When getting married, flowers are an important part of the arrangements, and often will include flowers for the church, or place where the ceremony is held, flowers for center pieces for the reception, bridesmaids flowers and of course, the jewel in the crown, the bride's own bouquet. This is an expensive part of the wedding arrangements and mistakes with planning can involve stress. The steps below are so that you and your florist get pleasure out of creating such a special part of the wedding ceremony, and have empathy and understanding.
*Collecting ideas.
*Going to several florists.
*Looking through catalogs.
*Letting the florist know your preferences.
*Timing.
*Package deal.
*Flexibility.
COLLECTING IDEAS.
Collecting ideas is essential. The bride will have been looking for her gown for a while, and the attention to detail that brides put into the way they look should also be reflected in their choice of flowers. The bride knows what the dress looks like though is inexperienced at mixing and matching colors and styles.
Here, a good florist will have a standard look to their bouquets, but it isn't standard that the bride seeks. It is attention to little details, preferences of flowers, preferences of arrangements, and collection pictures and cutting them out helps a great deal. If a florist seeks the same picture that the bride sees, you are half way to success with the search for perfection.
Decide the style of bouquet, bridesmaid posies and floral arrangements in advance and have pictures of the kind of ideas you have in mind.
Without your ideas, the florist only has her own ideas to fall back on, and standard floral arrangements are not personal enough to satisfy the needs of a woman who is trying to look the very best she can as she starts out on that journey up the aisle. They will also need to see pictures of your gown as this helps them to picture the style you like. The bridesmaid dresses will also give them clues as to the color co-ordination you would like.
GOING TO SEVERAL FLORISTS.
The reason it is important to visit several florists is that this gives you comparisons, not only with the types of arrangements and prices, but also a great idea as to whether a florist understands and appreciates your ideas. It is the unfortunate by product of commercialism that many florists refuse to budge from their standard patterns. Avoid those florists who seemingly ignore your ideas, and choose a florist who not only offers great service, but who is prepared to appreciate that your day is unique. Ask them if you can get references, and let them know it is important that your needs are catered for individually, rather than by their staff who do not know your preferences.
Look around the florists shop. Look at the variety of flowers and also the presentation of their floral arrangements. Some may seem too stiff and starchy, others too informal, and the way to judge is to go with your gut feelings about what you want and whether you believe they can supply the individual attention to detail that you, as a bride, demand.
One of the most important aspects of choice is that you let the florist know exactly which flowers you don't like, as well as those which you do, as mistakes can be avoided if your instructions are clear from the first day.
LOOKING THROUGH CATALOGS
Looking through the catalogs with the florist helps her to gage the kind of arrangements that you have in mind, especially for the bouquet and bridesmaids posies, as these form a central focal point to the wedding. Be clear on those that you dislike and discuss preferences of types of flowers.
TIMING.
Talk to the florist about how they deal with weddings, and when the flowers would arrive. Talk also about how to keep the flowers fresh for the ceremony, as wilting bouquets are not a good start, and it is important to know how best to look after those flowers until they are needed. Ask the florist about timing to ensure that all flowers are placed in a timely manner ready for the ceremony, the reception, etc., as this adds to a successful relationship that causes no problems on the wedding day.
PACKAGE DEALS
Florists are in business and they want your custom. Work out if they do special deals for people who order all their wedding flowers in one order. Here, the flowers for the church or wedding venue need to be put in place in a timely manner, and it is important to have a clear view of what you are looking for. For example, flowers for the end of pews in a church can be finished off with ribbon, but you need to have a clear vision of what you want to be able to discuss and agree this. At the church you may also want a suitable arrangement at the front of the church and at the entranceway to greet the visitors. Buttonholes or corsages for guests can be discussed. Flowers for table centers at the reception and bridesmaids posies all need to be thought of and since you are being such a good customer, find out if there is any special price for the whole package.
If you are employing a middle man or wedding planner, normally they will do all of the running, though if you are meeting the florist yourself, knowing in advance what you want really does help enormously as well as being able to explain it. Just as a bride takes care that they get on with their hairdresser, the florist has a vital part in the wedding arrangements and it is essential that you can see eye to eye, and get on well, the florist incorporating your personal ideas instead of rigidly sticking to their own styles.
By having a firm idea of what you want to have in the way of flowers, the meeting with the florist is made a lot easier, and ensures successful choice of type of bouquet, types of arrangements and on the wedding day, all the bride has to worry about is being the brightest blossom of all, walking down the aisle with confidence with a backdrop of color that came from original ideas and concepts that the florist helped you, as a bride, to create.