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Regardless of whether you are getting married in Hawaii, or creating a Hawaiian style wedding and reception in the states, there are things to keep in mind in keeping with true Hawaiian wedding traditions.
The Right Colors
Common colors used in Hawaiian bridal bouquets and decorations are green, pink, white, purple, red and yellow. Hawaiian flowers come in unique shapes and vibrant hues. With such a wide variety of gorgeous flowers, decorating your venue, as well as your wedding party, and even your guests, will pose no problems.
Leis
Deck your guests out in lei. Your bridal party could wear lei in lieu of carrying the traditional hand-held bouquet or wearing a boutonniere. After all, what would Hawaii or a Hawaiian-themed wedding be without lei, which are representative of the culture and its friendliness. Lei can be fashioned out of maile, orchid, pikake, ohia lehua and plumeria or made from seeds, shells, foliage, feathers, dried flowers or candy that has been strung together. Weddings.lovetoknow.com notes that a bride traditionally wears a lei made of orchids or white jasmine. Ankle and wrists lei would also be a beautiful addition, particularly if it's a beach wedding and your attendants are barefoot. The bride might choose to wear a floral wreath on her head, keeping in line with Hawaiian practices. This headpiece is called a haku, which is a head lei constructed of tropical flowers and vines.
Centerpieces
For the wedding ceremony or the reception, consider using tall, tropical bouquets on your tables. Blooms of Hawaii has a Maui Wauwie bouquet that stands 32 inches tall and features anthuriums, tropic fleur, baby doll shea, heliconia, giant calathea, yellow shakers, beehive and greenery. The colors are extremely vivid, which is indicative of island floral arrangements. Fresh ti leaves are regularly used as a decoration at the wedding cake table. Make a striking centerpiece using a conk shell and putting a single tropical flower in it, suggests Weddings.lovetoknow.com. Or you can put small shells in the bottom of a glass bowl, add a floating candle and an orchid bloom.
Decorating a Gazebo or Pagoda
If you are getting married outside, Hawaiianweddings.net suggests decorating a gazebo or pagoda, under which you will be married, with a cascading trail of flowers or creating a Love Ohana Ring out of loose flower petals, which is placed on the beach or the ground. A pricey but beautiful floral decoration is done by making a circle out of orchids right at the spot where the couple will take their vows. This represents never-ending love.
Outside Decorations
Hawaiian floral arrangements can be customized to trail down the poles of a tent, if you are having your reception outside under a tent or some sort of canopy. Consider situating tall flower arrangements, made out of a large hydrangea, at the beginning of each aisle in the seating area for your guests.
Hibiscus
Hibiscus flowers are gorgeous, vivid and part of the Hawaiian landscape. These large flowers can be found in vibrant hues of reds, pinks and yellows, and would be beautiful either in a centerpiece arrangement, in your wedding bouquet or cascading down a trellis. Bluehawaiiweddings.com has a vast inventory of hibiscus to choose from.
Best Choices
Weddings.lovetoknow.com says that the best choice for Hawaiian wedding flowers are these tropical flowers because they are large and colorful: orchids, calatheas, costus, ginger, plumeria, heliconias, bird of paradise, hibiscus and pikake.
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