While in the past, flower girls were generally children under the age of nine, we’ve been seeing a growing trend of couples having adult flower girls, guys, people or grannies at their wedding ceremonies!  It’s certainly a fun twist on the (maybe outdated) traditional wedding party role, and can sure make for some fun Reels, TikToks or footage for your videographer, but is it appropriate from an etiquette perspective?! 

What Does an Adult Flower Girl or Guy Do Anyway?

The adult flower girl (person) is considered a member of the bridal party, along with the maid of honor, bridesmaids and junior bridesmaids, and there may be only one flower girl or several. Typically, a couple would only have an adult flower girl/guy/person if there aren’t any young children in their life who can or want to take on the role.

And, when it comes to the big day, just like a child flower girl, the role of an adult flower girl/guy/person is pretty simple. During the processional, the flower person will walk down the aisle right before the bride, throwing flower petals and maybe some biodegradable glitter! After that, the adult flower person may choose to stand at the altar with the rest of the wedding party or to simply take a seat in the front row for the rest of the ceremony.

Who Can Be an Adult Flower Person?

Having an adult perform the role of flower girl is always unexpected and humorous, and has a way of eliciting smiles and chuckles from the other wedding guests. Some couples even opt to have both of their grandmothers serve as their flower girls, to give them a sweet and special role in the ceremony. We’ve also seen bridesmaids and groomsmen acting as flower girls during the processional. 

Otherwise, the role of an adult flower person could be bestowed upon a willing close friend or family member who would like to be, but isn’t currently a part of the wedding. However, when it comes to asking a loved one to be an adult flower person, we recommend considering how you will broach the subject, as some grown adults may take offense to being handed a role normally reserved for a five year old! But, others may love the idea and eagerly (and dramatically) take on the role, and still other loved ones may even volunteer to be an adult flower person without any prodding!

What Does an Adult Flower Person Wear?

You probably shouldn’t expect (or want) your grown-up flower person to wear a frilly, tulle flower girl dress, like a child flower girl would wear. Meanwhile, if your adult flower person is already in the wedding party, they should simply wear their wedding party attire, but might want to accessorize with a flower crown, or other floral accessory to let them stand out from the group! But, If your adult flower person isn’t otherwise a member of the wedding party, let them choose their own attire in the wedding colors so they’ll still feel like part of the crew. And if your Grandma’s are acting as your flower girls, they should wear whatever makes them feel comfortable, beautiful and confident on the big day!