Mother's Day Flowers

Mother's Day (or Mothering Sunday) is the one day in every year that is specifically designated for families and relatives to celebrate their mothers. In Britain Mother's Day is always celebrated three Sundays before Easter (on the fourth Sunday of Lent), as is thought to date back to the 16th century Christian tradition of visiting one's 'mother church' on this date. On this special day employers would allow their employees to take the day off in order to return to their home town and visit their mother church, although in reality this was often an occasion for mothers and children to be reunited after a long time spent apart. Mother's Day is not, however, just a British holiday, as many countries across the globe set aside a special day dedicated to honouring and celebrating mothers. Different countries celebrate Mother's Day on different dates, however and likewise other cultures and countries celebrate through many different customs and traditions. In Mexico, for example, the celebration of Mother's Day includes a lively church service with festive music and the distribution of a specially made early breakfast to all mothers in the local area.

In the vast majority of countries across the world Mother's Day is, however, traditionally celebrated by the giving of flowers. In North America, Asia and Australasia, for example, carnations are traditionally given to mothers on Mother's Day and many people wear them to either demonstrate their love for their mother or to show that they have been given flowers by their children. For this reason many Mother's Day bouquets include red or pink carnations in them.

Choosing the perfect bouquet for your mother on Mother's Day can, however, be a tricky task, as developments in transport systems mean we can now choose flowers from all over the globe, making it even harder to pick the perfect blooms! To make sure you select the perfect bouquet it is often a good idea to have a chat with your florist, as they will always have some great ideas and knowledge of flowers you have never even heard of! If, for example, you can tell your florist you mother's favourite colour or her favourite flower then this gives your florist something to work from and will ensure you give your mother a bouquet that is specifically designed to be perfect for her. If you spend a little time thinking about what kind of bouquet it is you think your mother would really like then she will be sure to be pleased with the flowers you give her for Mother's Day.

You might, on the other hand, like to take a little inspiration from the Victorians. Whilst these days giving flowers is simply a nice gesture, in the Victorian period each individual flower was thought to convey a particular meaning or sentiment and thus bouquets were arranged to communicate a specific message. Azaleas, for example, meant 'take care of yourself', Camellias convey 'gratitude' and Periwinkle means 'friendship'. With a little research into the Victorian tradition of flower meanings you could then give your mother a bouquet that is not only beautiful, but also tells her just how much you love her!