snowdie
Full Member
Posts: 190
Dec 30, 2018 4:45:59 GMT
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Post by snowdie on Feb 25, 2020 3:36:57 GMT
Two questions for the Peas that have recent wedding experience. My daughter wants to save on the amount spent on flowers. Anyone care to share how much they spent? (Our internet search for cost was such a wide range). Secondly, she is thinking of making some of the flowers and not using fresh flowers for everyone. Anyone have experience with this/suggestions? Thank you...happy times!
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StephDRebel
Drama Llama
Posts: 6,718 
Location: Ohio
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Post by StephDRebel on Feb 25, 2020 3:40:27 GMT
Are they open to alternatives to traditional flowers? We used dried lavender and loved it and I've seen lots of not as traditional/not as expensive options recently.
when i was looking I remember costco had pretty good prices on flowers for weddings. I had no idea they even had fresh flower or wedding packages.
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Post by Eddie-n-Harley on Feb 25, 2020 4:02:58 GMT
Have a chat with a florist about what's appropriately seasonal for when she wants to get married. It's a lot easier if they don't have to import calla lilies from Brazil (or whatever from wherever). If you have a local farmers market (and some time here before the wedding), there are several vendors at ours who sell flowers. Really beautiful bouquets for $5-$10 a pop. If there is someone who has flowers DD loves, talk to that vendor and see if they can help you out. Here are some close-ups of bouquets I bought this summer and last. (I like to do close ups and then use them as lock screens and backgrounds on my phone.) I think these were all $5-6 per bouquet; $10's usually too much because I only take a $20 and like to buy other stuff.  Snapdragons, Gladiolas, and... things that look like huge zinnias?  Irises, daisies, and some peonies along the edges, with what I think is eucalyptus.  Lilies, poppies, daisies.  |
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Post by yodutchess on Feb 25, 2020 4:03:31 GMT
Three years ago I looked into the Costco packages. None worked for what we needed. So... two days before the reception, I went to Costco and filled the cart with enough bouquets to make arrangements for the tables. I bought vases at the Dollar store. All in, spent $16 per arrangement. I would have picked the pre made arrangements if there had been enough and saved the trouble. Those were $19. I bought my daughter ‘s bouquet and the boutonnières at a florist.
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daphne
Shy Member
Posts: 31
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Post by daphne on Feb 25, 2020 4:07:07 GMT
My co-worker's daughter used wooden flowers and said everyone raved about how pretty and reasonably priced they were. I've not seen them in person. Here's a link: |
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Post by Jessica on Feb 25, 2020 4:53:05 GMT
My co-worker's daughter used wooden flowers and said everyone raved about how pretty and reasonably priced they were. I've not seen them in person. Here's a link: Woah, those are wood? They're gorgeous! |
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dantemia
Full Member
Posts: 323
Jun 27, 2014 19:28:17 GMT
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Post by dantemia on Feb 25, 2020 4:59:53 GMT
Are they open to alternatives to traditional flowers? We used dried lavender and loved it and I've seen lots of not as traditional/not as expensive options recently. when i was looking I remember costco had pretty good prices on flowers for weddings. I had no idea they even had fresh flower or wedding packages. You can even preorder your flowers at Costco. They have a separate site . |
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caangel
Drama Llama
Posts: 6,025
Location: So Cal
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Post by caangel on Feb 25, 2020 5:06:21 GMT
Are they open to alternatives to traditional flowers? We used dried lavender and loved it and I've seen lots of not as traditional/not as expensive options recently. when i was looking I remember costco had pretty good prices on flowers for weddings. I had no idea they even had fresh flower or wedding packages. You can even preorder your flowers at Costco. They have a separate site . My SIL did this for her wedding about 15 yrs ago. |
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snowdie
Full Member
Posts: 190
Dec 30, 2018 4:45:59 GMT
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Post by snowdie on Feb 25, 2020 5:13:08 GMT
I am going to order a small one just to see
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Post by ntsf on Feb 25, 2020 5:36:21 GMT
my daughter had artificial flowers made in new zealand from a material like rattan.. and then they had two weddings.. one in new zealand and one in san francisco. they dressed up the flowers they held with locally picked ferns.. they skipped flowers otherwise and no one missed them.
they had do it yourself decorations.. reused them for both weddings.. super cheap and everyone had a great time.
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snyder
Pearl Clutcher
Posts: 4,493
Location: Colorado
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Post by snyder on Feb 25, 2020 6:41:27 GMT
My co-worker's daughter used wooden flowers and said everyone raved about how pretty and reasonably priced they were. I've not seen them in person. Here's a link: I have a huge bouquet of roses my son bought me one time at a street fair for like $10.00. I love them and they look so real. I think that is an excellent idea. Nice keepsakes as well. |
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Post by malibou on Feb 25, 2020 7:08:44 GMT
I always loved the felt and button bouquets that a pea from the old board made, princess lasertron.
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camcas
Pearl Clutcher
Posts: 4,414
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Post by camcas on Feb 25, 2020 10:18:38 GMT
How about just a single beautiful bloom instead of bouquets
If I had been married in summer I would have carried a single sunflower🌻
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Post by littlemama on Feb 25, 2020 11:17:52 GMT
None of our flowers were real- I didnt need people, including me, sneezing through the wedding!
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Post by Linda on Feb 25, 2020 12:11:38 GMT
my sister did her flowers through the local grocery store floral department for both of her weddings (and honestly we did that for my mum's funeral flowers also - they were perfect). She said it's important to talk to the actual floral dept manager not just whichever employee happens to be nearby.
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artbabe
Pearl Clutcher
Posts: 3,844
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Post by artbabe on Feb 25, 2020 12:19:34 GMT
We actually grew the flowers for my sister's wedding. You have to plan that quite a bit in advance, of course. We used dollar store vases and flowers from Mom's garden. They were gorgeous. The only think we had a florist do was my sister's bouquet.
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paigepea
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Posts: 5,609
Location: BC, Canada
Jun 26, 2014 4:28:55 GMT
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Post by paigepea on Feb 25, 2020 14:06:41 GMT
To cut down on flower costs we mixed vases with flowers with vases with water / floating candles.
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Post by tyra on Feb 25, 2020 14:28:05 GMT
A friend got married last year and used the Sola flowers, they were STUNNING. Not sure if they were the same brand, but similar. They dyed them and put them together at home. So beautiful!
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julieb
Pearl Clutcher
Posts: 2,845
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Post by julieb on Feb 25, 2020 14:41:18 GMT
My co-worker's daughter used wooden flowers and said everyone raved about how pretty and reasonably priced they were. I've not seen them in person. Here's a link: I bought some of these to see if future DIL would like. I thought they were a great idea. I think we will be using them for the photobooth backdrop. As far as how much to spend - what is her budget? That is where you start. Future DIL didn't want to go over 3-4k and she finally found a florist willing to work with her and that budget. |
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Post by mayceesgranny on Feb 25, 2020 16:01:10 GMT
DD's bouquets were sola wood flowers - she made the bridesmaid bouquets and ordered hers from a etsy site. They were beautiful and very realistic. She currently displays them in vases in her home.
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Post by 16joy on Feb 25, 2020 16:23:37 GMT
I know someone who used Costco for her wedding flowers. She used Gerber daisies in assorted colors. She ordered 4 boxes and was given a tracking number. She tracked them from Ecuador(?) on a Wednesday to their arrival on Friday. The wedding was Sunday and they were great looking. She was a low key bride and made her own bouquet. She got inexpensive vases for the flowers for each table.
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Dallie
Full Member
Posts: 490
Feb 25, 2020 16:33:25 GMT
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Post by Dallie on Feb 25, 2020 16:48:59 GMT
I did the most of the flowers for my girls' weddings. I had never made any of this before, but I am crafty and good with my hands.
-Bridesmaid bouquets: Easiest was buying the premade bouquets at Michaels. When they go on 40% off, the cost was less than $10 each. I added some additional flowers from the Dollar Store and wrapped the stems in ribbon. Total cost per bouquet was about $10. Took me about 15 minutes per bouquet once I did the first one.
-Centerpieces: Easiest was the combo of: premade wreath to which I added floral and lights, lanterns from Ross, flickering fake candles from Walmart. Most of the florals for the centerpieces were from the Dollar Store. The lights were also from Ross. Total cost was about $60 per centerpiece. Renting them from the florist was $80, but we then went on to sell the lanterns, lights, candles, and wreaths via FB Marketplace, so we made about 50% of the cost back. So in the end, the cost was about $30 per piece.
-Corsages and boutinnieres -- Made those, cost less than $4 per.
-Pew florals (for end of pew) -- lucked into a clearance sale at Joann.com and bought the swag for less than $10 each and then added my Dollar Store florals to it. Maybe $13 each. Sold them for $5 each.
-Garland for sweetheart tale: Most expensive part was buying premade garland at Hobby Lobby. Added lights and floral to it. Probably cost me about $50 total, but I sold it for $25.
-The first dd paid for her own bouquet, MOH bouquet, and arch with greenery around it. It cost her $700, which I thought was highway robbery. Especially because the florist made her bouquet wrong. After that, I did all of the bouquets myself.
That being said, prices can really fluctuate and you have to be careful. I know someone whose daughter got married in a small town/suburb and she was charged $900 for a basic bridal bouquet and two altar arrangements -- and had to provide her own vases. IMO and theirs, they got really ripped off. It was super frustrating because one reason they chose the location was they thought it would be cheaper, but since there was no local competition, it was more expensive.
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Deleted
Posts: 0
Aug 18, 2025 21:07:45 GMT
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Post by Deleted on Feb 25, 2020 16:51:39 GMT
If you look on Etsy, several designers make bouquets out of sola wood flowers. I believe the site above sells only the loose flowers but the Etsy designers will be wedding florists for you. I have several sola bouquets that have lasted nicely, and I helped with a wedding where they did all the bouquets and bouts with them and they were all lovely.
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freebird
Drama Llama
'cause I'm free as a bird now
Posts: 6,927
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Post by freebird on Feb 25, 2020 17:02:43 GMT
skip boutonniere and do pocket squares (or nothing... no one will notice). You can also skip bouquets if you wanted really. The girls will probably be arm in arm with a guy coming down the aisle so it won't be noticeable... then the bride passes off the bouquet for 90% of the wedding anyway.
Decorate tables with things instead of flowers. We did a bridal shower for my DIL and I used everything in my house for a disney theme. Books, antiques, etc.
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Post by tc on Feb 25, 2020 18:51:09 GMT
My first wedding - the plane with my flowers didn't come in on time. The florist stayed up all night making silk flower replicas for me. She was beside herself thinking I was going to be livid (not sure why? I wasn't a tough bride I don't think?), but until she told me I literally could not tell the difference.
My second wedding the cost of the flowers surprised me. We didn't want much - a bouquet, a boutineer, one decorative arrangement as a center piece, and a few other small arrangements for our mothers. I wish we had shopped that around a little more because I'm pretty sure we could have gotten everything for about half the price. So that's my advice - shop around a little if the couple decides they want to have real flowers.
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Post by needmysanity on Feb 25, 2020 22:36:05 GMT
When DS got married two years ago I think they paid less than $500 for all the wedding party flowers. I did the centerpieces and went to a wholesale place to get what I needed. I spent about $150 on 10 tables (tables had more than flowers on them). I also did the wedding party table with the same flowers.
They got married outdoors and didn't need a lot of decorations. The place was pretty without adding to it.
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pancakes
Drama Llama
Posts: 5,002
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Post by pancakes on Feb 25, 2020 23:06:34 GMT
Just dug out our old contract — we spent $3,150 in 2016 on our wedding florals, and it honestly was a steal for what we got. We did zero DIY ourselves, although our wedding planner brought in a couple of handmade items (like table numbers).
I’m not sure what her theme is, but you can do wonders with filler items for centerpieces. For my friend’s wedding, she had a rustic farmhouse vibe and had lots of mason jars, old books she thrifted, wooden logs/cut rounds, candles, etc. There were only bud vases with florals or one tall vase with inexpensive flowers per table.
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snowdie
Full Member
Posts: 190
Dec 30, 2018 4:45:59 GMT
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Post by snowdie on Feb 26, 2020 3:23:40 GMT
Wow so many good suggestions to share with my daughter!
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flatfish
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Posts: 158
May 26, 2019 3:17:27 GMT
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Post by flatfish on Feb 26, 2020 7:38:54 GMT
A wedding I will be going to this fall is rumored to be spending $50,000 on just the flowers. Can’t wait to see what 50k buys you.
Another wedding the bride made paper flowers out of comic book pages. I think they’re into the whole anime thing so it ties into their interest.
I did the center pieces for a wedding many years ago. Filled wide shallow glass bowls with water and floated gardenias in them. Looked like water lilies. Simple but very pretty for the venue plus didn’t break the bank.
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Post by AussieMeg on Feb 26, 2020 8:24:55 GMT
My co-worker's daughter used wooden flowers and said everyone raved about how pretty and reasonably priced they were. I've not seen them in person. Here's a link: Wow, I love them!! They look amazing in the wedding photos on the site - and you can colour co-ordinate them perfectly with the bridesmaids' outfits. |
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