How to Have Gorgeous Wedding Flowers — and Save Money

The trick to pulling off a wedding with real visual style is all in the planning, especially when it comes to wedding flowers and décor. Wedding flowers are one of those areas where you can really go wild — there just aren’t any rules, so it’s all about what the couple (or let’s be honest, the bride!) wants, and can pay for. Your decorating options are limited mainly by your imagination, and only secondarily by your budget. Even the most elaborate floral effects can be created within most budgets, if you’re willing to research and be creative.

From do-it-yourself arrangements with live flowers to rented silk arrangements and props, planning your wedding flowers can be extravagant fun. This is a good place to involve your bridal party and collect ideas you might not have thought of yourself. They’ll be honored that you asked. It’s probably best not to expect a lot of input from the groom, however. If he’s like most of his brothers, his main concern will probably be that the flower costs don’t exceed the budget.

Flowers play a big part both in wedding planning and expenses, so give yourself at least six to 12 months before the wedding to plan them. It’s good to have some ideas early on, because most brides want their flowers to complement their dress, the overall color scheme, and the venue. Bridal magazines are a great source of inspiration, being stuffed with photos of bouquets.

You’ll also want to research which flowers are in season around your wedding date — and avoid those that would be unduly expensive. For example, unless your budget is sizable, you’ll want to avoid buying roses anywhere near Valentine’s Day. For a winter wedding on the other hand, roses and hydrangeas are affordable and in season, but Gerber daisies and sunflowers are not.

Boutonnières and wedding party bouquets are two floral items many brides find they can do themselves, saving tons of money in the process. In addition, you might find that you can create decorations and arrangements for the altar, cake table, gift table and head table, as well as centerpieces for the guest tables. If you have a florist design all these, you’ll find your flower costs are high, but you’ll also find it’s possible to get quite creative about it.

One popular way to save money is to decorate the head table with bridal party bouquets after the ceremony is over. After the photographs, no one will be carrying around those lovely bouquets, but they’re sure to make one of your tables look stunning. Another popular cost-cutting measure is to turn to balloons, candles, glass bowls or lanterns for innovative and less expensive centerpieces. Finally, pew bows and decorations are simple to make, even for brides that “don’t do crafts.” A final idea for cutting costs even when using a traditional florist is to go heavy on the “filler” material such as baby’s breath, greenery, tulle, or even vines and branches.

So when it comes down to it, beautiful floral effects are really all in the planning. once you’ve figured out your arrangements and décor, you just need to find a florist you can turn your dreams into reality, or acquire the skills and know-how you need to do it yourself (taking an inexpensive flower arrangement course from a craft store is a great way for brides to gain some confidence before the pressure’s on). If you do go with a florist, it’s important to find them early, and even more important to choose one with a great reputation — never, ever go on price alone, or you could be sorely disappointed.

Now that you’ve found your florist, scrutinize the contract before you sign to make sure the number and type of arrangements, plus the exact flowers to appear in them, are clearly delineated — and so are the delivery and assembly details. Record the amount you deposited on the contract, and make sure the payment schedule is correct. Once you’ve handled these “due diligence” tasks, all you’ll need to do is sit back and marvel at how closely your wedding décor matches the wedding of your dreams.