8 Alternatives To Having A Flower Girl

Alternatives to having a flower girl, coming right up!

Flower girls are so cute, aren’t they? They tend to be really young girls, under the age of eight or so. They wear frilly dresses, cute headbands, white shoes, and adorn the aisle with petals in preparation for the bride to walk down it. Flower girls tend to gather smiles from wedding guests. Flower girls make everyone happy. Why would we want to look at alternatives to them?

Well. It’s kind of a trend right now. And I’m here for it.

The thing is, with weddings today, anything goes. This means that you don’t have to have a “flower girl” walk ahead of a bride. You can have just about anyone, doing anything, as long as it still gathers smiles and joy from wedding guests. Alternatives to having a flower girl can mean that you include people in your wedding who may otherwise not be involved. It’s an opportunity to make others feel special, have your wedding stand out, and create an experience.

This post is going to lay out eight alternatives to having a flower girl. Some may appeal to you. Some may even inspire you to think of other ideas. If this happens, let me know! I’d love to know how you’re changing up your wedding ceremony. Being able to change tradition, and have a little fun, is what weddings are about today. Hopefully this post shows you that anything can be possible, even with your wedding party.

Let’s get into it!

1. FLOWER GRANNIES

This is probably the sweetest alternative to having a flower girl of them all.

The flower grannie. Or grannies, if you’re lucky enough to have multiple grandmas at your wedding.

Now, grannies can have a special place in a wedding processional. They often lead the way, the first ones to walk into the ceremony, with designated seats right up front. However, having a flower grannie can be a fun way to mix it up. Why not have your grandmothers walk ahead of the bride, dropping petals as they go? If they are friendly, they may even start talking to guests and mingling down the way. It will be super cute, and surely make your guests excited for what’s next.

2. PRE-FLOWER THE AISLE

This flower girl alternative is simple, and requires no participation from anyone.

3. THE BEER MAN (THE ANTI-FLOWER GIRL)

Okay. A beer man is definitely not for every wedding. However, it can be fun to have at your wedding, if you’re into it.

In case you’re not sure what it is, let me explain what a beer man is.

Essentially, a beer man is a man (groomsman or otherwise), who carries beer (in a bag, cooler, or some sort of man-purse) into your ceremony. He then hands out the beer to wedding guests. The beer man is a cool guy. He is putting on a show. He is more comical than anything else.

A beer man will surely put smiles on guest’s faces.

And look, a beer man may not be right for your wedding. If your wedding venue doesn’t allow beer to be at the ceremony, or has a more serious feel to it, a beer man isn’t for you. Remember, there will be chuckles at a beer man. It’s meant to be light hearted, and somewhat funny. If this doesn’t match the mood of your ceremony, a beer-man shouldn’t be in it.

4. THE FLOWER GUY

Alright, a flower guy. Just another of the alternatives to having a flower girl.

A flower guy, to be fair, is very similar to a beer man. Only he’s not passing out beer. He’s throwing flowers on the aisle. He’s having fun. The flower guy is making guests happy. And, the aisle is getting decorated due to his hard work.

Of course, a flower guy may not be for your wedding, along with a beer man. However, if you think you have someone in mind who may love the job, talk to your partner about asking them. You never know. A flower guy may just be the thing that guests talk about years later.

5. BRIDESMAIDS OR GROOMSMEN DROP PETALS

Don’t have a specific wedding guest who wants the dedicated role of “flower guy”? Why not ask your wedding party to take on the role?

To do this is simple. All you need to do is to give your wedding party some petals ahead of when they walk down the aisle. They can simply drop them as they walk down, decorating the path ahead of the bride.

Now, bridesmaids often carry bouquets down the aisle, so those may need to be set aside for the ceremony so they can have both hands to drop petals. And groomsmen may enter from the side, and not the back of a ceremony, so there will have to be some coordination there. However, this is totally doable for most weddings.

6. DOUBLE THE RING BEARER’S DUTIES

Not sure about having a flower girl because you don’t have any little girls in your life? Why not ask a ring bearer to take on some flower girl duties?

Ring bearers tend to be boys and flower girls tend to be girls, but there’s no reason why they can’t switch roles. If you have lots of little boys in your world, and not enough girls, have a couple of the boys drop flowers ahead of you. I promise, they won’t mind, and it will still be very cute.

7. FLOWER BABY IN A WAGON

A flower baby in a wagon does require the help of more than just the baby, but it can be a very sweet thing to see at a wedding.

If you have a baby in your life, and you want them to “stand in” as your flower girl, I’ll tell you how you do it. Put the baby in a cute wagon, and have someone pull them. Depending on how old the baby is, they may have to remain laying in the wagon, or they might be able to sit up. They likely can’t drop petals on your aisle, as babies may want to eat them instead, but they can hold onto a toy flower or something else that is safe for them. Plus, the person pulling them can drop flowers on their behalf.

Remember, the person pulling the baby doesn’t have to be an adult. It can be an older child. As long as they can handle the assignment, it’ll be super cute.

8. PETAL PETS

Last one! If you’re into animals, this may be one of the more appealing alternatives to having a flower girl for you.

A petal pet. Typically, this could be your dog. However, you may have a horse, friendly cat, or some other type of animal who can stand in. If it’s appropriate to have them at your wedding, designate them as your “petal pet”. This might mean that they wear a flower outfit. Or, they just lead the way for you to enter the ceremony. In most cases, a human will have to guide them. You can totally think outside the box with this one, if you believe your pet will do well at your wedding.

If you want more details about having your dog at your wedding, this is a great post for you.

CLOSING THOUGHTS

There are so many more alternatives to having a flower girl out there. The ones in this post simply scratch the surface of today’s trends. A quick scroll through Instagram reels will showcase many of the ideas in this post, and will surely bring a smile to your face. Having a traditional flower girl is awesome. However, mixing it up can be fun, too. Happy wedding planning!