Flowers for sympathy

Sympathy flowers go to two places. Flowers for the service (a wreath, a casket spray, a posy pad or a shape) are ordered through the studio and delivered to the funeral director or the church, timed to be there before the service and never in the way of it. Flowers for the house go to the family afterwards, when the visitors have gone and the rooms are quiet: a soft hand-tied in whites and greens, or their favourite colours if you know them.

The card matters more than usual. Keep it short and say one true thing (a memory, their name, that you are thinking of them). We write it by hand on the studio's card. Most tributes can be made within a day or two; ring the studio in Sevenoaks and we will talk you through the pieces, or start from the meanings below if that helps you choose.