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choosing your wedding florist

10 Tips For Choosing Your Wedding Florist


Amy
Amy Updated:
8th of March 2023

When the world is your garden, where on earth do you begin with choosing your florist? We've quizzed some fabulous Warwickshire florists for their tips on choosing your wedding florist! We wouldn't be GfB without adding our own, so, read on for the definitive top 10...

1. Consult with your florist first

Wendy from Wild Bunch tells us what you should be looking out for you when you visit a florist for the first time. The initial consultation is an opportunity to make sure that the florist understands exactly what you are looking for. A good florist will know flowers, their availability, season and vase life - so be sure to look out for this!

When it comes to choosing your florist, it's important that you're well looked after. The ideal florist will listen, pay an interest in your vision and advise accordingly. Always take a look at their portfolio or examples of their previous work to get a real feel of what they could do for you. Equally, when explaining, staying on the same page is totally important!

Does it feel like you're both talking a different language? Try another florist! You should feel entirely relaxed and secure around your florist, as any relationship requires trust and responsibility (in this case, for the sake of your flowers!). It's always good having someone who will care. 

2. Show your florist what you would like 

To get as close to your vision as possible, when choosing your florist, it's important to show them what you want! It's true when they say that a picture tells a thousand words - images are the best way to convey your ideas when you're in a room with your florist.

This is the ideal time (and perfect excuse) to put together your own inspiration board to bring with you to an appointment. Think of it as a mood board, bringing together colour swatches, fabric samples and any pictures that you have to hand which best represent the day that you have in mind! This way, you'll effectively brief your florist ahead of his or her suggestions.

Of course, they may not create an exact replica of your mood board, but, don't be afraid of this - remember, they're experts in design! It goes without saying that good communication is key to the perfect relationship: when choosing your florist, your input should be valued, but, be open to any reasonable adjustments that they might make.

3. Save the date with your florist 

Jane from Wedding Flowers by Jane Pillinger gives couples who are choosing their florist some short, sweet and simple advice: "Prepare early by saving the date with your florist." This cannot be understated! To avoid disappointment, you have to be as ahead of the game as with any other element of the wedding you're planning. Jane recommends making an appointment with your shortlist of florists well in advance, especially if you have your heart set on a particular florist. It's not at all unusual for a florist to be booked up to a year ahead of the wedding date, and some florists will work on a single wedding a week, so availability is key! As far as your wedding checklist goes, we'd recommend that once you've set the date for your wedding, sorted the ceremony out and hired your location, turn to securing your florist! 

4. Take inspiration from your venue 

Where are you getting married? Your choice of flowers don't necessarily have to reflect your choice of venue, but, your venue can be a very good start when choosing your florist. Often, bringing in your flowers locally can be a fantastic option - especially if your florist is aware of your chosen venue. Check with your venue whether they have a suggested list of suppliers, and speak to these florists first (if you like their online portfolio!). 

5. Make an event of decorating your venue 

Gather your nearest and dearest together, go to your chosen florist for buckets of locally grown, freshly cut seasonal flowers, and carry them over to your chosen venue. Create a day before the wedding when your friends and family are brought together to get your wedding venue looking spectacular! This is fabulous for bonding, spending time with the bridal or wedding party, making the most of your flowers and getting a little hands-on with the decorating of your venue! 

6. Find out by word of mouth 

If you're getting married and you have no idea where to begin with choosing your florist (apart from by browsing the listings on Guides for Brides, of course), then you can always count on others to give you some fantastic suggestions from their own experiences. Have any of your friends recently got hitched? You can ask these newlyweds for a few recommendations; having gone through all the planning before you, they're bound to have some good ideas! If you have a wedding planner or coordinator, find out if they have any go-to favourites that you could use. Make sure that once you get the names, you get onto setting up appointments with your shortlist.

7. Reuse your flowers throughout the day 

Gill, the lady behind Flower Thyme, has a note for couples on reusing and recycling their wedding flowers. She advises to think carefully about using flowers throughout your day. Can displays be used to decorate the ceremony and then be moved to dress the wedding breakfast room after? Flower Thyme suggests taking your table centrepieces and mounting them onto plinths first to dress the aisle for the wedding ceremony. This is fantastic news for money-savvy couples, or for those looking to do good by the environment.

8. Keep an eye on your budget

Choose a florist who will be kind on your purse strings, whatever your budget. A flexible florist will have suggestions, alternatives and money saving tips to get the most out of your wedding flowers. At your initial consultation, your florist may ask how much of your budget you have allocated to your wedding flowers. Don't be scared by this - the florist isn't trying to catch you out! Having a clear idea of the spend is very important when it comes to deciding what's realistic. Your dream florist should be adept at creating a design in the style you like, satisfying both your vision and your budget. 

9. Have an idea of what you like and don't like 

This pretty much goes without saying before you head out to find your wedding florist: to get the best flowers for you, you have to know what you like best! Before you start the process of choosing your florist, put time aside to do your own floral research.

Find pictures of the flowers you like, start a Pinterest board or save images straight to your phone. Try to learn the names as you go along! It can be a great help going into a florist and knowing the names of particular flowers you like. 

The language of flowers can be conveyed by learning a few simple floral terms. For example, find out the name of your favourite style of bouquet (e.g. cascade, posy, hand-tied) and arrangements. 

10. Remember: Your florist is your friend! 

The most important piece of advice we can give you in choosing your florist is not to worry! Your florist is entirely there to help and should understand exactly where you are coming from as a bride.

Ready to get started? You can find your nearest wedding florist here!

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Amy

About the author


Amy

Amy is passionate about putting brides in touch with local businesses that will have them looking and feeling great on their wedding day. An all-rounder, Amy has the knowledge and expertise of the bridal industry to effectively recommend local businesses that brides will love! Contact Amy for recommendations from florists to venue decor.

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