Wedding Ideas

Wedding Flowers

How to make natural petal confetti for your special day at Upwaltham Barns

Watching a newlywed couple being greeted with a flurry of petals after their marriage ceremony at Upwaltham Barns is such a pretty and memorable part of the wedding day celebrations.

We love confetti, however only natural petal confetti can be used on your special day. It is environmentally friendly, completely natural and most importantly, incredibly pretty!

The tradition originated in Italy, where small sweets were often thrown at carnivals. ‘Confetti’ in Italian refers to sugar-coated almonds, which are often given as favours to wedding guests. The throwing of seeds and grains over newlyweds dates back centuries in England, traditionally thought that it will make the marriage as fruitful and abundant as the grains. We love the history but think that beautiful dried rose petals are lovelier!

You can find quite a number of companies selling freeze dried petals online, or you can ask your florist for basketfuls of petal confetti. Most can supply it and in colours to coordinate with your bouquet.

Alternatively you can make your own. If stored in a cool, dry place, dried petals will last for up to a year, so you can make it over a period of time. It’s a great excuse to be given flowers regularly too!

We have used roses here, but feel free to experiment with different flower varieties. Delphiniums and hydrangeas work well too!

Making your own natural confetti

1. Choose fresh flowers in full bloom. Avoid petals that are turning brown on the edges as these become very brown on drying.

2. Free the petals from the stem.

3. Line a microwave safe plate with a piece of paper towel.

4. Place the petals onto the paper towel in a SINGLE layer. Any over lapping will stick together so give them some space!

5. Cover the layer of petals with a second piece of paper towel.

6. Place the plate in your microwave and heat on high until the petals are no longer damp to touch.

7. You will need to experiment with timings as each microwave is different. For us and our 800 watts microwave, it took about a minute and 30 seconds. We ‘cooked’ our petals in 30 second increments until we found the perfect drying time.

8. Remove the plate from the microwave, check your petals are all dry and store in a sealed container. Keep them in a dark cool place until your wedding day!

How much do you need?

We measured ours in a one litre measuring jug.

One litre provides about five or six large handfuls. Therefore for 60 guests you will need 12 litres, 100 guests 20 litres and 140 guests 28 litres. It’s worth noting that this measurement is for dried rose petals. Smaller flowers such as delphiniums will probably require a smaller volume.

If you want to scatter dried (or fresh) petals along the 14-metre aisle of the East Barn, you will need around half a litre per metre.

One last word of warning, be aware of red petals when you make your biodegradable confetti as the colour can sometimes stain clothes if they get damp.

For more inspiration for your wedding at Upwaltham Barns. Their natural confetti throw photo is a beauty!