Working with your Wedding Florist

Contact your wedding florist once you've selected the date, time and place for your wedding and reception. If you aren't familiar with the florists in your area, ask for recommendations from other brides, reception halls or churches. Also, consider visiting The Knot and New York Magazine to find quality resources for your wedding. If possible, set up an appointment with the lead designer who will be in charge of filling the order for your wedding flowers.

Look through bridal books and floral guides. Sketch ideas, cut out pictures or take photographs of flowers you like and share them with your florist.

“Keep pictures of bouquets that catch your eye, even if it’s not exactly what you’re looking for,” says Katrina Parris of Katrina Parris Flowers. “It’s important for your florist to have an idea of your style.”

This will help your florist translate your concepts and special requests into workable floral designs and arrangements that are just right for you.

“Naturally, you want to bring pictures of your gown and of the bridal party’s attire,” Katrina says.

During your initial consultation with your florist, discuss specific design ideas that fit both your personal style and budget. Make arrangements for your florist to visit both the ceremony and reception sites.

“We ask our brides to answer a few questions in advance of the first meeting,” Katrina says. “We find that this gives them time to think about what they may want before they’re put on the spot in a meeting.

“It’s all about guiding our brides through the process.”

Regardless of whether or not your florist provides a questionnaire, you should go to your consultation prepared with a variety of questions, including:

• What are the current bridal styles and how do you see them being used in my wedding?
• What are some of the new and exciting flower varieties and are they available in the colors I have selected for my wedding?
• What flowers will be in season at the time of my wedding?
• What flowers are available that will be used to fill my order based upon my budget and color preferences?
• Do you have pictures of arrangements from other weddings you've done at my wedding ceremony/reception site? What size, shape and colors work best at my ceremony/reception site?
• Will there be sufficient staff to design the arrangements for my wedding and have them delivered on time?
• How will the flowers be handled, delivered and set-up, taking into consideration the weather constraints for my wedding?
• Is there an additional charge for delivery, set-up and servicing my wedding? How are these charges determined?
• Do you offer rental items (vases, urns, etc.) or do we need to rent them from another company?
• Are there any extra fees (delivery, set-up, sales tax, etc.)?

We hope you found this information to be useful. Contact us to ask wedding flower questions or to schedule an appointment to discuss your wedding plans.

Resources: SAF

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