Wedding flowers are considered to be one of the most important elements of a couples’ big day. After the venue, the wedding band and the dress, flowers are frequently next on the wedding checklist.
The floral centrepieces adorning tables; the blooms decorating the church; the bridal bouquets and the groom’s buttonhole; the flowers gifted to the mother of the bride and groom – flowers are everywhere you look at a wedding.
They add to the atmosphere and lift the mood with their beauty and scent so it’s no surprise that their importance hasn’t diminished over time.
But how do you choose your flowers? Where do you start, what do you need to consider? Here’s a handy guide to help you organise the best floral decorations for your wedding.
Think about your budget
This one’s important. It’s difficult to get around the fact that flowers are pricey and, caught up in the romance of it all, it’s easy to let your creative ideas run wild.
Whilst the answer to the question “how much do wedding flowers cost?” is frequently met with, “how long is a piece of string?”, a good rule of thumb is that your wedding blooms will set you back about 15% of the total cost of your wedding.
Some florists will charge a minimum fee of around £1000 to make their effort worthwhile. With that being the minimum, the maximum price tag is unlimited.
Kim Kardashian’s wedding flowers – including a huge wall of rare, fresh blooms – reportedly cost £75,000.
The flowers for the royal weddings of Kate and William and Megan and Harry reportedly cost £800,000 and £500,000 respectively – it’s easy to get carried away using these ceremonies for inspiration!
It’s therefore crucial to set a budget and stay within affordable parameters. Be up-front about your spending power with the florist and they will help you get the most for your money.
Choose Seasonal
One way to make sure your wedding flowers don’t cost an arm and a leg, is to keep them seasonal.
If you choose to embrace blooms or foliage growing at the time of your wedding, it’s likely that they will be grown in the UK and don’t need to be imported – so no hefty import/export charges will be added onto your bill.
Seasonal flowers can further save you money as you can look at what’s growing in the gardens or on the allotments of your nearest and dearest.
Brits love gardening and it may well be possible to source your wedding bouquet from your family’s flower beds.
Not only does this add a lovely, personal touch to your big day, it could save you a whopping £100 – the average price of a bridal bouquet.
Not only that, seasonal flowers are guaranteed to look their best because of their freshness (and not having to be kept in climate controlled environments for days on end during transportation) as well as being environmentally friendly so your wedding won’t cost the earth – win, win!
Consider your colour scheme
It’s definitely worth selecting floral arrangements that compliment your chosen wedding colour scheme, otherwise the centrepieces of your big day may steal the spotlight but in all the wrong ways.
That doesn’t mean you need to try and find the exact shade of flowers to match your purple/turquoise/pink colour theme but rather pick shades that go well with the palette.
So muted pink might be complemented by bright fuschia roses and peonies or peacock green might go well with arrangements of Eucalyptus and dark blue Hydrangea.
Have fun playing with colours and don’t get stressed – flowers are flowers, they can’t help but be beautiful.
Just make sure that the colour scheme you pick for your bridal flowers and buttonholes doesn’t clash, or worse, blend into your outfits – if it doesn’t compliment your dress/suit, or does a disappearing act due to unintentional camouflage, what’s the point of having the flowers in the first place!
Plants V Flowers
Cut flowers aren’t the only way to go. Planted flowers and shrubs are becoming increasingly popular amongst brides and we can understand why.
They are equally – if not more – beautiful, they don’t wilt and you can take them home after the ceremony and plant them in your garden for a permanent reminder of your wedding day that grows with your relationship.
Imagine centrepieces of fragrant lavender bushes, or stunning orchids in all of the colours of the rainbow; scented herbs which can double as table names or wedding favours; potted olive trees decorated with fairy lights – the possibilities are endless.
And the best bit is that your expensive wedding decorations won’t end up on the rubbish heap at the end of the day – they will also decorate your home and bring you joy for years to come.
So when it comes to choosing your wedding flowers, your budget will definitely be the driving factor behind the decisions you’ll make.
There is no need to spend thousands of pounds if you approach the task in a creative and thoughtful way. Go for seasonal blooms and you’ll be saving yourself a great deal of money and stress and use your family connections to raid their gardens and create wonderful, home-grown arrangements.
If you’re lucky enough to have a garden or some space for an indoor jungle, think about using potted plants and you can kill two birds with one stone – decorate your wedding and your home.
Let take a few tips from the fab florists at the Flower Hut:
Conclusion
And above all else, don’t be overly concerned about current wedding trends – the more personal touches your wedding incorporates the more special your big day will feel to you, your other half and all of your guests. Do your day, your own way.
