My top tips when planning your wedding flowers Part 1

1. Book Your Florist Early
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Don’t worry if you don’t have a clue what you are looking for but it is very important that you book your florist early.  It doesn’t matter if you don’t get back to them for another 6 months once you have more of an idea what you would like for your wedding flowers.  As long as you are in their diary, firstly you have secured the florist of your choice but also if you are looking to hire anything for them vases, stands etc. you will be guaranteed first pick even if they have another wedding that day as long as you booked with them first.

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2. Re-use Your Arrangements
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This isn’t just a money saving tip it is also just a sensible thing to do.  Why would you spend £100 on an arrangement for your ceremony, that at the most lasts 1 hour, then never use it again.  I always recommend to re-use as much as possible from using table arrangements during the ceremony if it is feasible, moving big arrangements, trees etc. from your ceremony to your reception and decorating your top table with the bridal bouquets.  If you are getting married in a church just make sure you inform the minister that you plan to remove the flowers so they can make plans to have flowers in place for their next service.

Pedestal in church

Pedestal that has been moved to the reception venue

3. Trust Your Florist

​It is so important to trust your florist as an expert in their field.  Especially if they are solely a wedding florist this is what they are doing day in, day out.  Any suggestions they make should be to get the most out of your wedding flowers and they will have tips and tricks to get the most out of your budget too.  It is even better if your florist has decorated your venue before as not only will they have photos of previous work which will help with your own plans but they will know what works there and what doesn’t and should be able to guide you on this.

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4. Get Magnets For Your Buttonholes

I would say magnets for your buttonholes and corsages are an absolute must!  Not only are they so much easier to attach to your outfit but for the ladies you have the choice throughout the day to move it to your bag if you take your jacket off or don’t want it on your dress.  Ladies if your outfit is particularly delicate the magnets won’t leave a mark like pins do and if you are worried that the corsage will be too heavy simply place the magnet and corsage each side of your bra strap so it’s extra secure.  One thing I would recommend is to make sure your florist uses double magnets on all of the buttonholes and corsages (this means a magnet is attached to the flower and then you have another magnet to place under the material of your outfit) and you can guarantee your buttonhole and corsage will stay in place all day.

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5. Remember The Flowers Are Yours

There’s nothing more upsetting than when I go to collect any hired items the day after a wedding and find the bride has had to leave all her lovely flowers behind.  They are your flowers to do with as you wish, it might not always be possible but if you can't take all the flowers away with you yourself, encourage guests to help themselves.  Another option would be to put them to a local home, hospice or church so other people can get the pleasure from them.  If treated properly they should last a minimum of a week. Quite often venues have so many weddings that they do not need to reuse the flowers left behind from a wedding so they just get thrown away.  More often than not you have paid a lot of money for your flowers so take charge of what will happen to them after the wedding.

Come back next week for Part 2 of my top tips for your wedding flowers!