Need Help on Flowers

[belleberrie]

I went to the flower shop with my fiance this weekend and hit a wall called REALITY. I did not realize I would be spending SO MUCH on the flowers for the bridal party (5 bridesmaids, 5 groomsmen), the reception, and the ceremony! Do any of you brides-to-be have any suggestions on how to save on flowers. My fiance said he wouldn't mind upping the budget to accommodate anything I want, but in reality I really really want to stay within my budget. I really don't want to put anything on credit, so upping our budget is something I definitely want to do. I am planning on taking the flowers from the ceremony and using them at the reception to cut costs that way (there will be plenty of time between the ceremony and reception), but does anyone have any other tips?

Thanks a bunch!

[aligrrl80]

a friend of mine works for a florist and hopefully is doing my flowers all at wholesale cost, but she has given me some tips anyone could use, like stick to only a couple of types of flowers, because flowers are ordered in bunches- so even if you only want one orchid, the florist has to pay for a whole bunch and of course passes that on to you. and you probably know to ask what is in season and go with those flowers. those are the big ones i remember right now. do you have the book "bridal bargains"? they have a chapter on ways to save money and less expensive alternatives to traditional floral arrangements. if you don't have the book let me know and i'll try and paraphrase for you!

[belleberrie]

I appreciate your help. I don't have the book so any paraphrasing would be greatly appreciated. :)

[RadioLyss]

Have you considered letting your ladies put their arrangments together on their own? Hand tied flowers are not that hard to do. It will help you with your budget, and make their bouquettes that much more special since it will be their touch to your day! You can buy a whole bunch of the flowers you want to do, and then let the girls do it the night before (if you have fridge space) or the morning of if time permits!

For our centerpieces my fiance and I are thinking of getting some really nice pots/bowls and planting the flowers directly into them. Afterward we are going to give the centerpieces away to wedding party members, family, and those who helped us out.

Good luck

[BlueSkies]

Look into getting your flowers from a grocery store or a club like Sam's or BJ's. They have great prices and can get you all kinds of flowers.

There are plenty of online instructions for doing your own flowers and simlpe boquets seem to look so much nicer that way over done ones.

Oh, I've seen a few people who make silk arrangments on ebay that look very real too. They will customize to your weding colors. MUCH cheaper and you don't have to worry about them wilting!

Good Luck.

[DrlngNik]

Try some of the grocery chains. I was lucky enough that the florist at my local Safeway was trained in San Francisco and had worked out quite a few reputable florists. But she went to work at Safeway because of the benefits they offered.

You just have to be careful, you could get someone with very little experience.

I was able to get beautiful flowers within my budget.

[gracielou]

If you have a Sam's Club nearby and are a member, they can order wholesale flowers for a very good price (I think when I checked, 200 longstemmed roses were $90). Check out samsclub.com and there is a link for "floral". Also purchasing or renting large ferns for decoration either at the altar or on either side of the aisle could help. Then you could take the ferns to the reception and put them near the entrance, then either give them to people who have helped with the arrangements or take them to your new home. Do an internet search on arranging wedding flowers, and you'll be surprised at the detailed directions. Good luck!

[Sabrina]

I went to the flower shop with my fiance this weekend and hit a wall called REALITY. I did not realize I would be spending SO MUCH on the flowers for the bridal party (5 bridesmaids, 5 groomsmen), the reception, and the ceremony! Do any of you brides-to-be have any suggestions on how to save on flowers. My fiance said he wouldn't mind upping the budget to accommodate anything I want, but in reality I really really want to stay within my budget. I really don't want to put anything on credit, so upping our budget is something I definitely want to do. I am planning on taking the flowers from the ceremony and using them at the reception to cut costs that way (there will be plenty of time between the ceremony and reception), but does anyone have any other tips?

Thanks a bunch!

My mom and I are going to do mine. I want silk flowers for two good points. One they are a lot less money and they will last. You can also get them done a month or two before the big day. If you do this try to look around for some on sale so you can get a better price. Also their are books that will show you how to set them up. My best friend had real flowers and the day of her wedding they ***e to drop them off and they didn't have all of them and some were damaged. This is something I do not want to deal with so try to think about all the good and bad with doing flowers. I hope this helps.

[PEBBLES32]

TRY 2G GROWERS IT IS A WHOLESALE WEBSITE ANY FLOWER THATS IN SEASON AT THE TIME OF YOUR WEDDING THEY SHIP VIA FED EX 2 DAYS BEFORE YOUR WEDDING AND THEY PACKAGES INCLUDE GREENERY AND FILLERS AND IS REALLY AFFORDABLE.WWW.FRESHROSES.COMI went to the flower shop with my fiance this weekend and hit a wall called REALITY. I did not realize I would be spending SO MUCH on the flowers for the bridal party (5 bridesmaids, 5 groomsmen), the reception, and the ceremony! Do any of you brides-to-be have any suggestions on how to save on flowers. My fiance said he wouldn't mind upping the budget to accommodate anything I want, but in reality I really really want to stay within my budget. I really don't want to put anything on credit, so upping our budget is something I definitely want to do. I am planning on taking the flowers from the ceremony and using them at the reception to cut costs that way (there will be plenty of time between the ceremony and reception), but does anyone have any other tips?

Thanks a bunch!

[Kelly1Mickey]

My best friend had a pretty tight budget for her wedding and the flowers were one thing that was easiest to skimp on. For the centerpeices at the reception she just had a bunch of greenery (literally we picked up garbage bags full of greenery and just sort of plopped it on the tables) then she nestled in votives that were in little silver watering cans and pails. (she had a garden theme). It sounds blah, but it really looked beautiful. And saved her tons of money!

[nle5]

I would go with silk flowers because they last longer and are quite a bit cheaper. You can make up the arrangements yourself to cut alot. All of the flowers for my wedding are going to be silk and my bridal party will be getting together to help make the arrangements. You can then pick up flowers anytime while your planning the wedding and they are on sale until the day that you decide to put the arrangements together.

[alamar1]

I went to the flower shop with my fiance this weekend and hit a wall called REALITY. I did not realize I would be spending SO MUCH on the flowers for the bridal party (5 bridesmaids, 5 groomsmen), the reception, and the ceremony! Do any of you brides-to-be have any suggestions on how to save on flowers. My fiance said he wouldn't mind upping the budget to accommodate anything I want, but in reality I really really want to stay within my budget. I really don't want to put anything on credit, so upping our budget is something I definitely want to do. I am planning on taking the flowers from the ceremony and using them at the reception to cut costs that way (there will be plenty of time between the ceremony and reception), but does anyone have any other tips?

Thanks a bunch!
You can really save money on flowers by using a non-floral centerpiece at the reception for the guest tables. I found some beautiful silverplated candelabras with dangling crystals at a local discount store. I bought 22 of them for $13 each. I will be setting the candelabra over a mirrored tile for added sparkle (pkg of 10 for $7 on sale at home depot). For color I am scattering fresh rose petals around the candelabras. If you really want to save some money you can order your roses from freshroses.com or eflowerwholesale. You can get 400 roses for $395. If you know someone that can put the bouquets and boutineires together you can save thousands of dollars. I am doing this because most of my budget is going towards the insanely expensive reception hall. You can also buy ribbon at ribbontrade.com at huge savings.