Last Updated on November 17, 2022
When it comes to your wedding flowers, should you hire a professional florist or DIY? Here's how to decide what's right for you.
DIY Wedding Flowers? Find Out If You Should
Smart couples planning a wedding today always look for ways to hold the line on their wedding costs. One option some consider is doing their own wedding flowers.
Doing your wedding flowers can save money, but is it right for you?
Here’s How To Decide
Start by doing some online research. Articles, videos, and wedding blogs geared toward the DIY bride abound online, many explaining what’s involved in the process of doing wedding flowers yourself.
After doing a quick Google search, I found 16,000,000 results. So there’s no shortage of opinions online.
While I never discourage anyone from doing their wedding flowers, I don’t sugarcoat the process when asked. I tell it like it is.
So let’s dig in.
What To Consider Before Doing Your Wedding Flowers
If you’re thinking about doing your wedding flowers, here’s what to expect before getting started:
1. You Are the Person In Charge.
Once your flowers arrive on your doorstep, you are responsible for processing them. After you have finished your designs, you’re also responsible for storing, transporting, and setting up your floral decor.
Even with the help of family and friends, be prepared to do most and possibly all of the work yourself. And if anything goes wrong, don’t count on anyone being around to help fix it.
If that sounds like a daunting task, and you don’t want to spend the extra time and energy necessary to ensure everything looks perfect, then DIY isn’t your best option.
If you are ready to roll up your sleeves and work on your wedding flowers, keep one thing in mind.
It will take more time to get all the bouquets, corsages, boutonnieres, centerpieces, and floral decor ready for your big day. More times than not, that’s been my experience.
Allow yourself ample time to get everything done and adjust your timeline accordingly.
2. Be Realistic, But Have Fun, Too.
When you start dreaming about creating a beautiful bridal bouquet or lovely centerpieces for your wedding day, remember that it takes practice and patience to learn how to create some of the gorgeous flower arrangements you see.
So while you may feel confident enough to try your hand making DIY wedding bouquets, keep one thing in mind. No matter how much effort you put into it, you won’t achieve perfection with every bouquet or flower arrangement.
So don’t overthink it. Not every bouquet you make will be a magnificent piece of artwork. Mine aren’t either. Just have fun and enjoy the process. You’ll be surprised at how well things will come together.
3. Start Early With the Basics.
Before beginning your DIY wedding flowers project, take things slowly so you don’t get discouraged before you even start.
Focus first on basic floral design techniques. Remember that each variety of flower you work with will present a different challenge. For example, the proper way to wire an orchid or ivy leaf is different than wiring another type of flower, like a rose or carnation.
While you might think that knowing how to wire and tape stems is not important because you are not making corsages, just simple bouquets. What happens if you accidentally break off or damage a flower in the middle of your bouquet? Suddenly, that knowledge becomes very helpful.
Another example would be knowing how to properly prepare containers with floral foam and securing them for transport. One sudden stop or swerve could cause significant damage to larger arrangements and complex centerpieces while transporting them to your venue. Trust me, it happens. Proper preparation is essential to help minimize damage.
Once you gain confidence with the flower prep basics, you can move on to larger tasks like creating bouquets and more ambitious floral arrangements.
The critical thing to remember is that seeing something done by a professional floral designer in a video is different from actually doing it yourself.
Nothing beats hands-on experience, so plan to invest some time and money in making a couple of sample fresh flower bouquets. And do it early. You need to decide if you are getting in over your head before you start working with expensive flowers.
4. Take Advantage of Free Resources.
The Internet offers countless websites full of wedding ideas and information, from different types of wedding flowers to DIY wedding flower arrangements. This site is one example.
Watching a few video tutorials will give you insight into what you can do yourself and when you’ll need outside help.
Many books also provide step-by-step instructions for creating beautiful bouquets and arrangements of fresh flowers for your wedding day, often in greater detail than videos.
Take advantage of these resources, but don’t hesitate to ask for help if you have questions.
Asking questions is one of the best ways to figure out how to accomplish something new. Don’t hesitate to contact an experienced floral designer if you have questions.
For example, contact a florist if you aren’t sure how to finish off a wedding bouquet properly. Most are happy to help you out. Don’t get stuck. Get help.
5. Know Your Venue.
While most DIYers usually make simple bouquet designs and floral decor for the ceremony and reception, it’s essential to know what your wedding venue allows or doesn’t.
For example, many venues, like churches and reception halls, do not allow tapes or adhesives to fasten wedding decor because it can cause damage to the surface finish when removed. That’s a simple detail you might want to know ahead of time.
Each venue sets rules regarding the types of wedding flowers and floral decor they allow, so be sure you know what those rules are beforehand.
6. Plan For Contingencies.
No one wants to deal with last-minute emergencies, especially regarding something as important as your wedding.
One of the most significant issues is transporting your bouquets and arrangements to the venue. It can present challenges, no matter how large or small your wedding is.
To prevent problems, gather all the necessary tools and supplies you’ll need beforehand.
That way, you’ll avoid wasting valuable time searching for items once you arrive at your destination. Most professional florists, ourselves included, carry a basic flower arrangement kit filled with floral supplies and tools in their delivery vehicles, just in case something unexpected happens.
We also carry extra blooms if something gets damaged or we need to make a quick corsage or boutonniere.
The saying goes, “Fail to plan, plan to fail.”
7. Relax And Enjoy Yourself.
If you are frustrated that things aren’t going as you imagined, stop and take a breath. Frustration is something we all deal with from time to time. Don’t let it drag you down.
Remember, one of the reasons you chose to do the wedding bouquets yourself was because working with fresh flowers is fun and something you enjoy doing.
This attitude will keep you focused and motivated, allowing you to complete your project without having second thoughts.
Once you see the finished product, you’ll realize that fun and enjoyment play a significant role in creating the bouquets and other arrangements for your wedding.
The Bottom Line: Is It Worth It To Do Your Wedding Flowers Yourself?
According to the Knot, the average amount couples spent on wedding flowers in 2021 was $2300. So it’s not surprising that saving money is a big reason brides choose to do their wedding bouquets.
It’s certainly less expensive to make them yourself than to have them done professionally. But it’s still a trade-off between time and money,
There aren’t any hard and fast rules about whether or not you should choose to create your wedding bouquets yourself. The decision rests with you and depends on your personal preferences and wedding budget.
However, if you decide to do it yourself, following these tips make you more likely to have an enjoyable experience.
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Til next time.
