The flower girl is one of the cutest participants at a wedding ceremony. She is a young female who scatters flower petals down the aisle during a wedding procession. She is one of the last participants to appear before the bride comes.

So, if the flower girl is young, how old should she be then? Generally, it is recommended for the flower girl to be between the ages of four and seven. Although, it is important the flower girl to be sufficiently mature to understand her role, she can be even younger or older. There is no firm and strict rule and if you have a girl who is ten years old and very important to you, you can absolutely invite her to be your flower girl. Or if your closest family couple’s daughter just turned three, you can also invite her to be the flower girl at your wedding ceremony.

Similarly discussed in previous articles, there are no strict rules anymore for how a wedding should be organised. Everything is in the hands of the couple (especially the bride) and it is their personal choice who will take part in this very important day.

 

What Is The Average Age For A Flower Girl?

 

Typically, the flower girl is between four and seven years old. This is the general recommendation for the flower girl’s age. Of course, if there is a girl who is younger than four years old, but very important to you, you can always invite her to be your flower girl. It is recommended that she is a bit more mature, so she can understand her role and is able to walk down the aisle.

If she is younger than four years old, you can choose an older girl to accompany her down and aisle and guide her, in case she heads to a different direction! You can opt for an older niece or an older daughter of your friends. Some brides also choose their most junior bridesmaid (junior bridesmaids are between 12 and 16 years old) to accompany your cute Flower Girl.

When you do your research about the flower girl and her role, you could come across resources that say the flower girl should be between three and eight years old.

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What Do Flower Girls Do?

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The flower girl is part of the wedding procession at a wedding ceremony. She is the last one to appear before the bride comes. The flower girl walks down the aisle scattering flower petals as she walks. Her dress resembles the dress of the bride.

In the past, the flower girl was a representation of the bride from her childhood and being a young girl to her maturity as a grown woman ready for marriage. Walking-down-the-aisle is a symbol of her path in life until that moment and that is also why the flower girl and the bride wear matching dresses.

In older times, flower girls would scatter herbs and fresh flowers to symbolize fertility and new beginnings. In modern times, the flower girl is only an adorable addition to the wedding procession and a way to include the couple’s (or the bride’s) favourite young friend in the wedding.

The duties of the flower girl can be summarized in a couple of brief points:

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• She is part of the wedding procession.

• She walks down the aisle scattering flower petals.

• She is between 4 and 7 years old.

• She can be accompanied by an older girl.

• Her dress resembles the one of the bride.

• She is a niece, cousin or a close friend’s daughter.

• She can attend the bridal shower.

 

Does She Have To Scatter Flowers?

 

Not necessarily. Flower petals are the traditional and most beautiful thing to scatter, but nowadays is not compulsory to scatter flowers. You can give her colourful balloons on pinwheels or a bottle of bubbles to blow as she walks down the aisle. You can even let her walk down the aisle carrying two-three balloons with helium in her hand.

Some venues do not even allow scattering flower petals because of the additional rubbish to be cleaned later on that’s being created. If that is the case, you may have to come with other options for the flower girl and get creative. Clear this question up with the venue in advance.

 

How Many Flower Girls Can You Have?

 

Generally, the flower girl is only one. She is ideally between the ages of four and seven. However, when you do your research, you may find out that typically she is between three and eight years old.

However, everything is personal choice for your special day and if you have more than one young girl that you adore, you can include them all to be flower girls! If your chosen one is too young, she can be accompanied by an older girl to be her escort down the aisle. Many brides choose to have two, even three flower girls. Flower girls are usually nieces, cousins, younger sisters in some cases or daughters of close family friends and you do not want leave anyone out. So, go bravely ahead and choose as many flower girls as you wish! In fact, it can be much more fun, if you have several flower girls!

 

How To Choose A Flower Girl

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Here go a couple of suggestions of how to pick your flower girl:

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• Ask her parents first
   

Undoubtedly, you have to obtain her parents’ permission first before you ask her, if she wants to be your flower girl.

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• Ask your future flower girl herself
   

After you have her parents’ approval, you can proceed to asking your beloved girl, if she wants to take part in your wedding as a flower girl.

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• Consider every young girl in your social circle
   

Before you ask anyone anything, first take a moment to think how many young girls there are in your closest social and family circle and how old they are. After that, consider how many you can invite - based on their age and the number of people you can involve. Some venues do not even allow flower girls.

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• Prepare her
   

Do not forget that you flower girl(s) is just a kid. You should make the day special for her and the whole experience memorable. Starts preparing her a couple of months in advance of what behaviour and activities are expected from her but do not put unnecessary pressure. Make her relax and have fun with her role at the wedding.   

 

How Do You Ask A Girl To Be Your Flower Girl?

 

Asking a girl to be a Flower Girl can be lots of fun and you can get creative! Let’s look at a couple of different ways!

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• Give her a ring pop and pop the question!
   

• Give her something monogrammed like a bracelet or a necklace with her name engraved on it. You can also include the wedding date.
   

• A book about flower girls with easy descriptions of what a flower girl’s role is! You can also include personal notes inside.

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What Should The Flower Girl Wear?

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As briefly mentioned, the flower girl’s dress should resemble the dress of the bride as much as possible. Of course, the dress has to be appropriate for the girl’s age.

The dress does not have to be a small replica of the bride’s outfit. It can include matching elements or patterns. For example, if the bride is wearing a tulle gown, you can choose a similar silhouette for the flower girl. If the bride’s wedding gown contains big amounts of lace, you can include a similar pattern in the flower girl’s dress but of smaller quantities.

Another option is to match the girl’s dress to the dresses of the bridesmaids. Of course, fitted suitably to her age. A white dress with a sash in the same colour as the bridesmaids’ dresses is a typical option.

Finally, do not forget the flower girl’s accessories. She much have matching shoes, a head band or a small tiara and of course, a well-styled basket to keep the flower petals in! 

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Who Pays For The Flower Girl’s Dress?

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The parents of the Flower Girl pay for her dress as well as for her accessories. If she can afford it, the bride can pay for it as well or cover the accessories.

Generally, it is typical for the parents to pay for everything. If the bride wants to help, she can offer a couple of options of where to buy the dress from or how it should look like.

 

When And Where To Include The Flower Girl

 

Of course, she is part of the wedding ceremony. Here are some more examples of how you can include her depending on her age.

If she is too young:

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• The wedding ceremony to scatter the petals.

• Rehearsal ceremony the day before.

• She sits with her parents after her part is done.
   

If she is older:
 

• The wedding ceremony to scatter the petals.

• Rehearsal ceremony the day before.

• She can remain with the bridesmaids by the altar.

• Attends the bridal shower.

• Attends the “get ready” hours before the ceremony together with the bride and the bridesmaids.
   

Conclusion

 

There are quite a number of details to figure out about the lovely flower girl. To make the process a bit easier and clearer, let’s briefly summarize what this lovely participant in the wedding ceremony is all about.

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Start off with:

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1. Choosing her – she is usually a niece, a cousin, a sister (rare but not impossible, you never know) or a close friend’s daughter.

2. Consider her age.

3. Decide if you want one or several flower girls – depending on how many favourite girls you have out there!

4. Decide if she will be accompanied by an older girl or a junior bridesmaid (between 12 and 16 years of age) – the younger the flower girl is, the better it is to have a companion.

5. She walks down the aisle before the bride scattering flower petals.

6. If flower petals are not allowed, consider other options such as balloons.

7. She is dressed in a dress similar to the bride’s.

8. She is supposed to remind of a smaller and younger version of the bride.

9. Obtain her parents’ approval before you ask her.

10. Get creative when asking her to be your flower girl.

11. Decide if it is appropriate to include in her in the bridal shower or the “get ready” hours with the other bridesmaids.

12. Her parents typically pay for her dress and accessories.

13. She is between 4 and 7 years of age.