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Why have a florist?

LGR2012LGR2012 member
First Comment
in Flowers
Assuming I know what I want the bouquets and centerpieces to look like, what is the benefit of having a florist? Is there any benefit besides having someone to do the work of sticking flowers in vases? And how much more does it cost to have a florist vs. just ordering flowers. I know what flowers I want where and I don't want to hire an expensive florist if the only service I'm getting is her sticking flowers in vases for me.
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Re: Why have a florist?

  • CassieeKCassieeK
    First Comment
    edited December 2011
    My florist didn't even do the flowers for her own wedding b/c she was just too busy and it was too much work. I would rather pay for the time saved and peace of mind than be worried how my floral arrangements might turn out on my own!
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  • flower_divaflower_diva member
    First Anniversary First Comment Combo Breaker
    edited December 2011
    have you tried "sticking" flowers in a vase?  if so what did it look like....good bad....ugly?  Have you ever made a wedding bokay?   I suggest you try doing these things before you hire an "expensive" florist. It usually takes me 45min-hour to put a wedding bokay together and I AM a florist.  You pay me for my knowlegde and expertise AND for taking the stress out of your day and your wedding flowers.
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  • jagore08jagore08 member
    5 Love Its Combo Breaker First Anniversary First Comment
    edited December 2011
    Most florists are considered artists.  Not everyone can arrange flowers or make bouquets.  If you haven't tried it before I suggest going to your local grocery store and pick up some flowers that aren't arranged and make your own bouquet.  If you like the outcome then think about if that was easy or hard for you.  If you think it was easy, you liked the outcome, and you'll have plenty of time the day before and the day of your wedding then save yourself the money and arrange all the flowers for your wedding.  Also remember if you go this route you will need plenty of space to store the flowers (it needs to be a cool place so they don't prematurely wilt).

    ETA: FlowerDiva- please spell check.  It doesn't look good for a florist to misspell bouquet.
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  • WiscisblissWiscisbliss
    First Comment
    edited December 2011
    For me, I decided a florist was not worth the cost. 

    My mom and I have made dozens of corsages for Mother's Day at church... and we were pretty sure we could handle my simple vision (rose bouquets, simple corsages, and centerpieces). 

    It costs significantly less money-wise.  Florists typically have a 3x's mark-up.  But it will cost you in time.  I spent 5 hours the day before my wedding making the bouquets, corsages, bouts, and centerpieces.  Corsages and bouts were definitely the most time consuming.  Centerpieces were easiest.  I odered them pre-bundled and I really did just cut them to the right length and plunk them into a vase. 

    I used fiftyflowers.com and flowersandfreshness.com to order the flowers and was very happy with the quality. 

    LGR - If you think you want to DIY I suggest buying some flowers from the grocery store and doing a small test run first.  See how it turns out and how much time it takes you.  Then make your decision. 

    flower_diva - I think it is interesting that you are a florist and cannot spell bouquet. 
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  • tldhtldh member
    First Comment
    edited December 2011
    My grandfather started teaching me as a little girl how to arrange flowers.  I still hired a florist for my wedding because I knew that I would not have any time to spare to do them.  The money I paid was well worth it.
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  • Sue-n-KevinSue-n-Kevin member
    First Anniversary 5 Love Its First Answer First Comment
    edited December 2011
    Like other posters have said, it takes time and talent.

    I ordered a 20 piece white rose package from Costco online. I got my bouquet, 4 BM bouquets, 6 bouts, 6 corsages a toss bouquet and one centerpiece. This was $399. It was lovely and I didn't have to arrange anything. It comes in other colors or other flowers.

    I have had a garden for years (over 30) and arranged my own flowers in vases, so for me this was not something I was uncomfortable with. I ordered 8 dozen white vendela roses and 70 stems of white asiatic lillies, and baby's breath from Costco for $177.

    Things to consider:
    - The flowers have to be ordered 3 days in advance to allow them to open. You need a cool place and buckets to put them in.
    - Someone has to get them to the reception venue. Not always easy to do without having them messed up or falling over
    - How many tables are you having? I made 9 centerpieces the day before my wedding. I was able to do this because all my other DIY stuff was DONE. It took me about 3 hrs.

    It isn't as easy as sticking flowers in vases, unless you want the rustic look and don't really care if they are "arranged". You also need to work with floral foam or jelly balls to hold the stems in place, unless you want the rustic look.

    I paid under $600 for my flowers. For me it was worth the savings because we had a tight budget. But you won't think it's worth it unless you have the time, talent, and search long enough in advance to find the right "pre-made" and "you-made" balance for you.

    Good luck.
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  • Maggie0829Maggie0829 member
    First Anniversary First Answer First Comment 5 Love Its
    edited December 2011
    Ask yourself this question...Do you feel like spending a lot of time and energy the day before your wedding putting together bouquets, corsages, bouts, centerpieces and any other flower details for your wedding?

    Do you have any experience arranging flowers?  Do you know how to handle fresh flowers correctly?  Do you know how to cut and process the flowers when you get them?  Do you know how many flowers you are going to need for all your arrangements?  Do you know how and who will take all the flowers to the venue and set them up...are you going to be willing to do this the day of your wedding?

    There is a lot that goes into flower arranging, especially for a large event like a wedding.  It is great that you know what you want but hiring a florist means taking the stress and pressure off of you.  If you pick a florist who is reputable and talented then you won't need to worry at all about the flowers.

    In the end it comes down to what is more important to you...saving money but having added stress and things to do so close to your wedding or spending a little bit more on having a professional worry about set-up and arranging while you can sit back and enjoy your day.

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  • Maggie0829Maggie0829 member
    First Anniversary First Answer First Comment 5 Love Its
    edited December 2011
    In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/special-topic-wedding-boards_flowers_florist-7?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Special Topic Wedding BoardsForum:28Discussion:8be90023-5019-4c0e-ab78-984b4381e050Post:92f60243-110b-48df-b380-8dbc279169b0">Re: Why have a florist?</a>:
    [QUOTE]Most florists are considered artists.  Not everyone can arrange flowers or make bouquets.  If you haven't tried it before I suggest going to your local grocery store and pick up some flowers that aren't arranged and make your own bouquet.  If you like the outcome then think about if that was easy or hard for you.  If you think it was easy, you liked the outcome, and you'll have plenty of time the day before and the day of your wedding then save yourself the money and arrange all the flowers for your wedding.  Also remember if you go this route you will need plenty of space to store the flowers (it needs to be a cool place so they don't prematurely wilt). ETA: <strong>FlowerDiva- please spell check.  It doesn't look good for a florist to misspell bouquet .
    </strong>Posted by jagore08[/QUOTE]

    She didn't really misspell it...as someone who worked as a florist for 8 years, we always spelled bouquet as bokay...it is just a florist or people in the floral industry thing.

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  • jagore08jagore08 member
    5 Love Its Combo Breaker First Anniversary First Comment
    edited December 2011
    In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/special-topic-wedding-boards_flowers_florist-7?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Special%20Topic%20Wedding%20BoardsForum:28Discussion:8be90023-5019-4c0e-ab78-984b4381e050Post:e3c0cc44-bff3-4ccb-ba5c-f5738e3c3ed7">Re: Why have a florist?</a>:
    [QUOTE]In Response to Re: Why have a florist? : She didn't really misspell it...as someone who worked as a florist for 8 years, we always spelled bouquet as bokay...it is just a florist or people in the floral industry thing.
    Posted by Maggie0829[/QUOTE]
    Well to people who are outside the floral industry, which is the majority on here, it makes her look silly to be a florist and misspell a common word especially when there's spell check.  
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  • flower_divaflower_diva member
    First Anniversary First Comment Combo Breaker
    edited December 2011
     flower_diva - I think it is interesting that you are a florist and cannot spell bouquet. 
    Posted by Wiscisbliss[/QUOTE]

    FYI-it's not that I don't "KNOW" how to spell Bouquet...it is floral shorthand and I spell it that way for all the "educated" brides/mothers/bridesmaids  that don't know how this word is pronounced so...I spell it phonetically.....
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  • khovdesvenkhovdesven member
    First Comment
    edited December 2011
    Sue-n-kevin Thank you so much for giving great tips and being unbiased! I never would have looked at costco for flowers but my fiance and I are doing a rustic theme and we found exactly what we didn't know we were looking for at costco. It fits our budget and our decor. Thanks again!


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  • tldhtldh member
    First Comment
    edited December 2011
    In Response to Re: Why have a florist?:
    [/QUOTE] FYI-it's not that I don't "KNOW" how to spell Bouquet...it is floral shorthand and I spell it that way for all the "educated" brides/mothers/bridesmaids  that don't know how this word is pronounced so...I spell it phonetically.....
    Posted by flower_diva[/QUOTE]


    ----------------------------------------------------
    That's pretty insulting actually.  You're talking down to these people and assuming that they are incapable of learning a new word.
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  • fallbride1109fallbride1109 member
    First Anniversary 5 Love Its Name Dropper First Comment
    edited December 2011
    There was no way I would have considered DIYing my own flowers so that is why I hired a florist--but it works for some people and certainly saves money.  But I am not talented nor did I have the time to arrange flowers on my wedding day.
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  • kmclean29kmclean29 member
    First Comment
    edited December 2011

    you have some great advice here, but the main thing is taking the stress out of it for you!  I deal with so many ordering issues and quality issues that the bride never hears about. I am paid to "take care of it".  If you order from a cheap website and get the wrong color or bad quality, you are stuck with the bad lot, but if you hire a florist they are going to correct it for you!

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  • flower_divaflower_diva member
    First Anniversary First Comment Combo Breaker
    edited December 2011
    In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/special-topic-wedding-boards_flowers_florist-7?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Special%20Topic%20Wedding%20BoardsForum:28Discussion:8be90023-5019-4c0e-ab78-984b4381e050Post:d92a8365-ce08-4f3a-b4a8-8e6cadcb8d5f">Re: Why have a florist?</a>:
    [QUOTE]In Response to Re: Why have a florist? : [/QUOTE] FYI- it's not that I don't "KNOW" how to spell Bouquet...it is floral shorthand and I spell it that way for all the "educated" brides/mothers/bridesmaids  that don't know how this word is pronounced so...I spell it phonetically..... Posted by flower_diva[/QUOTE] ---------------------------------------------------- That's pretty insulting actually.  You're talking down to these people and assuming that they are incapable of learning a new word.
    Posted by tldh[/QUOTE]
    and you don't think the quote about wedding guests at the end of your post isn't insultling?  
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  • tldhtldh member
    First Comment
    edited December 2011
    In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/special-topic-wedding-boards_flowers_florist-7?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Special Topic Wedding BoardsForum:28Discussion:8be90023-5019-4c0e-ab78-984b4381e050Post:de752203-bc26-4b63-963c-7a223218d89f">Re: Why have a florist?</a>:
    [QUOTE]In Response to Re: Why have a florist? : FYI- it's not that I don't "KNOW" how to spell Bouquet...it is floral shorthand and I spell it that way for all the "educated" brides/mothers/bridesmaids  that don't know how this word is pronounced so...I spell it phonetically..... Posted by flower_diva[/QUOTE] ---------------------------------------------------- That's pretty insulting actually.  You're talking down to these people and assuming that they are incapable of learning a new word. Posted by tldh[/QUOTE] and you don't think the quote about wedding guests at the end of your post isn't insultling?  
    Posted by flower_diva[/QUOTE]

    I have it there to try to get the point across that wedding guests remember how they are treated which first and foremost involves the food and drink - you are hosting a party after all.  If you have a pot luck or a cash bar, that's not going to go over well and there are too many brides on TK who ask if this is ok.  There are other places in the budget that brides can cut to save money.  Guests don't pay attention to whether colors are perfect matches, whether the BMs match like clones, what the flowers look like, if there are even favors or any of the other little things that you can easily spend a fortune on that the wedding industry will tell you are absolute musts. 

    I do change it every few months depending on what the thread topics are.  After the holiday season proposals we'll probably have a number of newly engaged women yelling that the first amendment lets them say whatever they want and I'll again have the first amendment in the siggy line - but I won't change the spelling of the big words. 
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  • Chantil&BrandonChantil&Brandon
    First Comment
    edited December 2011

    Pretty silly your arguing about how to spell a word....

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