Do you love crafting and want to put your own personal touch on your wedding day? Are you panicking about how to afford the rates your florist quoted you for the flowers you’ve been dreaming of? You might be considering trying to do your wedding flowers yourself. This can be a big undertaking if you aren’t ready, but if you’re confident in your abilities and feel sure that this is the best option, here’s some advice to keep in mind as you get ready for your big day.
Consider Artificial Flowers
The first question you need to figure out is whether you want to go forward using real or artificial flowers. Some people don’t like the look of artificial flowers but over time they have improved and you may be able to find luxurious blooms that look real. You have options. Silk flowers are easy to find in craft stores, and sola wood flowers are becoming more and more popular.
Artificial flowers have two big perks: they’re often cheaper than real flowers, and you can get them ready long before your wedding date. Having your bouquets, boutonnieres, and decor all neatly put away in boxes long before your wedding day can be a big help when it comes to avoiding stress.
Keep Things Simple
Florists have lots of training teaching them how to arrange your flowers and keep them in top shape. You may find yourself struggling to create the sort of lush arrangements you see in flower shops, even if you have a whole range of flowers available to you. You may want to check out your local craft stores to see if they offer any classes on floral arrangement. Your other best bet is to keep things simple! A simple arrangement can look really classy, especially compared to a more lush arrangement that you can quite make come together.
One trick that can help you while you arrange your flowers together is to include non-floral accents. In addition to greenery, your wedding flowers can also benefit from being paired with accents like feathers and sparkly brooches. This can offer some variety in textures and make your flowers look unique!
Do Your Research
If you’ve decided to use real flowers, do your research before you commit to anything. Keep in mind the location of your wedding and the weather. Some blooms will quickly wilt in the heat of summer or will be hard to find and extra expensive in winter. The prices of flowers will vary throughout the year and to save your budget you may need to be flexible with your choices. If there is a particular flower that you really want, you may need to be ready to pay more.
Consider Purchase Options
One of the most cost effective places to purchase your wedding flowers is buying in bulk online. The downside to this is that you won’t get to see your flowers before they get to your door.
If that stresses you out, you might instead opt to buy flowers at your local farmer’s market or even your local grocery store! This option can let you rest assured that your flowers will be in great shape when you pick them up. The downside is that you will have fewer options to pick from. Check out your market of choice before the wedding and see what their offerings are like. Speak to the florist manager at the store or to the seller at the market and see if they can help you out when it comes to anything specific you might want. They might be able to find something special for you or get you a bulk discount!
Have Help!
Making floral arrangements is going to take time and is not something you should probably try to do completely on your own. Consider having your bridal party over to have a flower arranging party. This will take some of the pressure off of you. Even if you do want to put the final touches on everything yourself, your friends can help you by offering feedback and helping you prep your flowers!
The other time related concern to keep in mind is that if you are using real flowers, they may wilt within a day or two of being arranged. You may need to do your flowers the morning of your wedding. If putting together bouquets and decorations doesn’t fit into your wedding day timeline, you may want to go another route — either DIY with artificial flowers or hiring a florist.
Make A Toss Bouquet
Do you want to include the tradition of tossing your bouquet at your ceremony? Does the idea of tossing your beautiful handmade bouquet make you queasy when you consider how much time and effort goes into making it? Have no fear! A toss bouquet is a great option for you (and one that many florists make for their clients). Toss bouquets generally resemble your bridal bouquet but are a little smaller and a little simpler. Now you can take part in a tradition without worrying about literally throwing around money!
Have you ever known a friend to make a DIY wedding flower bouquet? How did it turn out? Let us know in the comments below your experiences with DIY flower bouquets.