Do it Yourself Wedding Flowers Tips and Ideas

According to the wedding planning books, generally about ten percent of your wedding budget goes to flowers. But this is an area that if you wish, can be chosen as a good area to cut costs using the following tips.

If you plan to arrange your own flowers, it is still worthwhile to consult a florist who can offer advice on flowers and perhaps be able to sell you flowers at a good price. They will also be able to provide you with a checklist of floral needs you may forget such as petals for the flower girls basket, a bouquet for the bouquet toss, and advice you on who should have a corsage. A wedding consultant can also help you design these things and have some advice on what ideas might work. Or perhaps if a florist knows you are on a budget, he or she might be willing to do your bridal bouquet and suggest flowers you can use to do the rest of the arrangements.

· Have a designer do a main arrangement and bridal bouquets, then copy it the look table centerpieces you do yourself with the same kind of flowers , this is will echo the look of the professional arrangement.

· More bridesmaids mean more bouquets. A potential way to save money is to have fewer bridesmaids.

· Is there a wholesale floral district nearby or an upscale prepared food boutique that has a floral department with pre-made bouquets? These are often expensive for a floral arrangement but cheaper than most wedding centerpieces normally cost.

· Scour tag sales, eBay and estate sales for floral containers for table centerpieces. They do not need to match exactly but should match in style and material (i.e. - all glass or all crystal or all metal, etc)

· A popular trend is several little arrangements on a table, which requires numerous small containers. These are easier to do yourself but more labor intensive to create. Cpnsider including forced bulbs and small cubes of grass or herbs in a mix of votives and petals.

· When doing wedding flowers yourself, chose flowers that are long lasting in order to allow yourself the time to do the centerpieces a day or two in advance. Calla lilies last almost a week and astromeria last for almost two to three weeks. Most oriental lilies such as Stargazer and Casablanca lilies, which are popular in bridal bouquets, have a very short life and quickly start to fade, so they are not a good choice for do it yourself flowers. Roses and lilies of the valley often are easy to arrange oneself by cutting the stems to an even length, holding them firmly in one fist and even the ends of the stems against a flat surface and secure with a rubber band. Loop a ribbon around the rubber band to hide it, then wrap it a few more times around to secure the flowers in place. This looks best when you use one kind of flower and one color. Make sure your roses have all the thorns cleaned off in advance.

· Some floral wholesalers are available online, if you order from an online wholesale florist, the flowers may arrive wilted. Unless directed otherwise, you can immerse an entire flower - head and all - in luke warm water for a few hours to revive them.

· Most of us when making an arrangement consider foliage fillers as an after-thought, but instead consider using as much foliage as possible and accent with flowers. The look is fuller and you will use less expensive flowers this way.

· Stretch your wedding budget with in season flowers. For example, for an August wedding, asters and phlox from the farm down the road will be significantly less expensive than peonies, which are out of season at that time. Spring flowers are such a treat to see such as daffodils are hardier than tulips in arrangements but are abundant, perhaps even from your own garden. Hydrangeas are popular all year but are readily available in the fall and their color can be altered by changing the acid of the soil surrounding the bush. Thousands of daisies can make a bountiful display that looks very young and bridal and it costs less than just a few elaborate orchid arrangements. Consider using pots of flowers to decorate the bridesmaids' luncheon and then use them again at the rehearsal dinner. Flowers are more expensive around a holiday, so wedding dates near Christmas, Valentine's Day, and Mother's Day make flowers cost more (like everything else about your wedding will most likely.)

· Consider using garlands, foliage, potted plants, topiaries, potted plants, force bulbs, use dried flowers in wreaths - not everything needs to be an elaborate floral display, it is just important to general cover bare areas or keep the reception room from looking sparse.