Am I Crazy!!?!

SoontobeTwist

My fiancé and I are paying for pretty much everything except the venue (we're super lucky, my parents offered to pay for it).  The biggest expense is the flowers.  We are having a pretty big wedding (170 people).  We don't want/can't afford to spend too much money on flowers.  We have met with a couple of florists and have been in communication with a few others.... All the florists seem to agree that for a wedding our size, and a vision like we have, our budget won't work. 

Now for the am I crazy part.... We have a family friend that owns their own flower distribution center... Actually a few of the florists we have met with get their flowers from them... If they are willing to sell us the flowers for a good price, would it be crazy to have my bridesmaids and my fiancé and I creating centerpieces and bouquets the weekend of the wedding.  (My fiancé is all for this idea because of the money we would save)

Has anyone made their own bouquets and centerpieces, or know someone who has, who can offer some advice on the situation?

We really appreciate any and all opinions we can get.  thanks in advance!

Maggie0829

First you have to think about the amount of time that will take you.  If you haven't worked with flowers before it may be a PITA!  Also, do you really want that stress two days before your wedding?  Doing your own flowers can be done but you will really have to prepare.  You will need to make a mock up of the centerpieces and bouquets so you know how many flowers you will need and how long they will take.  You should also do research on how to handle flowers and how to store them, etc.

Another tip would be to stick with one type of flower.  Do all roses or all hydrangeas, etc.  This way the items would be a lot easier to put together.  You may need to re-think your vision because what you can do and what an experienced florist who has an experienced staff can do are two completely different things.

If you find that you may be getting overwhelmed by the whole thing you will need to re-discuss what you want with your florist.  They may be able to create a vision for you that will work for your wedding and your budget.

Good luck!

sparent2010

I don't know I would do it! But I like to sve the money we are having the farmer's market vendor doing them for us though at around 1015 a table so that is another option.

You can make it fun it is only like 17 -20 tables right? JUst make it a work party and provide food your friends should be good natured enough to help you through it. And do overwhelm yourself just work for 5-7 hours then spend the night doing something fun! At least that is how I would approach it !

sparent2010

http://www.save-on-crafts.com/flowartec.html

I found this on google it has a bunch of articles... I didn't read them but they seem useful GL!

SoontobeTwist

Thanks

amh238

I am actually considering doing this for my wedding, though my guest list is about half yours so only 12 centerpieces max. As Maggie0829 said you will definitely need to do a test run for your design to get an idea of what it looks like, number of flowers etc.

Although, one flower is probably the simplest for bouquets, I do not think that limits your flower choices. You could have a variety of flowers in your centerpieces in an arrangement that you like based on your mock up (take pictures so you remember the details when you make them the day before) and then have your BMs carry a bouquet of each with a different flower.

I think its a great way to realize your wedding vision. Sure it will take more effort and planning, but if you are up for the fun working on flowers with your BMs, family and/or Fiance plus saving a little green, why not?! 

There are great suggestions on the knot and google to budget and save time like ways to wrap the bouquets the day before and then just trim the stems on the day of...It will just take more planning on your part instead of just writing a check or swiping the credit card!

Good luck with your floral endeavors!

Catwoman708

Sure it's possible, it's not "hard" to DIY flowers, but it's time consuming and you need to practice a little well ahead of time to get the technique and time yourself. 

The wedding party is usually already pretty busy and frazzled the day before the wedding, and you will need to devote most of the day before the wedding to the flowers for a large wedding.  It would be more realistic to hire someone with experience to be on hand to help for a few hours. 

Ask your floral distributor friend or a day of wedding planner/coordintor if they can refer you to someone who you could hire for the day.  Or ask around at grocery store floral departments, or craft stores.  Sometimes people that work in that field do weddings on the side.

If that's not possible, you may have to face the reality that you might have to downsize your vision for flowers.  On your wedding day, you will probably be so busy and distracted, as long as you have some flowers, and they look decent in the photos, you'll hardly notice them and will wonder why you worried about it so much.