I took a short break from my May Muguet Marathon to travel to London — no, not to see the Queen or the recent royal wedding. But like many Americans, I followed the wedding hoopla with some interest and found myself surprisingly moved by the ceremony and service. While I am here this week, I am visiting some perfume meccas and will write about them soon. But today, we are continuing the theme of weddings and bridal bouquets that include lilies of the valley. They were one of several white flowers featured in Meghan Markle’s lovely bouquet, apparently as a way to honor Princess Diana, who had them in her own bridal bouquet.

Meghan and her bouquet; image from http://www.express.co.uk.

Town & Country magazine wrote a nice description of the bouquet, noting that, in addition to Princess Diana and Kate, now the Duchess of Cambridge, “other British royal brides who have incorporated the bloom in their bouquets are Princess Margaret in 1960, Princess Anne in 1973, and Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall, when she wed Prince Charles in 2005.” All of the flowers for the recent royal wedding were stunning, and it makes them even sweeter to know that they were made into gift bouquets after the ceremony and sent to hospice patients and residents of women’s shelters in the area.

Wedding flowers donated to hospice patients; image from http://www.independent.co.uk

What scent might a bride wear while carrying a bouquet of lilies of the valley? I wrote a while ago about a Brides magazine article that paired fragrances with various bridal bouquets: May Muguet Marathon: Perfume/Bouquet Pairings. No one seems to know for sure what Meghan wore on her wedding day, but it is known that she favors Jo Malone scents such as Wild Bluebell and Wood Sage and Sea Salt as her everyday fragrances. Apparently, the British perfume house Floris, which has a royal warrant, has created a bespoke fragrance for her, according to Marie Claire magazine. It is meant to be unisex, with notes of bergamot and orange flower. It sounds delightful, and as sunny as the gorgeous weather the happy couple (and happy onlookers) enjoyed in Windsor last weekend.

I have a soft spot for wedding bouquets with lilies of the valley, as I carried them in my own bridal bouquet (and grew those particular blooms in my own garden). I think I also wore Diorissimo that day, as that was one of my two regular fragrances at that time (the other being Chanel No. 22) but can’t say for sure. No matter! My wedding day was fragranced with muguet, and that is a very happy memory for me. May the lilies of the valley in her bouquet also bring great happiness to Meghan and her Prince!