the whole stem. Adjust heights and stray stems for balance, and insert filler flowers where needed. For a more natural look, add greenery to the outer part of the dome.

Step 4: Secure the Bouquet

If you have rubber bands, secure the bouquet together with them. For twine, skip floral tape and wrap the base directly. If using ribbon, start with floral tape:

Using Ribbon:

• Secure with floral tape about 1 inch below the blooms.
• Spiral tape downward 3-4 inches.
• Cut ribbon 3-4 times stem length.
• Wrap tightly, covering the tape.
• Use 4-6 pins to vertically attach the ribbon to the base, spaced 1 inch apart.
• Angle pins to avoid going through stems.

Using Twine:

• Secure with twine about 1 inch below the blooms.
• Spiral twine downward 4-5 inches.
• Use 1-2 pins to secure the twine's loose end to the bouquet.
• Angle pins to avoid going through stems.

Step 5: Store the Bouquet

Place the bouquet in a moderately filled bucket of water until the wedding day. Ensure enough water for hydration, but avoid soaking the twine or ribbon. Whenever possible, transport the bouquets in water for freshness.

Step 1: Prep Flowers

Remove any thorns or leaves from flowers. Cut stems. Always cut an inch off each stem at 45-degree angle. Place flowers in water as soon as possible. As a rule, make your arrangement about one and a half times taller than your container.

Step 2: Prep the Vase

Start with a vase that has a wide enough round or square opening (6-8 inch diameter is our standard size). Start to line tape vertically. Continue lining tape about one inch apart. Start to line tape horizontally and create a grid. You want to end up with enough open space to place your flowers in between the tape.

Step 3: Arrange Flowers

Start placing focal flowers in the holes between the tape. Continue placing flowers as you rotate the vase to keep an even shape. Add a secondary flower. Add fillers. Rotate once again and make adjustments if necessary.

Boutonnieres are very similar to bouquets but much simpler.

Step 1: Select & Cut Stems

Use 2-4 stems (or parts of 1 stem) & cut stem lengths to 2-3 inches.

Step 2: Bunch & Secure Stems

Bunch the stems together. If using ribbon, wrap the bases with floral tape, and then cover tightly with a small piece of ribbon. If using twine, wrap the bases directly with twine as tightly as possible. Secure the ribbon/twine with pins that are angled upwards. It's best to keep the bottom 1/2 inch exposed and not wrapped so you can place them in water without damaging any twine or ribbon.

Step 3: Store the Boutonnieres

Store the boutonnieres in small water containers until the wedding day.

Corsages can be pin-on or fit around the wrist. The pin-on corsages are arranged in a similar way as boutonnieres but are usually slightly larger. Wrist corsages require a corsage bracelet or ribbon which must be purchased separately.

Pin-On Corsages:

Step 1: Select & Cut Stems

Use 3-4 stems (or parts of 1 stem) & cut stem lengths to 2-3 inches.

Step 2: Bunch & Secure Stems

Bunch the stems together. If using ribbon, wrap the bases with floral tape, and then cover tightly with a small piece of ribbon. If using twine, wrap the bases directly with twine as tightly as possible. Secure the ribbon/twine with pins that are angled upwards. It's best to keep the bottom 1/2 inch exposed and not wrapped so you can place them in water without damaging any twine or ribbon.

Step 3: Store the Corsage

Store the pin-on corsages in small cups of water until the wedding day.

Wrist Corsages:

Use a corsage bracelet or 1-inch thick satin ribbon.

Materials needed: Scissors, cardboard or felt, floral tape, ribbon, and floral glue.

Step 1: Cut Cardboard Piece

Cut a small piece of cardboard or felt to about the length of a wrist and 1 inch wide. Completely cover the cardboard piece with floral tape. You can also use a piece of soft felt without floral tape.

Step 2: Select Flowers & Greenery

The best flowers for wrist corsages include small buds such as spray roses, ranunculus, astrantia, pompoms, baby’s breath, wax flower, lisianthus, thistle, etc. 

Step 3: Attach Focal Flowers

Cut the stems very short on the larger flowers to be able to glue to your tape-covered cardboard piece. Glue the focal flower(s) starting at the center of the cardboard. You’ll work all flowers from the center point out.

Step 4: Attach Filler Flowers & Greenery

Add filler flowers by glueing them around the focal flower(s). You can also group small boutonnière-sized bunches with floral tape and then add them in. Cut a few greenery sprigs to no more than about 1-2 inches long and glue around the focal and filler flowers.

Step 5: Fill in Gaps

Once you’re satisfied with the look of your piece and you’ve filled in any gaps so no cardboard is showing you can start with the ribbon wrist closure.

Step 6: Ribbon Closure

Measure a ribbon around your wrist and add a few extra inches to each side to be able to tie the ribbon around the wrist. Carefully add floral glue to to the bottom of the cardboard piece and press the middle portion of the ribbon over the cardboard.

Step 6: Store the Corsage

Set aside or place in a fridge (free of other foods) until use.

Materials needed: Floral Foam Block or Caged Floral Foam, Floral Wire, Floral Tape, Floral Hooks or Zip-ties.

Step 1: Soak Floral Foam

Fully submerge a floral foam block in water for at least 1 hour, overnight is best. Check your arch and make sure it is sturdy enough to hold up arch pieces. Determine if hooks or zip-ties are necessary.

Step 2: Create a Greenery Base

Start your base with greenery. Clean the leaves off the stems of your greenery so that they can be inserted securely 2 inches into your floral foam. Depending on the style of arch you will need to shape your greenery in an angle (for asymmetric style) or in a spray (for centered focal point). Build out a greenery base by inserting longer stems toward the bottom and short in the middle and top of the block. You want to create a dome-like shape always inserting at an angle and filling in as many gaps as possible. 

Step 3: Add Focal Flowers & Filler Flowers

Clean the stems of your focal flowers and filler flowers. Decide on a focal point and start adding flowers to your greenery base. Start with the largest blooms and then use the smaller blooms as filler. Look for gaps and fill in with extra stems. 

Pro Tip: If you need to add more length or bulk to the ends of the arch piece you can use floral tape to connect 2 stems together seamlessly. If the shape of the piece is too haphazard you can use floral wire to group stems together for a more defined shape. 

Step 4: Store Arch Piece(s)

Store and hang your completed arch piece. As long as your floral foam block is damp to the touch, your flowers will stay fresh. Store your piece(s) in a cool dry place until the big day. Use floral foam hooks or zip-ties to attach to the arch.

Materials Needed: Floral Wire, Floral Tape, Scissors, Ribbon or Twine. 

Step 1: Create Crown Length

Shape your green floral wire to your desired length. You can do this by wrapping the wire around your head to find your desired size. Add an additional inch to the measured length of both ends and create small loops for your ribbon or twine closure. 

Pro Tip: Measure your flower crown with your desired hairstyle for the wedding. Your crown will fit differently depending on how you style your hair.

Step 2: Add Greenery

Wrap small leafed greenery around the base of the crown. Use floral tape and small pieces of floral wire to affix the greenery’s stems to the floral wire base. Be sure to wrap sharp edges of the wire with floral tape to avoid discomfort. 

Step 3: Create Flower Bunches

Create mini-flower bunches to prepare to attach to the crown. Start by selecting three blooms and wrapping the stems together with floral tape. Wrap the floral tape from the base of the bloom to the bottom of the stem to make sure it’s secure. Combine your statement flowers with a couple filler flowers to create a balanced look. After making about eight bunches, you can start affixing your bunches to your crown.

Step 4: Add Flowers

Attach your mini flower bunches to the crown. Grab your first flower bunch and fasten the stems to your crown with craft wire or floral tape. Attach the flowers in one direction facing outwards for the blooms to stand out. Continue to layer your flowers until you’re satisfied with your crown!

Pro Tip: You can create a focal point by affixing a few statement flower bunches towards the front, side, or back of your crown and filling out the rest with filler flowers.

Step 5: Create Closure

Attach ribbon or twine to the end wire loops to create an adjustable closure on the finished crown. 

Step 6: Store the Crown

Store your crown in the fridge to keep it fresh. Crowns can be stored for up to one day in the fridge. It’s best to get it in the fridge as soon you make it! Place your crown in a safe spot in so it won’t get squished. Make sure there are no fruits & vegetables (that release ethylene) present. Spritz your crown with some water before use to refresh your blooms.