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When to Book Your Wedding Florist?

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Planning a perfect wedding is not an easy task, especially if you are on a budget and looking to plan the big event all by yourself. From choosing the best wedding outfit, a design for the wedding cake, budgeting for catering, to dealing with guest invitations, it can be quite an overwhelming task if you try to do it all at once.

There is one thing that people focus on when planning a wedding: the exact date to book wedding florists.

Wedding florists play a very crucial role in determining the best types of flowers to be used based on your wedding theme. They also bear the responsibility of arranging a perfect bridal bouquet and corsages while getting the most for your money.

beautiful bride and groom in the wedding ceremony area of live white and pink flowers.

If you are one of the people who prefer to hire a professional for this type of work, then, the million-dollar question should be asked: When is the best time to book a wedding florist?

Simply put, there is no one definite answer to which time is the best to book wedding florists. It is subjective and totally up to you to make your own best judgment.

However, to make sure everything goes smoothly according to your plan, the ideal timeframe to secure wedding florists is 9 to 10 months before the wedding.

This is to ensure that the florists are available on your needed date and can prepare your order accordingly.

On the upside, if you have any changes, this time-gap allows them to have some room to modify your order without having to rush on anything.

How to Book a Wedding Florist?

Before you hire any wedding florists and make a payment, there are some things on your part that should be cleared to avoid time-wasting issues and last-minute changes.

Consider these steps as your own little research to save you a lot of time and possibly, money. These include:

Set your wedding date and venue

Don’t make a deposit or upfront payment on any vendors, including wedding florists until you have set the wedding date. There are so many things, hiccups, and setbacks that can happen if you don’t have a date that is set in stone.

You will be wasting a lot of time, especially yours, when the venue you want is already booked on that specific date. Conversely, you also shouldn’t make any last-minute bookings or jump in too late to hire wedding florists.

Depending on the availability of the flowers and the schedule that the florists have set, the price you get might increase and vary a lot compared to an early booking. So, be sure to finalize the date and venue before reaching out to any wedding florists.

Count the number of guests

Floral frame with a list of wedding guests

Your bridesmaids aren’t the only group of people who need flowers; your guests might need them too. Generally speaking, the flowers won’t be given directly to them but they are usually placed on tables as decoration.

Knowing how many tables there will be and the number of expected guests will make it easier for you to set a ceiling amount of money to spend on this decoration, which comes down to the next point: your budget.

Have an estimated budget

Knowing how much you are willing to spend on flowers and decoration will take away some of the biggest burdens of planning a wedding. Some people are willing to spend thousands of dollars just to achieve their definition of a perfect wedding.

Don’t be tempted by the trends and do what your heart desires. It is better to go with an affordable but meaningful budget than splurging a large sum just to impress people for short period of time.

Aside from the flowers, you should also take into account the decoration fees, transportation costs, additional charges for other floral-related services, and taxes. Some specialty flowers will cost more due their high demand and availability, especially for species with that bloom just a few times per year.

Know your wedding style

Artificial Flowers Hanging from Ceiling

Oftentimes, your florists will guide you on how to choose the best flowers that suit your wedding theme. But there is no harm in coming up with a few rough concepts and general ideas of floral style that you want. Perhaps this will accelerate the process and make it easier for the florists to finish your bookings.

You can ask them for samples of their previous work to draw some inspiration. If you’re feeling creative, look at bridal magazines and sit down with your family and friends for a brainstorming session.

Know the difference between wedding florists and floral designers

It is quite easy to assume that great wedding florists can quote you the best price due to their vast experience of working in this industry. But frankly speaking, you shouldn’t base your judgment solely on their proposal and words.

There must be reasons why their price is different from what you have expected. For instance, some people are florists while others are floral designers. Florists generally don’t restrict their work to just bridal events. They extend their service to all kinds of events that requires fresh flowers.

On the other hand, floral designers focus on an aesthetic approach to flowers and are able to visualize floral decorations that are tailored to a specific event or niche.

Ask around for a second opinion

Beautiful wedding flower arrangement

There is no harm in asking for other people’s opinion and recommendations. This is the part where your own due diligence takes place.

You don’t have to rush anything, even if the florists try to persuade you to close the deal. But be sure not to procrastinate and decide everything at last minute.

If you have any questions, don’t hesitate to ask before making a final decision.

Schedule an interview and decide

Last but not least, you can schedule a quick meet-up or interview (be it online or face-to-face) with the florists to know more about their services.

You can ask them for portfolios, past experience, and suggestions to gauge their skills and ability to deliver.

Doing some online research is also enough to look at reviews given by their past clients.

Once you are satisfied with everything, make the payment and trust your florists. For the sake of the wedding, try to have an open communication with them whenever unexpected issues come up.

Wedding decor flowers and candles

Additional tips:

  • Don’t fret about the amount of flowers that you should book for all the guest tables. Your florists generally will make their best judgment and decide what is best for your wedding.
  • It is totally fine if you don’t know how to identify what flower species go with the overall wedding theme. All you have to do is tell the florists the design and style that you want, and they will know which flowers or floral decorations go along with it.

Final Thoughts

Choosing the best florist that can cater to your demand or needs is important to ensure that the wedding goes according to your plan. After all, flowers are fragile and quite delicate to be transported, especially if they are being ordered in bulk.

Wedding florists will try their best to keep the flowers fresh until the day of the wedding. Remember to be open about what you want and they will do their best to make it happen.

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