Protea plants, also known as sugarbushes, have become a favorite in the wedding world. The blooms—which are native to South Africa—come in a number of different varieties, and each is beloved for its unique shape or color. These include the big king protea, the unusual pincushion protea, and the aptly-named blushing bride protea. Whichever you like, we recommend incorporating it into your wedding bouquet for a bold and beautiful arrangement. For inspiration, look no further than these unique protea wedding bouquet ideas.
There's so much to love about protea flowers. For one, we're obsessed with their dramatic shapes, from the huge, star-like king protea to the pincushion protea's stringy appearance. They're also available in multiple shades. Pink is very popular, but we've seen colors like red and white, too. Considering that they also come in different sizes, they're incredibly versatile. That's why it's no surprise that the weddings that have featured protea bouquets range from bohemian to rustic. It's all about what you mix in with the exotic bloom.
To see all of the plentiful possibilities, click through this slideshow and get even more inspired. Whether you're more of a classic or modern bride, there's an arrangement that'll impress you.
Supermarket Protea Bouquet
Consider this dreamy bouquet, which was (believe it or not) supplied by Whole Foods! The yellow, orange, pink, and green hues made it equal parts cheerful and romantic. Eucalyptus is commonly combined with protea, and as you can see, it's such a pretty pairing. If this is only one example, imagine the many ways you can make a protea bouquet your own.
Protea and Eucalyptus Wedding Bouquet
Red Box Days filled this bouquet with protea blooms and eucalyptus leaves.
Tulip and Protea Wedding Bouquet
Here's a surprising combination: protea flowers and tulips. This cheerful Gardenia Organic bouquet also contained ranunculus, garden roses, gomphrena, and pepper berries.
Eclectic Protea Wedding Bouquet
Have you ever seen such a one-of-a-kind mix? This protea, ranunculus, feather, and air plant Pollen Floral Art clutch had quite the list of components!
Tropical Protea Wedding Bouquet
Heart-shaped anthurium leaves joined king protea and blushing bride protea (plus other tropical foliage) in this pink-and-green My Little Flower Shop arrangement.
Big Protea Wedding Bouquet
We love this Propagate Studio bouquet's color combination of blue, green, orange, and white. Of course, the statement protea definitely ups the appeal.
Bohemian Protea Wedding Bouquet
Yellow, purple, orange, and green is another fun color combination, as this protea, craspedia, and foliage Julia Rose bouquet went to show.
Protea and Thistle Wedding Bouquet
This bride carried a blue, white, and green Botanics of Melbourne bouquet, which stood out thanks to its huge protea and scattered thistle.
Exotic Protea Wedding Bouquet
This bride's California & Florist clutch included a king protea, assorted calathea leaves, and other exotic plants.
Wide Protea Wedding Bouquet
The large white protea was the centerpiece of this wide and uniquely-trailing arrangement by Seed Floral.
Protea and Peony Wedding Bouquet
These mega protea flowers would be jaw-dropping all on their own, but what really caught our eye was how STEM Events paired them with pink peonies.
Pincushion Protea Wedding Bouquet
This bride held a pincushion protea, king protea, peony, ranunculus, orchid, cymbidium, and fiddlehead fern bouquet. The Grace Flowers Hawaii arrangement also had branches of dates!
Sprawling Protea Wedding Bouquet
This bride carried a king protea, dusty miller, and thistle bouquet.
Purple-and-Orange Protea Wedding Bouquet
We're obsessed with this king protea bouquet's palette of purple, orange, green, and white. Bluejen Florist designed the clutch.
Ribbon-Tied Protea Wedding Bouquet
Heirloom Design House mixed hellebores, orchids, astrantia, ranunculus, and blushing bride protea into this bouquet. The whole thing was tied together with a coordinating Froufrou Chic ribbon.
Vibrant Protea Wedding Bouquet
This bride matched her Bella Lu Floral clutch (which included a king protea) to her equally-lush flower crown.
Warm Protea Wedding Bouquet
Olive & June Floral Co. stuck with warm hues to create this protea wedding bouquet.
Protea and Berry Wedding Bouquet
Here, protea flowers were paired with red-and-green hypericum berries.
Grassy Protea Wedding Bouquet
How unique was this protea, andromeda, pepper tree foliage, and pampas grass bouquet by TOAST Santa Barbara?
Single Protea Wedding Bouquet
Want to let your king protea shine all on its own? Go right ahead. This bride carried a single stem from Ruby Rain.
Jewel-Toned Protea Wedding Bouquet
This bridal bouquet by Fern Studio was comprised of protea, delphiniums, astrantia, leucadendrons, and rose hips.
White Protea Wedding Bouquet
Bloem Hill created this white arrangement of king protea, sweet peas, ranunculus, veronicas, poppies, and garden spray roses.
King Protea Wedding Bouquet
This bridal bouquet by Mimo Florist Mexico was made up of roses, ranunculus, ferns—and one showstopping king protea. "I loved my bouquet," the bride said. "I cried when I threw it in the ocean before we came home!"
Lush Protea Wedding Bouquet
Jaclyn Journey created this lush bouquet of protea, roses, olive branch, Japanese sweet pea, fringe tulip, seed eucalyptus, lisianthus, and tarantula amaryllis.
Fun Protea Wedding Bouquet
This pretty arrangement from Shotgun Floral Studio included peach-and-yellow garden roses, dahlias, scabiosa, and king protea tied together with a sequined sash.
Wild Protea Wedding Bouquet
Floral designer Sullivan Owen designed this wild bouquet of blushing bride protea, scabiosa, astilbe, king protea, peonies, sarracenia pitcher plant, and assorted greenery.
Orange Protea Wedding Bouquet
The Wild Bunch designed this eclectic orange bouquet of blushing bride protea, roses, seeded eucalyptus, and ferns.
Cascading Protea Wedding Bouquet
At this unique wedding, seasonal roses, dusty miller, astrantia, jasmine vines, and protea were used in the bride's cascading bouquet, made by Blossom and Branch.
Pastel Protea Wedding Bouquet
Garden roses, ranunculus, and blushing bride protea kept this McKenzie Powell creation a little bit unstructured and gave it a gorgeous pastel hue.
Sparkly Protea Wedding Bouquet
Arrangements Floral & Party Design created this bridal bouquet of coral charm peonies, king protea, ranunculus, astilbe, and tulips. They finished it off with gold sequined ribbon and a skeleton leaf.