16.1 Introduction
Flowers are a traditional part of weddings in the UK.Almost every client you take on will need your help in organising their wedding flowers. Fortunately, flowers are one of the most fun parts of wedding planning because every client’s flower needs will be different.
In this module, you will learn what kind of floral arrangements you might need for weddings. You will also get a better understanding of the process of sourcing, buying and arranging wedding flowers.
16.2 How Many Flowers You Need
Flowers are an essential part of almost every wedding.Most couples wouldn’t dream of not having some kind of floral arrangement or flower as a part of their ceremony and reception.
How many flowers you need to order depends on how many flowers they envision at their wedding. Some couples may want to swim through flowers as they proceed up the aisle. Others may only want simple arrangements and only the minimum amount of flowers needed for the wedding party.
In general, you can expect to look for flowers for the following arrangements:
- Bridal bouquet
- Bridesmaids’ bouquets
- Groom’s boutonnière
- Groomsmen boutonnières
- Corsages and boutonnières for the family
- Flower girl and ring bearer flowers
- Aisle decorations
- Arrangements for the altar
- Table centrepieces
This is often the minimum number of flowers that you will order for the wedding. You may also order arrangements for the present table, the cake table and for other parts of the venue. This will be entirely up to the couple’s preferences and budget.
16.3 Guide to Seasonal Flowers
Buying seasonal flowers is important for two reasons.First, flowers that are in season will be reasonably priced. Secondly, the flowers that are in season will be more beautiful and last longer than flowers that are out of season.
If you want to become a flower expert as well as a wedding planning expert, it is good to do some research regarding which flowers are available during which months of the year.
To give you a basic idea what is available and when, here is a brief seasonal guide to popular wedding flowers:
Winter
The flowers that are available in winter are very beautiful. You can get a lot of classic flowers like garden roses, peonies and anemones during the winter. This is also a good season to get orchids, champagne roses, magenta tulips and some hyacinths.
Spring
Spring is the perfect season to find a beautiful bunch of lily of the valley. These were a favourite at the Royal Wedding, and Kate Middleton is said to be in love with them. Spring is also great for lilacs, sweet peas and ranunculus.
Summer
You have a good choice of flowers during the summer, which makes it an ideal season for weddings. Hydrangeas are best during the early summer months. You can also find plenty of freesia, peonies, dahlias and daisies during this month. Classic garden roses and carnations are also readily available during the summer.
Autumn
Autumn is perfect for poppies. Though they aren’t traditional wedding flowers, they are vibrant and perfect if your wedding has a red theme. Autumn is also great for dahlias, gerberas and delphinium. All of these are perfect for creating beautiful centrepieces.
16.4 Buying Flowers
When you buy flowers in the UK, you often have three options.You can get up early and hit the flower market. For those who value their beauty sleep, you can form a relationship with an online wholesaler. Or you can get flowers directly from a local florist.
Flower Market
The UK is full of regional and city flower markets. You can find them in almost every major city including London, Manchester and Glasgow. You will be sharing these markets with florists and other professionals, so you have to get there early (as in, before 6am) to get the best blooms. You will often get the best prices from the city flower market, especially if you make friends with the vendors.
Online Wholesalers
Online wholesalers are becoming more popular in the UK. All you need to do is search for them on the internet. You should make sure you do a test order before you commit to one of these wholesalers, however. Some will offer different services, and you want to make sure that you can count on their service and delivery, since the flowers will be one of the last things that arrive before the wedding.
Almost everyone in the UK buys from the same Dutch flower markets, and online wholesalers operate similarly to the local wholesalers. The only difference is they work online!
Florists
You can always order your flowers directly through your florist, too. They will be able to get good prices on the flowers, but you will usually be paying a mark-up for the service. Florists have access to great flowers and have the equipment necessary to transport and store them before the wedding.
Using a florist is the most expensive option, but if your expertise does not include flowers, the florist offers a good service to rely on to ensure that you get quality without compromise.
FACT
Roses are the most popular wedding flower in the world
Source: brides.com
16.5 Arrangements
As a wedding planner, you can choose to do your own floral arranging.It is a good skill to have because it means that you can charge more for your services. Learning professional floral arranging isn’t too difficult, and you can often take classes from a college or even from professional florists in the area.
It is also perfectly normal to use a florist to do all your designs. They are seasoned professionals in the field of flowers, and plenty of wedding planners have a go-to florist that they rely on.
Whoever arranges the flowers will need to know how many blooms you have, what colours and what kind of arrangements you need. This will all be worked out with the clients. Again, some clients will want minimal flowers while others will want to be surrounded by 1,000 white roses as they tie the knot.
The price of arranging will depend on the size, number and type of arrangements they do. Some florists will also offer full wedding packages for a fixed fee. These may or may not be good value depending on your needs.
The best way to show a florist what kind of arrangements you want is to bring in pictures. Lots of pictures will help them understand the aesthetic that you are looking for from the flowers. If you want an exact replica, a picture is essential for creating it.
One of the most important things to remember when hiring a florist is that you must trust them. Florists live and breathe flowers and will not intentionally create a bad bouquet for a wedding. They are excellent at following directions, but sometimes substitutions will have to be made for practical reasons.
Flexibility is key in flower arrangements because flowers are living things, and you cannot always count on the flowers to live up to their end of the bargain. It is also easier for florists to do a better job creatively without the added pressure of an inflexible client.
Remember to have a few extra flowers lying about. Like anything else in wedding planning, it is better to have too many table centrepieces than too few.
16.6 Mistakes to Avoid When Choosing Flowers
Aromatic flowers are perfect for the altar or for seat decorations, but they should be avoided when creating table centrepieces.
Guests will have to sit through more than a few speeches and toasts at the table, and flowers that have incredibly strong smells might drive them mad.
You need to make sure you order your flowers on time. Regardless of who you order from, the vendor will need to know how many of which bloom to order well before they are due to arrive as flowers are shipped in from all over the world. Although you will often pick up your flowers only a few days in advance, make sure your order goes in at least six weeks in advance.
Don’t try to do too much yourself if you are not flower competent. You should also discourage the bride from trying to do too much herself as well. In the days before the wedding, the stress and pressure mounts. If you’re not a flower genius, or a florist, the flowers can become overwhelming and you might end up hiring a professional anyway. Sometimes it is easier and cheaper just to hire a florist from the start.
Don’t be afraid of ordering a few expensive blooms in lieu of ordering dozens of cheap flowers. Some of the more expensive flowers, like peonies, have more impact on the arrangement and cover more space. The price will work out and the arrangement will be more beautiful in the end when you employ this practice.
16.7 Saving Money
A great way to save money is to reuse the ceremony arrangements at the reception.You can easily move both the altar and aisle flowers into the reception area and add them to tables. Nobody is going to notice the difference. If they do notice, they were clearly watching the flowers and not the bride and groom! It also makes it easier to keep everything within the theme.
The best way to save money is to make a flower budget early and stick to it.
After a few weddings, you will get a sense of what blooms cost what and when. Daisies and dahlias are often inexpensive. Roses, tulips, lilies, and hydrangeas are mid-range. Peonies and orchids often top out the price spectrum.
After you do more research on flower prices, you can help encourage couples to create a budget that is reasonable. If the budget is too big, they’ll overspend on flowers. If the budget is too small, they’ll still overspend, but it will be more painful because it won’t look as good.
Finally, consider flower alternatives. For couples who aren’t keen on flowers, but think it’s a wedding requirement, offer them other things to use. For example, at one outdoor wedding, the bridesmaids were spotted carrying candlelight lanterns down the aisle.
