In Full Bloom

By: Sarah Iani
Posted In: Entertainment

For her daughter’s wedding, Karen Egan wanted a personal touch. Her and her daughter, Elizabeth McNutt, were both adamant in what they wanted for Elizabeth’s special day, so Egan, a former flower arranger and self described “crafty mom” decided to take no chances and do it herself.

The table arrangements were made from hydrangeas and items from Pier One, lacquered black trays with white and silver candles. The arbor was homemade, a vision of silk flowers, ribbon and tulle. Yet, Egan still retained a florist for the flowers the bridal party carried, Gerber daisies in shades of reds and gold.

“I had to put together all of the bouquets and flowers myself; it was really hectic,” Egan said. “I don’t know if I’d do it again because of the stress.” Egan’s advice? Go with a small floral shop to get that personal touch.

Theknot.com says a bride should anticipate spending eight percent of her wedding budget on flowers alone. With the average wedding costing $22,000, according to the Washingtonian online, that equals roughly $1,750, which can be a daunting figure to some.

Although wedding arrangements can be expensive, experts recommend brides to make decisions before choosing a florist, such as color and price.

Florists agree that the venue is important before a florist can start planning for the flowers. Most arrangements depend on the location in which they will be placed in.

“Especially in Newport, you want to pick your place in advance,” said Jerilyn Sauve, owner of Bellevue Florist. “Then you can take your time looking for a florist.”

The price range is the next consideration in a bride’s selection. Prices for wedding flowers range from $500 to $5,000. Florists say that couples should look at the quality, selection of flowers, and price that each florist offers.

Prices are proportional to how fancy of a flower the bride wants, and the size of the bridal party and other members, said Sauve. Florists buy flowers in bunches of 10, 25, or 50 flowers. So even if they only need a few flowers from that bunch, they must buy the whole bunch, driving up the cost.

Going into an appointment, the bride’s color palette for the wedding should be in place. Without a color scheme, the florist is useless.

“Color drives everything,” Tim Banks, owner of the Waters Edge floral shop, said. “My first question for the bride is, ‘what color are the dresses?'”

Some florists will not even meet for an appointment with a bride until she has selected her colors. “I can’t nail down flowers until I have a color scheme,” Sauve said. “When they get the dresses, then they should come in.”

After the dresses have been bought and the color scheme finalized, a bride should select a florist as soon as possible. Florists recommend selecting the florist at least four months ahead of the wedding. Depending on the floral shop, professionals may need to know up to a year in advance.

In McNutt’s case, her engagement was four months, so there was little time to plan. But she knew what kind of flowers she wanted right away. For someone less sure, the appointment serves as an opportunity for the florist to get an idea of the bride’s style, as well as the number of people in the bridal party, which equals how many arrangements he might be required to make.

“The more information I have, the better I can serve her,” said Paul Eckhart, owner of Broadway Florist, who sees about 300 clients a year.

Although it may seem the easiest way, it is actually ill advice to choose a florist that caters solely to weddings, according to Banks, florist for many weddings. He says that it’s better to have a florist who does a lot of work, and who buys a lot of flowers.

The florist then has more leverage in buying flowers from a wholesaler, when the florist is someone they can trust to buy flowers for all events, not just weddings, therefore spending more money.

“It creates credibility,” he said.

Credibility, and reputation, are the keys to finding a good florist. Finding a credible and well experienced florist can be as simple as asking around.

If a bride is unsure of the exact style that she would like her wedding to have, there are books and magazines available that are helpful and are recommended to bring to an appointment, such as Southern New England Weddings.

Florists are able to go over pictures in bridal magazines with the bride, but would prefer that the bride come in knowing what she likes. Many of the ideas for the arrangements come from the florist along with input and style ideas from the bride, so picking a florist who has experience proves beneficial.

“Most of the ideas come from me,” Eckhart said. “I listen to what the bride is looking for and offer professional advice.” Some florists may also be willing to make samples of an arrangement for the bride to view as well. Whether real or in a picture, brides should ask to see past samples of a florist’s work to get an idea of the florist’s style, Sauve explains.

“The overall look of the store is important,” she said. “Most brides would like to see past pictures of work I’ve done.” Looking at past work helps the bride to get an idea of the florist’s style. And style can prove to be important when selecting a florist to set your wedding.

Most florists feel that flowers are one of the most important parts of a wedding. Flowers set the stage for a wedding, create ambiance, and give the bride something to treasure after the wedding is over.

“Romance begins with a guy giving a girl flowers,” Eckhart said. “And it is hopeful that the man will keep giving flowers even after the wedding. Flowers are there from the beginning right up until death.”

No matter what the flower, weddings have encompassed them all. “I’ve done a wedding just with daisies,” Jerilyn Sauve, owner of Bellevue Florist, recalled. However, there are some flowers that no matter what the time period, are wedding staples.

The first of these flowers is the rose. The rose still ranks as the number one flower of weddings, but it is no longer the red rose that dominates. Colors in style are softer, such as cream, white and lavender.

Prices can range from $30 for two dozen roses from FreshRoses.com, to thousands of dollars to outfit the entire wedding party and venue.

“The rose is the most commonly used flower,” Sauve said. “It comes in a variety of colors and holds up well.”

The second most popular wedding flower is the hydrangea, of any shade or type. Hydrangeas can come in various shades, but is most popular in blue and purple, as well as pink and burgundy. These blooms turn colors as they age, the most common of which is green.

“Price often depends on size, color and length of the flower,” Eckhart, owner of Broadway Florist, said.

Both the rose and the hydrangea are a traditional bridal flower, which makes them the most sought after, no matter the season.