budgeting for flowers. or not. help?

CarloandCatie · October 2012

hey ladies! First post. My wedding is next November and I am struggling to find a florist. I just really don't know what is reasonable to spend in New Orleans. I'm trying to do my bouquet, corsages, grooms party flowers and table arrangements for - what I thought - was a sensible budget of $1500. Guess what? I don't even LIKE flowers! But...whatever. Please, brides, what can I expect from my flower budget? Too low? Too high? Florist recommendations? I'm in the weeds over here. Thanks!

NO2012 · October 2012

I had no experience with flowers, they were nowhere near a top priority for my wedding, I had very simple bouquets, no flowers in the Cathedral at all, no flowers on my cake, and floral centerpieces on only half of my reception tables. I also went with Christina O'Malley who is well known on these boards for working with budget brides in my case budget bride meant I wasn't interested in spending an arm and a leg on flowers...I wasn't very budget conscious in a lot of others areas that were important to me. That being said I originally budgeted the same amount you did for flowers and at the end of the day still went over budget by several hundred dollars. Christina had many suggestions for me to stay close to budget, but I really think my original budget was a little unrealistically low. But I also pulled that number out of thin air and Christina did her best to create a proposal in that range. I'm not saying you can't make that number happen, just know what that gets you. HTH!

silverspark7 · October 2012

I would also suggest Meade Wenzel. She hs actually come in under my budget for a large wedding. She irks some brides because she doesn't do email, but she is very professional and easy to work with. I'll be happy to share some pictures after my wedding.

Brooke4377 · October 2012

NO2012-

Really??? you have me worried now! I am doing the same, no flowers on cake or in cathedral, simple (hydrangea only) bouquets, and floral arrangements on half the tables...AND I am also with Christina O'Malley. I had been hoping to stay under $600!!! You have me worried! Why did yours get so pricey? I have four bridesmaids and she has quoted me $70 a piece for each of our bouquets....$20 a piece for three mothers nosegays, and around $30 a piece for 6 centerpieces...then I'll have a few cocktail arrangements thrown in. I'm hoping for sure to stay under $700 (correction- I WILL stay under $700...lol I could care less about flowers) so I'll keep you all posted on how I make that happen. My wedding is next month.

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/local-wedding-boards_louisiana-new-orleans_budgeting-for-flowers-or-not-help?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Local%20Wedding%20BoardsForum:84Discussion:89075ef8-c45e-4b15-a83c-eed9158f7a39Post:7e327941-7185-4909-9d32-ac794fa40685">Re:budgeting for flowers. or not. help?</a>:
[QUOTE]I had no experience with flowers, they were nowhere near a top priority for my wedding, I had very simple bouquets, no flowers in the Cathedral at all, no flowers on my cake, and floral centerpieces on only half of my reception tables. I also went with Christina O'Malley who is well known on these boards for working with budget brides in my case budget bride meant I wasn't interested in spending an arm and a leg on flowers...I wasn't very budget conscious in a lot of others areas that were important to me. That being said I originally budgeted the same amount you did for flowers and at the end of the day still went over budget by several hundred dollars. Christina had many suggestions for me to stay close to budget, but I really think my original budget was a little unrealistically low. But I also pulled that number out of thin air and Christina did her best to create a proposal in that range. I'm not saying you can't make that number happen, just know what that gets you. HTH!
Posted by NO2012[/QUOTE]

ZeroOrchestra · October 2012

We went minimal in flowers, as in simple BM bouquets of hydrangea and roses, my Bouquet was ivory roses, simple bouts and corsages for the parents and H, two small ceremony arrangements, cake topper, guest book table arrangement and sweetheart table arrangement. We did not do bouts for the GM or floral centerpieces. Our total was just under 700 and we used Crystal Vase, her shop is in Metarie.

danalambert · October 2012

I'm also working with Christina (wedding this November!) and was pretty focused on the flowers and quite a bit of candle lighting (which she also handles). I had quite a few table arrangements (18), bouquet, 4 bouts, 2 bridesmaid, cake flowers, buffet table arrangement, gazebo flowers and a TON of candles. Came in slightly over my budget but that was more on my end because I upped the kind of flowers i wanted and they are harder to get. I will tell you, though, that Christina was great to work with and if you want to be in that $1500 range she can likely make it work for you no problem. I found alot came down to the flowers that were used and she'll give you different options at different prices so you can kind of put together what you want given your budget. My tip - don't forget to add in tax and delivery/set up charge to your costs.

OpenHeart0117 · October 2012

Thanks for posting this question. I am in the process of getting a quote from Christina, she is busy this month with lots of weddings so I will have to wait a bit for it. I would really like to see some more photos of her work. I did get pictures from one bride, but I am interested in seeing how she works with other types of flowers and colors & some of her table centerpieces designs and candles, etc.

***NO2012 can you provide some photos of some of the flowers she did for you ? I have been stalking the board waiting for your vendor reviews ! LOL

amenter & danalambert, I will be anxiously awaiting your reviews as well, as I am excited about Christina & want to see more of her work.

NO2012 · October 2012

In Response to Re:budgeting for flowers. or not. help?:NO2012Really??? you have me worried now!nbsp; I am doing the same, no flowers on cake or in cathedral, simple hydrangea only bouquets, and floral arrangements on half the tables...AND I am also with Christina O'Malley.nbsp; I had been hoping to stay under 600!!! You have me worried!nbsp; Why did yours get so pricey?nbsp; I have four bridesmaids and she has quoted me 70 a piece for each of our bouquets....20 a piece for three mothers nosegays, and around 30 a piece for 6 centerpieces...then I'll have a few cocktail arrangements thrown in.nbsp; I'm hoping for sure to stay under 700 correction I WILL stay under 700...lol I could care less about flowers so I'll keep you all posted on how I make that happen.nbsp; My wedding is next month.In Response to Re:budgeting for flowers. or not. help?:I had no experience with flowers, they were nowhere near a top priority for my wedding, I had very simple bouquets, no flowers in the Cathedral at all, no flowers on my cake, and floral centerpieces on only half of my reception tables. I also went with Christina O'Malley who is well known on these boards for working with budget brides in my case budget bride meant I wasn't interested in spending an arm and a leg on flowers...I wasn't very budget conscious in a lot of others areas that were important to me. That being said I originally budgeted the same amount you did for flowers and at the end of the day still went over budget by several hundred dollars. Christina had many suggestions for me to stay close to budget, but I really think my original budget was a little unrealistically low. But I also pulled that number out of thin air and Christina did her best to create a proposal in that range. I'm not saying you can't make that number happen, just know what that gets you. HTH!Posted by NO2012 Posted by Brooke4377 My bouquet was white roses and my stepdaughter had a pomander of white roses to match. Those were a bit pricier. But I also had 4 BM's whose bouquets cost the same as yours. I did have quite a few corsages and bouts which add up, but still not expensive. My guess is that while I only had 6 large centerpiece arrangements and 3 small ones, they large ones were very full on tall pedestals so maybe that explains the price difference. My only specific request was for my bouquets and SD's to be white roses. The rest of the flower choices I left up to her telling her I was more concerned with budget and fall colors that coordinated with my linens and decor than a specific flower.

NO2012 · October 2012

In Response to Re:budgeting for flowers. or not. help?:[QUOTE]Thanks for posting this question. I am in the process of getting a quote from Christina, she is busy this month with lots of weddings so I will have to wait a bit for it. I would really like to see some more photos of her work. I did get pictures from one bride, but I am interested in seeing how she works with other types of flowers and colors amp; some of her table centerpieces designs and candles, etc.NO2012 can you provide some photos of some of the flowers she did for you ? I have been stalking the board waiting for your vendor reviews ! LOLamenter amp; danalambert, I will be anxiously awaiting your reviews as well, as I am excited about Christina amp; want to see more of her work.nbsp; Posted by OpenHeart0117[/QUOTE]

I literally have no photos yet of flowers and unfortunately I don't have a clear memory of them either. Haha. As soon as I get any pics of her work I will let you know. I even thought to email her this week to see if she took any of my arrangements because it is bugging me that I don't remember! As far as reviews, I was holding out to deal with my transportation fiasco and I typed them on DHs laptop and he took it with him on his work trip this week! But he is home tonight so I will post them tomorrow regardless of the transportation review. They are long, I might need to edit down from the novel I wrote. :

OpenHeart0117 · October 2012

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/local-wedding-boards_louisiana-new-orleans_budgeting-for-flowers-or-not-help?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Local%20Wedding%20BoardsForum:84Discussion:89075ef8-c45e-4b15-a83c-eed9158f7a39Post:b8154f5a-58e5-43f0-9011-5a1777bb1801">Re:budgeting for flowers. or not. help?</a>:
[QUOTE]In Response to Re:budgeting for flowers. or not. help?: I literally have no photos yet of flowers and unfortunately I don't have a clear memory of them either. Haha. As soon as I get any pics of her work I will let you know. I even thought to email her this week to see if she took any of my arrangements because it is bugging me that I don't remember! As far as reviews, I was holding out to deal with my transportation fiasco and I typed them on DHs laptop and he took it with him on his work trip this week! But he is home tonight so I will post them tomorrow regardless of the transportation review. They are long, I might need to edit down from the novel I wrote. :
Posted by NO2012[/QUOTE]

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</div><div>Don't worry about the reviews being too long LOL. The more details the better in my opinon. I can't figure out why she won't just create a Pinterest page of her own work ! LOL But I know she seems to stay very busy & just does not have time for all of that, which is what she expressed to me. I can't wait to read the details of your day. </div><div>
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louisianablue · October 2012

I think it really depends what you expect to get for that amount. If you have 8 bridesmaids, need corsages, have 20 tables that need centerpieces, you'll probably need to up your budget. You just need to be reasonable about what you can actually get for your money.

budgeting for flowers. or not. help?

Re: budgeting for flowers. or not. help?

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