Wedding Vase

Posts Tagged ‘Flowers’

Flowers have always been an essential part in every wedding. They are able to express emotions more intentionally than words can. Every type of flower and each color convey a meaning and sometimes reflect the feeling in this memorable event. A wedding is an amazing occasion that flowers takes a significant part in. Different varieties of flowers with vibrant colors are used to decorate the wedding ceremony and the reception area.

Flowers also play an important element in the outcome of the wedding videography. Its effervescent quality will give the wedding energy and life which will surely be interpreted in the wedding video. They create an atmosphere of romance and good wishes to the whole affair. So it is wise to find time to choose the kind of flowers that will fit the wedding ceremony and reception perfectly.

Since a wedding is a special event, it also demands some uniqueness especially on the flower arrangements. Selection of the flowers may depend on the theme of the wedding and its seasonal availability. If you prefer different shades of pink flowers, fall might not be the best time for you to get married. On the other hand, if you adore lilacs or tulips, perhaps you should have a spring wedding.

There are many ways to create a romantic mood at your wedding ceremony using flowers. One popular way is adorning the church aisle with fresh or dried rose petals. Flower filled urns can also be placed at the entrance ceremony which can later be brought to the reception. If you are planning your wedding in the late afternoon or evening, use candlelight and rich blooms to lighten your path and create that dreamy ambiance.

The most popular wedding flowers will include roses and calla lilies. These flowers will look amazing and an advantage is that they are available all year round. But if you want something a little bit different, add some tropical blooms in your wedding bouquet. This will surely look amazing and provide stunning wedding videography opportunities.

For the reception, there are a lot of fresh ideas you can choose from to create that magical moment for you and your guests. Use elegant vases with colored blossoms or simply scatter rose petals at center of the table around glittering candles. Instead of the usual floral centerpieces for each guest table, submerge beautiful blooms of orchids or tulips in a crystal glass. Another idea is to have your florist decorate the table with small five or six separate centerpieces instead of a big one so that each couple on the guest table can take one home. Use you imagination and do not be afraid to show your creativity. Just remember that the level of these arrangements should not interfere with guest’s ability to talk with each other.

Wedding flower arrangement is only one factor that can help you set the mood for your wedding. Deciding on the perfect flowers that will suit your style and personality can take a lot of time and patience. It will be an advantage if you consider some of these ideas to create the magical feeling in your wedding. This will definitely provide the ultimate touch in making your wedding more special and unforgettable.

If you are planning to make your own wedding flowers, you will need to do a lot of careful planning and organizing.  You will need to make a list of all the materials you will need to gather for do it yourself wedding flowers.  This list should include :

Very sharp shears or scissors Fine wire (0.28 mm or 0.32 mm) for delicate jobs Florists’ wire that is 0.71 mm thick and 10 to 12 inches (260 or 310 mm) long Florists’ tape for wiring flowers and foliage Floral foam bouquet holder Floral foam.  Measure your dishes / containers so you will know what size to cut your floral foam to. Dishes or plastic flower saucers for table centers.  There is often a selection of containers / vases available for use at churches). Flower preservative Roll of floral foam sticky tape for taping the floral foam to the vase / container Hot glue gun Glue sticks for the glue gun Ribbon for bows Large bucket to hold garbage Pails for conditioning your flowers and foliage Small watering can and spray bottle for misting Drop cloth Broom and dustpan Chicken wire to cover floral foam if you are making larger arrangements Cloths for cleanup after you are finished Plastic bags to store corsages / boutonnieres after they are assembled

Take this list and check to see how many items you need to buy  to make your own wedding flowers and which ones you can just borrow.  Get all of these items together several weeks before your wedding to avoid extra busyness and stress when you need to have a clear head.  Do it yourself wedding flowers can be fun and rewarding, but you need to be prepared with a plan laid out ahead of time.

A wedding takes an enormous amount of time and money. From the hall to the dress, the flowers, the cake, invitations, food etc., it is wise to save where you can. You may not want to cut corners with your dress but you can save a lot of money doing your own flowers.

A florist needs to make money and in order for them to this they need to spike up cost tremendously. What you are paying for is not only the flowers but you are paying for the cost of the flowers, vases and containers (which they buy wholesale and mark up 50% to 75%), the salaries of the people making the arrangements, paying for the driver and gas and other incidentals. This is their business and they need to do this in order to be successful.

But if you are somewhat artistic and want to save some money, you can do your own flowers. Here are some basic things you need to do:

1) Look through bridal magazines or online to get an idea of what kind of arrangements you are interested in. Having pictures of what you like can help you decide the colors and styles. Investing in a flower arranging book can be of enormous value to you as it gives you the complete how too and what tools you need and lots and lots of pictures.

2) Without having experience in floral design, simple may be a better choice but that does not mean it’s less effective. Something like a tall vase with white gladiolas in them placed on each table looks incredible and is about the easiest arrangement you can put together. This also works very well as altar pieces. If you want a low arrangement you can do something like a low vase with just roses of your color choice and sprinkle rose petals around it on each table. If roses are too expensive you can do the same with cheaper flowers such as carnations, daisies, Gerber daisies or mums. Whatever you like that fits your budget.

3) Do the table arrangements and altar pieces before tackling the bridal and bridesmaid bouquets. These also typically take the most time to do. There are two ways you can go. You can go to a craft store and buy ready made floral foam with a handle and lace skirt that you will soak with water to insert your flowers into or you put freshly cut stems together and bind them with floral tape and then ribbon.

4) A simple but beautiful bouquet can be made by taking roses that have been cleaned of most of their leaves and thorns. In one hand hold the first few roses and keep adding a rose one at a time until you have the desired amount of roses. Make sure they are not all flat at the top. You want your bouquet to be rounded. You do this by carefully taking the outer roses and pulling them down gently all around until you have the desired effect. The center of your roses will be the highest roses while the rest of the roses will gently slope downward.

5) When you have decided what you want then gather up your bridesmaids or whom ever you think could best help you and well before the wedding, do a test run and make one of each arrangement you would like to do. This will give you an idea of how it is going to look and how long it takes to do each one. Take a close up picture of each arrangement once you are satisfied. Doing a run through also lets you determine the cost. Just multiply by the number of arrangements you need to do. If you are happy about your work and you really want to know what your savings will be, then take your pictures to a flower shop and get them to give an estimate for making the same arrangements. You will know what you paid, now compare that to the florists quote.

Doing your own flowers will take more of your time but if you have a good support system helping you, (which can be a really fun time) you can take pride in your accomplishments and save a lot of money.

I’ll admit my bias up front: I love flowers. And not just any flowers, I love expensive flowers. Peonies, burgundy cymbidium orchids and mini calla lilies are among my favorites. When I was planning my own wedding, I tripled this area of my initial budget. Several brides share my love of flowers and that makes it all the more difficult to stay on budget. Even brides that do not share my extreme love for flowers want beautiful weddings, and your florist will play a huge role in that. As a general rule, flowers should account for 10-15% of your overall budget. Here are some tips to help to stay at or below that number while still having beautiful wedding flowers.

1. Do it Yourself

Yes, you can create your own wedding flowers. There are several online and local wholesalers where you can buy flowers in bulk for substantially less than what you would pay a florist. You should plan to receive your flowers 2-3 days prior to your wedding and have adequate space in your refrigerator to store them. If you are ordering too many flowers to fit into your fridge, air conditioning your home will suffice. Simple hand tied bouquets are relatively easy to create and you can gather bunches of flowers and place them in vases to create centerpieces. My advice with DIY flowers is to keep it simple! You are not a trained florist, so do not try to create more complicated arrangement that you find online or in magazines. Keep it simple. Also, a word of caution: if you are a perfectionist and want perfect arrangements, hire a florist. As a novice, you’re likely to make some mistakes and slight imperfections will exist. If that is not acceptable to you, it’s best to hire a professional. Also, it’s a good idea to do a test run before the real thing.

2. Use a delivery service

There are new delivery services, most notably Pro Flowers, which will arrange your wedding blooms and deliver them, already assembled, to your door 1-2 days before the wedding. They have several flower varieties and several packages to choose from at amazing prices. You will have to do a little work with this option. You should have vases prepared for the centerpieces and holder vases to hold your bouquets until the wedding. On the wedding day, you will have to designate someone to set up the arrangements. Several brides are nervous about this option because they worry that the flowers will not show up in time. Pro Flowers has a built in safety measure to prevent no shows. If your flowers do not arrive on the scheduled date, Pro Flowers has contracts with thousands of local florists that will assemble and personally deliver your flowers prior to the wedding.

3. Reuse, Reuse, Reuse

Slash hundreds from your florist bill by reusing arrangements throughout the day. Your ceremony altar arrangements can become a part of your reception décor, your bridesmaids bouquets can become centerpieces and your bouquet can become an arrangement for your sweetheart table. You can also ask your florist to reuse aisle arrangements from the ceremony as centerpieces during the reception. You may have to pay a slight labor fee for the arrangements to be moved and recast as centerpieces, but it will be much less than paying for both.

4. Stay in season

Different flowers are in season at different times of the year. If a flower is out of season, it does mean that you cannot have it, but it will be substantially more expensive. There are some flowers that are expensive all year round. These include mini calla lilies, tropical blooms and certain orchid varieties. Ask your florist about what flowers are in season for your wedding day and stick with those.

5. Cut back

Ask yourself what you really need and what you can do without. Do you really need pew bows? A pomander for the flower girl? An arrangement for the place card table? A floral cake topper? None of these things are necessary and can be replaced by other decorative items. Cut back on the excess and stick to the bare necessities.

Body Your wedding flowers offer ample opportunity to stretch your creative muscles and add a bit of originality to your wedding day, so don’t be afraid to design a floral scheme that bucks tradition. This list of favorite ideas for bridal bouquets, centerpieces, colors and other decorations is a great place to start designing a memorable decor scheme, and these may even inspire your own creations.

Play with Shape

Arrangements with a just-picked, unstructured look are replacing the tightly-bound bouquet and centerpiece shapes of previous seasons. Ensure a modern, not messy, look by choosing the right flowers. Hearty blooms like lilies, orchids, and amaranthus work well in looser arrangements because of the sleek shape of the individual blooms. Also consider incorporating nonfloral elements like feathers, berries, and crystals to add interest and depth and interest.

Get Into Navy

Sophisticated and classic navy is one of the hottest colors on the 2009 wedding palette, and many brides are daring to think beyond basic baby blue by incorporating the darker shade into their floral schemes. Naturally navy flowers may be hard to come by, but there are some options that are a close match: deep blue violets, thistles, and hydrangea are available in various shades of blue and indigo, while roses are a versatile bloom that can be dyed any color – including navy blue. Pair these bold navy blooms with white or ivory for a classic look, or yellow for a bright burst of color.

Think Beyond the Vase

Options abound beyond the basic floral vase for holding your flowers. Consider instead mixing and matching clusters of unique containers like wood buckets, mason jars, cans, pitchers, antique urns and uniquely shaped vases to add interest and reflect your wedding theme. Some ideas: Fill watering cans with wild flowers for a garden fete, or use apothecary jars filled with sand and sea glass to complement to a waterfront wedding.

Lighten Up

Candles, always a popular choice for centerpieces, are becoming even more popular as a budget and eco-friendly enhancement to traditional floral centerpieces. Ample candlelight lends the day a romantic, organic feel, while the natural resource saves electricity and drapes the setting with an intimate glow. Another way to enhance your arrangements with lighting and really make your centerpieces pop is through a technique called pinspotting. This advanced light design shines tiny beams of light from the ceiling to illuminate the center of each arrangement.

Get Stoned

Say good-bye to light pastels and muted shades, and seek inspiration from the baubles on your ears and wrist. Rich gemstone colors like amethyst, turquoise, and amber are hot on this year’s wedding color palette. Accent these rich colors with soft sandy tones or grays instead of chocolate brown (so last year!)

Go Green

Going green is easy when it comes to wedding flowers. Consult Mother Nature for inspiration and bring the outdoors in. Natural objects like stones, leaves, pinecones, even twigs can add an organic aesthetic to your reception décor. Place in rustic containers or scatter amongst pillar candles for added ambiance.

Make it Personal

Further seeking to personalize their weddings, brides are using their wedding flowers to call out specific interests by incorporating unique items into bouquets and centerpieces and creating a conversation piece for guests. For instance, book worms can use intricately piled leather-bound books in place of floral centerpieces, and wine lovers can use wine bottles and decanters as centerpiece holders.

Get even more unique wedding ideas for flowers in this complete wedding flowers resource.