Luckily I started looking at flowers early in the process of planning for the wedding. Chuck and I visited one florist in Gig Harbor together a few months ago, and I wasn't impressed. When I asked if we could make an appointment to talk about flowers for our wedding, we were told to look through some books on a table.
We did that, and no one ever offered to help us. I finally went back to the counter and gave some general ideas of what I was looking for, but the lady didn't seem eager to help me make any decisions, and didn't offer any advice or input. As we continued to look through the books I didn't see anything that was grabbing my attention very much. I did make some final selections just because they were the best that were offered.
The selections were not creative. It felt like any other flower shop. Finally I turned to Chuck and said, "We have some time before this decision has to be made. Maybe we should just go."
And go we did. And we never went back. I told Chuck on the drive home that I would rather just go to a grocery store and get a couple of bouquets and mix the flowers together to make my own than pay a high price for just another bouquet.
I realize some brides know exactly what they want down to the material of ribbon on their bouquet. I am not that bride. I have a general idea of what I want, but I need an expert to guide me.
Fast forward to three weeks ago. I called a different florist to see if I could come in and talk to them about wedding flowers. The lady on the phone set an appointment, gave me advice on what to bring with me, and general information about the appointment.
My appointment with Steve at Blitz Florist in Tacoma was great, and I was very relieved. He asked me a lot of questions, showed me a lot of pictures of bouquets the shop had created for other brides, gave me some advice on types of flowers that look great together, and put me totally at ease. He understood my vision, and I am confident that I will be carrying a beautiful bouquet, and that our flowers for the ceremony and reception will be lovely.
Unfortunately, some of my favorite flowers are spring bouquet flowers, and I won't have lilacs. I'm bummed about it, because I wanted something that would represent my mom for me that day. She loved lilacs, and I really wanted to include them in my day. She will be in my thoughts, and I've found a way to include her in the music.
The estimate for flowers came in over budget, but it was easy to communicate with Steve about how to cut down on some of the arrangements and bring it back to budget.
Here are some tips I can share about this experience:
*If you can't spend a lot of money on flowers, don't. My daughter had a beach wedding, and she and a bridesmaid went to a local grocery store and bought a mix of different bouquets. She used one as decoration on the dock where they were married, and chose the best flowers from the bouquets and wrapped them with ribbon for her bridal bouquet. It was beautiful!
*If you are getting married between April and October, and you have a local farmers market, check out the farmers selling flowers. We have used farmers market flowers for some major events that I've helped plan. They were gorgeous bouquets.
*If you've been to a wedding and the flowers were incredible, ask that bride who she used for her flowers.
*Know what is in season in the area where you live on the date of your wedding. I wanted lilacs, but they will be out of season by the time we get married. I can still get them, but the florist said depending on the distance of the supplier, those lilacs could get pretty expensive. (California, not so bad. South America, ummm, probably not a price I can pay. Plus, I have to buy bulk in order to get them because the suppliers won't ship just a few of anything.)
*Be clear about your vision of what you want your wedding to look like. I am going for simple elegance. Some people go for big bling, some for fairytale, etc. Share that vision with your florist, and if you don't think they are listening, find another florist.
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