Bridal Guide Magazine's How to Plan the Perfect Wedding... Without Going Broke by Diane Forden

Author:Diane Forden [FORDEN, DIANE]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: REF024000
ISBN: 9780446553629
Publisher: Grand Central Publishing
Published: 2008-12-14T00:00:00+00:00

• Let your flowers do double-duty. Ask someone you trust to take your altar arrangements to the reception, where they can be reused as buffet pieces or to spruce up the guest-book table. Or have your bridesmaids place their bouquets on the reception tables as a pretty floral accent. You can even ask the florist if he can later use part of the floral-decorated chuppah as a pretty canopy over your cake or sweetheart table.

• Stick with seasonal flowers in centerpieces and bouquets, rather than exotic ones that have to be specially ordered.

• Willing to buck tradition? Consider centerpieces composed of fruits and herbs, which also can be less expensive.

• Instead of big bouquets for your bridesmaids, have them each carry a single dramatic stem such as a calla lily, an orchid, or large-headed rose.

• Instead of floral centerpieces, use candles (tall tapers or tea lights) on the reception tables and scatter rose petals around them. The effect is warm and romantic.

• Fill glass fishbowls with craft sand and seashells for sea theme centerpieces; weave napkin rings from fresh stemmed flowers; frame favorite quotations or love sonnets to use as table numbers.

• Realize that the more labor that goes into your flowers, the more expensive they'll be. Approximately one-third of the cost is for the work the florist does in assembling them. Consider cut flowers over intricate arrangements.

Once you have a short list of initial candidates, make an appointment to view each one's work. First look at any arrangements on display in their shop to see if you like the colors and combinations. Especially note if the blossoms on hand look healthy and fresh. Take a careful look at the florist's portfolio of other wedding work, and be sure to study both bouquets and table arrangements. If you like what you see, it's time to talk about your needs.

When interviewing florists, be prepared to give them a full picture of your entire wedding and to discuss your flower preferences and budget. Everything—from your color scheme to how your attendants plan to wear their hair—sets the mood for your bouquets and arrangements.

Be sure to bring swatches and photos of your gown and your bridesmaids' dresses, as well as drawings or pictures of the sites you'll be using so you can discuss ideal placement for floral arrangements. Visualize all of the places you can adorn with blossoms. Obviously this means that you can't plan your flowers until the big decisions of date, location, and dresses have been made.

Think in advance about your flower budget and let your potential florist know your price range immediately. And, to make sure he/she understands the look you're after, clip pictures of floral arrangements you like from magazines, be it sparse birch branches for a winter wedding or colorful tulips for a spring affair. You don't need to be able to reel off the names of the specific flowers you want to use, but showing a florist examples of the style you prefer will help her dream up designs—and work up realistic estimates.

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