When we embarked on the journey down the button hole, if you will, we didn’t realize how much about the boutonnière we didn’t know.
First, boutonnière in French literally means “buttonhole,” because it is the buttonhole that is seen at the top of the lapel of a men’s suit jacket. This research, and more looking into the modernized version of wearing a flower boutonnière for special occasions, led us down a path of knights, soldiers and, as we are sure you can guess if you’ve been a longtime reader, a little bit of British history.
What we first found out was that the boutonnière hole wasn’t necessarily created to carry a flower. Its meaning should be taken literally to act as an extra button on a man’s suit to pull up lapels when caught in bad or windy weather. And men throughout the past few centuries, have sported flowers in their lapels for more fashionable reasons on day-to-day outfits. Very practical, but not a very romantic backstory.
The idea that we love behind why men might adorn flowers for different occasions has more to do with honor.
For centuries, men, especially knights and soldiers, have sported flowers and other adornments to represent their houses/family lines or country. Knights that participated in jousting tournaments would often receive a flower from an interested woman that matched her dress, so he was able to represent her on the playing field. Additionally, the website for national company 1-800-Flowers includes an article that makes note of the great War of the Roses in British History. The Lancaster family wore red, and the York family wore white as their coat of arms. The article notes this as a pivotal moment when floral boutonnières worn as a display of honor gained popularity.
A few centuries later, a rumor in the same vein circled back to the 1840 wedding of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert. While we would love to add another wedding tradition to the Queen’s roster, the idea that Prince Albert wore a small bouquet gifted to him by his bride with pride on his lapel, thus pushing the trend for grooms into the spotlight, is not backed by any real proof, nor is it visible in the wedding painting or wedding recreation at the invention of photography. However, it does lend a hand to the groom’s boutonnière being a piece of the bride’s bouquet to show unity between the couple.
Around the same period, according to the Gentleman’s Gazette, the popularity of the frock coat (that sported a military-style look) and the “Ghillie” collar was on the rise, and the look required the top button of the coat left undone to expose the shirt collar and tie. This left the buttonhole visible to all, leaving something needing to be done with the exposed jacket hole. What many men, especially in Great Britain, chose was a flower.
What we do know for sure is that men have been sporting a boutonnière for generations. (My grandfather is sporting a gorgeous boutonnière that matches my grandmother’s large bouquet in their 1940’s wedding photo.) But what about the new trend of the pocket boutonnière?
The pocket boutonnière takes the classic floral adornment from the buttonhole to the jacket pocket and has been on the rise for the past few wedding seasons. The floral pocket square, with the change of locations, allows for a little more customization. The regular boutonnière as we know it tends to be a little smaller and must fit within the buttonhole space. With a pocket arrangement, couples can opt for more flowers or a larger assortment within the card stock or heavier material that allows for the flowers to slide into the pocket with ease.
Men also who took advantage of the buttonhole for more fashion-forward statements. In addition, the pocket boutonnière lends the groom – or couple – the opportunity to express a distinct personality with a little something extra. And in Louisiana… you know we love lagniappe.
