Like most in the wedding industry, when it came time to start planning my own I pretty much knew exactly what I wanted. And while most of the pieces are falling into place I found myself completely lost at where to start with florals! Luckily I have the chance to work with some incredible florists to inspire me. A few weeks back I had the pleasure of chatting with Summer of Summer Robbins Flowers while she created a bouquet for a shoot. It was so amazing watching her pull together such a stunning arrangement!
"For me flowers are one of the most beautiful, fun elements of any wedding. They are the decor that really pulls all of your carefully curated details together. They add color, texture, romance, interest, and beauty to your photos and the overall look of the entire event. Flowers also captivate your guests because most people LOVE flowers and so they can be one of the most memorable parts of your day.
My advice for how to approach flowers when you're planning your wedding is to start with a color palette, which will help you focus, since there is so much flower porn out there, it is easy to get overwhelmed. From there, collect images from magazines, blogs, and Pinterest and figure out what you love the most.
Next, and probably most importantly, decide on a realistic floral budget, which should be 20% of your overall budget. I know. I know. It sounds like a lot. But that is not price gouging. Flowers are actually a pretty low margin business due to all the time spent sourcing, designing, and actually producing and delivering a wedding. Not to mention that the flowers you get from a floral designer are EXPENSIVE because they are premium, gorgeous varieties that aren't available at your average big box store or the farmer's market. They are sourced from wholesalers and floral farms who often only sell to professionals. But since most people aren't used to spending money on premium floral arrangements, there is often a sticker shock that happens with flowers. Keep in mind that the larger your guest list and the more people you have in your bridal party the more flowers are going to cost simply because you're going to need more of them to bring your vision to life (i.e. more centerpieces and more bouquets).
To help your floral designer prioritize your budget, figure out which floral elements are most important to you. So, for example maybe the bridal bouquet is #1, arbor decor is #2, and centerpieces are #3 in order of importance for you. That will help your floral designer figure out how best to work with the budget you have and will help her come up with some creative options that can still work within your vision and save you money.
Floral designers are creative and good at coming up with solutions and options to make budgets work, however we are not magicians and can't create a $300 bouquet for you if all you have is $100 to spend. You really do get what you pay for, and having those priorities figured out will help both stay on the same page.
I hope those tips help all of you reading this a bit. If you don't do any of this, that's fine too. We, as floral designers, are so totally ready to meet you wherever you are in your planning process and to bring your vision to life, even if you don't have a vision yet, we can figure it out for you. It's our job and we're pretty darn good at it." XOXO. -Summer
If you still need help on where to start for inspiration on your own wedding, check out my Pinterest floral board to see some of the latest trends and bouquet styles!