Sympathy Flower Etiquette: A Quick Guide

Losing a loved one is a traumatic experience. During such times, a simple gesture of compassion and support from friends and family helps a lot. Do you have a friend or colleague dealing with the demise of a loved one? If you do, sending sympathy flowers is a great way to express your condolences and offer emotional support. However, you’ll need to think of the suitable flower arrangement that fits with the occasion. This can be somewhat challenging, so here’s an informative guide to help you choose the appropriate flowers.

The Type Of Arrangement

Deciding the most suitable flowering arrangement depends on the location you wish to deliver the flowers. If you’re planning to offer the sympathy flowers to an individual’s home, get a smaller flower bouquet. In contrast, when sending flowers to the funeral home, a bigger floral arrangement is okay.

The Type Of Flower To Buy

This is often one of the more difficult decisions you’ll need to make. Whereas you might want to follow the set conventional standards on the perfect flower, personalization is also a great alternative. Personalizing the flowers allows you to think of the best possible way to memorialize the deceased. This is because you can choose to pick a flower that the person loved or one that holds a special meaning for the family. As a result, these flowers can help cheer up the family’s atmosphere, as well as the other members at the service.

Determine Whether The Flowers Are Suitable

You should be cautious when deciding the type of sympathy flowers to choose from. In your search for the best ones, make sure they’re suitable for the occasion. For instance, flowers aren’t the norm in Hindu, Islamic, and Jewish funerals. You should thus avoid sending them to such funerals. It’s also important to consider whether certain family members might be allergic to the type of flower you’re planning to buy. Families are nowadays opting for charities in place of flowers. By doing this, they can avoid such situations from occurring.

Although sending flowers is a way to show your support to the family during these difficult moments, you shouldn’t overdo it. Gauge whether it would be best if you instead thought of more creative options to help the family. This can include doing duties such as cooking homemade meals, shopping for groceries, cleaning the house, or tidying up the lawn.

Religious Considerations

It’s vital to take into account the religious considerations of the deceased individual. By doing this, you’ll be able to tell whether sending flowers is appropriate. Knowing this is crucial since some religions, such as Judaism, don’t permit flowers during the ceremony. If you’re uncertain whether the flowers or specific flower arrangements are accepted, contact the suitable religious leader or talk to the family. For example, it’s advisable to send white flowers if the deceased was a Greek Orthodox faithful.

Moreover, you shouldn’t send flowers with the arrangement of a cross if the deceased was a Mormon believer. After knowing such details, you’ll be able to see if your sympathy flowers are appropriate.

Colors To be Used At The Funeral

Knowing what color the funeral is planning to use is crucial, as it’ll help you identify the most appropriate one. You should thus get in touch with the relevant arranging parties before deciding on the color of the sympathy flowers you wish to give. In most cases, the selected hue will be that which the deceased loved, but this is also down to individual preference.

The perfect flowers to go for should be those that have bright hues since they have a great impact on the atmosphere and ambiance for everyone present. For sympathy flowers, the most popular choices are those with deep purples and bright yellows. The reason for this is because they have muted and soft hues rather than conspicuous or loud tones.

Relationship To The Deceased

Your relationship with the deceased individual is what establishes the kind of sympathy flower you should buy. If you had a closer relationship with the deceased, you can opt to get more elaborate sympathy flowers. The biggest and most popular types of flowers should be used by the persons closest to the departed. These include wreaths, casket sprays, huge sprays on stands, and heart-shaped arrangements. Individuals who may use these flowers are immediate family members, extended family, and close friends.

For colleagues and causal friends, smaller arrangements are recommended. These include medium-sized live plants, baskets of flowers, and flowers in vases.

Final Takeaway

Choosing the right sympathy flowers to send the deceased’s family isn’t straightforward. If this is a challenge you were experiencing, the tips mentioned above will help you select the perfect ones.