BUDGETING FOR WEDDING FLORALS: TIPS FOR MAXIMIZING YOUR FLORAL BUDGET

Why are wedding flowers so expensive? This is a question that gets asked often and I understand, normally weddings are a big investment. Floral design is a profession, not a hobby, and I promise that florists do not see the word “wedding” and immediately tack on the extra dollar signs. There is a lot of work that goes into creating beautiful flowers for a wedding and it is my hope to shed a little light on this. It is true that anyone can put flowers in a vase and because flowers are inherently beautiful, the end result generally ends up looking nice. However, there is a difference between putting flowers in a vase and in designing flowers. The truly pleasing floral design takes a talented professional, high-quality product, and lots of time and planning.

In case you are curious, I’d like to share a basic rundown of what is involved in designing flowers for a wedding. First, I want to acknowledge that every job is difficult and complicated and I’m sharing this purely for the sake of education. Florists across the country are asked if we can lessen the cost of our services while still providing essentially the same end result. I believe that couples are interested in our designs because of the quality of work seen in our portfolio, and scaling back or using cheaper flowers will not allow us to provide that same level of service, thus potentially disappointing our clients (a total lose-lose situation). I also want to acknowledge that information this comes from my own experience in the industry and from the experiences of close flower friends who have been in the industry far longer than I have.