DIY flower centerpieces? Any success stories?!

TCbride1

Has anyone created simple floral centerpieces by making a trip to the farmers market or flower shop before the wedding?

It seems like a great idea....just run to the wholesale flower shop, hold them in the fridge (right?) the night before, then plop them in a vase the day of. Too good to be true? I'm sure there are horror stories, but has anyone succeeded in this? PICS?

 

 

Maggie0829

I think the only thing I would be worried about is whether or not the market would have the number of stems I would need, the colors I want, and the flowers that I would want.

If you are of the mindset that you don't care about specific flowers or colors then you should be fine going the day or two before to grab whatever looks good.

Magdala9

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/special-topic-wedding-boards_flowers_fiy-flower-centerpieces-any-success-stories?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Special Topic Wedding BoardsForum:28Discussion:69c5c21c-8b78-45d6-b6e3-43f6a34c5ea6Post:1d7602fd-b2ec-4cfb-b746-f0aff58996ea">DIY flower centerpieces? Any success stories?!</a>:
[QUOTE]Has anyone created simple floral centerpieces by making a trip to the farmers market or flower shop before the wedding? It seems like a great idea....just run to the wholesale flower shop, hold them in the fridge (right?) the night before, then plop them in a vase the day of. Too good to be true? I'm sure there are horror stories, but has anyone succeeded in this? PICS?    
Posted by TCbride1[/QUOTE]

Not intentionally. 

For a friend's wedding, the florist did not show up and we were unable to reach her.  Thinking that the florist had skipped, the bridal party went into action.  This was an evening wedding in December.  All florists were closed.   We split up and hit three local grocery stores, picking up every red and white rose in the place.  We also hit Christmas Tree Shops and picked up red and ivory ribbon and plain glass column bud vases.  We found 8 square column vases and 8 round column vases.  We selected the best five red roses and tied them together with a larger ivory bow for the bride.  We selected the best four white and tied a ribbon around each for the four bridesmaids.  The remaining roses were in the back of the MOH's boyfriend's car for the ceremony.

After the wedding the bride and groom (with the families) went off to the picture site while the rest of the bridal party hightailed it to the reception site.  I am tying ribbons around vases on the ride over.   The maitre'd was very upset telling us that the florist had never shown there either.  We placed a ribbon tied vase on each table with a red rose and white rose in the vase.   We also placed large swaths of ribbons in an x under the vases (one red, one ivory).  After this was in place, the bridal party hightailed it back to the picture site for the bridal party pictures while our spouses/boyfriends/girlfriends were putting the finishing touches

It looked really good in a very simple chic way.   The guests could not tell that there weren't any centerpieces in the minutes before they arrived.  The bride's mother was very confused about why the centerpieces did not match her order.  The bride and groom had a great time and a lot of their stress was avoided.

And the florist.....She had been in a bad car accident on the way to the wedding and had been hospitalized.  The florist sued the other driver for the damages to her business van and the lost order.    The brides' mother got her deposit back eventually.  

gmcr78

What a story!  You guys really saved the day with your quick thinking.

[Deleted User]

I was also considering making my own centerpieces and bouquets, although I am not going to leave my colors and flower selection up to chance. You can order flowers through wholesale clubs like Costco and Sam's Club for pretty cheap.They arrive 2 days before and yes, keep them in the fridge, in water (not the boxes). I have read several reviews and most are pretty positive, they only complaints were the colors of the flowers did not match the colors on the computer (which is probably just the difference in monitor colors, not a problem with the actual flowers). Hope this helps