The flamenca flower: where to wear it and how

It’s the smallest accessory of the whole outfit and yet the one that changes the look the most. A flower well placed finishes the hairstyle; badly placed, it falls off halfway through the feria. And yes, there are rules, even if hardly anyone explains them.

Let’s look at what it means, which side it goes on, how to fix it according to your hair and how to combine it with the peineta.

What the flower in the hair means

The flower has been part of the flamenca dress for over a century, and it serves two purposes: it adorns and it balances. Alongside the pinned-up hair, the flower is what adds the touch of colour to an outfit that is usually heavy with fabric.

One thing is worth clearing up, because it gets repeated a lot: people say the side you wear it on shows whether a woman is single or married. That is urban legend rather than flamenco tradition. In Andalusia nobody checks the flower to work out anyone’s marital status. The real criterion is another, and it’s purely aesthetic.

Which side does the flamenca flower go on?

The rule that is actually followed is simple: the flower goes on the opposite side to the parting, that is, on the side with more volume.

Why? Because there it has a base to hold on to, and because it visually balances the head. If you put it on the parting side, it sits flat against the skull, with no body, and comes loose easily.

If you wear your hair brushed back with no parting, then it’s your call: choose the side that flatters you most in profile, which is how it will be seen.

How to fix it according to your hair

With an updo. The most common and the easiest. The flower goes beside the base of the bun or slightly above the ear, pushing the pins into the bun itself, which is where they grip. The firmer the bun, the longer it holds.

With loose hair. Here’s the trick: you need an anchor point. Gather a strand behind the ear, fasten it with crossed pins and fix the flower onto that little knot. If you pin it straight onto loose hair, it will slip all night.

With short hair. No obstacle at all, but scale it down: a large flower on short hair weighs it down and unbalances it. Choose a smaller one, or a flower brooch with a clip, which grips a strand without needing volume.

And for girls, always proportion: the flower should be small relative to her head. An adult flower on a child looks enormous and bothers her as soon as she starts moving.

The flower and the peineta: how to combine them

It’s the classic question, and the answer is the same as with everything flamenco: let one lead and the other follow.

If you wear a flamenco peineta, the flower goes more discreet, to one side, usually at the base of the comb. If the flower is the star, then choose a small peineta or do without one.

What doesn’t work is competing: a big peineta plus a big flower turns the head into a shop window.

Which flower to choose

Colour. Two equally valid schools: matching a tone of the dress (the more elegant) or contrasting with it (the more flamenco). What rarely works is a colour that appears nowhere else in the outfit.

Size. In proportion to you and to the hairstyle. The more volume your hair has, the bigger the flower it can carry.

Type. The large, showy ones belong to the feria. For a romería, where you walk and it’s hot, a smaller, lighter flower wins. And fabric ones last all day; natural ones are beautiful for two hours and then wilt.

In the end, the flower works like everything else in flamenco: it isn’t about wearing more, but about what you wear making sense. If you’d like to see that balance on a stage, come to our flamenco tablao in Madrid and watch the details: that’s where you can tell who knows.