Florists
Budget Blooms
The fragrance of fresh flowers fills the senses and seems to capture the romance of the wedding day perfectly. For many though, a bountiful supply of fresh flowers can send the wedding budget over the edge and your stress levels with it! Here at South East Wedding magazine we’ve put our thinking caps on and have come up with some ideas to cut back on the budget, but still have your wedding looking blooming amazing…
Let’s start with the basics. Seasonality is really important when you are getting married, from colour scheming to flowers teeming. Choosing a flower that’s in season naturally means that they are in quite generous supply, and therefore, less expensive. It also adds a personal touch to the occasion such as adding Sweet pea or Lily of the Valley to reflect the time of year of your wedding. Obviously, choosing red roses in and around St. Valentine’s Day will send that budget soaring, so avoid and go for yellow roses or simple white to lighten the load.
Seasons & Colours
If your wedding is set for peak summer, florists will also be at their peak of demand and hence their stock of flowers, which naturally drives prices upwards. The solution here is to choose a large blossom with plenty of flowing foliage to add effect and create an overall generous bouquet.
If autumn is on your agenda, then dried flowers are a fantastic alternative. Truly capturing nature’s palette, dried flowers of golden, copper and tinted orange can be beautifully co-ordinated with bridesmaids’ dresses. This burst of colour really stands out in photographs also. For the male members of the bridal party, dried flower and leaf buttonholes would warm up any dark colours. Again, teamed with autumnal shades in a cravat or waistcoat they would enhance the overall colour of the occasion. For bridesmaids, focus on greenery with small blooms, or rosebuds for example, as they still have a pretty appearance without the costs.
Church Decor
When it comes to the Church or location of the Ceremony, the best option is for ribbons and candles. Regardless of the time of year, the soft glow of plain cream candles is unrivalled. With so many varieties of candles available everywhere from high street to exclusive homeware stores, you will find a solution that pacifies the pocket. Again, coloured candles can be used to co-ordinate with bridesmaids’ attire.
Ribbons draped in twists along each pew will continue the simple feel set off by the candles and in the autumn and winter months, a simple spray of ivy pinned to the top of your ribbons will add impact.
Hotel
When you arrive at your hotel, a very pretty and reasonable option is to place outdoor candles along the perimeters of your red carpet – this is particularly effective for weddings towards the end of the year. In spring or summer, simply ask the hotel to sprinkle some rose petals, and satin ones will do, along the red carpet. Simple and effective...
Your hotel or venue will generally provide floral table arrangements included in their wedding package, which will include an arrangement for the top table. If this is not the case, there are plenty of options to choose from.
If the hotel isn’t providing flowers, then they may have candelabras or simple tee lights. In the former case, you can colour co-ordinate candles with your bridesmaids’ dresses and if the hotel doesn’t have that colour in stock, you can source them and deliver them to the hotel with the wedding cake.
Winter
Autumn and winter, despite the hibernation of most of nature, yield rich berries, which when combined with ivy or draping foliage add texture and richness to any table or floral arrangement. A very clever use of pine cones is to spray them silver or gold, or a colour of the bridal party, and place them in simple frosted bowls along with a centre church candle. Lovely and simple and so reasonable to organise!
Overall, it’s all about making the most of the overall wedding ambience if your budget is a little confining. Flowers are amazing, but you can still have your venue and ceremony looking blooming amazing!
