2010-03-09 07:00:00 by SMARTBRIDE
Bride-To-Be: Finding Budget Conscious Flowers Without Compromising Quality
When deciding on flowers for my wedding, I started with a simple online search. I knew that I wanted calla lilies as the focal point for the arrangements, so I searched for photos of bouquets to use as a source of inspiration.
The colours for my wedding are white and sage green, so I planned to have a calla bouquet with green accents and simple, single callas for my bridesmaids.
I also took photos of floral arrangements at weddings that I had recently attended. I lucked out and happened to be a guest at a wedding that had calla lily bouquets with a green colour scheme! At this wedding I borrowed the bride’s and bridesmaids’ bouquets, shameless I know, but I was able to get some great shots!
After doing their research, most brides would probably set out to visit some florists, but being both frugal and creative, I decided to meet with a flower vendor at our local farmer's market instead. I heard that she had done wedding arrangements in the past and thought this may be another way to save some money.
During our consultation, I gave the photos I had taken at the wedding to the vendor. This helped to give her some direction and made the most of everyone's time. I also looked through a book of the vendor's work and told her my likes and dislikes.
We then went through each bouquet; mine, my maid of honour's, my bridesmaids', as well as the boutonnieres and corsages for parents and grandparents, and my fiancé and his groomsmen.
The options turned out to be quite daunting, especially for someone as indecisive as me! I had to choose all of the flower types, their colours, my bouquet style (round or cascading) and centrepieces.
In the quote the vendor broke down the cost for each bouquet, corsage, and boutonniere. Incredibly, the cost would be approximately $500 for everything and this was roughly half the cost of what a traditional florist would have charged! I was happy with this vendor's work and her quote and was excited to find such a great deal!
That being said, I wanted to know my options and decided to meet with another florist who happened to be my decorator's. She provided me with a quote that was not far off from the quote I received from the flower vendor.
I had a tough decision to make. Both women were great and were charging the same price! In the end I decided to go with the florist who worked with my decorator. I think their partnership would allow the set up to run more smoothly and would give my decorator the chance to discuss her centrepiece ideas with the florist.
Honestly though, the thing that really sold me on this particular florist were the lights placed beneath the centrepiece vases. I loved the look had to have them at our wedding!
*SmartBride Planning Tip:* Try contacting non-traditional florists for your wedding. You would be surprised at how many weddings your local farmer's market vendor has done.
Check back every Tuesday for more of my wedding planning stories and wedding planning tips for smart brides,
Alicia
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About our Guest Blogger: Alicia Mason
On December 23, 2008 I got engaged to my best friend and soul mate. We set the date for September 25, 2010 and for the past year I have been sleeping and breathing everything wedding including; the venue, food, flowers, decorator, invitations, and finding the perfect dress…all on a budget!
While I didn't go crazy meeting with 10 florists and 10 decorators, I put a lot of thought into each decision and was able to find great deals along the way. I am thrilled that the SmartBride Boutique ladies have asked me to be a guest blogger in order to give you details about my wedding planning. While the planning isn't easy, it is exciting and I hope as you plan your wedding, you'll find my experiences helpful.
More posts from Bride-to-Be Alicia:
